A modern pilgrim does not need a sacred reason for his or her journey. There are no bones of saints involved, but yet I believe a long hiker today shares some of the experiences of mediaeval pilgrims, we seek nature, we seek both solitude and community, we seek adventure and even suffering. Just like in Canterbury tales I have sat through evenings telling stories, shared my adventures, and just like the pilgrims I have walked through the dangers of the road, and just as the mediaeval pilgrim I share it with the world, but most of all I know that my pilgrimage transforms me into something new I could not experience in any other way, and maybe it is an experience only other pilgrims can fully comprehend.
from cairn to cairn —
my pilgrimage meanders
into memory
Today Frank hosts haibun Monday at dVerse and the topic is Journeying.
August 3, 2026
Björn Rudbergs writings 
I enjoyed your modern pilgrimage haibun, Björn, which reminded me of my husband’s walk on St Cuthbert’s Way to Holy Island, also known as Lindisfarne. We had already seen St Cuthbert’s tomb on a previous trip, but he did go to Cuthbert’s cave, where the monks kept his body hidden from the Vikings. David made a few friends along the way with modern pilgrims too.
It is so interesting how much you are connected with the past on a pilgrimage.
A haibun that has movement, reaches into philosophy while at the same time portraying simplicity is what defines the genre I think — and makes for a meditative read.
Exploring the link between the modern-day walker in nature (hiker) and the pilgrim is a lovely notion; that fundamentally, despite the outward trappings the human soul takes each step for the same inner reason.
Love your extended simile, Bjorn! I can almost imagine St, Augustine quipping, “You see? A hike is a pilgrimage through the Liturgy of Nature!”
Nicely done! You have had some really great journeys!