The Cotswold Way - Thoughts in Conclusion
Fudge getting up close & personal with the Toposcope on the summit of Haresfield Beacon which is visited on Day 6
As is customary, we thought we would put together a few thoughts that may help in the planning & execution of walking The Cotswold Way. Most of these points are pretty generic to long distance walking and are therefore much the same as in previous blogs we have written. Hindsight is a wonderful thing and the advice given is not exhaustive. The best form of research is other people’s blogs, guide books and using plain old common sense. Some of the advice and thoughts below may be repeated from the Planning & Preparation page at the start of this blog - apologies for that!
The walk itself
Some people may say that The Cotswold Way does not possess much of a challenge to the long distance walker. I would disagree because as with any long distance walk, you can make it as hard or as easy as you want just by how much distance you wish to cover in a day. This particular walk really does deliver - fantastic scenery, lots of interest and idyllic Cotswold villages are just a few of its many qualities. For anybody wanting to "cut their teeth" on a long distance walk then The Cotswold Way provides a very pleasant lead in. There are no underwhelming aspects to it and I found it a lovely walk to experience, in particular the stunning landscape.
As for other walkers, considering I did the walk in mid June, I only saw 2 other people who were doing the walk end to end like I was. On the rare occasions I bumped into other people on the path, they were simply doing it in a section of day walks. With regard to navigating, it is very difficult to lose your way as it is extremely well way marked and with a bit of forethought can be split down into manageable chunks to fit whatever your stamina & walking pace.
Having now completed The Cotswold Way it is fair to say that, whilst a shorter walk than ones we have completed before it certainly provides the walker with an ever changing variety of walking terrain, views & scenery and is jam packed full of historical interest.
Give it a go and see for yourself.
Planning and Accommodation
Because of Angie not recovering enough from a knee injury, it would be just Fudge and I walking this time. Whilst this was not ideal, it did offer up the opportunity to make the logistical aspects of the walk a lot easier. We had really struggled with accommodation for the latter stages of the walk, mainly because a lack of choice made some of the mileages a little too long. With Angie ferrying me about, we were able to manage our day a lot easier and more importantly, because of the very warm weather we were also able to manage Fudge's mileage.
The standard of accommodation was above average with only one establishment falling below standard. The Cotswolds are renowned for being expensive however we felt we achieved value for money in all but one of the B&Bs.
Kit & Medical
Medically, we used a fair bit of Vaseline on our feet and micro porous tape that resulted in no blisters. In a nutshell, each morning tape up any areas where you have had blisters appear in the past and then rub a light coating of Vaseline over the rest of each foot and in between your toes. It really does pay to rub your feet at night with some foot lotion and also buddy up getting your feet ready in the morning. No matter how much training you have done before the walk, your feet will hurt at some stage. When resting up or whilst having lunch, get the boots off and air your feet and change your socks if necessary.
After about 20 minutes walking have a stretch of the hamstrings, calves, groin and quads. Repeat this before and after any lengthy stop and on completion of the days walking. This stretching routine will pay dividends.
It goes without saying that a basic first aid kit is a must.
Rucksacks
Apart from your Boots this is the second most important piece of kit you have. Make sure it is comfortable and fits your needs. As stated earlier, we used a couple of Osprey Daysacks (with rain hoods) and these were just the job. One thing we would say is fill it up and test it out before you start - make sure it feels comfortable and get out and walk with the weight in it. Additionally, make sure you have dry-bags in your kit for those rainy days.
Water
There is a link below to Refill - a website giving information with regard to water refill points etc. Another thing you could do is just apply common sense - if you get the chance then top up. Cafes and shops you visit will more than likely help you out.
Mapping
We carried the relevant OS Maps, two Compasses, a GPS and the mapping pages of the Trailblazer Guide Book. Suffice to say we did not get lost. Additionally, we have the OS Locate App on our phones and should the GPS have failed the App would give us a 6 figure Grid Reference which could then be plotted on the relevant paper map. It pays to have a navigation back up system. Despite all of this, the route is so well signposted that it would be really difficult to lose your way in good visibility.
