gollygolly
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As a prelude to walking the Camino Ingles from La Coruna in July this year, I am intending to walk from Salisbury Cathedral to Winchester and then along the Pilgrims Way to Canterbury Cathedral.
If any forum members have some useful advice about the Pilgrims Way that they are willing to share, it will be very welcomed.
Thanks in advance.
Many thanks FleurThe Ramblings programme I mentioned was broadcast on 22 September 2016 and you can still catch it on iPlayer radio 4
They have not added unicycles or pogo sticks to the list of modes of movement, but some pilgrim will probably insist on the category someday. In the meantime, there were some very wet starts for some pilgrims.
http://bbc.in/2cMccmCMany thanks Fleur
I will be looking out for the broadcast
I enjoyed it a lot, although the second week was truly awful weather - on the wet chalk we were struggling to make 1mph. Lots of good memories of it
@gollygolly hi
As I had quite a bit of time on my hands in July and August 2016 (before returning home) I decided to start a pilgrimage from Southwark Cathedral, go via Rochester Cathedral and to end at Canterbury Cathedral. And then attend matins, mass and evensong there each day for four days.
I was lucky as Southwark had just got in a supply of Credentials. And to avoid walking through London's outer suburbs I trained to halfway up the Darenth Valley from Dartmouth and began walking from Eynsford. A few hours later and I was at Otford and formally on the North Downs Way.
A had a hard copy of The North Downs Way by Kev Reynolds and published by Cicerone. Stamfords of Long Acre, London were the stockists.
Several authors say the name "Pilgrims Way" was attributed by a map maker in the mid 1800's and is no more than a romantic suggestion of what might have been, but without any research to back it up.
My understanding about accommodation before starting was this: there are no back packer hostels of any kind except at Southwark and Canterbury. Accordingly I had a tent with air mattress and pegs weighing about 600 grams along with a sleeping bag. In the end I used this only once and stayed in a hotel once (Wrotham Heath), city pub (Rochester), and a retreat house (Aylesford) - quite expensive, but the summer heat was getting to me.
While I often encountered singles and small groups doing day trips it was only on the last leg, from Chilham to Canterbury, that I encountered others having a similar intent to me.
I wish you well
Kia kaha (take care, be brave, get going)
There's a very useful map book NORTH DOWNS WAY AZ ADVENTURE series from Ordnance Survey. This covers NDW from Farnham to Canterbury and Dover. The Pilgrims Way closely follows NDW in parts.
As well as having the maps for the whole walk in one small booklet there's a really useful section at the back where it has a route planner. This planner gives distances and also indicates how far off the NDW you need to walk to access local accommodation, food stops etc.
Bradypus and I walked the Pilgrims Way from Winchester to Canterbury in two sections of five days, plus a day to finish off a few years ago. There will be reports about it on my blog - if you google 'pilgimpace pilgrims way' they will come up.
I enjoyed it a lot, although the second week was truly awful weather - on the wet chalk we were struggling to make 1mph. Lots of good memories of it
Andy
Would very much appreciate if you could let me have the link to your account ; I opened https://pilgrimpace.wordpress.com/tag/pilgrimage/
but could not see the account of the Pilgrims Way walk.
As a prelude to walking the Camino Ingles from La Coruna in July this year, I am intending to walk from Salisbury Cathedral to Winchester and then along the Pilgrims Way to Canterbury Cathedral.
If any forum members have some useful advice about the Pilgrims Way that they are willing to share, it will be very welcomed.
Thanks in advance.
We also did the Camino Ingles from Ferrol after the Frances was just too crowded!!!As a prelude to walking the Camino Ingles from La Coruna in July this year, I am intending to walk from Salisbury Cathedral to Winchester and then along the Pilgrims Way to Canterbury Cathedral.
If any forum members have some useful advice about the Pilgrims Way that they are willing to share, it will be very welcomed.
Thanks in advance.
