March 10, 2010 at 10:41 pm
· Filed under Offa's Dyke 4 MS
One of the things I have really enjoyed about the build up to Offa’s Dyke is the lovely people I have “met” on Twitter – to name but a few groups: fellow hikers and campers, locals near Offa’s Dyke, people who’s lives have been affected by Multiple Sclerosis and other foolish people who have walked Offa’s Dyke.
One of these foolish people is Pete (@Pete_Knight on Twitter) who walked Offa’s Dyke last May with some fellow Naturists for a diabetic charity - he has kindly put together the following tips on avoiding a miserable 13 days on Offa’s Dyke:… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
March 8, 2010 at 10:08 am
· Filed under Camping, Offa's Dyke 4 MS
Now we are under a month away, it is time to work through how we are breaking up the route, and where we will be staying.
This post details our plan, which keeps most days around fifteen miles and ensures that every night we have somewhere confirmed to sleep (hopefully with warm showers!). We are walking Offa’s Dyke North to South and in most cases we will be staying on campsites, with a few exceptions, that are dog friendly and easy to access from Offa’s Dyke.… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
March 7, 2010 at 2:11 pm
· Filed under Offa's Dyke 4 MS
When we head to the Brecon Beacons in a few weeks time for our last training trip before Offa’s Dyke, we will hopefully be joined by Justin (@JustinFleming on Twitter). Yesterday I joined Justin on his own practice walk – what was supposed to be a 15 mile loop from Bugbrooke in Northamptonshire.
At the last minute we decided to modify our route slightly to take in a lovely area to the South of Long Buckby – but the resulting walk was 19 miles long, and ended with a rather tiring last few miles slogging down the Grand Union Canal in the dark!
View the full route and social commentary
Permalink
March 4, 2010 at 9:41 pm
· Filed under Equipment, Offa's Dyke 4 MS
There is one fundamental problem with modern “Social Hiking 2.0″ is battery power – on a single device you have gps switched on, you are navigating using Viewranger (which is also updating your position online and updating the position of your Viewranger buddies on your phone), you are also sending, reading and replying to Tweets, uploading photos, reading and responding to Facebook comments and updating your blog.
All this leaves your average phone dead by the end of the day (by teatime if it is a touchscreen phone) – and that is where Powertraveller’s excellent portable power device the powermonkey comes in!… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
March 2, 2010 at 11:12 pm
· Filed under Offa's Dyke 4 MS
Although I love the peace and tranquility of hiking around Britain, I also really enjoy sharing the experience online via social media websites, such as Facebook and Twitter.
For Offa’s Dyke however, I really wanted to do something special to let friends, family and other interested parties, feel part in our adventure.
So I created this: http://www.mycountryside.org.uk/viewranger.php?date=2010-02-20 – this example shows our 17 mile walk in the Surrey Hills. This post explains what the app does and how, fairly non-technically, it works.… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
March 1, 2010 at 10:21 pm
· Filed under Equipment, Offa's Dyke 4 MS, Walks
Our weekend camping and walking in the Surrey Hills gave us the opportunity to make sure we have the right equipment for Offa’s Dyke (now just over a month away), and to see how physically prepared we are.
Equipment-wise we have done quite well – there are a few little tweaks, but in general we have everything we need. The one key learning point for me though is the importance of caring for your feet when hiking for multiple days in a row.… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
February 15, 2010 at 11:14 pm
· Filed under Dogs, Equipment, Offa's Dyke 4 MS
Now I have started putting together my kit for Offa’s Dyke, it has occurred to me that there is something fairly fundamental that I have completely failed to take into account… my dog.
Now I wouldn’t even think about going on a walk without my dog, let alone a trip like this – but I had not really thought about the implications, in terms of weight to carry, that having my dog with me would have.… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
February 14, 2010 at 11:08 pm
· Filed under Equipment, Offa's Dyke 4 MS
It would seem that the curse involving me and tents is (hopefully) over – I have, safe in my possession, The North Face Tadpole 23 kindly leant to me by @fergycool.… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
February 13, 2010 at 5:49 pm
· Filed under Equipment, Offa's Dyke 4 MS
Next weekend we are off camping (yes in February!!) in the North Downs (just South of Godalming) to get some training walks in and to get some practice camping light. I don’t have any OS maps of the area, so I decided to “nip” into a local outdoor shop to pick a few up. I should have known better – an hour later and my wallet feeling considerably lighter, I left the shop with a huge bag filled with goodies.
Permalink
December 30, 2009 at 11:12 pm
· Filed under Equipment, Offa's Dyke 4 MS
Just before Christmas I took the opportunity to have a look around a few outdoor and camping stores to put together a rough list of equipment that I would need for Offa’s Dyke in April.
I don’t think the list is particularly comprehensive – it was more a list of things that caught my eye, but if you can spot anything missing let me know!… Read the rest of this entry »
Permalink
