Twitter is a great place to be reminded that a lot of people are far from okay. I’m regularly fascinated by how, during a ~30-second scroll, I can be met with anything from sparring words between rival fandoms to a public meltdown from a supposedly esteemed politician. But recently, a glimmer of positivity has emerged within my algorithm’s chaos—in the form of updates from random people’s daily walks. They often feature idyllic landscape photos paired with shots of lovely little dinners cooked after the miles have been logged. The posts are innocent, aesthetically pleasing, and motivating enough to make me want to up my step count. And they all seem to be inspired by the daily walk documentation that Charlotte (aka @HikingShawty), a 22-year-old from Leeds, started going viral for a couple of weeks back.
Every day after work, Charlotte spends a few hours strolling around her hometown. She then comes home to make a delicious and extremely photogenic dinner, posts photos from said walk and meal, and has somehow managed to go viral almost daily over a year since she began this routine last April. While it may not sound like the most exciting daily schedule, her whereabouts have completely transfixed a large audience on Twitter. They’re a beacon of light on a platform so inextricably linked with stan wars, political debates, and all of its many other negativity-filled discourses. Her posts, and the similar ones she’s inspired (which all seem more fit for the serene streets of Pinterest if anything), are matter-of-fact, drama-free, and quietly hopeful.
So we caught up with Charlotte to learn more about how she developed this daily habit, and whether the extremely welcoming online response has surprised her at all. We also managed to find out exactly which shoes she’s been clocking all of these miles in, and how she even fits this much-needed strolling time into her schedule.
What inspired you to start posting these updates?
I started around April of last year, when I basically had 300 followers, and they were all just my mutuals. I just wanted to share what my actual daily life looked like to my friends, because my Twitter mutuals and I live across the world from each other. I was just like—I'm just gonna tell them how far I walk, what my walk looks like, and what I eat after.
What do you do for work? People ask a lot about how you find the time to go for walks this long.
I work for a really small clothing business here in Leeds, so I kind of run it with a few other people. There are about 10 or 12 of us who work there. We just pack the orders and do the customer service together. But I work quite close to where I live. So that's easy.
I can basically start work anytime between 6:00 am and 9:00 am, but I choose 7:00 am, just because I'm not really an early bird. But I like to get in there and then leave earlier. My walking time depends on the miles, really. But on the average day, I do about five or six miles, and it takes under two hours.
How'd you get into hiking?
My dad got me into all of it; he's always been an avid outdoorsman. When I was young, we would always go to this place called the Lake District, which is the mountainous side of England. So we would go camping up there.
What are you mainly listening to on these walks? And I have to ask what shoes you're wearing every day?
I don't really like listening to podcasts or music or anything. I like listening to nature, really. Just whatever's around me. When I first started walking, I started with my dad, and now, because I started without listening to music, I'm just kind of used to the silence.
On my walks, I'll wear the Hoka Anacapas a lot; they are such good hiking shoes. I have like three different pairs, I love them!
Are you at all surprised that your posts have gone so viral?
It's absolutely insane. For me, it's just like my daily life. I'm so used to doing it, so to have people like all across the world see it and also feel inspired by it is amazing.
What've been your favorite reactions and copycat posts?
My favorite copycats are the people who post from super high mountains across the world, like in Europe. And I had one reaction the other day that I liked. Someone quote-tweeted me saying, 'I would hate to be her opponent in The Long Walk' [2025 dystopian film in which the characters must continuously walk or be killed]. I like the silly ones like that.
What do you think the main appeal of your posts is for people?
We live in a world where people are doing extreme things for views. So my account’s kind of a change of pace—because it's just my average, like daily life. It's about the simple things in life, which I think we're learning to be grateful for. I think we're all just so used to seeing negative things on Twitter, and people have such negative [experiences] on there because it's all opinions and politics. It's nice for people to get a break and see other things.
How do you feel about people who call you the happiest girl on Twitter?
Maybe I am, to be fair! I am quite a positive person.
I want to get into your lovely dinners. Where are you getting these recipes?
My dad cooks a lot of my meals. I'd say it's like 50/50, because I just copy him—he's taught me how to cook traditional, like English food. Baking’s more of my thing, I love it. I just have a lot of cookbooks from birthdays. That's usually what people get me.
What do you hope people take away from your social media presence?
Just appreciate the small things in life, and where you come from. We all live in such beautiful places; you just have to find the beauty in where you live. I know I post from England, but all around the world, there are such, like, pretty places that nobody's even heard of or seen. After every walk, I feel so cheerful. I’m quite an anxious person, and they really help me. When I'm walking, I feel so chilled out and just happy to be alive. So I hope they take away gratitude.
