trip to the uk

sadiejane

sadiejane

Joined
Feb 6, 2009
Messages
1,120
starting work on plans for a trip
to the uk next year. taking one carry-on bag
which will actually be a backpack. will have to buy a knife upon arrival.
anyhoos. there are numerous folks from britain on this forum.
and others who have traveled there. we will have a wee bit over a week. want to spend it all walking.
any suggestions for an area of the country to focus on.
never been to the uk, and tho ive found numerous, very informative websites.
this one is great but still need to pick a place to start.
http://www.walkingbritain.co.uk/index.php
and need to make a decision where to fly into/out of.
and start right there walking. have no desire to visit the largest of cities. but know traveling from the us may have to fly into a rather large metro location.
thanks.
 
Scottish Highlands would be my #1 recommendation.
Lake District and parts of north Wales would be my #2.
#3 would be a many of the rest including The Peak District, North Yorkshire and many of the Coastal Paths.
 
If you fly into Manchester then you'll be able to get a train up to the Lake District or over to Llandudno in Wales and then get a bus to Snowdonia National Park.
 
Knoydart Peninsula, one of the last wild places in the UK. I would have said the highlands, specifically the Cairngorms but that's already been covered.

Here's a link to info about Knoydart:
LINK

Here's a link for the Cairngorms:
LINK

If you fly into Glasgow then you'll be centrally located to take advantage of most of Scotland's scenery. We're only a small country so you can get to most places relatively quickly compared to the US.
 
Were it me, I'd find a way to fit a visit to York into the mix -- if only to spend a day at the Jorvik center.
 
This is quite a subject.
I've been resident here in the UK for 2.5 years now and there are still parts of my neighbourhood and local countryside I've just not seen yet.
I second what has been said by previous posters, but while public transport in the UK is very good, you can chew up a lot of time just getting to your start point. And the same applies when leaving. You'd plan on a week but you'll lose a day each end just getting from the airport (say Manchester) to your chosen trailhead near Windermere in the Lake District. I'm no expert on Lake District trails, but I'm not sure that there are many continuous trails that you can do over a 5 day stretch. You'd need to research this carefully.

I'd recommend something like the Trans-Pennine trail which cuts across the UK from East to West (you can walk in either direction). It's close to Manchester airport and the short parts of it that I've done (short day walks only) have been very picturesque. There are plenty of pubs for lunches and overnight stays. If you find a part looking to be boring, just take a bus to the next village and continue from there. It'd make a fine introduction to the UK. Parts are mountainous (the Pennines), it's all rural (but you could choose sections that run through cities!) and you could even hitch a ride on a passing barge when the going gets rough!

ETA: Just don't swim in the canals. The swans don't like it.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top