Country Walking magazine August 2013

august 2013

25

superb new walks all with full mapping –There's one near you!

issue 318 classic coastal walks | snowdon | london's secret trail | the cheviot | the great glen way | perfect summer picnics | trousers tested

tasty walks from britain's best picnic spots

britain's best-selling walking magazine

Cool summer walks

by the sea Classic British seaside towns – and the fabulous walks that lie beyond them…

the great glen way

Coast to coast across the Highlands

the cheviot

Discover the wild side of Northumberland plus: 10 magic moments in the Lake District

London’s secret Trail Escape to the countryside without leaving the capital

climb Snowdon at your own pace Take your time on our scenic walk to the summit

august 2013 £3.99

theview Miles of ideas for a brilliant month outdoors

The big picture

Planet OF THE peaks!

It’s a spectacular new take on the traditional shaky self-portrait, making the subject look like they’re on top of the world.

Photographer Dan Arkle takes the summit ‘selfie’ to dizzy new heights…

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YE-CATCHING, isn't it? This fabulous image was created by photographer Dan Arkle in his beloved Peak District… on the summit of Win Hill in the Hope Valley, to be precise. Look closely and you’ll see the fingers of Ladybower Reservoir tailing off to the ‘north’; Lose Hill, the Great Ridge and Mam Tor down in the ‘southwest’ and the sun setting behind mighty Kinder Scout in the ’west’, while the Hope Valley itself sits away to the ‘east’.

“I was amazed when I discovered this technique for the first time,” says Dan, who's the chap heading for the summit in the picture.

“It creates an impossible viewpoint with everything visible but the photographer. They are created by stitching a series of photos together to create a long panorama. Then you bend the panorama around on itself to create a circle.

“Finally, fill in the hole in the middle with a straight-down shot – this is how I can choose to stay out of the photo if I like. But on this one, a beautiful summer evening, I thought I'd make an appearance!"

There's a whole gallery of Dan's ‘Little Planet’ images on his website, danarklephotography.yolasite.com, including the summit of Ben Nevis, Stanage Edge, the Dolomites – and the centre of Sheffield!

“It creates an impossible viewpoint with everything visible – except the photographer.”

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Photo: Dan Arkle

Destinations | britain's coast

Seaside Special There’s something exciting about exploring new walks in unfamiliar territory and the annual holiday offers the ideal opportunity to break new ground. Here are some of our favourites... cool walks from classic coastal resorts...

In good company

SNOWDONIA-ON-SEA

Southwold combines timeless seaside tradition with varied walks under huge East Anglian skies.

Few British seaside resorts can match the geographical intrigue and walking potential of Llandudno.

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FAMILY FAVOURITES

from coast to castle

The much-loved resorts of Tenby and Scarborough also offer some of Britain's best coastal walking.

Traverse the Isle of Purbeck from Swanage to Corfe Castle then catch a steam train for the return journey.

“It’s the kind of vantage point, 100 metres up with salty air whipping around your ankles, which either makes you feel alive or turns your legs to jelly... ”

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read more on page 32...

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Destinations | peak district

Photos: Tom Bailey; © nagelestock.com/Alamy; © Crown copyright (2013) Visit Wales; © Sebastian Wasek/Alamy

“If we keep the sea on our right... ” Exploring a new stretch of coastline is one of the joys of august 2013 Country Walking 23 summer walking.

Seaside Special: Southwold

In good company Southwold might just be the perfect seaside resort, but Mark Sutcliffe worries whether it’s just a little bit too pristine for grimy walkers who just want a pie and a pint at the end of a walk…

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HERE’S something of the 1950s about Southwold. This oft-idealised decade was rather less halcyon than many of the rose-tinted brigade remember, but the consensus is that folk were more friendly back then and the British were still noted for their politeness.

And while the wider east-facing Suffolk coast has been rather whimsically rebranded by groovy marketing types as the ‘Sunrise Coast’, Southwold is made of altogether stouter stuff and takes a quiet pride in refusing to change with the times.

In fact, Southwold briefly gained notoriety last summer, when that arbiter of middle English values the Daily Telegraph asked if it was the ‘Snobbiest Town in Britain’ after the council unsuccessfully attempted to stop a ubiquitous coffee chain opening a branch there.

There’s a preserved-in-aspic feel to the immaculately clean town centre, which has steadfastly repulsed the depredations of high street multiples and still boasts a comprehensive selection of independent shops pedalling unashamedly upmarket fare.

