In her 1962 book Silent Spring, Rachel Carson alerted the world to the negative environmental impact of the burgeoning chemical industry. What lay behind her concerns was a childhood that was shaped by the “nature study movement”, which aimed to develop in people an emotional response to the world of nature. Like John Dewey, Carson believed that learning came from direct experience, and so time spent outdoors, making deep and even spiritual connections with the natural world, was essential. Both the senses and the emotions were important – “it is not half so important to know as to feel” (Carson, 1965, p45). Factual knowledge was not unimportant, but it was secondary to personal experience; “if facts are the seeds that later produce knowledge and wisdom, then the emotions and the impressions of the senses are the fertile soil in which the seeds must grow” (ibid, p45). As such, nature can teach without us having all the scientific details, unlike the view of her American co-environmentalist Aldo Leopold, whose land ethic argued strongly for the need for both; “educators, according to Leopold, first help students see the land by making them comfortable in a natural setting, and then follow with lessons in ecology” (Simpson, 2011, p119). In this way, Carson belongs firmly in the “Let The Mountains Speak For Themselves” tradition of Outdoor Adventure Education.
Carson is also similar in approach to the pioneering outdoor educator Kurt Hahn, in that both advocated for and embodied an unending curiosity and tenacity, as well as a spiritual commitment towards nature; “her bond towards nature is a spiritual one” (Williams, 2007, p145). This language of spirituality is meant to imply a holistic personal response to the immediate environment, using four different senses – eyes, ears, nostrils and finger tips were all to be used (licking the rocks, trees and animals seems to have been discouraged). Giving full attention to the environment would, she believed, cultivate a deep sense of wonder which would, in turn, lead to a deep sense of connection to the specifics of a particular place. The connection to the particulars of a locality is essential, because otherwise “participants in adventure-based programmes may find themselves travelling through Any Woods, USA, perceiving landscape as an interchangeable backdrop rather than developing a personal connection to it” (Baker, 2005, p267). Carson’s concept of spirituality was also meant to imply a connection to something bigger than ourselves, much as Belden Lane also argued; “the geography helps in forcing a breakthrough to something beyond our previously-conceived limits of being” (Lane, 1998). As such, a sense of joy, wonder, and beauty would be developed that would last throughout life, “as an unfailing antidote against the boredom and disenchantments of later years, the sterile preoccupation with things that are artificial, the alienation from the sources of our strength” (Carson, 1965, p42f).
Perhaps my only concern with Carson’s agenda is that she seems to have been primarily focused on instilling this depth of wonder and a spiritual connection with nature into children. I see nothing that couldn’t apply to a tired and jaded adult too, reawakening them to the possibilities of a life that is bigger than their current limits, whether self-imposed or external. The freeing, liberating spiritual power of nature is available to anyone of any age.
Carson’s work sits firmly at the Outdoor end of the Outdoor-Adventure therapy spectrum. For her, it is nature of any kind that does its work. The mountain speaks for itself. She is less concerned about the more achievement-oriented, overcoming-your-personal limits approach of the Adventure end of the spectrum. The two can be held in close tension, however. As Lane (1998) argues, wilder and more challenging terrain can have its own particular perspective-altering impact and this should not be overlooked. A tree is nice enough; a mountain blows my mind (I do recognize that others get just as excited by close investigation of lichen, so maybe it’s horses-for-courses).
What will I take away from this brief analysis of Carson’s work? It affirms my already-existing commitment to the place of wonder and spirituality in relation to Outdoor and Adventure Therapy (Tiplady, 2022). It reminds me that therapeutic impact is not just about internal renewal but it is also about reconnection to things bigger than we are (the landscape, the environment, and the numinous). What it has brought into sharper relief is the importance of place and locality. I do most of my mountain pilgrimage and leadership development work in the Scottish Highlands. It’s important that this doesn’t become Any Mountain, Scotland. Instead, as I invite clients to engage with the landscape during our trips, the specifics matter. I had already begun to realise this, to some extent. As much as my favourite areas of Scotland have previously been along the west coast (Glencoe, Lochaber, Kintail, and so on), I have developed in recent years a much deeper appreciation for the Cairngorms and their own specific features and the feelings they invoke. Even in the mountains, place matters. I need to keep that in mind.
What also matters is depth of connection. Mia Walker argues strongly for this; “Nature connection goes beyond mere presence and knowledge. It’s an immersion, an emotional bonding, and a profound identification with the natural world. It’s that moment when we move from just being in nature to truly seeing ourselves as part of it …. This is where we experience awe, wonder, and a deep sense of belonging” (Walker, 2025, p21). The mountains might be our playground. But they have their own integrity. They’re not there for us. We need to show them respect.
References
M Baker (2005), “Landfullness in adventure-based programming: Promoting reconnection to the land”, in Journal of Experiential Education, Vol 27 No 3, pp267-276
Rachel Carson (1962), Silent Spring, Boston,MA: Houghton Mifflin
Rachel Carson (1965), The Sense of Wonder, New York.NY:Harper and Row
Belden Lane (1998), The Solace of Fierce Landscapes: Exploring Desert and Mountain Spirituality, Oxford:OUP
Steven Simpson, “Aldo Leopold: Teaching in the Spirit of the Land Ethic”, in Thomas Smith and Clifford Knapp (eds)(2011), Sourcebook of Experiential Education: Key Thinkers and Their Contributions, Abingdon:Routledge
Richard Tiplady (2022), Following Jesus in the Great Outdoors: Learning About Discipleship From The Mountains, Cambridge:Grove Books
Mia Walker (2025), “Nature Connection vs Nature Contact: From recreation and knowledge to deeper connection”, in The Professional Mountaineer, Issue 51, p20-21
Terry Tempest Williams, “The Moral Courage of Rachel Carson”, in P Matthiessen (ed)(2007), Courage For The Earth, New York,NY: Houghton Mifflin
Just About Leading 