On leaving school in his home town in Lancashire, Mike Bagshaw moved to the rival county of Yorkshire (missionary work was his excuse at the time) and loved it so much that he has lived there ever since. After studying zoology and training as a teacher at Sheffield University, almost all of his working career has been spent in an outdoor education centre in North Yorkshire. Many happy hours were passed river canoeing with school children or sitting alone up on the high fells of the Yorkshire Dales monitoring Duke of Edinburgh expedition groups though binoculars – tough work, but somebody had to do it.
Although officially retired he continues to explore the nooks and crannies of his home county by bike, canoe and on foot. With a love of the wildlife and landscapes of the region and a keen interest in its crafts, architecture, local history, folklore and pubs, he is well placed to paint a personal picture of this special place.
Mike lives near Whitby on the Yorkshire coast with his wife Lois and two dogs and spends his non-travelling time managing the small birch woodland they own, volunteering for the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and writing regular nature columns for local newspapers and magazines.
