John Magaw shares a special trip with us!

Listen to John's own words & pictures about his fascinating trip to England.  We'll look forward to his next adventure -- and hope that the rest of you will share trips pictures, or just your day-to-day living with us!

John writes:

Last May I went to England with the aim of walking across the country following the path of  Hadrian's Wall which marked the northernmost border of the Roman Empire. The wall ran from, using the modern names, the village of Bowness on Solway in the west to Wallsend which now is contained within Newcastle Upon Tyne in the East. I walked in the opposite direction starting at Tynemouth on the North Sea. Overall, counting a few side excursions (including getting lost a couple of times) the total walk came out to around 105 miles by my figures.

I've attached just three pictures from the main part of the walk. First is a view from across the Tyne Estuary of the ruined priory at Tynemouth Castle.

Second is from the middle of the walk; the general locality was around the village of Twice Brewed where I spent the night at the Saughy Rigg Farm B&B. Crag Lough and Highshields Crags are in the left-center of the picture. Hadrian's wall follows the top of the crags along this entire stretch for added protection from the Scottish in the north and can be seen clearly in the picture. There were some real ankle-breaking portions on this day following the ridge top of a series of crags.

The third and last picture is of St. Michael's Church in Bowness on Solway, a late Norman structure which conveniently was located between my final B&B on the walk and the village pub. The Kings Arms pub was a real treat and authentic in every way and I think that I enjoyed the grub and ale there as much as any meal in my life, or at least in 2010.

After the walk I took the bus and train to York to spend a day sightseeing before rushing by train back to Manchester ridiculously early on a Sunday morning to catch the flight home. Next year I'm considering a walk across Wales, or the length of the Great Glen in Scotland (or maybe around the ring of Kerry in Eire or the Cleveland Way in the Yorkshire Dales -- there are just too many choices!) When it comes to learning about a region there is no better way than to walk through it at your own pace.

Cheers,

John McGaw

John Magaw