Mickledore Travel
Latest articles
Bruce’s Big Adventure on Hadrian’s Wall
This article was written by Charlotte Briggs during her time with Mickledore and reflects her first-hand experience of the route. This was my first walk with Mickledore! Living in the Lakes, my husband (Jack), 3-year-old black lab (Bruce), and myself were really excited to walk the trail along Hadrian’s Wall. Bruce (and Jack and myself) are used to the mileage undertaken having lived in the Lakes most our lives. However, we didn’t know what to expect with consecutive days walking … Day 1: Wallsend to Wylam And we’re off As we were in ‘dog friendly’ accommodation, we stayed in Wylam and travelled to Wallsend to start the walk – this differs slightly from the itinerary laid out on the website. What a glorious day for it! (This was surprising considering what was forecast for the week). Arriving at Wallsend we had a brief explore around Segedunum but we didn’t stay long as we were too excited to start our adventure. I know Newcastle fairly well but I found it really interesting to find how the landmarks I already know linked through the trail. As it was a Sunday, there was a market on the quayside which was lovely to explore….
Putting in the Miles on the Dorset Coast
This article was written by Steve Jones during his time with Mickledore and reflects his first-hand experience of the route. Last summer, in order to further familiarise myself with both the route and some of our accommodation providers, I walked, well actually I ran, the 81 mile Dorset section of the South West Coast Path. Well actually, I ran more than that. All will be explained! Before the Off After leaving an overcast Cumbria earlier in the day I was pleased to be greeted by wall-to-wall sunshine when I arrived in Lyme Regis. After checking into my accommodation it was still relatively early so I decided it was far too nice just to mooch around the town. With a village called Beer just down the coast it was too good an opportunity to lace up my trail shoes and see if I could find a beer in Beer. One of the bonuses of running on my familiarisation trips is that it enables me to check out more of the trail than if I just walked. On this occasion the trip to Beer took me in the opposite direction to the prevailing direction of travel for the Dorset Coast, but it…
Sue’s Great Scottish Adventure on the West Highland Way
This article was written by Sue Williams during her time with Mickledore and reflects her first-hand experience of the route. Having previously enjoyed familiarisation trips along Hadrian’s Wall and on the South Downs Way, I chose this summer, to walk the West Highland Way. It’s really popular with our customers and their feedback inspired me to want to experience the spectacular scenery for myself. Accompanied once again by my husband Mike, I’d learn about the route and meet some of our accommodation hosts as we worked our way northward. Day 1: Milngavie to Drymen The route starts at Milngavie not far from Glasgow and we finish next weekend at Fort William. In between we have 96 miles of varied terrain to cross with some spectacular views to look forward to. Our walk today was a gentle introduction to the trail. Starting near the river we walked through some lovely woodland and field side tracks with a mile or so of quiet lane to reach Drymen. It was from the lane we had our first sighting of Loch Lomond. We saw golden-ringed dragonflies. They were very striking. We also saw a big toad hopping along the path, and lots of birdlife….
History and Heritage on Hadrian’s Wall
This article was written by James Taylor during his time with Mickledore and reflects his first-hand experience of the route. This would be my first long distance trail and I couldn’t think of a better ‘first’ than our most popular route Hadrian’s Wall. I’d heard so many fantastic comments about the trail and the hosts along the way I had to experience it for myself! Day 1: Bowness on Solway to Carlisle My first day was a fairly long and flat walk from Bowness on Solway to Carlisle, a far cry from the Lakeland fells I’m used to at home but walking along the Solway Firth was no less charming. One thing I’ve really enjoyed is the history on this part of the trail which has very little to do with Romans. The death of a king, the journeys of a Bonnie Prince, the raiding Reivers, the pilgrimage of a US president and even the glimpses of a faded industrial heritage – a far more interesting day than I was expecting! Day 2: Carlisle to Lanercost I wonder how suited I am to flatter terrain as we march steadily out of Carlisle with achier legs than I think I’ve ever…
Barley Fields, Beacons and Butterflies
This article was written by Sue Williams during her time with Mickledore and reflects her first-hand experience of the route. I recently walked the South Downs Way with the aim of enhancing my knowledge of the route as well as getting to know a handful of our fabulous accommodation providers. I was joined on the walk by my husband Mike. Day 1, Winchester to Exton We arrived in Winchester last night to find the city buzzing with life. It was the HAT fair weekend when there are many artists providing different kinds of free outdoor and street entertainment. There was a great atmosphere. This morning, after a fabulous breakfast at our accommodation, we headed to City Mill for the official marker at the start of the trail. Following the river and a lane we left the city, crossing the M3 motorway and entering the countryside. Today’s walking was often on tracks and quiet lanes. We passed through several short sections of woodland. Very welcome shade as it was a warm day. The fields of Barley we passed through are golden and looking down into the Meon Valley from Beacon Hill the grassy fields there were still green despite all the…
Katie and Shelley’s Search for Knowledge on the Cotswold Way
This article was written by Katie Armitage during her time with Mickledore and reflects her first-hand experience of the route. My colleague Shelley and I recently walked the Cotswold Way with the aim of enhancing our knowledge of the route as well as getting to know a few of our wonderful accommodation providers. Day 1: Chipping Campden to Winchcombe We started our Cotswold Way adventure from Chipping Campden. The trail started with a nice easy climb out of the village. We past several thatched houses and even spotted the house Graham Greene (famous English writer) once lived in! We continued the trail over stunning rolling hills with open views towards the South. After a few short climbs we arrived at Broadway Tower. Which is known for being the highest littlest castle in the Cotswolds. From there we made our way down to the picturesque village of Broadway. We happily stumbled upon a local food festival and as it was lunch time we tucked into some local delights! The next few miles we we’re treated to some outstanding views over the rural farmlands. We learnt that the Cotswold Way trail is made up of 83% of farmland. We found many benches…
Hadrian’s Wall – My First Long Distance Path
This article was written by Sue Williams during her time with Mickledore and reflects her first-hand experience of the route. I recently spent time walking Hadrian’s Wall with my husband Mike. My aim was to enhance my knowledge of the route and get to know some of our fantastic accommodation providers. Hadrian’s wall was my first ever long distance path and a brilliant introduction to multi day walking. From the start we were lucky with the weather and saw some amazing sections of wall, fort, turret, and milecastle remains. Our side visits to Corbridge Roman town, Chesters Fort and museum told us a lot about the Roman lifestyle and cavalry operations. Early views were far reaching both north and south of the wall. In many places we could see the ditches and vallum supporting the wall defences. We met some interesting people in the first few days along the trail, some of whom were fellow Mickledore walkers. Twice Brewed to Newtown We enjoyed some glorious sunshine as we walked from Twice Brewed to Newtown passing the highest point on the wall at Green Slack, 345m. There were many magnificent wall sections and a pretty disused quarry at Cawfields. We also…