Sounds like a wise move! @andy.d and me walked the Ingles from Ferrol in January 2015. We set off on the feast of Three Kings and managed to fit in a vast lunch before reaching Pontedeume the first night. A very enjoyable journey. We were amazingly lucky with weather: total of 20 minutes drizzle the whole way and we even managed to get slightly sunburnedWe also did the Camino Ingles from Ferrol after the Frances was just too crowded!!!
One even started in Australia:
Australia con 1 (0,00%)
Hi there,
When do you expect to arrive in Canterbury? If our calenders match I'd be pleased to stand a fellow pilgrim lunch or dinner (I live about 5 miles outside of the city).
Take time out to visit the pilgrim's hospital in the High Street - you can find details (and a virtual tour) at http://www.eastbridgehospital.org.uk/ and remember it's St Thomas Becket NOT St Thomas a Becket
If you have your credential with you you can get a stamp from the Cathedral imformation office - explain to the sometimes officious gatekeepers what you're after and then you won't get charged the £12 entance fee.
You may find http://www.pilgrimswaycanterbury.org/ useful especially the "map" tab which lists accommodation, shops, pubs, places of interest and the locations of churches that have stamps for your passport.
Enjoy!
Thanks Andy. Altho quite a bit of info about it online there doesn't appear to be much up yet for 2017. It it appears to be held in May so that might just suit me.Gerard,
I think the homelessness project at St Martin in the Fields do an annual walk along this route. They would have information. That would be a wonderful group of people to walk with
Andy
It's on my calendar!Many thanks indeed Jeff
If the weather permits, which from reading the post above that suggests that walking on the chalk paths when they are wet can be slow going, hope to get to Canterbury on Friday 7th July. Our time available for the whole walk is very, very tight... but if there is an opportunity to share some time, it would be a pleasure for us. Thanks also for the suggestion of visiting the pilgrims hospital in the High Street. If time allows, that will be a place I would love to visit.
Bon camino !
Cicerone are publishing Walking the Pilgrims' Way to Canterbury from Winchester and London, ISBN 978 1 85284 777 7 by Leigh Hatts on 15 February. It should be available from the CSJ bookshop and other places after that.
The route follows as far as possible the 'old road' which academics say may never have existed, deviating onto the North Downs Way only where necessary, because of busy roads or private estates, with a few minor road stretches, esp in Kent. But I think that when you are walking the countryside it is clear that there was an old route at and just above the spring level on the south side of the chalk spine of the North Downs.
The Guide includes a lot of historical information about the churches and historical connections, unlike many straight walking Guides.
Pilgrim records are available at Winchester, Southwark and Canterbury cathedrals. A few churches have stamps. This could be walked prior to the Camino Inglés.
Accommodation is an issue -you need to be resourceful.
Canterbury cathedral has a useful website www.pilgrimswaycanterbury.org
Declaration of interest! I write as former secretary of CSJ and fellow pilgrim (and wife) of Leigh Hatts!
Now to investigate accommodation. That looks a little more difficult.
Thanks for the advice. I'll probably start at the pub I used to work at close to Tower Bridge. Then to Southwark Cathedral, altho the credential is not of supreme importance. I'm following Chaucers pilgrims.The Canterbury Cathedral website was helpful about the route and churches, especially those with stamps.
Regrettably the actual experience was quite different. Many churches were not open. Having got my credential at Southwark Cathedral (where they were on to when to stamp it) I found myself using pharmacies and post offices for "evidence" of my pilgrimage progress.
At the gate house to Canterbury Cathedral I lined up with those paying their money. I did not have to wait long before an invigilator spotted me, asked if I was on a pilgrimage (YES) and took me to the reception centre about 50 metres inside the precinct.
Accommodation was a completely different affair. Except for the last 15 km I did not encounter any other walkers. So did not expect hostel type accommodation. (This mirrored my experience on Thames Path).
