The pinch of Salt Path

Caitlin Jones (16), Kirin Woodvine (17), with Julie Brominicks (53)

‘The Salt Path’ is a book published in 2018 about one couple’s rejuvenating walk around the Cornish coast.

Described by publishers Penguin as being ‘unflinchingly honest’, author Raynor Winn (real name Sally Walker) recounts how she and her partner Moth (Timothy Walker) became homeless after lending money to a friend who then lost it in a dodgy business scheme.

Moth had been diagnosed with a degenerative neurological condition called corticobasal degeneration (CBD). With nowhere to go, they set off on The South West Coast Path and over the course of the walk, Moth’s health improved.

The book went on to sell two million copies worldwide and ‘The Salt Path’ film is now in cinemas.

An investigation by The Observer questioned some elements of the book presented as being true. Rather than being cheated out of money by a friend, Sally Walker had stolen £64,000 from her former employer; an estate agent in Pwllheli. She was arrested, but one of Timothy Walker’s relatives lent the couple money so that Sally could repay what she had stolen and avoid going to court.

Repayment

When the relative’s business collapsed he requested repayment of his money; which was secured against the Walkers’ house.

After speaking to nine neurologists and researchers specialising in CBD, investigative journalist Chloe Hadjimatheou also questions the author’s account of her husband’s disease, and her claim that the challenging walks they undertook helped reverse symptoms.

Doctor’s letters released by the Walkers show his condition is ‘atypical’ because he is affected ‘very mildly.’ Bill Cole, who let the couple live on his farm cheaply, told the Observer that in Autumn 2021; about the same time that in ‘Landlines’ (The Salt Path sequel) a neurologist found Walker’s brain scan to be ‘normal’ having recovered again during another trek, Timothy Walker informed Cole he’d been told by doctors ‘not to plan beyond Christmas’.

The investigations have devastated many readers who were emotionally invested in the couple’s story of healing and recovery in the face of misfortune.

Curiosity

The Observer report was undertaken by five reporters over four months. In Machynlleth, the curiosity of one author of a book about the Wales Coast Path and two sixth-form work-experience writers was piqued. The trio spent a blustery day gauging opinion in two of Machynlleth’s bookshops; Penrallt Books and Literary Cat, and writing up their thoughts and findings in Machynlleth library.

Writer Julie Brominicks has noted that many publishers post Salt Path have preferred authors of ‘nature-writing’ to have emotive back-stories, and finds it frustrating that this market preference has been shaped by untruths.

Diane Bailey of Penrallt Books explains that when Robert Macfarlane’s books about landscape and nature were becoming popular some thirteen years ago, there was a notable lack of female writers in the genre. This concern was shared by publishers eager to fill the gap. First came Helen Macdonald’s ‘H is for Hawk’ in 2014. When ‘The Salt Path’ followed in 2018, Bailey says it was powerfully pushed by Penguin.

Meanwhile, the investigation inspired English-literature student Caitlin Jones to consider the role of truth in the genre of non-fiction creative writing, and raised concerns about the ethical considerations for law-student Kirin Woodvine. Over an afternoon in Machynlleth they discussed opinions surrounding the report with local readers. Throughout the varying perspectives, one word seemed to anchor them all: ‘truth’.

The shocking revelation that fact and fiction can be easily framed as one is a concern for readers across the world, especially in an age of fast, unreliable news. In this light, The Salt Path isn’t a simple betrayal of morals, but a much-needed warning to passive consumers who take information as it comes. As local bookseller Diane Bailey of Penrallt Books perfectly summated: it is best to adopt a ‘philosophy of doubt’.

Inspiring 

It is clear that The Salt Path is an inspiring story, but can that alone pardon it of the crime of misleading readers? As another bookseller, Jenny at Literary Cat stated: ‘It was the first of its kind’, a blazing torch for female writers previously missing from nature travel writing bookshelves. Whilst the disappointment of invested readers is natural, the wake of this controversy has left the book’s positives lost amidst scandal.

Literary Cat staff agreed, when asked if the novel’s impact lost its weight post-exposé they were ‘not sure a book can be ruined because everyone has their own response to it’. This raises the point that truth itself is subjective.

Whilst the allegations pinned against Raynor Winn are not to be taken lightly, the book has, as all books do, a life beyond its author. It is entwined with the lives and experiences of those who took solace in its hopeful narrative. Whilst the content is proven false, the emotion it evokes is everything but.

But how are readers actually affected by the exaggeration/concealing of the truth? One gentleman we spoke to in a bookshop came in specifically to purchase a copy of the book, having taken notice of it due to the recent controversy. To him, whether it was truth or not did not matter, as he had interest in other aspects of the story, the nature walk, as opposed to the personal background.

About the potential misleading and whether it is morally wrong this customer said ‘that’s between her and her conscience.’ In contrast there was another customer who appeared outraged by the potential lies in this book. Having read every article on the issue, he described it as a betrayal.

Deception

Despite not having read the book, he had strong feelings on the deception related to the particular subject matter.

From ambivalence to anger and even mirth, reactions in Machynlleth as elsewhere are wide-ranging. The revelations have certainly grabbed attention, resulting in a sudden queue of holds in the library, made by people wanting to borrow the book.

In the words of bookseller Diane Bailey ‘it’s complicated, because it’s about life, and life is complicated.’