Home

Diary

Picture Gallery

Log

Map

Practicalities

Links

Land's End to John O'Groats

In 2004 I walked from Land's End to John O'Groats, a fantastic experience which I count as one of the best things I have done. One of the best parts of that walk was the South West Coast Path from Land's End to Barnstaple, and I decided that one day I had to walk the rest of the path.

So in 2005 I walked the rest of the north coast path, from Barnstaple to Minehead. And in 2006 I walked the south coast path, from Poole to Land's End. While I was at it, I thought I may as well start from my home in Oxford.

This is a diary and picture record of my walk from Oxford to Land's End. My route took me across the Vale of White Horse to the Ridgeway, across the Vale of Pewsey to Salisbury Plain and Stonehenge, then from Salisbury I followed the Avon Valley Path to Christchurch. Past the Bournemouth seafront I joined the South West Coast Path, which I followed all the way to Land's End.

The walk took me to many places which have been important in my family's life: the vale of Pewsey where one sister once lived, Ringwood where another sister used to live, Bournemouth where my mother was a nurse before the war, Bridport where my great grandfather was apprenticed to a bootmaker in 1863, the west Dorset coast which I often visited with my parents from their last home nearby (my mother loved the sea), the beaches of South Devon and Cornwall where we kids spent many happy days half a century ago, Plymouth where my mother was born and my parents were married, Mount Edgcumbe where an ancestor was a gardener in the 19th century. But there was new territory to explore too.

The walk took me 28 days. As in 2004, I used B&Bs and youth hostels, mostly arranged as I went along. I almost got stranded once or twice, and began to wonder if I should have taken a tent. But then I saw the size of the packs of those who were camping.

If you have any questions on the walk, or comments on the website, please feel free to email me.

Martin Hockey