Our Director publishes a book about the River Dart

What is your book Becoming The Ocean about?

It combines travelogue, history, wildlife and memoir.

I’ve tried to take someone who, perhaps, knows nothing about the Dart, or this part of the world, on a journey down the river from its source to the sea. And through this journey, we get to explore the amazing historical characters and events which have had impacts far beyond South Devon.

We discover the problems facing the river and the wildlife that relies on it and through this I explore our relationship with the natural world and the philosophical approach we have developed at The Sharpham Trust in response.

Had you always wanted to write a book?

I suppose so but it’s the cliché of needing to find the time.

I guess I needed the motivation of wanting to do something to improve the state of the river, as well as the opportunity to describe the 'Sharpham Approach'.

In the book I talk about the travel literature that inspired me when I was young, with writers like Bruce Chatwin, where the journey is really a quest for insight beyond simple tourism. Writing the book enabled me to synthesise my thinking about the causes and issues which underly the problems with our rivers.

The writing process is a discipline which forces you to look for clarity. At the same time, I wanted to combine facts and stories with a poetic sense so the narrative wouldn’t be too dry or academic. I have deliberately tried to make the book accessible and offer something for everyone, I hope.

What’s next following the publication of your book?

The Wild Dart Partnership is going from strength to strength. We published our Action Plan for the river last year and we are now working on securing the funding to develop the partnership and implement changes.

This means rewetting the peat on Dartmoor, planting trees along the river and its tributaries, helping landowners and farmers manage water on their land, empowering communities and volunteers to care of the river and making sure our waste doesn’t end up polluting the river.

This is a 10 to 20-year project but it is achievable, if we can get the various government organisations, community groups and landowners working together with shared objectives.  

Becoming the Ocean is available for sale in the following places:

• in retreat venues at The Sharpham Trust
• as a hardback online here, and a paperback online here
• as an e-book here
• through bookshops, including East Gate Books in Totnes

£1 is donated to The Sharpham Trust for each copy ordered directly from the publisher, using the links above