This year has been a bit of a messy one with a number of false starts, postponed adventures and generally, life just getting in the way of the best laid travel plans. First World Problems, I know!
That is all about to change BIG TME as I stuff the final few things into my backpack and start the long trek from Australia to Edinburgh, Scotland.
Care to join me?
This trip will be quite different to my other walking ‘holidays’ and will be divided into three stages/sections:
- Edinburgh – sight seeing for a few days.
- Walking the Coast to Coast Path, then
- Walking Hadrian’s Wall Path.
I will share my impressions of Edinburgh in a few posts when I return to Aus, but aim to blog as I walk backwards and forwards across England. Just ignore me if this is not of interest. 😊
Here’s the lowdown on the trip…
What?
- As the name suggests, this path crosses from one side of England to the other.
- I understand the Coast to Coast (C2C) Path has only recently (March 2026) become an official National Trail in the United Kingdom. Previously, it was a loose connection of walks developed by Alfred Wainwright.
- Born in 1907, Wainwright was a mad keen walker who spent years walking up, down and through the three national parks – Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, North York Moors – that make up this path. He recorded all his walks for his own enjoyment before publishing them in a pictorial guidebook in 1973.
Where?
- We will be walking West to East and it is perfectly acceptable to walk the trail in either direction. We will be starting from St Bees and finishing in Robin Hood’s Bay (just south of the famous village of Whitby).
- The path stretches for around 306km. We do have some accommodation booked slightly off the trail and that will add a few extra kilometres.
When? We plan to take 16 days to walk from coast to coast, plus a rest day in Richmond.
Why? Why not? I haven’t done any walking in the UK before and it looks like as good an introduction to Pommie hikes as any. 😊
How?
- We will be flying into Edinburgh and then catching the train (I love a good train ride) down through Carlisle and onto St Bees.
- We are travelling with an Australian company called RAW Travel. They have done all the accommodation bookings (mostly B&Bs with breakfast included) AND they will transport our luggage each day – allowing us to walk with just day packs! Yes, I know! How decadent?! 😊 Am I going soft in my old age?? Or just getting a smidge of wisdom at last??
Who? I am reuniting with my Partner in Crime (PiC – see our Larapinta Trail and Everest Base Camp adventures). Hopefully we are still the best of walking friends by the time we stroll into St Bees. 😊
And then…
What?
- In AD122, Roman Emperor Hadrian had had quite enough of the marauding barbarians who were charging down from the North and making life difficult for the occupying Roman troops. To keep them out and/or attempt to exert some sort of control, his simple solution was to build a bloody great wall from one side of England to the other!
- In its original form, the Wall had a guarded gate every mile, included 14 forts, and two observation towers. It was estimated to be 4.6m high and 3m wide, and took around six years to complete. What a feat of engineering!?
- These days there are only a few sections of the original wall remaining, but plenty of excavations and archaeological sites to visit. Ancient History heaven!
Where?
- Similar to the C2C Path, you can walk this trail in either direction. As I will be finishing the C2C on the East Coast, I will catch the train northwards and then walk back across England – East to West.
- I will start from Newcastle on Tyne (specifically the Roman fort of Segedunum) and finish at Bowness on Solway.
- The path stretches for around 117km.
When? This is going to be a very leisurely stroll (ever the Optimist) over eight days.
Why?
- I love history – any sort of history – and I especially love ancient history.
- I also don’t mind a walk and seeing I was in the neighbourhood, I thought it would be easy to tack Hadrian’s Wall onto my C2C. 😊
- What better way to understand ‘what have the Romans ever done for us’??
How?
- On this path, I have done all the bookings myself which, at times, has proved a little problematic. I will be walking in peak walking season and they are so busy, I had to book everything 12 months in advance. Again, I will be staying in B&Bs and pubs.
- As I will still have a main suitcase, it has to be transferred daily by a wonderful company called Hadrian’s Haul. They have been fantastic to deal with so far.
- When I arrive at Bowness on Solway, I’ll catch the bus back to Carlisle and then the train back to Edinburgh.
Who?
- My PiC and I will have said our goodbyes at Robin Hood’s Bay and gone our separate ways. She is off to explore the bright lights of London (which could be quite a culture shock after 16 days in national parks) and me to continue walking.
- I will head off on my own and due to it being a busy time of year, I am confident I will find plenty of people to talk to as I wander eastwards…or I could always just talk to the cows and sheep. 😊
So, this is what is going to keep me out of trouble over the next month or so. Please use all your influence with the Weather Gods and wish me blue skies, tail winds and no heat waves. 😊
I look forward to chatting to you from the trail, somewhere in Ol’ Blighty and as always…
Happy trails to you!
#travelinspo #shortwalks #multidaywalks #daywalks #adventurebeforedementia #CoasttoCoastPath #greatoutdoors #HadriansWall #romanhistory #walkingthroughhistory #nationalparks #UKwalks #edinburgh #carlisle #newcastleontyne #ancienthistory #whathavetheromanseverdoneforus
Life...one big adventure 
Hope you have an epic adventure. I hiked the West Highland Way in Scotland last year and it was incredible! Curious to follow along on your C2C as we have talked about potentially tackling it next year. Safe journey!
