National Treasures
I don’t remember long distance footpaths being a factor in my childhood. As a rather timid child, my holy grail of recreational walking was the public right of way, those comforting pecked red lines on an Ordnance Survey map which gave a right of access and protected you from being shouted at by irate land owners. Yes, this was a real threat in the sixties and early seventies. For us as a family, our ideal long hike lasted just a day and needed to link with a bus stop or train station. As a result, many a walk finished in an undignified run to ensure catching the last bus or the only train for the next two hours. Taxis didn’t feature in our recreational lexicon. The next day, we went for a walk somewhere else.
But others were more active and more adventurous. Pre-war, there was a growing demand for better countryside access, particularly to areas of stunning scenery (championed by amongst others the Ramblers and Youth Hostel Associations). The movement for National Parks and long distance footpaths was given a more formal voice through reports such as the Dower Report on National Parks in England and Wales (1945) and the Hobhouse (1947) Report of the National Parks Committee. This culminated in the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act. Significant changes were afoot. Pun intended.
In 1965 the first of what are now called National Trails was established in England. This was the Pennine Way and I was immediately captivated by the idea of a long distance route, particularly one which appeared to honour the feisty walking traditions of working class Yorkshire and Lancashire and the legendary Kinder Scout mass trespass. Is this how others saw it? The Pennine Way was certainly popular and my first outing, as an ill shod student, was marred by the seeming borderless river of mud created by mass walkers stepping further and further away from the trail to find dry footing. I gather it is a lot easier to negotiate now.
Most of the trails are based on either an existing or a former (if slightly mythical) route such as the North Downs Way (pilgrims) or Peddar’s Way (Romans), on geographical or geological features such as the South Downs Way or the Pennine Way, on water ie the coastal walks or the River Thames, or on historic features such as Hadrian’s Wall or Offa’s Dyke - or a combination of all four. All give stunning landscapes and fascinating cultural features but if you compare, say the Ridgeway with the Cleveland Way, or the Pennine Way with the North Downs Way, you realise just how extraordinarily diverse is our landscape and history.
Scotland has a different access system but has also fallen under the Trail spell. The 96 mile West Highland Way opened in 1980 and there are now 29 Great Trails, as they are known north of the border, varying in length from 24 to 214 miles.
But enough of countryside access history and statistics. I’m going to ask the unmentionable, the heretical question: considering the wealth of walking options available in the UK, do we actually need long distance trails? The long distance footpaths were set up with funding and a dedicated member of staff and were seen as the peak of the recreational walkers’ access options. But are they value for money? Are they worth the effort? Do enough of us use them? Basically, what’s the point? I can hear the yells of protest from here.
Let’s take the long view. Long distance trails are distinctive because walkers can, if they want, follow them consistently for several days, either travelling from end to end in one go, or ‘section walking’ for a number of days to return and pick up the route again at a later date. This type of usage is usually supported by some sort of written guide, distinctive way marking, and overnight facilities ranging from campsites to local hotels. These days, many UK trails also support rural businesses by offering luggage transfer options, often combined with B & B booking to allow walkers to reduce their rucksack weight to day packs only. I can also vouch for farms which run camp sites and first class ice cream parlours within easy reach of a particular NT. So, good for the health (well maybe not the ice cream), good for the local economy, good for the travel guide writers and publishers, good for outdoor equipment shops.
But users of Trails are heard to quantify and describe. There are some stats on the web but they are contradictory and often poorly defined. What does seem to be clear though, is that walkers anywhere tend to be white, professional and reasonably affluent https://www.ramblers.org.uk/advice/facts-and-stats-about-walking/participation-in-walking.aspx That’s not very inclusive. It also seems that use of longer trails is high but numbers actually completing a trail is very low. That’s not the trails’ fault, but it could be interpreted that most people use them as footpaths for the day, rather than for the adventure of walking long distance trail walking.
So why do we love them so much? Our trails tend not to be of the length or remoteness of say, the Appalachian Trail (see Bill Bryson’s book, A Walk in the Woods) or the Pacific Crest Trail (see Jean-Marc Vallée’s film Wild), but there is an allure which makes many people value them. What follows is purely anecdotal (I asked family and friends why they walked, or thought others walked, long distance footpaths) and has no rigorous research base on which to assess the pros and cons of the Trail network. Sure, some of the results are applicable to the typical day walk, but others were much more specific to trail walking. This is what I found:
I like walking
I like seeing something different
Access to stunning countryside
Magical moments – eg wildlife encounters
A challenge
Planned by somebody else
There is a handy guide book (which is also fun to read on my sofa)
Way marked (definitely a double edged sword in my view)
Out of the routine
Feels like a journey rather than just a walk
Romantic, following in the footsteps of history or cultural associations
Ticking off a challenge from a list, collecting something, competiveness, kudos (I’ve done four National Trails, how many have you done?)
Because it’s there
Personal exploration
Meeting other trail walkers, comradery, exchanging experiences
A walking tour – extensive experience of an area (although it can also be like a voyage on a canal or even a motorway journey: you just see a long
strip of countryside; at least the NT’s often give you views over other areas and off route experiences overnight)
A walking route on which one can also hang excursions into nearby places
Is this sufficient justification for all the work which goes into maintaining these trails? Have I missed out something/anything? And finally, how do we make walking more inclusive? Answers please – there is a comment box below.
Next week will be devoted to the beauty of just one National Trail. No rants, I promise.