<p>I took a sandwich course in Civil Engineering at Teesside Polytechnic. Civil Engineering is about ‘Harnessing the Power of Nature for the Benefit of Mankind ’ and to me that is an exciting and fascinating thing to do.&nbsp; The main reason for &nbsp; choosing Teesside&nbsp; was that it was near the Lake District, there were strong climbers based in the area, &nbsp; the little crags of the North York Moors lay close to hand and Scotland was just over the Border. Graduating in&nbsp; 1976 I joined Cumbria County Highways and with my combined experience and a bridge design under my belt I reached Charted Engineer status&nbsp; and became&nbsp; a Member of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1981. I was twenty nine. Writing and photographing for&nbsp; climbing magazines began in&nbsp; the late 1970’s and following publication of ‘Winter Climbs In The Lake District’ in 1980 and ‘Lakelands Greatest Pioneers’ in 1983 magazine work and my photography increased significantly and in 1985 I became a freelance writer and photographer though I have made numerous sorties back into civil engineering.<br>
But to cut a long story short&nbsp; it’s&nbsp; probably best if I explain what climbing, walking, mountains and wild places mean to me. There are three main threads and through time each has taken on a different level of importance. These are climbing itself, nature and the landscape, and friends that you share these experiences with.&nbsp; Sometimes climbing is all important, you have to be totally dedicated, performance, beating the challenge, are everything. At other times&nbsp; it’s the appreciation &nbsp; of the wild and wonderful places; a rainbow over Glencoe, moonlight, silence and frost&nbsp; on Bowfell, the sheer beauty, naked granite&nbsp; and wildness of Patagonia, the northern lights throwing curtains of light across the Isle of Skye’s&nbsp; night sky. Then &nbsp; again sometimes it’s all about&nbsp; the people you are with, the fun, the laugher and banter, it doesn’t matter a jot where you are or what you are doing.&nbsp;<br>
All of them intertwine to varying degrees and writing and photography, my books and work,&nbsp; are&nbsp; just my way of passing on the wonder of all this to you.&nbsp;<br>
I must say, before I finish, I love to travel and although I have many favourite places in the world, the lure of something new is irresistible. And I also love motorcycling. The thrill of the open road is the nearest thing I know to the freedom of climbing and&nbsp; walking. I find watching thre real road racers at the IOM TT and the Ulster Grand&nbsp;<br>
Prix,&nbsp; racing exotic machinery at totally unbelievable speed,&nbsp; is both thrilling and intoxicating.&nbsp;<br>
A wonderful world – so much to do – so little time.<br>
Bill Birkett is a:<br>
Member of the British&nbsp; Guild of Travel Writers<br>
Member of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild<br>
Member of The Society of Authors<br>
Member of the Fell and Rock Climbing Club of&nbsp; the English Lake District<br>
Member of the Climbers Club<br>
Member of The British Mountaineering Council<br>
Member of the Austrian Alpine Club<br>
&nbsp;<br>
BSc, MICE, CEng: Member of&nbsp; The Institution of Civil Engineers and a Chartered Engineer.</p>