In the first episode of Kate Humble: Off the Beaten Track, the presenter and her Welsh sheepdog Teg travel from the most northerly farm on mainland Wales, just outside Llandudno, across to the sleepy hamlet of Nantmor in Snowdonia. Along the way, they experience the comeback of old-style shepherding, learn how canine power is saving lives on the mountains and see a forest through the eyes of a pack of huskies. Kate also takes a naked plunge into a freezing lake to experience the landscape in a very different way. And at the largest shiitake farm in the country, she finds out how to trick mushrooms into fruiting.
In the second episode of Kate Humble: Off the Beaten Track, Kate and her Welsh sheepdog, Teg, travel from southern Snowdonia to one of the least-populated areas in the UK, deep in the Cambrian Mountains. Along the way, Kate experiences a deer cull, loses a herd of cattle on Cadair Idris mountain, meets a family relying on the weather to run their mod cons, tastes the Dyfi Valley from a glass and discovers the Welsh equivalent of the Amazon rainforest.
Kate Humble and her Welsh sheepdog, Teg, continue their journey across the remote Welsh countryside, by exploring mid-Wales. In Ponterwyd, they herd sheep for the market, and Kate witnesses first-hand the price disparities between what farmers get for their sheep and what consumers pay. At the Teifi Pools, she discover that Wales is a world leader in protecting its dark skies. Along the River Elan, Kate gets hooked on fly-fishing and in Llangammarch Wells, Teg has a family reunion, meeting three of her five pups to see if they can earn their Welsh sheepdog credentials.
Kate Humble and her Welsh sheepdog Teg continue their journey across the remote Welsh countryside, by exploring Carmarthenshire. In the Cothi Valley, Kate herds and milks goats. In Capel Iwan, Kate tries her hand at trotting. Then in Cwm Elfed, they meet an Englishman keeping the Welsh weaving tradition alive. Near Carmarthen, they see how beavers are transforming a Welsh farm and in Llansteffan, they take to the water, rowing across the Towy estuary to reach the end of their journey
In the first episode of the series, Kate Humble and her Welsh sheepdog, Teg, explore remote corners of north Wales. Kate reaches for the sky, amidst a storm with 50 mph winds, as she attempts to climb the tallest man-made structure in Wales to fix some loose cables on the Arfon Transmission Tower. Next, avid walkers see rivers as a barrier, having to find a bridge or get wet, but Kate learns how to overcome natural obstacles with the novel activity of packrafting – using an inflatable canoe weighing only 1.5kg. On the north east coast, Kate meets a pack of dogs trained to carry out wildlife conservation by sniffing out endangered species, and on the north west coast, Kate digs and prepares a grave for a new resident, who in death wants to give himself to help nature thrive. Kate experiences a moving funeral at the only woodland natural burial ground in the area.
In mid Wales, Kate and Teg get a taste of Stone Age life, mucking in with a farmer and an archaeologist who are building a medieval settlement to bring to life the past in order to understand how we used to live, and perhaps serve as a way to move forward. Next, they explore the potential death traps of our historical legacies at an old lead mine, where the South and Mid Wales Cave Rescue Team practice their skills using Teg as the damsel in distress. Kate learns about the plight of Welsh mountain ponies, whose numbers have dropped from the thousands to just a few hundred, by meeting one of the last breeders in Wales, whose family have been doing it since the 1800s. Finally, Kate discovers her legs are built for walking when she tries mountain biking in the Brecon Beacons National Park, powering her way up 2,358 feet towards the top of Fan-Y-Big.
In South-Wales, Kate and Teg set a mountain alight and experience the heat of a controlled burn with the local fire service in an area with the highest incidence of wild fires in the whole of the UK. Kate gets the creative juices flowing by lending a hand to the creation of an epic land art piece - a 30 foot mandala, a stunning geometrically patterned circle made entirely from natural materials. Teg gets a run for her money when meeting film actors at a rural film academy for animals; and Kate fulfils her childhood dream with a master farrier, learning how to shoe a horse.
This week, Kate visits Newport in Pembrokeshire and meets the last master thatcher based in Wales. She helps with the harvesting of water reeds - an invasive, thick grass-like plant now used on 80% of thatched roofs in the UK. She then travels to Merthyr Mawr to learn that protected, historical buildings are thatched with heritage wheat straw, creating the classic ‘poured on custard’ effect. In Pendine Sands, Kate joins a cross-country hunt adapted for modern times and struggles to stay on the horse as they chase hounds who have been specifically trained to only pick up on human scent. Up in the mountains, Kate and Teg discover how gentle Scottish highland cattle are tending land that would otherwise be largely unmanageable. Finally, Kate is moved as she and Teg visit an agricultural college that helps neuro-diverse students thrive through a deep connection with the land.
