July 10: First day of Class at the Lotus Lodge in Wanlockhead
Monday, July 10
First day of class at the Lotus Lodge. Though tired and weary, students engaged in an orientation session for the Environmental Literature course and began exploring the meaning of wildness through reading and experiencing some of the landscapes that have inspired the work of a number of prominent nature writers. It was cold today (in the 50s and rainy most of the day). Several students participated in a maiden hike up the hill behind Lotus Lodge while others explored the village, which is situated at the center of the Lowther hills. Wanlockhead played a prominent role in Scotland’s lead mining industry up until the 1950s, and remnants of the mining industry’s influence on the lives of Wanlockhead’s residents can be found throughout the village. It perhaps comes as no surprise that the main tourist attraction in Wanlockhead is its lead mining museum, which we expect to be visiting at the end of the week. The village is home to just a few hundred residents, so it’s quite small. The scenery in and around Wanlockhead is spectacular and can be enjoyed from various points along the Southern Upland Way. At day’s end, we cooked dinner together, which was quite the production for 16 people; but also quite satisfying after all the travel and physical activity.
