Lake District: Borrowdale Circular

Date: Tuesday 15^th April 2014

Route: Borrowdale Circular

Distance: 7 miles

After a punishing ascent of Skiddaw the day before, the circular walk around Borrowdale from the Pathfinder Guide to Lake District Walks seemed like a good option – not only because it goes through possibly “the loveliest valley in England”, but also because it contains the very welcome introductory sentence, “this is a low-level walk throughout.”

I have to confess that our previous experience with this walk was not a good one – when we tried it in May 2009 we got soaked to the skin by the unrelenting rain and ended up walking along the top of a (very wet) dry-stone wall and finally the road to escape the rising waters of the overflowing river Derwent.

Luckily, this time around we had the benefit of a perfect day – lots of sunshine, clear blue skies and all of those stereotypically lovely Lake District moments – spectacular scenery, sunlight reflecting off the water, lambs leaping around on the hillsides and Wordworthian daffodils swaying in the breeze.

The walk begins and ends at the village of Seatoller, at the base of the Honister Pass, and quickly leaves the village behind to head over the hillside and on towards the imposing Castle Crag, looking down on the village of Rosthwaite before joining the banks of the River Derwent. The walking is easy, the scenery is spectacular and the temptation to take photographs is constant.

Once past a campsite it is an easy walk to the village of Grange, where unhappy memories of sitting dripping wet and miserable a few years are replaced by the warm and fuzzy feeling that only a big pot of tea and home-made gingerbread can dispel.

The route back to Seatoller is less taxing and mainly follows the river, first through woodland and then across fields, with plenty more “wow” moments in terms of views.  A lovely, straightforward walk through beautiful Lakeland countryside.

Lake District: Skiddaw Circular

Date: Monday 14^th April 2014

Route: Skiddaw Circular from Dodd Wood

Distance: 6.75 miles

The first walk that we have tried from Country Walking Magazine’s Best 100 Walks in the UK is described as “a sublime way for anyone to explore England’s fourth highest mountain.”

Despite being given a “moderate” grading, this is a pretty challenging walk. After a gradual ascent through pine woods on a path that feels as if it has been transplanted to Lakeland from the West Highland Way, the steepness kicks in on the ascent to Ullock Pike, which has some breathtaking climbs. Although the path from Ullock Pike across to Skiddaw looks pretty intimidating from a distance, it is actually pretty straightforward, though the climb up Skiddaw itself, whilst on an obvious path, is exceptionally steep in places and best taken slowly.

The grey rocky surface of Skiddaw adds to the feeling of remoteness and other-worldliness but the spectacular views in all directions, including the still-snowy peaks of other Lake District icons, the lakes of Derwent Water and Bassenthwaite and the Irish Sea and Solway Firth, justify all the effort.

Having climbed up to 930m, the only way is down – and initially the path is pretty steep too, descending sharply along a stony path on Carl Side before re-entering the woodland and slowly ascending more gently.

I would not recommend this walk to anyone other than reasonably fit and experienced walkers who want a challenge – it really is not easy! But if you are up for trying something different and don’t mind the impact of lots of steep climbing and descending on your knees, this walk comes with a built-in sense of achievement and some fantastic views. 

Lake District: Cat Bells & Derwent Water

Date: Sunday 13^th April 2014

Route: Cat Bells and Derwent Water

Distance: 4.5 miles

Once upon a time, I used to write a blog about country walks. Then, it rained… and it rained… and most of the paths that we walked on disappeared underneath flood water, became impassable due to huge puddles or turned into extended fields of churned-up mud. So I stopped blogging for a while and walked through the city instead. And honestly, whilst I could have blogged about walking from Notting Hill to St Paul’s or Embankment to Fulham, given that our walks were largely improvised, often pretty functional and not necessarily very picturesque,  I decided to give the blogging a rest until I had some more interesting walks to talk about.

We have had a couple of weeks’ walking in the Lake District in the past – a week in Ambleside in 2002, when we invested in a book of easy circular walks, then another week in Keswick in 2009, when the walks and weather both got a bit more difficult – but both of these pre-date the existence of the blog, so this is the first time that I have blogged about one of the most beautiful areas to walk in in the UK.

