D.H. Lawrence, Love Among the Haystacks - Day Walk
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This walk is a most attractive one, predominantly across fields and through woods. Even at the height of the mining industry the countryside of D H Lawrence's youth was a mixed rural/mining landscape - now, the only colliery has closed down and been replaced by a modern industrial park.
D.H Lawrence fiction abounds with overheated evocations of male beauty and male bonding; his men love to give each other rubdowns, as George and Cyril do in The White Peacock (1911), or wrestle naked on the library carpet, as Rupert and Gerald do in Women in Love (1920).
The walk has plenty of Lawrence connections: the colliery site was Minton Pit in Sons and Lovers (1913), the drowning tragedy in Women in Love was based on an actual incident in Moorgreen Reservoir and the fields encountered near the end of this walk were the setting for Love Among the Haystacks (1912).
Gay History and Legend
Did you know D.H. Lawrence wrote Lady Chatterley's Lover after reading the gay novel Maurice by his friend E.M. Forster, a book written by 1915 that remained unpublished until after the writer died in 1970. Both books have some mirrored themes such as liaison between the main character and a game keeper. Lady Chatterley's Lover was also unavailable on UK bookshelves for a good period of time, but in a celebrated obscenity trail in 1960, in which Forster appeared as a witness, Penguin won the right to publish.
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What to bring
Although a shorter walk I would still recommend wearing walking boots for this one (although you might get away with trainers), and perhaps a big thick pair of socks. There's are a couple of sharp inclines and sections where we cross fields which could be muddy, so gaiters could be a good choice.
It will be February so bring plenty of layers of clothes (i.e. breathable T-shirt, a fleece and waterproof jacket to go over the lot). If you're new to walking events please see the page below for more advice https://www.outdoorlads.com/my-first-walking-event
Food & drink
At the walks mid point there is a brilliant viewpoint over Nottingham and I'd like to stop there to eat my sandwiches. You should bring a packed lunch and plenty of water there is nowhere on route to pick up food or provisions.