The oldest Hotel in Scotland – and it’s on the West Highland Way

Kings House Hotel

Bridge of Orchy- Kings House Hotel (21.5 km)  – Glencoe, Argyll We were staying at a B&B near the village of Bridge of Orchy. The overnight rain had brought about an overcast morning. It was time to pay for dinner and order lunch. Dinner turned out to be £10 each instead of £9 and a [...]

Offa’s Dyke – Gladestry –Kington with the highest golf course in Britain

Cosy Kington in the Welsh woods

Overnighted at at B&B at Gladestry on the historic Anglo-Welsh border. A good breakfast in the dining room and an extra slice of cake for good measure. It was going to be a long walk today. A blustery wind forecast for today. We followed the road down to Gladestry and walked through the quiet village. [...]

Via Francigena – Siena and Saint Catherine

Siena's memorial to St Catherine

We had happened to be in Siena on the day of the Palio, a fiercely competitive horserace. After visiting Il Campo where preparations were being made for the race later in the day, we found ourselves back at the piazza in front of the Duomo where the procession of the Contrades, representatives of Siena’s seventeen [...]

Via Francigena – Montefiascone and a legend

Magnificent St Flavian's Church, Montefiascone

We were on the Via francigena and had arrived in the small Italian city of Montefiascone, built on an old volcanic ridge, a wonderful place to rest after the walk from Bolsena. We walked up the main road to a secondary winding road that led to the very top of the volcanic rim and to [...]

London – Jubilee Walk

Majestic creatures on the Jubilee Walk

I met Carol at Paddington Station and we take the Underground to Victoria Station. These large London stations connect London to the rest of Britain and Europe. Always lots of people milling and walking about. We walk down to the Royal Mews to have a look at the Queens horses and Stables. One of the [...]

Le Puy to Conques – a German pilgrim and the lost key

Sacred French Landscape

Le Puy, France Well, this was it. The planning and research was over. There were 800kms to walk from Le Puy to the Pyrenees and then another 700km to Santiago de Compostela. However our journey would be considerably shorter at 210km across the Auvergne region in Southern France. We would be following the GR65, one [...]

Le Puy to Conques – Le Puy, the city of the Holy Virgin

Cast iron statue of the Virgin and Jesus in Le Puy

In Le Puy, France for the start of our walk to Conques: The next day we had a lot to do. Waking early we left the hotel in the dark to attend the 7.00 am service which would include a pilgrims’ blessing. I felt a sense of adventure as we walked up Mount Corneille and [...]

Offa’s Dyke – walking on the Dyke (760AD)

On Offa's Dyke itself

We had just left the Kington Golf Course – the highest in Britain and began our walk up the hills. The cold wind picked up again on these exposed slopes. We were now walking across high fields with increasing winds. It was difficult to see the next signpost and we became separated. I saw Carol [...]

Visit Sandringham – on Peddar's Way

Sandringham Estate gates

Peddar’s Way Walk, Norfolk, UK We had stayed overnight at the Ostrich Inn in a delightful village named Castle Acre. It was a clear morning. Only one cloud on the horizon and that was today’s walking distance from her to our next accommodation at Hunstanton 32 km away. It was too far to walk in [...]

Wet weather gear for Camino and other journeys

Sometimes - even plastic - when it rains!

Sometimes – even plastic – when it rains! PONFERRADA, CAMINO, SPAIN: .We left the hotel, walked past the Ayunamento, over the bridge and out through the suburbs of Ponferrada, the first of which was Compostilla, a lovely area with neatly spaced house blocks with large luxury houses. We passed a modern neo-Romanesque church with a [...]