Useful Links
The Cotswold Way National Trail Website - a must read for anybody thinking about undertaking this fabulous walk (and this blog of course!)
www.nationaltrail.co.uk/en_GB/trails/cotswold-way/
Accuweather - a very good weather update service.
www.accuweather.com/en/gb/united-kingdom-weather
Refill - a national, practical tap water campaign to aid you in topping up your supply on route. Well worth "tapping in to" (nyuk, nyuk).
refill.org.uk
Charity
Last but not least, thanks to the generosity of friends, family and people we have never met, Fudge managed to raise £3159.64 for Spaniel Aid. This amount of money will make a huge difference to this wonderful charity and therefore we would like to give our heartfelt thanks to those who donated. If you would like to read more about the wonderful work they do or after reading this blog you would like to make a donation then the link is below.
spanielaid.co.uk/
The walk itself
Some people may say that The Cotswold Way does not possess much of a challenge to the long distance walker. I would disagree because as with any long distance walk, you can make it as hard or as easy as you want just by how much distance you wish to cover in a day. This particular walk really does deliver - fantastic scenery, lots of interest and idyllic Cotswold villages are just a few of its many qualities. For anybody wanting to "cut their teeth" on a long distance walk then The Cotswold Way provides a very pleasant lead in. There are no underwhelming aspects to it and I found it a lovely walk to experience, in particular the stunning landscape.
As for other walkers, considering I did the walk in mid June, I only saw 2 other people who were doing the walk end to end like I was. On the rare occasions I bumped into other people on the path, they were simply doing it in a section of day walks. With regard to navigating, it is very difficult to lose your way as it is extremely well way marked and with a bit of forethought can be split down into manageable chunks to fit whatever your stamina & walking pace.
Having now completed The Cotswold Way it is fair to say that, whilst a shorter walk than ones we have completed before it certainly provides the walker with an ever changing variety of walking terrain, views & scenery and is jam packed full of historical interest.
Give it a go and see for yourself.
Planning and Accommodation
Because of Angie not recovering enough from a knee injury, it would be just Fudge and I walking this time. Whilst this was not ideal, it did offer up the opportunity to make the logistical aspects of the walk a lot easier. We had really struggled with accommodation for the latter stages of the walk, mainly because a lack of choice made some of the mileages a little too long. With Angie ferrying me about, we were able to manage our day a lot easier and more importantly, because of the very warm weather we were also able to manage Fudge's mileage.
The standard of accommodation was above average with only one establishment falling below standard. The Cotswolds are renowned for being expensive however we felt we achieved value for money in all but one of the B&Bs.
Kit & Medical
Medically, we used a fair bit of Vaseline on our feet and micro porous tape that resulted in no blisters. In a nutshell, each morning tape up any areas where you have had blisters appear in the past and then rub a light coating of Vaseline over the rest of each foot and in between your toes. It really does pay to rub your feet at night with some foot lotion and also buddy up getting your feet ready in the morning. No matter how much training you have done before the walk, your feet will hurt at some stage. When resting up or whilst having lunch, get the boots off and air your feet and change your socks if necessary.
After about 20 minutes walking have a stretch of the hamstrings, calves, groin and quads. Repeat this before and after any lengthy stop and on completion of the days walking. This stretching routine will pay dividends.
It goes without saying that a basic first aid kit is a must.
Rucksacks
Apart from your Boots this is the second most important piece of kit you have. Make sure it is comfortable and fits your needs. As stated earlier, we used a couple of Osprey Daysacks (with rain hoods) and these were just the job. One thing we would say is fill it up and test it out before you start - make sure it feels comfortable and get out and walk with the weight in it. Additionally, make sure you have dry-bags in your kit for those rainy days.
Water
There is a link below to Refill - a website giving information with regard to water refill points etc. Another thing you could do is just apply common sense - if you get the chance then top up. Cafes and shops you visit will more than likely help you out.
Mapping
We carried the relevant OS Maps, two Compasses, a GPS and the mapping pages of the Trailblazer Guide Book. Suffice to say we did not get lost. Additionally, we have the OS Locate App on our phones and should the GPS have failed the App would give us a 6 figure Grid Reference which could then be plotted on the relevant paper map. It pays to have a navigation back up system. Despite all of this, the route is so well signposted that it would be really difficult to lose your way in good visibility.
Useful Links
The Cotswold Way National Trail Website - a must read for anybody thinking about undertaking this fabulous walk (and this blog of course!)
www.nationaltrail.co.uk/en_GB/trails/cotswold-way/
Accuweather - a very good weather update service.
www.accuweather.com/en/gb/united-kingdom-weather
Refill - a national, practical tap water campaign to aid you in topping up your supply on route. Well worth "tapping in to" (nyuk, nyuk).
refill.org.uk
Charity
Last but not least, thanks to the generosity of friends, family and people we have never met, Fudge managed to raise £3159.64 for Spaniel Aid. This amount of money will make a huge difference to this wonderful charity and therefore we would like to give our heartfelt thanks to those who donated. If you would like to read more about the wonderful work they do or after reading this blog you would like to make a donation then the link is below.
spanielaid.co.uk/