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Thanks so much. Who knows? This could start a whole new love affair of walking in the UK? I have thought about the South West Coast Path before and these two trails should be a good introduction…especially to the UK weather.
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Have a great time! I am looking forward to your impressions and thoughts about the hikes.
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Thanks so much. I’ll try to share as many photos and info as I can. 🥾😁
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Fantastic! I’m really looking forward to following along.
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Thanks, Kay. At least I won’t have to worry about the language barrier on this one!😆
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Brilliant, Mel, it will be a wonderful trip which I’m sure you will enjoy no matter what the weather brings. I look forward to following. Take care x
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Thanks, Suz. I’ll walk a step or two for you. Take care. Melx
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A winning itinerary!
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I hope so!🚶♀️🚶♀️👍🏻
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Exciting! Can’t wait to read about it! I hope it cools down a bit. We’re in northern/central Europe now and it’s Aussie temperatures here. 😊 Maggie
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I have been watching the weather over there like a hawk and the really bad heat doesn’t seem to be getting that far North. If it does, there’ll be some very early walking starts. 🥵 Stay cool over there. Mel
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Darn it! You come all the way over to my ‘home’ territory in a month when I’m not going to be there. How could you, Mel? But seriously, you have a month of very beautiful walking and I hope the weather will be kind. And Edinburgh’s a great city. Have fun! xx
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Oh bugger! That’s terrible timing on my part! One day we will meet, Jo and go for a nice walk with nicer cake!🍩🍪🎂🍰 Melxx
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Look on the bright side- you might meet Margaret, or Anabel? xx
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Stranger things have happened! 😁😁💕
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I have never done either trail but have done day hikes on both of them. I was actually born and spent the first 5 years of my life in Roman Wall territory, Haltwhistle in Northumberland, and lived my teenage years in and around Newcastle so you are very much on my home territory too!
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Ah, lovely. It looks like a fabulous part of the World. I have really enjoyed watching a few T.V. shows about walking the Wall so I am very excited about it. I will think of you as I stroll. 😁🥾
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Safe travels Mel and it’s a great walk. Don’t know when you start but the weather’s not looking too bad for next week. Done bits of Hadrians wall path, if you get a chance Vindolanda is a must. Here’s some weather sites and you could download the BBC Weather for local forecasts.
https://www.mwis.org.uk
https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/specialist-forecasts/mountain
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Great. Thanks for the local intel, Jim. I will check it out.
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Hi MelI did the CtoC 20 years ago. Hope you enjoy it. Make sure you take the side pass as you cross the PenninesDavid Sent from my iPhoneOn Jun 30, 2026,
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Thanks for the Intel, David. I will check it out. Mel
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Thanks for the Intel, David. Will check it out. Mel
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Welcome to the UK!! And so cool you are doing C2C – my Dad absolutely loved doing it last year 🙂
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Thanks, Han. You will be pleased to know we are using your Edinburgh blog post as a basis for our exploration of this city. Off to Dean Village this morning! Have a happy Sunday, Mel.
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We thought the Coast to Coast was a fabulous walk, full of amazing scenery as well as charing villages. We wish you the best of weather for your adventure.
Cheers
Michael & Anna
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Thanks so much, Michael and Anna. Excited to be heading to St Bees today and the weather is looking good!😊🥾🥾
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Have a fantastic trip! I was at Hadrian’s Wall a few months ago but only really one section of it – it’s a great area. Drop me a message if you’d like to meet for a drink in Edinburgh!
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Thanks so much, Class, but we left Edinburgh yesterday! You have a fabulous city. Maybe next time I am passing through! 🍻🥂
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It might be a very difficult task to walk ‘coast to coast’ in Australia, but England shouldn’t be a problem, right? It sounds like two wonderful hikes (all that greenery might hurt your eyes 😁) and I’m hoping for sunny days! Enjoy it Mel – I’m looking forward to walking with you again!
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Thanks Corns and we are DEFINITELY getting the sunny weather. Yesterday we sweated buckets.🥵🥵🥵
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So, what you’re saying is that we should be careful what we wish for 😂.
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Definitely and apologies for the auto-correct on your name!🙄
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Hehe 😁, no problem. At least it didn’t autocorrect to ‘Corona’ …
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🤣🤣
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Hi ! I just came back yesterday from Europe and see you have been posting a few texts. That is Fantastic. Will try to find time soon to read it all. For us it was another Camino. I will try to share on my blog. I only posted a few photos on my IG account and some short posts on a private FB page during our travel.
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I look forward to reading all about your latest Camino. Very exciting!
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oh !!!!!!!!!!! what a great planning. You are doing what I wish to do one day. The challenge is… we are all getting older but if we manage like you do ( and me too this year- did not walk with my backpack and did not book myself our accommodations) I think it could possible…. I hope it was not too hot so far …you know that in Spain it was very hot . After a shower and a cold beer, we were back being human ! 🙂
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It was incredibly hot to start, but it is easing now, thank goodness. And luckily for us, no rain.
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