Country Walking July 2012

JULY 2012

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48-page special TEN TOP HILLS & ALL THE SKILLS TO TAKE YOU TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL

ISSUE 304 WEEKENDS BEYOND THE CROWDS | CONSTABLE COUNTRY | GRIFF RHYS JONES | SHROPSHIRE HILLS | 25L RUCKSACK TEST | HILLWALKING SPECIAL | SWISS ALPS

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The great

escape REVEALED!

Four sensational walking weekends beyond the crowds.

Read them and go!

OLYMPIC SECRETS

JULY 2012 £3.99

Stride the Shropshire hills where the Games were born

CHRIS PACKHAM ON THE NEW FOREST

GRIFF RHYS JONES HIKES ACROSS WALES

“My all-time favourite nature walk – and how to discover it”

“I think every good walk should make you suffer!”

TESTED!

TOP DAYSACKS + SANDALS FOR SUMMER

33 BRILLIANT WALKS INSIDE: Tintagel, Roseberry Topping, Constable’s Suffolk...

theview Miles of ideas for a brilliant month outdoors

Many happy returns: the North York Moors and its most famous hill both celebrate anniversaries this year.

E VE NT S

YOU LITTLE DIAMOND! The Queen’s diamond jubilee party may be over, but there is another 60th anniversary to celebrate this summer – and once again it will be clad in gorgeous royal purple.

The North York Moors became Britain’s sixth national park in 1952, and as its long miles of heather fizz into flower this month, a busy programme of walks and events is being lined up to mark the birthday.

Highlights include a show by the doyen of landscape photographers Joe Cornish, based in Northallerton, whose stirring shot of Roseberry Topping is shown here.

Incidentally, the hook-nosed hill marks its own anniversary in 2012 – it is 100 years since mining activity caused the summit to shear away, creating its famous profile.

Turn to this month’s Hillwalking WALK HERE! special (starts page 91), for our full Roseberry Topping route and map.

MAKE A DATE...

The Inspired By Landscape show, featuring Joe Cornish and other North York Moors artists, runs ’til July 21st at the Park Centre in Danby. Other events include a Moorland Festival at Sutton Bank (July 29th) and Terrarium, an intriguing family dance spectacular performed in a bubble in scenic spots around the park (August 1st-12th). ◗ Find out more: Call 01439 770657 or visit northyorkmoors.org.uk/ 60thanniversary Photo: Joe Cornish

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Destinations | Shropshire

TRACK & FIELD

As the Olympics race into London, Rachel Broomhead strides out across the Shropshire hills where the modern games began, and uncovers the intriguing story of an unlikely Victorian hero.

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Main pic: The perfect arena for walking: Shropshire’s rolling hills.

Inset: One of the early competitors at the Wenlock Olympian Games.

Main image: Tom Bailey; inset: Wenlock Olympian Society

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BIG WEEKENDS GREAT ESCAPES

Glen Affric Highlands Birdsong for a soundtrack, mountains for a backdrop, and Scotland’s loneliest hostel for a bed. Your great escape starts here…

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T

he next time you’re on a crowded train with someone yelling “It’s delayed again” into their mobile, imagine this: two whole days where you won’t hear a phone (there’s no signal), spot a traffic jam, or catch a news bulletin about financial Euro-meltdown. Picture a weekend away where your bed for the night is eight miles from any road, and hemmed in by hills and valleys, lakes and rivers.

It’s a miracle that nobody has built an eight-lane motorway into Glen Affric, because it’s drop-dead gorgeous. Coachloads of tourists swarm to Loch Ness, 30km to the east, but the only crowds you’ll find in the ‘glen of the dappled woodland’ are ones with hooves and antlers. A few souls make it along the lane to the car park at the end of Loch Affric, but as I pick up a track along its southern shore, I soon have the place to myself.

A landscape artist would struggle to draw a more compelling scene – although Edwin Landseer had a stab with his ‘Monarch of the Glen’, thought to be inspired by this valley. The highest hills in the northwest Highlands form a wall along the loch’s northern shore. Their slopes are a jumble of heather, blaeberry and Caledonian forest, spattered with outcrops of crag, streaked by tumbling burns.

And with every step, the tranquility deepens. You can’t see ‘civilisation’, or hear it, or smell it. No engines here, no fumes, no trucks parked in fields advertising dandruff shampoo. You’ll hear the breeze, maybe the lap of waves on a sandy loch beach, or if you’re really jammy, the call of the golden eagle overhead. You’ll hear the crunch of your bootsteps and your lungs pulling in fresh air, and, chances are, you’ll feel your mouth widen into a grin.

The track narrows, the trees thin and the glen gets more rugged as I pass the western tip of Loch Affric.

