Hamish Evans is co-founder of Middle Ground Growers, based at Weston Spring Farm, just below Kelston Roundhill in Weston, who deliver organic veg boxes to 180 local households by bike. Hamish is the current project lead and co-founder of the We Are Avon project to restore the river valley. Hamish has lived here his whole life, and for the last 11 years on a boat.
You have been living on a solar-powered narrowboat since you were 16. What led you in the narrowboat direction?
At the age of 16 I was finishing my GCSEs at Ralph Allen School in Bath close to where I grew up in Combe Down. My alternative mum suggested it, and and the idea of moving onto my own independent boat was a no-brainer. Initially motivated by freedom, boat parties and independence, it led me to unexpected places finding a love for nature and an enjoyment of a more sustainable lifestyle alongside a great appreciation of real life community in our beautiful valley of Avon.
How long have you been in Bath (and on its waterways) and why is it the place for you?
I’ve always lived in Bath, born at home in Combe Down and then living on the waterways. At the age of 18 I travelled and worked on sustainable farms worldwide for nearly two years, from rural village smallholdings in India to urban farms in the West Bank, Palestine. I never imagined I’d settle back in the home I was born in, but came back realising that this place is part of me and I belong to this valley, and through land work here on these soils I feel so rooted in Bath and on the River Avon that I could never imagine leaving.
What place in Bath makes you feel most connected and happy?
On or near the River Avon and on our farm, Middle Ground Growers. My life is just a daily movement from water to land and back again. Rising early with the sunrise reflected in the river from my mooring, cycling to the farm for a big harvest, planting day or veg box packing and then returning for a swim in the river totally exhausted but content. It’s a simple rhythm and keeps me not only sane but thriving, motivated and grounded – traits I never associated with myself before farming and land work. Kelston Roundhill is also very special to me, perched between the river and the farm, this is my place for perspective, renewal and spaciousness – and the best sunset spot for miles (don’t tell anyone!).
How did Middle Ground Growers and your regenerative farming practice come about?
After travelling and working on farms I was restless to begin my own farming journey. I volunteered on every land-based and community project I could find in Bath, growing a wide network and learning from inspiring people, farming mentors and wise elder growers and community gardeners, who took me under their wing despite my sometimes explosive energy and passion that resembled a bull in a china shop. But once this energy could be channelled into solutions and a land-based project, the stars began to align to form Middle Ground Growers, as fellow growers and friends joined this journey and over 550 local people donated to the start-up of this pioneering Ecological Farm for Bath.
You have recently founded the project We Are Avon, an emerging web of producers, farms, organisations and communities collaborating to build better local food systems for all. What is the inspiration behind this?
I’m eight years into my regenerative farming journey now, and with Middle Ground Growers achieving its original vision beyond our wildest imaginations, my energy is naturally shifting towards the wider food, land and water systems we are part of. As an environmental activist at heart, and a lover of the River, I wanted to do something to give back to this life force of a river and valley that has gifted me and others so much. We Are Avon was born from this, and form a pragmatic desire to bring environmental solutions into our places through community-led joyful action.
Why is food resilience important, in our region and anywhere?
Only a small percentage of our food is produced in our places, which disconnects us as a society and fragments community, while eroding local economies and making us incredibly vulnerable to global commodity shifts out of our control. Regional resilience is the antidote to this, where we use water, nutrients, food and money in our localised circular economies. It wasn’t long ago Bath was mostly fed by market gardens, orchards and farms from the wider catchment valley, and it’s totally possible to get there again – this will have huge benefits for our health, rivers and soils if we get it right.
Look to Bath in 50 years and what do you see in your most optimistic projection?
We recently completed a 100-mile annual River pilgrimage from source to mouth. In 50 years I would like children and families to walk this beautiful river and experience a valley coming back to life, regenerating at every step with more species, cleaner waters, flourishing communities and resilient food systems for a healthy population connected to their place once again.
Give us an inspirational quote…
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” Buckminster Fuller
middlegroundgrowers.com
crowdfunder.co.uk/p/we-are-avon
@weareavon1 | @middlegroundgrowers