A thousand mile walking route
76 pages illustrated with numerous sketch maps and black & white pictures.
A walk from Land’s End to John O’Groats as done by the author over the course of ten weeks in the Spring of 2004 is a fantastic adventure and a chance to see the variety of landscape and heritage that mainland Britain has to offer. It is also a chance to discover something about yourself in the process as you learn to cope with not only the physical effort involved, but also being outside each and every day in all weathers, and the logistical problems of finding sustenance and places to stay in or camp at.
The book gives advice on long-distance walking techniques and equipment and discusses the pros and cons of alternative routes through England and the Southern Uplands before describing one route in detail up as far as the Forth Road Bridge. The book then gives a choice of two fully described routes, a faster but noisier and less-remote eastern route closer to the A9 (best suited to those mostly using hostels or bed-and-breakfast accommodation), or a longer and quieter western route, parts of which which are only suitable for those willing and able to be self-sufficient in wild country for several successive days and nights.
The book weighs 135g and is the same size as an Ordnance Survey Landranger map. The route described takes in fifty medieval parish churches (useful places offering shelter for rest or refreshment), a couple of old abbeys, twenty medieval castles and other fortresses, and several pre-historic and Dark-Age monuments. More recent structures include a Cornish tin mine, several preserved railways, the amazing Falkirk Wheel for lifting canal narrow-boats, other canalside features, several ornamental follies, a variety of spectacular bridges of all ages, and a sculpture trail in the Forest of Dean. In the wilder areas beyond the Forth Bridge, heritage sites such as the above and pubs and cafes are of course much further apart.