Our first day in the Lakes this year seemed like an ideal opportunity to revisit a classic walk close to Keswick. This is the Cat Bells and Derwent Water walk from the Pathfinder Lake District Walks Guide and whilst it includes both a strenuous climb and a steep hillside descent, it is not too long, with the return section on an easy and relatively flat path through woodland and alongside Derwent Water, so it is a great way to immerse yourself in Lake District walking after a break.

There is no way to escape the climbing at the start of the walk – and there is a certain amount of clambering over rock faces too, especially at the top of the first hill – but being surrounded by families with kids and active pensioners scaling the paths at speed is a massive motivator and the prospect of great views back towards Keswick and across Derwent Water keeps you going through the breathless moments. The walk offers a classic combination of rolling hillsides, green fields and sunlight reflecting off the lake, with a fair amount of breeze on the exposed hillsides to blow the cobwebs away.

If you do this walk at the weekend, it is pointless to expect solitude – this is a popular walk and you will spend a lot of time chatting with fellow walkers (and dogs), as well as shooting the occasional envious glance at anyone lucky enough to secure a lakeside picnic bench or seat with a view, but the Pathfinder Guide describes this as a “superb walk” and I cannot help but agree.  The perfect walk to get you re-acquainted with the Lake District National Park.

Wendover, The Ridgeway & Chequers

Date: 19th January 2014
Route: Wendover to Chequers along the Ridgeway, returning on the Aylesbury Ring Path
Distance: 9.3 miles

Going walking at the moment feels like a battle against the elements - most of the "old favourite" paths seem to either be alongside rivers or through valleys, so are either flooded or distinctly soggy underfoot.

Today's choice was another hillside walk, within 10 miles of last week's Tring walk and including another section of the Ridgeway National Path. Our route was taken from the Rough Guide to Walks in London & Southeast England and began and ended in the medieval market town of Wendover, although following a slightly different route to the Wendover walk from the Time Out Book of Country Walks.

This is a good walk in the Chilterns, easy to follow, with most of the more difficult climbing at the start, however today wasn't really the best day to do it - despite the blue skies and sunshine, there were some very muddy sections, especially through the fields and wooded sections. Every stile seemed to be accessed through a sucking muddy puddle!

The other great strength of the walk used to be the lunch stop at The Bernard Arms in Great Kimble (which, due to its proximity to Chequers, boasted press clippings about a visit from Boris Yeltsin!), but unfortunately, like many country pubs, it is now boarded up - if you fancy doing this walk, take sandwiches!

From Wendover it is only a few minutes walk to the Ridgeway and the climb up to Bacombe Hill and Coombe Hill, the highest viewpoint in the Chilterns, home to a Boer War Monument and far-reaching views. The path continues over the hillside and down into woodland, before passing over the drive to Chequers, the PM's country retreat, which you skirt from a distance, accompanied by CCTV cameras and dire warnings about trespassing. You can tell that you're in the Chilterns and close to Chequers on the drive to Wendover, as you pass multiple signs addressed to David Cameron and with the general theme of "No to HS2"!

Once past Chequers you pass through the small villages of both Great Kimble and Little Kimble, then effectively follow a straight path back through the Vale of Aylesbury, past Cymbeline's Mount, Ellesborough Church and multiple sheep.

In summary, this is a decent walk in better weather and with a few supplies (unless the pub reopens!).

The Ridgeway and the Ashridge Estate

Date: Saturday 11th January
Route: Tring Circular via Ivinghoe Beacon and the Bridgewater Monument
Distance: 8.3 miles

For our first country walk of 2014, we opted for an old favourite from the Time Out Book of Country Walks Volume 2, which starts on the outskirts of Tring, passes through woodland and over (sometimes steep) chalky hillsides along the start/ end of the Ridgeway National Trail to the windy hilltop that houses Ivinghoe Beacon and offers great views across the surrounding countryside.

Leaving the windswept hikers, dog walkers, kite fliers and model plane enthusiasts behind at the top of the hill, the route heads through a small wooded area onto a very easy path into the National Trust's Ashridge Estate and ahead to the Bridgewater Monument (and a popular cafe, where curried parsnip soup and mug of tea are on offer, alongside multiple willpower-testing cake options).