Echoes of the town’s maritime heritage are

everywhere – it has been a thriving fishing port since the 11th-century and fresh fish is still landed daily at the quayside on the River Blyth, where you can enjoy sparkling fresh seafood cooked within hours of capture.

The lighthouse is an ever-present landmark throughout the town and the lovely old Sailors’ Reading Room perched on the modest seacliff offers a rich insight into the town’s seafaring past.

Southwold had a grandstand view of the legendary battle of Sole Bay, where our brave chaps teamed up with the French in 1672 to repel a Dutch invasion force in a fierce engagement ten miles offshore.

This bloody encounter lasted from dawn ’til well after dark, with no conclusive winner, but several ships were sunk and the bodies of sailors were washing up on the town’s beach for days afterwards.

Southwold has remained a popular jumping off point for mariners both military and civilian for the next 300 years – owing largely to the abundance of fine watering holes.

But there’s none of the spit and sawdust earthiness to be found in most traditional ports; Southwold is almost manicured in its » Left: The perfectly maintained lighthouse is visible throughout the town; its beam sweeping hypnotically overhead after dark.

Photos: © Tim Wright/Alamy; Keith Taylor/Alamy

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Right: The pier was completely rebuilt a decade ago and is now one of the finest examples in England.

Seaside Special: Swanage to Corfe

Castles and ice cream

Leave the windbreaker and jelly sandals at home, because Swanage does the seaside differently. White chalk cliffs, ridgetop walking, a ruined castle and an encounter with the Famous Five are all on the menu.

Words: Rachel Broomhead Photos: Tom Bailey

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wanage has a problem. On paper, it’s every inch the seaside resort. It has the pier, the sandy beach, the 2p slot machines and an endemic population of Mr Whippy vans. But after you’ve shivered on the beach for an hour and gobbled the flake, there isn’t much left to do. Swanage doesn’t embrace its seaside resort status quite like Brighton or Skegness do, with brash bright lights or ironic ‘kiss me quick’ tackiness. Instead, it sits back, quietly content in its own mediocrity borne of stolid self-awareness. It knows its problem all too well: try as it might, Swanage will never be the main attraction in this remote corner of south Dorset. That honour goes to the

A fallen hero: the beautiful ruins of Corfe Castle.

whitewashed sea cliffs, the Purbeck ridgeway and the charmed castle ruins at Corfe. Landscapes, not sandcastles rule the waves here.

In a theatrical climax to the Jurassic Coast (a UNESCO world heritage site, no less), cliffs of naked chalk rise up from Swanage Bay to form a haphazard wall of ivory; a geological ornament whose showpiece is the splintered chunks of seacliff known as Old Harry Rocks. Even getting there is exhilarating. Tip-toeing north along the clifftops on the South West Coast Path, walkers are blasted with that mythical substance: fresh air – the very commodity that first attracted the

Victorians to Swanage in the 19th-century.

The path takes walkers on an invigorating tour of headland showpieces and rocky rarities. First up are the Pinnacles: two isolated stacks of chalk cast adrift from the coastal cliffs that spawned them. One stands stocky and proud, a stubborn monolith buffeting the surf; the other sharpens to a fragile point, giving the pair their name.

Round the headland, the rock stretches out a long, teasing arm, screening the rest of the coastline from view. But step out onto its lanky limb, a precarious knife-edge with two drops to nothing, and the rewards are sensational. It’s the kind of vantage point, 100 metres up with salty air whipping »

Leaving Swanage behind on the way to Corfe.

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The

three peaks weekenders

2 Snowdon

Welcome to part two of the Three Peaks Weekenders!

Forget tackling the highest hills in England, Wales and Scotland in 24 hours and instead enjoy a whole weekend at each. This month it’s the roof of Wales, then a little hill with a ringside view of it...

Words: Jenny Walters Photos: Tom Bailey

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ou could blame it all on Thomas Pennant.

He wasn’t the first to climb Snowdon – aka Yr Wyddfa – but he was the first to wax lyrical about it: ‘The view from this exalted situation is unbounded’ (A Tour in Wales, Vol II, 1781).

Wordsworth came, then Coleridge, and George Borrow with his best-selling Wild Wales. Now, it’s the busiest peak in Britain with a café on the summit and a train to the top.

Many think it’s too crowded – although if you arrive here 20 hours into your National Three Peaks odyssey you probably won’t think much more than ‘Whose bright idea was this again?’ and ‘Would a ninth packet of Jaffa Cakes be wrong?’ – but it’s popular for one very simple reason. It’s incredible.

