Our Walking Journal

View of Glastonbury Tor from the steps leading up to the church tower.

What can I expect when I hike up Glastonbury Tor?

Glastonbury Tor rises like an island above the flat, agricultural wetlands of the Somerset Levels. Before the 18th century, the Levels were a frequently flooded saltwater marsh with isolated hills rising up out of the mists. Glastonbury Tor is one of these hills and has been a magnet for pilgrims and wanderers for centuries. It’s

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View of the front of a cottage with red and white roses climbing over the door

When is the best time to visit English country gardens?

There are few better ways of spending a summer’s day (in our opinion) than wandering the quiet footpaths and country lanes of South West England, walking from village to village past humble cottages gardens bursting with colour and life. And stopping, of course, for a cream tea or spot of lunch at country inn or village

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Front view of an Elizabethan manor house with people walking up a wide driveway through green lawns to the front door.

Exploring country houses & gardens in South West England

There is something timelessly romantic about exploring a grand country house. Wandering rolling green countryside and quiet country lanes, through picturesque villages with traditional cottage gardens before you approach a grand manor on foot, seeing it as a traveller would have centuries before. On our Country Houses & Gardens trip, you’ll experience some of the

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Photo of a footpath waymarker with green countryside stretching out in the background

Hiking with skylarks on Dorset’s chalk downs

Earlier this week, Emma from the Foot Trails team was out in north Dorset checking part of one of our trails in our Thomas Hardy’s Dorset trip that takes you out to one of the most impressive chalk downs in the county. “I arrived early at my startpoint to be greeted by an overcast sky

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View of a country house garden with a white foxglove in the foreground and a village church tower in the background.

Why we love summer hiking

Summer is here! In England the season officially starts on June 1st and runs through until 31st August, according to the meteorological calendar. We love summer hiking. The long daylight hours are one of the joys. With the sun setting between 21:00 and 22:00, there’s time to linger and enjoy the beautiful English countryside. And

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