Once you've had the opportunity to refuel your batteries, there is another easy path (mainly downhill) to the pretty village of Aldbury, which was mentioned in the Domesday Book and still has stocks and a whipping post on the village green, alongside a pond. From Aldbury it is a simple stroll along the hedgerows back to Tring Station.

The Time Out book also includes an alternative, longer walk (11 miles as opposed to the 8.3 miles we completed today) -  this is also a fantastic walk, with a great pub for lunch en route - but is a better option for days when you get up earlier than we did today!

Although today's walk was pretty muddy in places (especially in a couple of the early woodland sections), it is still highly recommended, a walk that blows away the cobwebs, gets your heart pumping and rewards you with fantastic views along the way.  

Walking and the Winter Wonderland

Date: 5th January 2014
Route: Notting Hill to St Paul's Cathedral through the parks and along the Thames
Distance: About 6 miles

Keen to make the most of the only dry weather forecast for the whole weekend, we decided to avoid the water-logged countryside and take a semi-improvised tourist-friendly stroll through Central London as our first walk of 2014.

This route is very flat and takes you through three different parks, past lots of historical buildings and monuments and along the South Bank, finishing up with a stroll across the Millennium Bridge to finish at St Paul's Cathedral.

The walk starts at Notting Hill station, from where it is only a few minutes to Kensington Gardens. We cut through the Gardens diagonally until we reached the pond in front of Kensington Palace then turned left to go into Hyde Park, passing the Royal Albert Hall and Albert Memorial, the Serpentine Gallery and the Serpentine and heading towards Hyde Park Corner.

The final day of the Winter Wonderland gave us plenty of opportunities to buy Christmas decorations, candles and candy floss, have a go at winning huge cuddly toys or scare ourselves stupid on fairground rides - luckily, we managed to emerge unscathed at the Wellington Arch, where our progress was slightly delayed by the Household Cavalry filing past on horseback.

We then headed down to Buckingham Palace, across Pall Mall and into Green Park and up towards Westminster, passing the park's slightly incongruous pelicans (descendants of the ones gifted by the Russian ambassador in the 17th century?), before cutting through to Whitehall near the Cabinet War Rooms.

Once at Westminster, we dodged the crowds taking photos of the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, passed the statue of Boudicca and crossed Westminster Bridge. On the far side of the bridge we turned left and followed the Thames Path past the London Eye, various street performers, the Festival Hall, the National Theatre and NFT and carried on walking until the former Bankside Power Station, Tate Modern, where we crossed the Millennium ("wibbly-wobbly") Bridge and past Sir Christopher Wren's St Paul's Cathedral to reach the Central Line station.

This is one of those walks that reminds you of how beautiful London can be in the winter sunshine and is largely traffic-free. A great way to spend a couple of hours without the need for walking boots, wellies or walking sticks, with lots of distractions and attractions along the way.

Last walk of 2013 (Henley again)

Date: 29th December 2013
Route: Hambleden to Henley and back
Distance: around 9 miles

Since we started the year walking along the Thames Path, it seemed to make sense to finish 2013 the same way, with our favourite walk, the first walk from the Time Out Book of Country Walks and the walk I have probably blogged about the most regularly.

Beautiful sunshine, frosty hedgerows and barely a cloud in the sky made for perfect walking conditions - or so we thought, until we came to Henley Bridge halfway through the walk to discover that our usual path home was underneath a substantial amount of the Thames, surrounded by flooded roads and fields and frozen puddles!

We vaguely remembered the route up to a path on the hillside above the flood waters, then joined up with a lane running to the Flower Pot Hotel, before descending on a causeway to Medmenham Lock (keeping our fingers crossed that we would actually be able to cross the lock when we got to it!).

Thankfully, the path over the lock was high enough to escape the high water, although with vast amounts of water flowing beneath our feet, looking down was decidedly vertigo-inducing.

All in all, a bit of adventure, even though this was a very familiar route, setting up for a lot more walking in 2014.