From each and every angle it’s a bewitching piece of

mountain architecture – an Ordovician volcano carved by glaciers into sweeping ridges and tarnfilled cwms, a sprawling tarantula of rock that reigns over the biggest national park in Wales. Eight routes range across its slopes, from the straightforward chug up the long slopes of the Llanberis Path to the gutchurning teeter across Crib Goch’s airy crest.

I’m tackling the classic pairing from the east, up the Pyg Track then down the Miners’. Both start at Pen-y-Pass, part ways to pass either side of the knobbly bumps of The Horns, and reunite above Glaslyn to zig-zag to the top of Wales. Together, they form a seven-mile route with huge views and just enough grit to let me know I’m climbing a mountain.

And the first huge view appears after 3.4 seconds – a few strides along the Pyg Track and I’m looking along the Llanberis Valley, an immense rocky bathtub that stretches towards the Isle of Anglesey. The path underfoot is superb – it’s clear a lot of toil and sweat»

A view worth a whole lot of sweat, looking down to the path you climbed and out across the hills of Snowdonia.

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Viaduct Pond on Hampstead Heath.

Slightly quieter than Piccadilly Circus‌

London's se

Can you walk right across London using almost exclusively green space?

Words: Nick Hallissey

cret trail Yes – and here’s an unbelievably good walking weekend to prove it…

Main image: SuperStock; insets: Nick Hallissey

gear no-nonsense reviews for real walkers

this just in...

Bergans of Norway Ylvingen fleece £60 Scandinavian functionality with pastel-paletted beauty: it's a fleece you might just love…

Bergans may not be the best-known name on the hills, but we’re starting to see this quality Norwegian brand in more and more outdoor stores after its reintrodction to the UK a couple of years ago. This eye-catching fleece comes in a choice of cool colour schemes for men and women and has proved reliably warm and adaptable so far. The longer cut is great for keeping draughts at bay on steep ascents and we also think it looks rather lovely too. Sack the black – pastel fleeces are back! unordiclifeuk.co.uk

Photo: Tom Bailey

COMING UP WALKING TROUSERS • TECHNICAL WINDSHIRTS • CW's LONG-TERM TEST april 2013 Country Walking 65

GEAR The big test

Trousers

our testers

Tom Hutton is an award-winning outdoors writer who has been testing gear for CW for more than ten years along with partner Steph Duits. Tom is author of several Welsh walking guides. He and Steph have explored virtually every inch of the nation, but are especially fond of the Brecon Beacons and Snowdonia – or as they know it, the back garden.

When choosing our outdoor wardrobe we all tend to spend the most time (and money) on our top halves but it’s our legs that work hard to carry us up those hills so it's well worth investing in a pair of good walking trousers to keep them warm, dry and comfy...

What to look for...

Pockets

Fit

Style

No matter how good the fabric is or the features are, if they don’t fit well, they’ll underperform. They need to be loose enough to not hinder your movement but on the other hand, too loose and they’ll flap annoyingly in the wind and rub mud up the inside of your legs. A little give or stretch in the fabric will help a lot and allow you to wear them a tad snugger, and any pre-shaping such as articulated knees will also aid movement.

Technical looking trousers look the part and won’t draw any attention on the hill, but they can be a little over the top in the pub or teashop afterwards. A more casual design will be more versatile.

Most trousers come with hip pockets but these are generally too restricted to store anything much bigger than a set of car keys or a few coins. Make sure they have zips if you do store these items in them. A cargo pocket on the leg increases functionality and will usually take a map, but these tend to look quite contemporary.

Ventilation Some models of pants have zip-opening leg vents which are great in warmer weather, but the zips will add weight, detract from general comfort and do tend to make the trousers look quite technical.

Zip-offs Zip-off trousers can be converted to shorts easily – ideal if you want one pair for everything, but the zips add weight and reduce comfort, so ask yourself how often you’d use the zip-off feature before investing. If you do go for them, make sure you wash the bottoms with the shorts, even if you haven’t been using them, or they’ll soon end up a different colour.

Ankle cuffs

Reinforced knees and seat will mean they’ll last longer.

Fabric Go for something reasonably light, windresistant, quick-drying and hard-wearing. If it will resist a shower then even better. A little stretch will facilitate easy movement – great on steep ground but also when crossing stiles too.

