Rick Johnson was 16 the first time he stayed in a youth hostel in the summer of 1966. Having saved up money from his job stacking shelves in a supermarket in Cheshire, he bought an Ordnance Survey map and headed for the Lake District.
It was the first time Johnson had gone away without his parents. “I’d decided that family beach holidays were boring. I planned it all out and had everything booked up. There was definitely a strict rule around no alcohol in the hostels – I think it was one of reasons we were allowed to do it, because our parents knew there were restrictions and there was a warden in charge.”
