A look at Britain's best walking trails

"I remember the first time I stepped out on a long day walk in the Lake District," says Australian tourist and passionate hiker John Baker as he pauses before mounting a stile and marching up Great Shunner Fell on the Coast to Coast Walk. "The wind was whipping the clouds along at a great pace, throwing the snow-covered moors and valleys far below into a mad race of light and shade. It was breathtakingly wild, yet all the while I knew that I only had to descend into a nearby village and I could be warming my feet in front of an open fire in some local pub. That's what I love about walking in Britain - and I've been coming back ever since."
Walking in Britain is, without a doubt, one of the best ways to experience this gem of an isle. The countryside on offer to those with a heart to follow their footsteps is beautiful at every turn, with mountains and hills, valleys and rivers, heather-cloaked moors and sea cliffs, all combining in a pageant of colourful scenery. And for those keen on one of the many long-distance national trails, a hearty meal and a warm bed at the end of each day makes it a walking holiday destination hard to beat.
With the passing of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act in 2002, which opened an extra 2.4 million hectares of privately owned land to the public, walking is even more popular in Britain. But while the boom in popularity is relatively recent, walking has been a way of life for millennia. Many of today's routes follow prehistoric paths and evidence along the way in the form of Neolithic and Bronze Age burial mounds, Iron Age hill forts, Roman ruins and Norman castles, to name a few, and give the term "time travel" a whole new meaning. There really is something marvellous about accidentally coming across an ancient Celtic cross hidden in a hedgerow or tramping along the paved way of a Roman road and stubbing your toe on a ledge where countless Roman soldiers may have too.
Britain has something for every type of walker ranging from lovely half-day rambles through gentile farmlands stopping off in picturesque villages for a bite to eat in a teashop or inn, to long-distance trekking routes over rugged mountains and windswept moorland and everything in between. What follows is a tiny selection of the 200,000 odd kilometre rights of way and areas of 'open country' on offer.
While the south of England may not offer the wild ruggedness of Wales, the north or Scotland, it more than makes up for it with the beauty of its countryside, its picturesque villages, the shady green woodlands, breathtaking coastal scenery, extensive Bronze Age remains and other historical sites. Short and long walks abound. The South West Coast Path, which is Britain's longest long-distance path (630 miles), runs along the north Devon coast, around Cornwall via the most westerly and southerly points of Britain, then along the south Devon coast to Poole in Dorset.
It skirts the ruins of old tin mines, mounts numerous stiles over stone walls dating back to the Bronze Age, and drops each night into one of many traditional mining and fishing villages along the way. The full length can take several weeks, while the most dramatic section, between St Ives and The Lizard, can be done in just five days. Various sections make great day walks utilising the bus service that runs through the coastal communities to return to your accommodation each evening.
The well-known Cotswolds Way is 100 miles of magical walking and takes 6 to 8 days running from Chipping Campden to Bath. This is a walk through English history featuring stately homes, Saxon and Civil War sites, Bronze Age hill forts, Roman ruins and more. Passing through outrageously pretty countryside, the way drops in on villages so postcard-perfect with their golden stone walls, thatched roofs and rambling English gardens that you'd be hard pressed to take a bad photo. Book yourself into one of the many B&Bs and you'll find many splendid spots to also conduct day walks from. Bath, with its famous Roman baths and glorious Georgian architecture, is a great finale to a wonderful walk.
In the north of England is one of the most popular long-distance paths in the country - the famous Coast to Coast Walk. Running 190 miles from St Bees Head on the Irish Sea to Robin Hood's Bay on the North Sea, this is a walk with a very definite objective: to cross an island on foot. The countryside travelled is extremely beautiful and varied, crossing three spectacular national parks - the Lakes National Park in Cumbria and the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Parks in Yorkshire. Traditionally completed from east to west, it takes about 14 days and also offers brilliant and short day walks basing yourself in any of the numerous villages along the way. B&Bs are plentiful along the entire route, and if you feel like you don't want to carry all your gear each day, you can book a drop-off service such as the Sherpa Van Project, who will move you bags to your next accommodation each day.
