INTRODUCTION

Most of you know that, for the last several years I, along with one or more of you, have been fortunate enough to be able to go to Europe to walk and hike from village to village across some of the most beautiful countryside  in Europe. On past trips, we’ve walked in Ireland (multiple times), England, Spain, and Hungary.  I’ve learned that these walks are terrific ways of really learning the countries we walk through and meeting their people.  These are unforgettable experiences.

The typical day on one of these walks involves having a big breakfast at the inn or B&B in the village where you spent the night, then heading out (with rain gear at the ready) into the countryside on back roads, farm roads, or trails, pointing toward the next night’s village and warm shower. That village could be anywhere from 8 miles to 18 miles away. Fortunately, your luggage is transferred forward for you, and you spend the day walking with a light load (lunch, rain gear, dry stuff, etc.).  The walking day usually ends late in the afternoon, and after a shower and a nap, you’re in the pub winding down and discussing the day with the locals. That routine begins again the next day.   Every one of these days is an awesome experience

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Last year’s walk was in Hungary, and we deemed it a “legacy” walk. The adventurers in the walk were me, Marty Szabo, and Diana Skelte. Marty’s been a part of all of these adventures, and was the reason  the Hungary walk has  a “legacy” moniker.  The walk itself was in Bukk National Park. When it was over, and we returned to Budapest, we spent a day in the quiet little village an hour outside of Budapest where Marty’s grandfather was from, and where the church cemetery was populated with Szabos.

BTW – last year’s walk also included meeting Scott and Pat Kremers in Budapest and all of us going from there to Vienna, Prague, and Paris. These trips aren’t all just about exercise and villages.

This year’s trip involves two countries and two walks. The trip starts and ends in Scotland (hence the Loch Ness reference) where Marty and I will meet up with our good friend and backpacking buddy Steve Hoyt and  walk the West Highland Way. Steve will meet up with us in Glasgow, coming from San Francisco, via a golfing gig in Ireland.

Before the walk in Scotland, Marty and I will be going to the Lake District in Northern England. There, we’ll be walking the Westmorland way through the heart of the Lake District, England’s most scenic area.

The Westmorland Way is also where the “legacy” part of this trip takes place. It turns out that the old Westmorland County in England is the home of the Strickland’s, and the Westmorland Way will be taking us through the middle of Strickland country.  

We’ll start our walk in the northern part of the county at the little village of Great Strickland outside of Penrith.   Here, in the 12^th century,  a prominent landholder, Sir Walter de Castlecarrock (my 24^th great grandfather), first added “Stricklande” as a surname, to reflect his holdings. The village is still there, and the surname stuck. In Great Strickland we’ll stay in The Strickland Arms, the most popular (only) pub in town.

Our walk will go through the Lake District for 6 days and will near an end at Kendal, a small town in the southern part of Westmorland County.  There is quite a bit of Strickland memorabilia in Kendal, including a Strickland cemetery, and Stricklandgate, a main street.  A few miles outside of Kendal is Sizergh Castle. Sizergh Castle was acquired by William Strickland (21^st great grandfather) in the 13^th century. It’s been owned and lived in by Strickland’s ever since, Matthew Strickland (7^th great grandfather), who, along with his wife Elizabeth, emigrated to Isle of Wight in the  new colony of Virginia).

When we get to the end of the Westmorland Way, our plan is to return to Scotland, spend some time in Edinburgh and Stirling, and return to Glasgow to meet up with Steve.

From Glasgow, we’ll take a train to the Bridge of Orchy, past Loch Lomond, where we’ll pick up the stretch of the West Highland Way we’ll be walking. We’ll end up further north 4 days later at Ft. William Scotland, on Loch Linnhe, near Loch Ness.

I’ll make a separate post with the complete itinerary.

Marty and I have both been spending time over the last couple of months getting in shape for the walks.  There’s a reasonable amount of elevation change on both of these walks in addition to some long mileage days, so there's work involved here.

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For now, it’s getting close. We leave Saturday  and I think we’re both pretty pumped.