Walking on your own? Take a Guided Walking Holiday

I have just had a great time from a walking holiday in the Lake District. This type of vacation I am familiar with and I simply can not get enough of it.

However it may be a different scenario for you. You could be in the position where a walking holiday is something you really want to do but you will have some challenges. A walking holiday could be for you but this may mean going on your own and you would rather go with a group of like minded people. Or maybe this is something you have never done before and the prospect appears scary.

If this is the case then maybe a guided walking holiday is for you. This involves a group or a guide taking you and a team of like minded individuals up the mountains on a walking holiday. So this would be a guided walking holiday. There are a number of benefits of this type of holiday can bring and these are

1. You meet other people with similar loves and desires that you have including fantastic scenary, the climbing challenges and the great funny stories that you can share as a group of individuals. The chances are you will get to feel very welcome and very at home with the type people you meet. They are in general not nerdy but fun people to be with

2. You don’t have to worry on a guided walking holiday. Your guide will be responsible and give you the quality time in the areas they believe will be best for you. The reason for this is that they will want you back next year – and of course your money.

3. They will provide assistance with the personal gear you need to take on a walking holiday. Again the worry is taken out of this type of walking holiday.
I have to say this will need to be balanced with the extra cost of a guided walking holiday.

The prices do vary of course depending on whether you just require a guide or it is a complete package of accommodation etc. Nowadays you can pick up a guide in the UK for say £100-£200 per day. Self package guided holidays I have seen for over £1000. However it is a personal view as to whether paying for piece of mind is worth the cost of a guided walking holiday.

My advise on this is that if you are nervous for the first time or want to be with other people – give it a go for one hike and see how it goes. Nothing ventured….
You can easily find these types of walking holidays on the internet. You can use some key search terms such as:

"guided walking holidays" Greece

...If Greece is where you want to visit.

So a guided walking holiday may be for you particularly if you are on your own or want to take the worry out of what could go wrong

Whether you arrange a walking holiday on your own or you do choose a guided walking holiday - have a great walking holiday.

The points to consider when purchasing mens walking boots

I have just returned from the Lake District with my best friend and my kids. We all hiked up Scarfell Pike – the largest mountain in England – it was great. It was great to be surrounded by the great summits in the area.

However before we went we had to plan to ensure we had the right walking gear. However in my view the most important walking gear that men will purchase is mens walking boots. The reason for this your foot is the part of the body that makes contact with the ground, takes the weight and therefore needs the protection required.

So if you are going to spend some cash is best to spend your hard earned money on mens walking boots. What do you need to consider as you want to ensure you get the best value for money?

Firstly you need to consider the sort of walking and hiking you are going to embark on. If you are walking in rough terrain you will need a hiking boot with an ankle support. If you are just going for a long walk on a flat surface (road or tarmac path) which means you do not need an ankle support (in fact some people hate the ankle support). To be honest your mens walking boot should be nearly one size bigger than your normal shoe size.

The reason for this is you need to be wearing 2 pairs of socks with one of them being a thick pair. The reason for the 2 pairs of socks is to prevent blisters. You prevent blisters by your 2 socks rubbing together rather than your skin on your foot. Always wear your thin pair first when wearing mens walking boots

Secondly, you need to go to a hiking store rather than shop online. This is to ensure you purchase the right boot for you. So you need to be able to try the mens walking shoe on and make sure it is a very comfortable fit. The hiking store will give you the best professional advice. You know your foot should not move inside the boot otherwise you could end up with blisters.

Thirdly, to have a better chance of buying quality you need to buy a well known brand of boot.

I mention a mens walking boot as this is very much different to women's walking boots. The main differences are women have a smaller cartilage area and a smaller narrower heel. The boots are not different because they are smaller. So make sure you view and purchase the right type of boot.

The last point is to make sure that you wear the boot a number of times before going walking in the hills. This is called “wearing in” and needs to be done until your foot is virtually a complete mould for your mens walking boot. You will not regret doing these simple things as your feet will be nicely protected in your mens walking boot

So have a great walk after you have purchased, with socks, worn in the correct mens walking boot.

Why Lake District Walks Should Be Car Free and example Lake District walks

I think out of all of the walks in the UK my favourite are Lake District walks. In my view this is the best part of the UK if it is not wet.

