Wild places, better headspace

To mark this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, BASC’s Gareth Dockerty reflects on a day spent on the North York Moors and the quiet but important role gamekeepers play in creating landscapes that benefit both people and nature.

There are days when everything feels rushed. The emails pile up, meetings overrun and somehow you still seem to be running late for absolutely everything.

What should have been a welcome escape from my desk recently very nearly became another stressful tick-box exercise. I was due to take a chef and a nutritionist onto a grouse moor to demonstrate how wild food links directly to one of our most important upland habitats and the species it supports. Instead, thanks to a chaotic morning, I arrived at the meeting point more than an hour late.

As I drove there, the usual doubts crept in. What if we don’t see any wildlife? What if I’ve become too office-based and forgotten half of what I used to know instinctively? What if the day simply falls flat?

Thankfully, the sun was shining. At the very least, I thought, perhaps a bit of vitamin D might improve my mood.

A change of mood

Within minutes of stepping out onto the moor, however, everything changed. Almost immediately, a curlew swept low across the landscape in front of us. There is something unforgettable about that bird – the long curved bill, the broad wings and, of course, that haunting call that defines so much of our uplands. I always forget just how large and impressive they are until I see one properly again.

As soon as I heard its call, all the facts and figures came flooding back. We spoke about the dramatic decline of curlew populations across the UK and how managed grouse moors are now among the last strongholds where these iconic birds can breed successfully.

By complete coincidence, it also happened to be World Curlew Day, which somehow made the encounter even more fitting.

Fragile habitats

A little later we stopped beside a stream in the middle of the North York Moors National Park. Looking out across the landscape, I was asked a perfectly understandable question: “Does the National Park own this land?”

No, I explained. This is privately managed land, but open for everyone to enjoy. Every year, millions of people visit places like this to walk, cycle, picnic, birdwatch, paint or simply breathe in the fresh air and appreciate the view.

Of course, with access comes responsibility. We spoke about the devastating wildfire nearby last summer, believed to have been started by an illegal campfire, which burned for months and scarred the landscape. It was a reminder of just how fragile these habitats can be.

As we moved further across the moor, the wildlife continued to appear as though someone had carefully scripted the day. A hen grouse sat tight amongst the heather while lapwings wheeled overhead. Moments later, an adder slipped silently away from a sunny patch of ground into the shadows. I started to feel as though the entire moor was putting on a performance.

What makes a good keeper

Then came the unmistakable sound of an ATV approaching across the heather. The local gamekeeper pulled alongside us. Although I knew the head keeper, I suddenly realised that in my rush that morning I hadn’t given him the usual courtesy call to say we were coming. However, I needn’t have worried.

Within minutes we were discussing lapwing nests, perfectly camouflaged eggs hidden amongst the heather and the delicate balancing act involved in managing these landscapes. He pointed out areas where merlin were nesting and talked knowledgeably about the local barn owls and how their habits had changed over recent seasons.

It struck me again that good keepers know every inch of their ground. More importantly, they know the wildlife living on it.

As the afternoon continued, we heard skylarks above the calls of grouse, watched geese crossing the skyline and examined one of the legal spring traps used as part of predator management to help vulnerable ground-nesting birds survive.

We also stood inside a grouse butt and discussed why people travel from all over the world to experience driven grouse shooting and test themselves against what many still regard as the king of gamebirds.

Mental and physical health benefits

Three hours after arriving – stressed, late and distracted – I drove home feeling entirely different. Calmer. Clearer. Better.

And it reminded me of something we perhaps do not talk about enough. The countryside does not just support wildlife; it supports people too.

Every single day, countless individuals benefit mentally and physically from access to these landscapes. Whether they are walkers, cyclists, photographers, artists or birdwatchers, people leave places like this feeling restored.

Much of that experience is only possible because these landscapes are actively managed and cared for – often privately funded through sustainable shooting and by the people working on the ground every day.

So, during Mental Health Awareness Week, perhaps it is worth recognising not only the value of nature itself, but also the people who help maintain it. Thank you to all the species that played their part that day and thank you to the keepers who provide the stage.

Gareth Dockerty

Gareth is Executive Director of shooting operations at BASC. Having joined the organisation in 2016, Gareth’s role focuses on ensuring decision makers, stakeholders and the public understand the benefits of shooting for upland habitats and rural communities.