Are You Ready

Wednesday 10 April 2024

Well, with just a few days to go until my East to West walk I now have a customised LETJOG E2W logo, as ever courtesy of my son Alistair! And so the venture is official, and I will be starting out, solo (for the most part) and unsupported, next Sunday morning, 14 April, from Lowestoft Ness on the North Sea coast of Suffolk, the most eastern extremity of the British Isles.

The details of my trek are all set out in my Blog ‘Song For The Road’ of Thursday 28 March; a route that will take me through eastern and central England, over the mountains of mid-Wales, and then (after a ferry crossing from Fishguard to Rosslare) across Eire to its most western mainland point, Dunmore Head, on the Dingle Peninsula. I will be carrying my own pack – no more than 7.5 kg (plus food and water) if I can help it – and I will be propelled along my way by my nordic poles, probably against prevailing headwinds. Other than the ferry (and any transport required to and from my overnight accommodation) any mechanised transport along the route itself is banned of course. My current plans indicate a walking distance well in excess of 600 miles, with around 15,000 metres of ascent and taking about 37 walking days. So, adding a few rest days and some time to enjoy Ireland at the end of the walk, I may be away for up to six weeks.

I have been asked about route planning. This is all done on the OS App, to which I subscribe for £30 per year, and for the amount I use it I have to say that this feels excellent value. I am able to see the whole of the UK mapped out in great detail, thus enabling me to plan my walking routes quite precisely, whilst also avoiding the need to buy (or carry) any physical maps – although I will be downloading the maps in case of poor signal, and I will certainly need to keep my phone well-charged. In Ireland the challenge is rather different, as there is no OS mapping equivalent that I can get on my phone – I will have to improvise after I cross the water, maybe even to the extent of buying the necessary paper maps.

I am travelling light, without a tent, and so will need to secure accommodation for every overnight stop – I will certainly not be able to cover the necessary ground without a hot shower, a good meal, and a comfortable bed each evening. I am aiming to book my first week’s stays in advance, and then to pre-book each night’s accommodation at least two to three nights in advance as my walk progresses. The principal online booking platforms dominate – they seem reluctant to offer smaller B&Bs at the cheaper end of the price range, and their sites can be quite frustrating to use, as their options are often miles away from the search centre and therefore of little interest to walkers. So, searching around for the best choices online can take considerable time, particularly as I have found overnight prices can vary so widely: I have just booked a stay in the Ely Travelodge for £28, but the same chain in Thetford quoted me nearly four times that amount for similar accommodation – the product of dynamic pricing no doubt! All of these frustrations and variations have caused me, even at this early point, to alter my path for the first week in line with availability and prices, meaning numerous revisions to my OS map routes. The research and patience needed to put the trek together is a part of the challenge of course, but it is much easier here at my desk than later in the journey in a B&B room and after a full day’s walk!

Finally, as regards support for charity, thus far on this challenge I have not sought sponsorship by way of a fundraising page. So very many of you have been consistently supportive of my walks over the last three years that it seems difficult to ask again for donations. However I have been in touch with Parkinson’s UK again this week, for whom you will recall I have raised funds and awareness on previous treks, and they have indicated that the unusual nature of my challenge may merit some promotion on their website. Also the timing for them is particularly good, as tomorrow, 11 April, is World Parkinson’s Day. So please watch this space, and in the meantime you can access the Parkinson’s UK website by clicking on the following link:

As a postscript, I said in a recent Blog that, perhaps surprisingly, I have never heard of an East to West trip of the type that I have planned, nor of anyone attempting to walk between the eastern and western extremities of the British Isles. I was therefore interested to read on the BBC website a few days ago of a Northampton man, Matthew Hollis, who is undertaking a 10-day driving challenge (in his Citroen 2CV, named Cookie), between the two longitudinal points. His particular challenge is to make the journey with no satnav and no map, using only B-roads and a compass. At the time of me writing this piece Matthew appears to be in Ireland, over half way into his trip, and on target to reach his destination – as a kindred spirit I wish him well, especially as he is supporting the Motor Neurone Disease Association (MND). For more details please see his website by clicking on the following link:

My Blog heading today ‘Are You Ready’ follows the title of a typically up-tempo number by Australian band AC/DC, from their 1990 album ‘The Razor’s Edge’. The hard rock genre is not my specialist subject, but with this song’s oft-repeated phrase ‘are you ready for a good time’ the number is suitably rousing for the imminent challenge that I have set myself on my LETJOG E2W journey!