As a rule cotton absorbs water and dries slowly, so synthetics are probably favourite. But these can feel plasticky and don’t tend to look as casual. A poly/cotton blend can work too.

Versatility If you want a dedicated walking pant then put performance above everything else and choose a pair that are best-suited to the kind of walking you do. If you also plan to wear them for casual use or travelling too, then you’ll need to compromise a little on features. read the full REVIEWS

16 trousers tested in the field!

august 2013 Country Walking 59

Illustration: Steven Hall

Ideally they’ll cover the cuff of the boot but won’t flap. Adjustment such as studs or Velcro will make this easier to achieve but will make the trousers look less casual.

Durability

national trails | norfolk coast path & peddars way

The

great glen way A beautiful cross-section of the Scottish Highlands, the Great Glen Way offers up a week of lochs, mountains and monsters‌ Words and photos: Rachel Broomhead

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Walk by day, cruise by night.

Fingal the floating hotel on the Caledonian Canal near Gairlochy.

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Destinations | Britain's best picnic spots

Mouthwatering mountain views Ben Vrackie, Perthshire

picked to pair perfectly with the Scottish goodies. There’s a second branch in Dunkeld, which won Scottish Deli of the Year 2012. uDon’t miss: “We have 26 delicious sandwich fillings which are ideal for a walker's picnic,” says the Scottish Deli’s Tracy Hall, “including Isle of Mull cheddar with apple ale and chilli chutney, and smoked Rannock duck with chilli, garlic, red onion and lemongrass marmalade.”

Now go for a walk: For a view over the hills and glens that produced your picnic there’s no better spot than the top of Ben Vrackie, the 841m high mountain that towers to the north of Pitlochry. That might seem a long

Photo: © Malcolm Fife/Alamy

Pick up a picnic: It’s no surprise that Pitlochry’s Scottish Deli (scottish-deli.com; 017964 473322) does a scrumptious line in Scottish picnic fare – Rannoch smoked venison, Perthshire oatcakes, Black Crowdie cheese, Nevis Bakery Dundee cake and vanilla tablet.

Many of the quiches and baked goods at the store on Atholl Road are made with produce from owner Alec’s smallholding, and you’ll find a few international delicacies too,

way to tote your lunch but the steep climb on well-made paths means you can eat an extra chunk of Lanark Blue without guilt, and Loch a’ Choire on the way up also makes a panoramic picnic perch if you’re flagging (or the summit looks a bit breezy). Download your free Ben Vrackie route at lfto.com/ countrywalking.

A picnic with a panorama on the slopes of Ben Vrackie.

A delicious view near Broadway in the Cotswolds.

Photo: © Stephen Dorey ABIPP/Alamy

Cotswolds quiche Broadway Hill, Worcestershire Pick up a picnic: Julie and Graham Newton took over the Cotswold Food Store (cotswoldfoodstore.co.uk; 01451 830469) near Longborough last autumn and are busy tasting their way through every product they sell. It sounds like a tough job, but we suggest you follow their lead and pack a buffet of goodies from their tempting range of Cotswold cheeses, cooked meats, home-made breads, savoury pastries and buns. uDon’t miss: “Home-made miniquiches are one of our best-sellers,” says 82 Country Walking august 2013

Julie, “and pork pies and scotch eggs.

Our Tunisian orange cake is really popular and so are our chocolate brownies and Bakewell tarts.”

Now go for a walk: Pick your picnic then park up at the bottom of Broadway Hill, a few miles north on the A44. It’s a short haul south-west on the Cotswold Way to the hilltop tower that marks arguably the finest view in England’s largest AONB. It can get busy, but there’s plenty of turfed slope to spread out and

admire the Vale of Evesham vista. When (or if!) you can tear yourself away, there’s a tempting nine-mile circuit which trundles south along lanes to honeyhued Snowshill, drops west to join the Cotswold Way, then arcs north through Broadway village and back up to the tower (so good it’s worth seeing twice – you might want to pack a picnic dinner too)!

Cornish pasties by the sea Hemmick Beach, Cornwall

Pick up a picnic: If you prefer to walk further than your lunch has travelled, then Lobbs Farm Shop (lobbsfarmshop.com; 01726 844411) at Heligan is the place for you – much of the produce comes from their own Kestle Farm, whose fields curve over neighbouring slopes (there’s even a permissive path so you can explore).