My only concern is getting from Heathrow to Aylesford
I am not an expert on travel within London. However, assuming your arrival is 6 am (06h00) you might want to consider:
1) Picaddilly Line from any LHR Underground station to S Pancras / Kings Cross - about 60 minutes
2) rail: S Pancras to Strood - about 30 minutes
3) rail: Strood to Ayleford - about 15 minutes
4) walk: Aylesford Station to (my assumption) Aylesford Priory - about 20 minutes / 2 kilometres / 1.1 miles
If 6 pm (18h00) arrival then I suggest you book some accommodation near S Pancras / Kings Cross and continue the to Aylesford the next day.
Kia kaha (take care, be strong, get going)
I intend to walk from Southwark Cathedral to Canterbury Cathedral this year, probably May. My motivation is having lived and worked in Southwark for a time, at the 'Anchor Tap' tavern adjacent to Tower Bridge.
More importantly I have also been a long time devotee of Chaucher's 'Canterbury Tales' and intend to carry a copy and enjoy it along the way.
I am aware the Pilgrims Way starts in Winchester but obviously this start is not for me. Thank you everyone for the info above into which I will delve. I need to plan a route, and see one from Southwark which links with the Pilgrims Way around Sevenoaks.
http://www.pilgrimswaycanterbury.org/the-way/
That looks promising altho I have heard tell pilgrims from London went via Rochester, which seems to be more direct and therefore make a little more sense.
Now to investigate accommodation. That looks a little more difficult.
Your further advice as to routes, maps, and accommodation would be much appreciated.
Kind regards
Gerard
I've just looked on the trainline.com site. Your information looks about right. The single fare quoted was £29.50 from LHR to Aylesford. It looks doable that evening but flight delays / immigration delys etc would mean you arrive late. I think your suggestion Alwyn is a good one. My daughter stayed twice at Premier Inn hotel Kings Cross (next door to St Pancras station) and said it was good and convenient.
A bit of a problem for those of us with ambitions to be real pilgrims but who live on a big grey damp island off the NW coast of France. Last year I walked from Canterbury to Dover. Then from Calais to Rome. Being at heart deeply lazy I took a ferry for the Dover to Calais section rather than swim and so disqualified myself from being a true pilgrim. Likewise I cheated outrageously in walking from my home in Wales to St Jean Pied de Port by taking not one but TWO ferries on the way. This of course rendered both journeys spiritually null and void: a sacrilegious travesty of pilgrimage. Something for which now I feel deeply guilty and your words have made me see that I should confess all - done that bit above - and seek forgiveness and absolution (Are you reading this @timr ?) .
I just may need to hit a book store for your guide
I'm trying to decide if Rochester is worth it
I've just looked on-line. There's Baggins Book Store in Rochester near the Cathedral www.bagginbooks.co.ukI just may need to hit a book store for your guide before I set out. it is more confusing than I thought it would be.
I cheated and took a ferry from Portsmouth to St Malo, and another across the Gironde from Royan to near Soulac. I walked the rest of the way in an unconventional order: St Jean to Santiago, then Swansea to St Jean. A pedalo would not be high on my list of suitable craft for crossing the channel!Have you really done the whole journey in stages from Swansea to SDC?
A couple of years ago I did a circular walk starting in Canterbury, taking the Pilgrim's Way and then NDW to Folkestone and then Dover and then back up to Canterbury on the traditioinal PW route. The signage into Canterbury was very good, as was the signage from Dover to Canterbury. So don't be concerned if your guide doesn't arrive, as it's all straightforward. As others have mentioned above, the relatively new website www.pilgrimswaycanterbury.org is very handy.Well it turns out a lot of the North Downs Way guides don't even go to Canterbury. :/ They take a different route following the Ntl Trail to Dover.
Re. overnight stop in London, as your flight doesn't arrive until 18.00 then inevitable waits for luggage collection and customs / immigration at LHR you might be very late getting to Kent that evening. I am not sure I would want to do that train journey at night having just been on a long flight.
