A Walk Around Britain

This walk took us 9 months from home, from Canterbury to Lands End and back along to Somerset.

We had set off with a very limited knowledge of long-walking. We did know we could sing together, how far we could walk, nor how to use the kit we were carrying.

We learned a lot, and met many great people. We found that England is no single land, but many small lands that mingle and overlap, each distinct, but also dependent on its neighbour for a sense of relative identity.

There is much we would say of this journey; but we’ve already said a lot, and snippets of info are distributed around this website.

For a detailed sample of these adventures, please check The Book.

Walking out of Barnstaple, we were jolly from our the first busk in some time. The town drinkers had been inspired to start singing, and we spotted them knocking out Aerosmith songs to slightly shocked shoppers. They had good, if slightly rough edged voices. They held the tunes, with animated delivery. As we were walking out of town, they ran after us with their hatful of money, laughing, saying they’d got enough for a cider each. They tried to give us a cut of the money, for reminding them of this old trick, but we said “hold onto it”. We wonder if they took this further, and started learning, arranging and practising songs, or if it was an afternoon’s fun and no more?

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We arrived in Totnes after a long day walking across Dartmoor, from Morton Hampstead in the North. We had stayed for winter solstice in the Stewards Wood Community, just east of Morton. It was good hearty festivity, with a feast, songs, and a carved ash yule log. We’d been given a guest yurt to sleep in, complete with wood-burner, and we were intensely grateful for its glowing warmth.

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