The counters are heaped with Cornish delicacies perfect for a picnic – nettle yarg, St Endellion brie, fairings biscuits, and, of course, pasties. uDon’t miss: The local saffron cake, home-made quiches and pasties. “We make sandwiches with lots of fillings

Looking down on tranquil Hemmick Beach, the perfect place for a long lunch.

Photo: © Trevor Smithers ARPS/Alamy

including Cornish ham and a range of pickles,” says shop manager Gill Paul, “and our scones are popular.”

Now go for a walk: Lobbs Farm nudges the magical Lost Gardens of Heligan (heligan.com) but for a proper leg-stretcher there’s no resisting the cliffs and coves of the Cornish coast just a few miles away. Surf west on the South West Coast Path from Gorran Haven and you’ll soon pass the sweep of Bow Beach, round the craggy headland of Dodman Point and after three miles hit Hemmick Beach. It couldn’t be more idyllic – all gold sand

and rock-pools – and at low-tide you’ll find a few secret picnic spots hidden in the rocks. To burn off the pasties, roll along the SWCP to Porthluney Cove then wind back inland on paths and lanes via Gorran Churchtown to complete a seven-mile loop. »

Looking over the border into Scotland from the ridge of Bellyside Hill on the Cheviot's northern flank.

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great british classic

Break for

t h e Bor de r the cheviot, northumberland

Mark Sutcliffe heads for the wild uplands of the Border country and discovers an express route to the roof of Northumberland.

Photo: Mark Sutcliffe

August 2013 Country Walking 87

25 ’ Britain s best

easy-to-follow walks with full ordnance survey maps cut-out & keep routes!

AUGUST 2013

South west

South east

midlands

east

North west

Make the most of summer!

See more of Britain this season with our 25 brand new routes

North east

Wales

Scotland Ireland

inside this month uDramatic ridge scenery on Isle of Wight uBeautiful little-known Shropshire hills uClassic fellwalking in the Lake District u A wee hill on the edge of the Highlands and many more...

Beautiful Dinas Head on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. uTurn to route 20 Photo: Fiona Barltrop

the country walking promise: More walks, in more places, than any other magazine!

Britain’s Best Walks created by our experts

Welcome…

to Britain’s Best Walks, Country Walking’s fantastic routes section. Packed into the next 30 pages you’ll find 25 day-walks all over Britain, selected by our expert team and complete with OS maps, step-by-step directions and all the info you need to plan your next adventure outdoors. They’re sorted into nine geographical regions for easy filing: cut them out, collect them and enjoy brilliant walks for years to come.

south west south east midlands east North west 25

North east wales

24

Scotland 23

ireland 18

14

THIS MONTH…

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Ah, summer walking. What simple pleasures it brings – such as staying out in the hills without suffering Blair Witch Project-style attacks of anxiety as nightfall approaches. Or is that just me? To take advantage of the longer daylight hours, we’ve got a double dose of ‘Challenge’ routes this issue: a 12-miler in the Lakes (Route 13) and a navigational test in the Pennines (Route 14). Good luck!

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Rachel Broomhead, Walks editor

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There’s a great walk near you...

01 Cornwall Leskernick Hill from Bowithick Feature walk: Go wild and remote

9 Shropshire The Betchcott Hills 0 10 Suffolk Southwold & Walberswick 11 Cambridgeshire Cambridge to Waterbeach 12 Cheshire Wirral Country Park 100 Country Walking August 2013

challenge 4 Cumbria Cross Fell 1 walk reader’s 15 South Yorkshire Thurlstone CHOICE 16 North Yorks/Lancs Gragareth 17 North Yorkshire Ripon 18 Northumberland The Cheviot 19 Powys Llangors 20 Pembrokeshire Newport to Fishguard 21 Gwynedd Snowdon/Yr Wyddfa 22 Gwynedd Carnedd y Cribau 23 Edinburgh Cramond & Dalmeny Estates 24 Argyll & Bute Beinn Lora 25 Highland Kingussie & Creag Bheag family walk

Photo: Keith Fergus

2 Dorset Swanage to Corfe Castle 0 03 Isle of Wight Bowcombe Down 04 Greater London Wembley to Parliament Hill 05 Greater London Parliament Hill to Stratford 06 Kent Hadlow 07 Warwickshire Kineton 08 Derbyshire Curbar Feature walk: High moorland meander

13 Cumbria Yoke Ridge and Troutbeck Feature walk: Lakeland rollercoaster challenge walk

River Almond from Cramond Harbour - Route 23