I'm Melissa Talago. Chief Glamorak. I love to walk, escaping life, having adventures and seeing jaw-dropping scenery (when it's not obscured by clouds).
I'm not a hard core hiker, those strange uber fit people capable of carrying the weight of three people on their backs whilst they leap gazelle-like over craggy cliffs. In fact I'm afraid of heights, cows and farmyard dogs. And I'm not terribly good at carrying heavy things.
But I don't mind having a pee behind a bush or getting soaked in the rain. I enjoy the occasional wild camp or night beneath the stars in just a bivvy bag, but I won't say no to a cosy pub with a roaring fire and a nice glass of wine after a good long stomp.
I've had my share of adventures - climbing Kilimanjaro, walking the Coast to Coast, doing the West Highland Way, sleeping on a cliff with a hurricane approaching - but adventuring isn't my full time job. I have a full time job and run the Glamoraks community, look after two teens and have an active social life. I'm just a normal, busy woman who enjoys walking and meeting new people. And I want to help you do the same.
I'm not a hard core hiker, those strange uber fit people capable of carrying the weight of three people on their backs whilst they leap gazelle-like over craggy cliffs. In fact I'm afraid of heights, cows and farmyard dogs. And I'm not terribly good at carrying heavy things.
But I don't mind having a pee behind a bush or getting soaked in the rain. I enjoy the occasional wild camp or night beneath the stars in just a bivvy bag, but I won't say no to a cosy pub with a roaring fire and a nice glass of wine after a good long stomp.
I've had my share of adventures - climbing Kilimanjaro, walking the Coast to Coast, doing the West Highland Way, sleeping on a cliff with a hurricane approaching - but adventuring isn't my full time job. I have a full time job and run the Glamoraks community, look after two teens and have an active social life. I'm just a normal, busy woman who enjoys walking and meeting new people. And I want to help you do the same.
There is so much of the world to see. Isn't it time you saw it?
How did it all start?
I began to ask some friends to walk with me, who - when they're not wearing anoraks and gaiters - don high heels and lippy. Hence the name Glamoraks. But they weren't always available. And while I enjoy walking on my own, there is something about walking with other women that is good for the soul. You have much deeper, longer conversations that you typically just don't have time for in normal rushed life. When you walk with women you don't really know, you can simply be yourself. You can leave your 'mum', 'co-worker', 'wife', 'school gate friend' persona behind. Your true self comes to the fore and you can talk about stuff far more freely without risk of judgement. And that gives us the sense of being heard and being less alone.
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I began walking in earnest in 2014 after I read the book Wild, by Cheryl Strayed. My then husband and children were away and I was blessed with two days to myself. I went to a hiking shop and bought a pair of boots and a map. I glanced at the weather, which had an amber warning for rain and gale force winds. But I thought, sod it, and off I went. I walked along the North Yorkshire coast, singing to the sheep at the top of my lungs in driving rain while admiring the stunning seascape. I walked 14 miles, spent the night in a hostel, and walked back again the next day. All entirely on my own. It was the most brilliant fun ever. I was hooked.
So I set up a Facebook group in January 2017 and women from around the world started to join. I realised that it wasn't just me who felt the pull of nature and the desire to get outdoors - there were loads of us! And unlike hard core adventure types free of kids/career/mortgage, these women are also juggling lots of things and putting themselves last. It felt more important than ever to create something to help them feel happier and rediscover their inner adventurer without them feeling intimidated by it. Despite being completely out of my comfort zone, I set up walking weekends, did a navigation course and shared my walks through blogs and videos. But it wasn't enough.
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I wanted to create an online community exclusively dedicated to Glamoraks, where women could find other women to walk with easily, while sharing their experiences and inspiring others.
And so I did!
And so I did!
Taking the first step is the hardest. Then you simply keep going.
What is the purpose of Glamoraks?
I want to get more women walking. We're all so busy - careers, being mothers, looking after elderly parents, relationships, life. Walking is the escape that lets you put down the mascara wand and step away from busy-ness of life. It simplifies everything. It gives you time to think, reflect, talk and connect. It's just you, what you can fit in your pack, the track in front of you and whoever is walking with you.
It is low cost, really good exercise, a brilliant way to destress and the best endorphin hit you can get. It makes you happy.
It helps you rediscover you.
And it gives you permission to become that messy, basic, windswept person you were born to be.
I want to create a worldwide collective of women who walk.
And in so doing, I want to make women happier.
Join us.
It is low cost, really good exercise, a brilliant way to destress and the best endorphin hit you can get. It makes you happy.
It helps you rediscover you.
And it gives you permission to become that messy, basic, windswept person you were born to be.
I want to create a worldwide collective of women who walk.
And in so doing, I want to make women happier.
Join us.