However there is a problem in this area. The problem is that to travel to the start of Lake District walks you need to get the car out. In the Lake District there are many traffic problems (highlighted below) to get to when you are visiting Lake District walks. In addition it is not great polluting the environment by using your car.

So why not go on a lake district walk that does not need the car. Why not arrive at your lake district walks car free?

So some advantages of arriving at your walk - car free!

• Use local transport which is great for the lake district area as a whole in terms of revenue for the area and keeping it well managed.

• Also if you are not using a car you will help to reduce the congestion around the lake district area. As the lake district area is so small congestion is a big problem.

• You will reduce carbon emissions by not taking your car on Lake District Walks

• What happens is that people park in the car parks at the start of famous walks. Let me tell you these car parks are quite expensive especially if you are hiking for the day. By not taking the car you can start your walk away from car parks and therefore spread the walking congestion around the area and save money in your pocket.

Here are 2 of the top Lake District walks that are car free

Lowland walk: A Walk to Easedale Tarn
This is a very nice short walk and starts at the lovely village of Grasmere where William Wordsworth lived. This is one of the lovely Lake District walks which routes you past a waterfall to end at Easdale Tarn. This is where you can have a picnic – very nice and very car free.

Mountain walk: A walk from Ambleside to Fairfield Horseshoe
This is one of the Lake District walks that starts at Ambleside which is at the top of Lake Windermere. From Ambleside you start to climb and routes you around Fairfield Fell and around the Lake District walk fells. There are really great views around Lake Windermere and the surrounding mountains.

Another very popular area is Ullswater. The lake is 7 miles long with a number of lowland and highland Lake District walks that are around the Helvellyn mountain range. You could make a holiday in this area and there are local buses that route up and down the lake. Some of these walks include boat journeys. The links in this article link back to these great lake District Walks.

So as they say "forget the strain take the train" or bus or even bike. I hope you enjoy and are proud to progress to many car free Lake District walks. This helps solves the problem of traffic and you will feel you have done your bit for the environment.

So have a great set of Lake District Walks – car free!

How to Prevent Wet Feet When Walking UK

I enjoy most of my hiking and rambling in the United Kingdom (UK). Places to walk such as the Lake District, Scotland and Snowdonia are my favourite places to go on a really challenging hike. These places are great. There is however a known problem when you go walking UK.

The problem is bad weather (i.e. rain). Walking UK is different to most places around the world as you never know what the weather is really going to do. The weather can change very quickly changing a great sunny day into suddenly low cloud and unstoppable rain. The weather produces boggy areas and these areas can give you wet feet.

There is absolutely nothing worse than wet feet. As well as not feeling comfortable wet feet can lead to cold feet and possible infections such as "trench foot" when walking UK.

So here are the actions you can take prior to and during walking UK. Of course you can use this anywhere there is wet and rain. However the UK is one of the best examples where there is repeated rain.

1. You need to ensure that you have good quality hiking boots that sit high on your ankle. You should not be walking with trainers. On my last hike I saw a young girl wearing trainers while I was hiking in the Lake District up Scafell Pike and she was in trouble coming down the mountain and was taking twice as long Your hiking boots should also have a sewn in tongue to keep the water out when walking UK and help prevent your feet getting wet.

2. Wear waterproof gaiters. These are great and keep out the wet from your boot and feet (especially walking UK). Waterproof gaiters have the added benefit of fitting from your hiking boot to just below your knee so the lower half of your leg will be protected from the damp and wet. I have used gaiters a number of times and found then to be very useful.

3. Always carry spare socks. Of course if your socks get wet whilst hiking you will want to change them. When you get to camp you can dry your wet socks in a jacket while you are setting up camp and cooking dinner. This will prevent wet feet the following day. Nice tip!

4. At hiking camp keep your hiking boots inside and stored away in a dry place. I have mad mistakes before by forgetting about them and leaving them outside in the rain. Your hiking boots can then also be dried out if needed. Put newspaper inside your hiking boots to draw out the wet and therefore keeping your feet dry for the morning and therefore prevent wet feet when walking UK.

So follow these steps and avoid wet feet when you are walking UK. Above all have a great walking UK.