LATEST | NI traffic alerts: Full list of road closures due to flooding and Larne road closed after collision The Shetland Times reserves the right to decline or remove any contribution without notice or stating reason. Nine months into his five and a half year journey Christian adopted a dog, Jet, which has accompanied him all the rest of the way. Three and a half years in he met his soulmate, Kate Barron, who also joined him in his trek. The pair now have a baby son.

Finding Hildasay by Christian Lewis - Pan Macmillan

A man who lived in Shetland for nine months while walking the length of the UK is to release a book about his journey. These adverts enable local businesses to get in front of their target audience – the local community.Finding Hildasay is Christian Lewis’s brutal but beautiful true story of survival, walking the coast of Britain – his dog Jet in tow – and finding a different way to live. With a foreword from longtime supporter Ben Fogle. A self-described “all-or-nothing kind of guy”, Lewis has added even more to his adventure, completing the Three Peaks challenge – climbing the mountains of Snowdon, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis – along the way. Not only, he says, has it restored his faith in humanity, it’s also how he met Kate, the woman who is now his wife and with whom he has a son, and a pet dog, Jet – a lurcher cross. But what he really hadn’t bargained on was the passengers set to join him: Jet, a beautiful dog he adopted on the west coast of Scotland, who hasn’t left his side since, and the love of his life Kate, who he met by a pure twist of fate and who has just welcomed their baby Magnus into the world. The family of four are set to finish the final leg of their coastal journey together." What has his journey given him so far? “I don’t need much if I’ve got this,” he says, gesturing around him. “As long as I’ve got Jet, Kate and Magnus, then I don’t need anything else to make me happy.” Then, with a shrug of his shoulders, he adds: “The simpler things in life: staying young and having fun – not getting too serious – are very important. And I love the outdoors.” In his darkest depression, one idea brought Christian Lewis out of the depths - and into a new life. Finding Hildasay is a brutal and beautiful true story of depression, survival and the meaning of home. With a foreword from long-time supporter Ben Fogle.

Finding Hildasay by Christian Lewis - Pan Macmillan Finding Hildasay by Christian Lewis - Pan Macmillan

In my mind, I would imagine the worst-case scenario and make sure I was ready for it. If I was to snap a leg in one of the wild sections of Scotland edging around a mountain, I would work out what I would need and that would be all I took. My foraging skills were something I was getting much better at, and if I had wi-fi, I’d always be jotting down tips in my journal and then putting them into practice. Northern Ireland One of NI’s leading companies will ‘take some time to fully reopen’ after Newry flooding 18:26 Mr Lewis said the book would show people “the reality of what this walk was like from the beginning”.He made an impulsive decision to set himself a challenge of walking the entire UK coastline. Little did he know at the time just how long it would take to cross the finish line — and the encounters that lay ahead that would turn his life around. Pan Macmillan has bagged Finding Hildasay, a memoir from veteran Chris Lewis which reflects on his time spent walking the United Kingdom coastline. In his darkest depression, one idea brought Christian Lewis out of the depths - and into a new life. Finding Hildasay, read by the author, is a brutal and beautiful true story of depression, survival, walking, and the meaning of home.

Life on the edge: meet the man who walked around the UK

Please note, it is the policy of The Shetland Times to publish comments and letters from named individuals only. Both forename and surname are required. Join Christian Lewis as he walks the entire coastline of the UK – his dog Jet in tow – and rebuilds his life, step by step. With a foreword from longtime supporter Ben Fogle, Finding HIldasay is his inspiring true story of reconnecting with nature and finding hope along the way. I had mixed emotions as the ferry started to pull off. After my last time here, I’d vowed never to return again — but this time I’d seen it in a completely different light. I’d loved my time there and would leave with wonderful memories. Now I was finally out of the force of the wind, my body began to warm - the part where the real pain sets in. I'd felt it plenty of times before on this journey, but this time it was different. As I began to regain feeling in my fingers and toes, it burned so strongly that I just sat in tears of pain.'Now I was finally out of the force of the wind, my body began to warm – the part where the real pain sets in. I’d felt it plenty of times before on this journey, but this time it was different. As I began to regain feeling in my fingers and toes, it burned so strongly that I just sat in tears of pain.’