The path is easy as pie, but I’m walking into some of the emptiest miles in Britain. Every now and again my brain throws out: “Yup, the view is quite something, I know you’re enjoying the peace, but you do know you’re now five miles from the nearest cake shop, right?” This is where staying the night in the wilds makes all the difference: it gives you time to adjust to the immensity of the silence, to relish some of the densest peace you’re ever likely to find.

It hasn’t always been this way, though. You’ll find ruined houses in the glen, left by the families who lived here before the Highland Clearances forced them off the land so it could be farmed for sheep.

The route I’m following was once a drove road, linking pastures in the west with markets in the east. u

The views may be wild but the going is easy beside the River Affric.

Words: Jenny Walters Photos: Tom Bailey

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How to…

FORAGE ON THE SEASHORE Fancy creating the ultimate coast-walker’s supper? It’s easier than you think.

Nick Hallissey heads for beautiful Dorset to find out how…

Photos: James Peat and Nick Hallissey

CRABS

Just under this rock lies a pot containing the most foul-tempered species of crab in British waters. He’s delicious with garlic butter.

SEAWEED

This lovely stuff is serrated wrack.

You’re not meant to take living seaweed off the rock, but lifting a bit for your dinner does no harm.

MOLLUSCS

From dog whelks and slipper limpets to periwinkles and mussels, there’s a whole harvest waiting for you in these seashore rockpools.

Just add sauce.

Knowledge | Seashore foraging

S

“

EA BEET – it’s so delicious, they grew it in the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Now that’s what you call a recommendation.”

So says John Wright, as we pause among the first few pebbles of Chesil Beach. He’s pointing out a small camp of bustling green leaves being tickled by a shy coastal breeze. Within seconds, his fingers are in there, deftly teasing a couple off their stems. We’re only yards away from the car park. This could be a long day.

“Everything is here, just metres from the event horizon of the day-trippers,” he says. “It’s here, it’s free and by golly, nature actually wants us to eat it.”

Making our way along the enormous and unique shingle runway of Chesil, John cuts the figure of John the Baptist in a battered leather hat, scooching down amongst pool and puddle, hoisting up his findings as water trickles down between his fingers, and seeking to evangelise one and all to the joy of foraging.

He’s the wild food guru on Channel Four’s River Cottage, and thus the man who helped Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall to harvest the coastline. I’m a perfect target for his talents. As a walker who’d otherwise dismiss the natural bounty around me as “probably just some weeds”, I’m the kind of soul he loves converting.

The setting could hardly be more helpful: it’s a gorgeous day to be out walking, suspended on a world-famous mound of pebbles between Weymouth and the Isle of Portland. John runs regular foraging trips here (apparently

THE EXPERT John Wright is the foraging expert from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s series River Cottage. A former country cabinet maker, he now makes a living as a fulltime forager, specialising in marine specimens and mushrooms. He’s written guides to foraging for the River Cottage Handbook series and also runs foraging trips in the New Forest and along his beloved Dorset coast. You can find more about John at wild-food.net

hen parties love him) and for today’s visit he has teamed up with Dorset-based Badger Ales, as both have a shared delight in showing the county to walkers.

The idea is to gather what we can and cook up the results on the beach later.

The first part of our walk is all about flowering plants, which thrive in the marshy footbed of Chesil. There’s marsh samphire (which you pronounce “samfer”), whose slender, succulent, salty ears are so nibble-able it’s ridiculous.

Previously I thought it was only something the finalists put on posh salmon on Masterchef. Here I’m scoffing it like crisps.

Nearby is a small clump of rock samphire – which John helpfully explains is completely different, and to prove it you pronounce it “sam-fire”. It’s from the carrot family, and while it’s perfectly edible, it’s hard to cook with.

There’s sea purslane, which obligingly grows thick, hearty leaves; there’s wild rocket, which off the stem tastes nicer than anything Tesco have ever put in a bag in Aisle 1; and sea holly, which John calls “the most beautiful plant in Britain”: – looks like normal holly, but in a gorgeous shade of pastel green. The king of them all, though, is sea beet.

“It’s the perfect edible seashore plant,” says John, as we hunker down in a patch the size of an allotment.

“If you like spinach, you’ll love this. If you don’t, you’ll like it anyway. It’s much sweeter and sturdier. It’s hardy too; I’ve picked it on Christmas Eve before.” He pauses. “Beetroot is of course cultivated from sea beet. But beetroot is a vile abomination which some people seem to think is edible when clearly it isn’t.”

We pause for lunch (and Badger Ale) at the Crab House Café, a wood-framed shack just round the headland from Weymouth in the first secluded wash of the Fleet Lagoon. They write the menus here twice daily, depending on what the local fishermen have brought in – if you’re lucky you’ll find fish-fight soup, Portland oysters with bacon and cream and poached cod fillet with curried mussel bisque. We were lucky.

