It is a sentiment which generations of visitors to the Lake District will no doubt identify with after experiencing the literal highs and lows of the Cumbrian mountains.
And few people appreciate the joy of the hills more than Nicky Merrett, who has been helping tourists and corporate clients soak up the atmosphere and elation for more than a decade through her business Hiking Highs.
Merrett grew up near Kendal and spent her childhood accompanying her father stalking deer in the Shap Fells.
“We spent our lives, every weekend, stalking deer, wearing stinky Barbours, eating a bit of mint cake and an apple,” she says.
However, as she reached adulthood, Merrett admits she temporarily turned her back on the outdoor life to become “a bit of a townie” and work in financial management.
This changed around 15 years ago when she was reintroduced to mountain walking, and then discovered running in the fells.
She moved, with her family, to a remote and spectacular cottage at the foot of Helvellyn, in the picturesque valley which splits the landscape between the mountain and Ullswater.
“What led me back the fells was the freedom and the switching off and tuning in,” says Merrett.
“I realised how much I had been missing it and what it gave to me as a person. Now my job is to try and offer a similar experience to others.”
Over the years, Hiking Highs has assembled an impressively knowledgeable and experienced selection of 12 qualified mountain leaders.
This includes former Lake District National Park Authority Chief Executive Richard Leafe, as well as Helvellyn felltop assessor Zac Poulton and Blue Badge Guide Gordon Lightburn, former chair of the Friends of the Ullswater Way and founder of the Wordsworth Way.
Tina Codling, author of the recently published Mountain Walks Helvellyn, and mountain rescue team members Louisa Rodriguez and Gary Lingard are also on the team.
“Each team member brings a world of experience and knowledge and a different journey to all our hikers,” says Merrett.
Merrett has built relationships with tourism and hospitality operators to offer multi-day walking holiday packages, including trips on attractions such as the Ullswater Steamers and the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway.
Red deer hikes, delivered on behalf of Dalemain Estates, have also allowed Merrett’s life to come full circle, passing on her father’s knowledge and passion for the majestic creatures.
Hiking Highs has also teamed up with Honister Slate Mine to combine their Via Ferrata activities, in which people scale the side of Honister Crag using a series of metal ladders, steps and cables, with a mission to hike to the summit of either Scafell Pike or Haystacks, overlooking Buttermere (and which, incidentally, was Wainwright’s favourite peak).
They also work with the Honister team to put on a fell race which also incorporates going underground into the mine workings.
This is in addition to collaborations with international travel companies Abercrombie and Kent, Rabbie’s Tours and Miki Travel, which use Hiking Highs as their preferred provider of guided walks in the Lake District.
Alongside this, Merrett also offers training in mountain skills and navigation, as well as Nordic walking for the fells, in which walkers use poles to help them progress along their way efficiently.
“It’s lovely to take people out on guided walks, but it’s also lovely to give people the skills to come back, and do those journeys themselves and explore that little bit further, to come back and learn some more, to come back and feel empowered,” says Merrett.
As well as guiding, she also offers accommodation, either in a cosy “hut by the beck” complete with kitchenette, en suite and balcony in her garden, or a self-contained “room with a view” within her own home.
Some of the most impactful work she does involves taking corporate teams into the Lakeland fells, using the experiences and challenges they encounter to build deeper understanding and bonds between colleagues.
Participants turn off their smartphones during the walks and are only allowed to access them in breaks to respond to anything essential.
“It helps people to feel and be who they really are, away from their persona in the office. We’re not team building, we’re building teams,” says Merrett.
“The hierarchy changes. People talk as they ascend. As the blood vessels start opening, so does the emotion, which I find fascinating.
“I realised there was a real market for allowing your staff to get to know each other as people. Natural teams will evolve when there is a little bit of a challenge. You will see people begin to support each other through difficult sections, or where there is a bit of a drop or if anyone finds themselves a little unsteady.
“It shows we are all the same but we have different abilities. Things emerge as they begin to open up and people realise their capabilities.”
Organisations which Merrett walks with regularly include young leading scientists involved with the Rank Prize charity, which awards researchers from all over the world in the fields of nutrition and optoelectronics.
She also has a long-term relationship working with senior sales staff from car dealer Vertu Motors.
Other clients have included healthcare company Edwards Lifesciences, which develops technology and techniques to treat cardiovascular diseases, including heart valves.
“When we walk on the ground outdoors we are rebalancing everything,” says Merrett.
“Lots of people spend all their time walking on tarmac, so they don’t experience that.
“We have lost the ability to stabilise our bodies when our foot lands on uneven ground. If you enable your body to work well then your brain will work well too.
“Some people are nervous to start with because they think they might be picked on or singled out or it will show that they have a weakness. Our skill is to allow people to have a little bit of uneasiness but still give them the quiet confidence to give it a go.”
In the future, Merrett wants to continue to expand her corporate work, as well as offering more for hillwalking tourists.
“We want to build connections with local hotel groups, and train reception staff to get to know us too,” she says.
“We favour organic marketing and referrals from word of mouth. Although a social media presence is essential, for Hiking Highs meeting other business owners and hospitality providers in person, and through our collaborations with Cumbria Tourism and the Ullswater Association, plays a huge part in our work.”
She says, for her, the most important thing is to find ways to help people enjoy the benefits of “switching off and tuning in” no matter what background they are from.
“People are blown away by what is right on their doorstep, but which they didn’t know was there,” she says.
“They are unearthing something which is so close but yet so far.”