Another popular long distance walk in the north is Dales Way - a classic 5-7 days walk of 84 miles from Ilkley to Lake Windermere, through the very heart of the Yorkshire Dales. Starting in the former spa town of Ilkley, Dales Way follows three of the most beautiful rivers in the Yorkshire Dales - the Wharfe, the Dee and the Lune - and passes through a timeless land of rolling green hills, picture-postcard villages, classic dry-stone walls and barns, past a 12th-century priory, an ancient stone circle and down a stretch of Roman road to end in the Lake District town of Bowness-on-Windermere, home county of the poet Wordsworth.
The infamous Pennine Way and Cumbria Way are other great walks in the north. Pennine Way has long been called the toughest walk in England, due to its infamous muddy peat bogs and notoriously inclement weather, but upgrading of the trail in recent years with flagstones and other improvements have tamed the beast. Following the backbone of England, Pennine Way starts in Edale in Peak District and runs centrally up the north of England to finish at Kirk Yetholm, just inside the Scottish border. At 268 miles, it's one of Britain's toughest long-distance trails and takes between 16 and 20 days to complete.
Cumbria's famous Lake District has gone through a number of modifications over millions of years to become what it is today. Cumbria Way winds through some of the most spectacular mountain scenery the region has to offer, while managing to stick more or less to the valleys, making it a comfortable 70-mile walk in 5 days.
Another way of crossing the north of the country is to hike the Hadrian's Wall Path - an unbroken 84-mile signposted trail stretching coast to coast, from Wallsend in the east to Bowness-on-Solway in the west. It's a great way to experience Hadrian's Wall up close with marvellous views along the route; and if you don't have time to walk the whole route, there are many circular walks available which take in some of the most scenic areas around the Wall. Also in this region is St Cuthberts Way, a cross-border route. The varied trail encompasses everything from the rugged terrain of the Cheviot Hills to the beautiful sandy beaches of the Northumberland Coast, with charming villages, ancient castles, churches and abbeys en route.
Heading further north, many of Scotland's islands offer wonderful walking opportunities. The Isle of Arran is described as Scotland in miniature and Goat Fell at 874 metres offers good mountain walks, and the Cock of Arran Coast Walk offers stunning coastal views. The Isle of Skye boasts some of the most impressive mountains in the British Isles with the Black Cuillin and Red Cuillin Hills. Many walks follow in the post-Culloden wanderings of Bonnie Prince Charlie.
The Southern Upland Way is Scotland's coast-to-coast long-distance path crossing mountains, moorlands and major rivers for 212 miles and taking 12-20 days. The West Highland Way (96-miles, taking 6-8 days) passes through some of Britain's most spectacular scenery flanked with wild mountains, lochs and fast-flowing rivers. Scotland's magnificent Western Highlands offer spectacular mountain scenery and the beautiful, wild valley of Glen Coe and Ben Nevis (Scotland's highest mountain) have a number of wonderful (though arduous) day walks.
Back down south in Wales, the Pembrokeshire Coast Path twists and turns its way for 186 miles along the most breathtaking coastline in Britain. It covers almost every kind of maritime landscape - from rugged cliff tops to wide-open beaches and winding estuaries. Mt Snowdon in north Wales is the highest peak in Wales and offers some excellent day walks, one of which is the Horseshoe route - considered one of the best mountain day walks in the country. Taking in the main summit via a route of very sharp ridges with dramatic drops on either side, the route also includes Crib Goch Ridge and three other peaks that form an ancient volcanic crater rim.
To sum it all up, Britain is a walker's paradise and when author and long distance hiker Mark Wallington wrote in his hilarious book Pennine Walkies, "There is something peculiarly and wonderfully English about spending your holidays wading through peat bogs in the rain", most walkers on the country's trails would probably agree with him, and I have to say I do too! Here's to Britain on foot
wknd@khaleejtimes.com