Walking from England

[Vagabond0079]

Hi,

I'm planning a trip leaving from my front door in Cambridge the day after Easter 2008. I'm planning on walking to Winchester, then down the Pilgrim's Way to Southampton and taking a ferry to Cherbourg. From there I understand there are some GR routes to Mont St Michele, and down the western part of France, meeting up with the Tours Route around Poitiers. Anybody out there walked the route before? I'm expecting it to take 4-5 months depending on how often I stop to play tourist and how fast I walk.

Any input?

 

[windeatt]

From England

I can't help with any experiences I'm afraid but I would also like to do this - walking from Newcastle out along Hadrian's wall and down the Pennine Way. That then seems to connect up with various other routes down to the coast.

However, I'm not doing it just yet. Planning a much shorter trip through France this year to see how I get on. I'm also a little put off by how much it might cost in England. We walked Hadrian's Wall last summer and it cost us a lot of money (we were using B&Bs rather than hostels).

Do keep posting.

 

[Vagabond0079]

I'm a little put off by cost as well, but to defray that I've pretty much decided to camp when possible through the countryside, and stay in hostels in the cities. I've also altered my route a bit, choosing instead to head from Cambs down to London, and then pick up the North Downs Way to Dover, probably with a small detour to Canterbury. From there I'll walk to Paris and pick up the Paris/Tours route. I decided to do this because I'm not really restricted by time, and the experience of walking into Paris seems too exciting to pass up. Plus the coastal route, while probably beautiful, is also more likely to be rainy in the spring and I probably wouldn't see a soul until the Pyrenees.

Cheers!

 

[windeatt]

Best wishes

I hope it all goes well. Do let us know when you get back.