‘I must go in; the fog is rising’
Liminal, elusive and ultimately disappearing - far from just being a meteorological condition, fog is a state of mind; a plot device; a shortcut to a dank and spooky setting. As with these words from Emily Dickinson, her final written words before her death, it can signify a shift of mood or a transformation.
Chasing Fog is a captivating meditation on fog and mist. Laura Pashby hunts for fog, walks and swims in it, explores its role in literature, mythology and history and also its environmental significance. There has been a 50 per cent drop in 'fog events' in the past fifty years, fog is drifting away without us noticing and the ecological impact could be calamitous.
As she journeys to the foggiest places she can find, Pashby immerses herself in Dartmouth’s dangerous fog, searches for the Scottish haar, experiences Venice’s magical mist, tell us the myths behind the River Severn’s fog and the shipwrecks it hides. It’s about how we see the world and ourselves, and how a simple cloud of water droplets can make everything – including us – feel different.