Grading Our Walks

Self-guided walking – is it for you?

If you have not done this kind of walking before remember that you will be on your own, sometimes in quite remote areas, and even though we provide local telephone support, you have to know where you are in order for our local team to help you! You will be following our written directions, and should be able to use a compass (medium and hard walks).  Map reading competence is also required for the higher-graded walks at least, and useful for the easier ones.  If in doubt, ask us for advice.   Check also that your fitness is appropriate to the grade of walk chosen.

GPS.  If you are uncertain about your navigation skills then GPS is for you.  With a suitable GPS unit, you just need to follow the path on the screen.

We are steadily re-walking all our routes with a GPS unit to record the path and significant waypoints.  So far there is only a handful so recorded, but one of them may be suitable for you.  Check the “How much Walking” link for your chosen route to see if there is a download available (on request), or contact us.

How long?

We make walks for everyone. Times for each day are shown in hours actually walked by Simon, amended to allow for relaxed holiday pace, but ignoring stops for lunch, looking at wild flowers, chatting and admiring the view. Walking distances are also provided for some routes.

How hard?

The grading of every route is clearly described, and is based on the following. Note that "Cumulative Uphill Stretches" (CUSs) may mean one long climb, or, more usually, a series of shorter uphills spread out over the day:

Easy -Well-marked paths with an even, reasonably yielding surface. Average CUSs up to 200m per day. Few steep sections, signage good.

Medium – Paths less well-surfaced and uneven in places. Average CUSs up to 500m per day. Some steep sections. Signage mainly clear but map-reading skills and aptitude with compass required.

Hard – Some open walking, scrambling over rocks and hands-and-feet work, particularly if wet. Average CUSs up to 1000m per day. Regular steep sections. Map reading and compass skills essential.