In the afternoon, the target is razor clams. Our weapon? A tube of table salt.

“You’re looking for tiny holes in the sand, like an elongated figure-of-eight,” explains John.

Sure enough he finds one, and drizzles a little salt into the water above it. What happens next is incredible. u

RAZOR CLAMS

This is the perfect depth to find these incredible creatures. A bucket, a bottle of salt and a bit of patience are all you’ll need…

JULY 2012 COUNTRY WALKING 57

Welcome to the

COUNTRY WALKING GEAR REVIEWS Steph and I both like to travel light, so testing packs invariably means carrying kit we normally wouldn’t, so we can see how they perform when “bulked out” to their maximum capacity. But we were both pleasantly surprised by the ones featured here. They felt heavy as we pulled them on, but were quickly forgotten about once we got going – a sign of quality design rather than our strength and fitness! Read on to see which were our favourites.

Also covered in this issue are sandals – and who doesn’t love the feel of a summer stroll in open toes? –and the launch of our new series putting core gear to the long-term test. Plus of course, a few really challenging questions for the Gear Doctor.

Please keep them coming, to country.walking@lfto.com.

Rucksacks G

ear may have got lighter and more compact over the years, but for a comfy day in the hills you still need to carry a bit more than you can stuff into your pockets. The good news is that packs have also got lighter and smaller. And, more to the point, more comfortable too; with cleverly designed back systems, contoured harnesses and hydration system compatibility that enables you to drink on the move.

(25L)

There was a time when 25 litres used to seem quite small for a daypack, but today they can feel quite cavernous. But designs still vary a fair bit, and almost every style has its devotees as well as its pros and cons; so it’s definitely worth trying a few on before you buy. Ultimately, if it fits and it feels right, and it has the features you need, then it’s the one for you. Get it right and you probably won’t notice you’re wearing it at all after a few walks.

What to look for...

HARNESS Light padding on the shoulders, and even at the hips/waist, will aid comfort. Mesh areas on any of these will make them cooler and help prevent wetness from sweat. If they are shaped/ contoured, make sure they feel right on your frame. A chest strap is absolutely vital to hold the main straps in place. The ladies need to make sure this can be adjusted to fit around the bust.

POCKETS Useful for divvying out your gear so you always know exactly where everything is. They also make it easy to access frequently used items such as a camera or flask. On the other hand, they add weight and cost. If you like pockets, and have certain items you like to store, make sure you try them before buying.

Tom Hutton & Steph Duits Country Walking gear testers

OTHER FEATURES

CONTENTS Unisex rucksacks .....................page 72 Women’s rucksacks ................page 75 Gear Doctor ...................................page 76 Summer sandals ........................page 77 Long-term test ............................page 78 CW Recommends .......................page 82

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If you use a hydration system then check there’s a pocket and an outlet; many packs have a method of fixing the hose to a shoulder strap, too. Other handy features include a rain cover – a godsend on a real bad day – and attachments for walking poles or even an ice-axe if you walk in winter conditions.

THE GENDER ISSUE...

Most rucksacks are designed to be unisex (some of the women at CW happily use unisex packs) but some brands make women-specific models.

These tend to have shorter backs and specially designed harnesses. We’ve tested three here (see page 75), as it’s still a somewhat niche market.

MAIN COMPARTMENT Traditional designs rely on a drawcord to close the top of the main compartment, and then a lid usually straps down over this.

This is a reliable and reasonably weatherproof way of doing things, but the opening will tend to be quite tight, making it awkward to pack/delve into.

Modern, zip-opening models get around this and some can be opened up like suitcases; but beware that zips can be fiddly.

BACK SYSTEM

FIT, SHAPE AND SIZE The shape and size of the pack will have a big influence on how it fits and how it feels. Tall, slim packs stay out of the way of your arms but can obstruct head movement; broader, shorter packs are the opposite – and can feel less stable as they don’t spread the load over such a large area of your back. The length of your back will help you decide what’s best for you.

With the pack pressing on your back, your sweat has nowhere to go, so large wet areas develop.

These will start to chill you when you stop. Airflow-style back systems overcome this by holding the pack away from your body, but this alters the centre of gravity of the pack a little and therefore can affect stability.

Some packs use narrow grooves/ channels in the padding to encourage airflow without altering the weight distribution – a good compromise.

COMPRESSION STRAPS

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Photo: Tom Bailey

Full packs become bulbous and out of shape – compression straps enable you to cinch them back into a semblance of shape. Or if your pack is nearly empty, the stuff that’s in it can rattle around annoyingly. Again, compression straps can cinch them back down. Even better, you can usually use them to hold things like poles, wet waterproofs and so on.