A couple of years ago I did a circular walk starting in Canterbury, taking the Pilgrim's Way and then NDW to Folkestone and then Dover and then back up to Canterbury on the traditioinal PW route. The signage into Canterbury was very good, as was the signage from Dover to Canterbury. So don't be concerned if your guide doesn't arrive, as it's all straightforward. As others have mentioned above, the relatively new website www.pilgrimswaycanterbury.org is very handy.
re. U.K. Sim card. If you don't want to hang around at the airport to buy a sim card most sizeable towns in U.K. will have phone shops that will sell you one. Rochester, Canterbury very likely.
That's www.bagginsbooks.co.ukI've just looked on-line. There's Baggins Book Store in Rochester near the Cathedral www.bagginbooks.co.uk
if you get in touch and ask they may well order the map book and have it waiting for you when you arrive. Worth a try.
Bahhhh...I'm at the point now where I'm trying to decide if Rochester is worth it.
If I go from Aylesford to Thurnham, I could probably switch one of my bookings and then spend the night in London the first night rather than a crazy rush to Aylesford. Then I could hit this bookstore too!
But I was thinking Rochester Cathedral might be a highlight.
Idk what I want to do...
Rochester Cathedral is wonderful with great acoustics (my daughter used to sing in the Girls Choir there) - terrific carved wooden roof and look at the new glass doors:Bahhhh...I'm at the point now where I'm trying to decide if Rochester is worth it.
If I go from Aylesford to Thurnham, I could probably switch one of my bookings and then spend the night in London the first night rather than a crazy rush to Aylesford. Then I could hit this bookstore too!
But I was thinking Rochester Cathedral might be a highlight.
Idk what I want to do...
Rochester Cathedral is wonderful with great acoustics (my daughter used to sing in the Girls Choir there) - terrific carved wooden roof and look at the new glass doors:
View attachment 32247
The Priory in Aylesford is very serene except at weekends, look out too for the old stone bridge over the Medway. Sadly the Little Gem pub - reputed to have been the smallest in Kent (the clue is in the name - more than four people and the pub was full to the brim!) - is no more.
When you get to Thurnham (pronounced Turn'em) there's a little village called Bearsted (pronounced Beerstid - they speak funny in those parts) to the south of the PW. The diversion will add an hour to your walk but, if you need food, there is a great deli called Rickwoods on the green. Fabulous pies and bread or they'll make up rolls and sandwiches which you can eat on the cricket green across the road - they've been playing there since 1749 (that's a date not a time). Be wary of the jam doughnuts - a LOT of jam goes inside, and comes out, of them!
Baroness Orczy of Scarlet Pimpernel fame live here and there's a very sweet parish church with a sad memorial to the last man to be hanged in England for setting fire to a hay rick, made even more poignant by the fact that he was innocent.
Otherwise keep on the PW to Hollingbourne where you can dine at the Dirty Habit pub parts of which go back to the 11th century.
Local knowledge can be a wonderful thing (sometimes!)
I plan on walking the Pilgrim's Way from Winchester to Canterbury in the spring of 2018. On of the ladies with our party wonders if there is a transport service for her back pack like there is on the Camino de Santiago. Would you know who I could ask?Bradypus and I walked the Pilgrims Way from Winchester to Canterbury in two sections of five days, plus a day to finish off a few years ago. There will be reports about it on my blog - if you google 'pilgimpace pilgrims way' they will come up.
I enjoyed it a lot, although the second week was truly awful weather - on the wet chalk we were struggling to make 1mph. Lots of good memories of it
Andy
I don't think there's anything to match the simple bag transfer facilities on the CF.
Thank you so much for taking the time to write me. Please continue to think of me as you post more about your pilgrimage and/or have any information on the backpack transport.By coincidence, as it is only on an occasional basis that I look at this forum, currently sat at the airport at Santiago de Compestella awaiting the flight out of here having completed the walking of the Pilgrims Way followed by the Camino Ingles from La Coruna.
