The Herriot Way - Thoughts in Conclusion​

Fudge about to cross the stepping stones over Eller Beck on Day 1 of The Herriot Way

As is customary, we thought we would put together a few comments that may help in the planning & execution of walking The Herriot 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

​Whilst a short 4 day walk, The Herriot Way is an ideal starting point for anybody wishing to find out whether multi day walking is something they would like to progress. It is not particularly challenging navigationally and the terrain is fairly gentle but the scenery is glorious making it a very pleasant and worthwhile 4 day excursion.  For anybody wanting to "cut their teeth" on a long distance walk then The Herriot Way provides a very pleasant lead in. There are no underwhelming aspects to it and we found it a lovely walk to experience, in particular the stunning landscape.  

The route itself is not very busy at all. We bumped into the odd person who were undertaking the walk but only on day trips and not part of a package. All in all it was fairly quiet on the route and whilst not waymarked as such, it was not that difficult navigationally. However in poor visibility it would be necessary to be navigationally savvy, particularly on open moorland.

​Having now completed The Herriot 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. It is one we would certainly like to repeat. ​​

Give it a go and see for yourself.

Planning & Accommodation

An absolute doddle. Base yourself at Butt House in Keld and enjoy their value for money package plus fabulous hospitality. Chris & Jacqui are the perfect hosts and are very much "walker focussed". Our 5 night stay was absolutely seamless with a full English Breakfast, Room, Parking, Packed Lunches and transport to/from drop off points included in the price. Additionally, they also provide excellent evening meals at an extra cost. We ate with them for 3 nights and booked a table up the road at Keld Lodge for another evening meal. A link to their website is here​

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 Herriot Way Guide Book (see Useful links & Further Reading below for details). 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.

Useful Links & Further Reading

Walking The Herriot Way by Stuart Greig - the guide book forms part of the package provided by Butt House. For those walkers not using the package, the book can be purchased from The Herriot Way website at this link here

​The Herriot Way Website - a must read for anybody thinking about undertaking this fabulous walk (and this blog of course!). Mapping is also available direct from the website at no extra charge.

https://www.herriotway.com/
​
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 (and his Duck) managed to raise £4900 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/

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