More on the walking once I get the time, but in answer to your question - there is no transfer service for backpacks on the Pilgrims Way that I know of. The Pilgrims Way is beautiful and certainly one of the most magnificent and memorable of walks that I have done, but do not expect much in the way of facilities for walkers, including very poor signage along the route.
Finally, while I hope to write more about the whole experience within the next month, do allow time for the Pilgrims Way. We walked from Salisbury to Winchester in 2 days - fine. From Winchester to Canterbury we walked in 8 days - I would suggest that 10 days would be better.
Very best - and Bon Camino !
y
Thank you for your suggestion about calling the cathedral, I will do that.I just googled Luggage carrying services for walkers UK and got various websites. These services do happen on certain long distance routes but at a quick glance I didn't see anything mentioned for the Pilgrims Way.
Perhaps enquire at the Cathedral offices. An alternative might be to arrange for luggage transfer by taxi but that's not a cheap option.
I don't think there's anything to match the simple bag transfer facilities on the CF.
Thank you so much for. Your reply.I just googled Luggage carrying services for walkers UK and got various websites. These services do happen on certain long distance routes but at a quick glance I didn't see anything mentioned for the Pilgrims Way.
Perhaps enquire at the Cathedral offices. An alternative might be to arrange for luggage transfer by taxi but that's not a cheap option.
I don't think there's anything to match the simple bag transfer facilities on the CF.
I have not heard of any luggage transfer services for independent walkers on the Pilgrim's Way - only for those who choose to buy a complete package from a travel company. I came across this example today: http://loadoffyourback.co.uk/?page=walk&country=england&id=england_001 The huge service industry supporting the Camino Frances in particular and the other major Spanish caminos mean that walking in Spain is a very different experience from routes in most other countries.
I have not heard of any luggage transfer services for independent walkers on the Pilgrim's Way - only for those who choose to buy a complete package from a travel company. I came across this example today: http://loadoffyourback.co.uk/?page=walk&country=england&id=england_001 The huge service industry supporting the Camino Frances in particular and the other major Spanish caminos mean that walking in Spain is a very different experience from routes in most other countries.
Thank you so much for taking the time to write me. Please continue to think of me as you post more about your pilgrimage and/or have any information on the backpack transport.
I think I just sent you a private message, but will reply later. I am very curious about this thread. I will be walking The Pilgrims Way May 23-June 3, 2018. Thank you.As a prelude to walking the Camino Ingles from La Coruna in July this year, I am intending to walk from Salisbury Cathedral to Winchester and then along the Pilgrims Way to Canterbury Cathedral.
If any forum members have some useful advice about the Pilgrims Way that they are willing to share, it will be very welcomed.
Thanks in advance.
A very interesting account of your walk in the Pilgrim's Way. I attend St Barnabas church at Ranmore and will ask them about having a stamp for pilgrims. Unfortunately the church though open most Sunday mornings, it is not open every day.
St Martha's on the Hill is worth a visit when open. They have one or two pilgrim relics including a shell, on display.
The daily distances you walked were impressive!!
I think I just sent you a private message, but will reply later. I am very curious about this thread. I will be walking The Pilgrims Way May 23-June 3, 2018. Thank you.
Only seeing this for first time today!A bit of a problem for those of us with ambitions to be real pilgrims but who live on a big grey damp island off the NW coast of France. Last year I walked from Canterbury to Dover. Then from Calais to Rome. Being at heart deeply lazy I took a ferry for the Dover to Calais section rather than swim and so disqualified myself from being a true pilgrim. Likewise I cheated outrageously in walking from my home in Wales to St Jean Pied de Port by taking not one but TWO ferries on the way. This of course rendered both journeys spiritually null and void: a sacrilegious travesty of pilgrimage. Something for which now I feel deeply guilty and your words have made me see that I should confess all - done that bit above - and seek forgiveness and absolution (Are you reading this @timr ?) .
No movie??Overall, a wonderful experience walking The Pilgrims Way, though a total mystery to me as to why there are so few who do it.
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