Navigate: MustDoTrips homepage -> Walk!
On this page...
If you are happy to wear out some shoe leather (or more likely some high-tech polymer or whatever), you can sure get a closer look at the world by walking around in it than than you can from a car / train / ferry window. To do that comfortably just means you need to do a bit of research into the places you are planning to visit, so you can build enough time into your trip. I'll say right now that Trev and I haven't done any major walks - ours tend to last only a few hours, so our equipment ranges from nil to a camera and water bottle! There are plenty of these short walks in National Parks, and also by the roadside - just keep an eye out for signs to waterfalls or other scenic views. We've never been disappointed when we've ventured out on one of these.
For anyone visiting (or living in) Sydney (Australia), the Harbour foreshore presents several excellents walks of varying length. If you have about 3 hours to spare, try the walk from the Spit to Manly. Bush, beaches, expensive houses, aboriginal rock carvings, wonderful views of Sydney Harbour and the Heads and at the end of it - Manly, where you can sit, relax, and pile on some replacement calories! This one includes a few staircases, and a bit of a scramble over some rocks around the beaches, but is mostly fairly easy walking along bush tracks and boardwalks. Take water with you, and I'd suggest avoiding it on really hot days or if rain is threatening - there are few places you can shelter along the way.
Another classic Sydney walk is the Coast walk from Bondi to Coogee - or to several other beaches in between, if you don't want to spend all day walking! This one takes you along the cliff face and in and out of various beaches and through one of the best-located cemetaries in the world. It's very popular with joggers in the early morning - and pretty popular most other times of day too! You could do a section such as Clovelly to Bondi in under two hours without too much strain. There are sets of steps along the way, but the path is generally paved and is easy to find.
Tip: For those with perhaps some more serious walking intentions, Joh Chapman's website has a wealth of information on Australian bushwalks and other more adventurous options AND an expansive set of links to other sites (including international ones) that you can use to kick off your research. He's also an award-winning photographer, you'll see some great photos on his site.
If you want to do some of the classic hiking trips in America's National Parks, often you will need to get a back-country permit, and there might be restrictions on where you can camp. DO follow the rules about dealing with the wildlife - we've seen people do really stupid things around bison and bears! By the way, if you want to do the mule-ride down into the Grand Canyon, be warned: you have to book months in advance.
Probably the longest walk we have done so far was up in the Swiss Alps - and it was one we sure didn't plan! We had taken the train from Interlaken to the top of the Jungfraujoch, which sits at 4158m (great view of the Eiger, you gotta do this trip if you are in Interlaken! To find out more about the great train trips in this region have a look at Interlaken region in Destinations - Switzerland).
On the way back, we decided to get off at Kleine Scheidegg, have a look around and catch the next train back down the mountain. Then we saw a sign which said "40min" to Grindlewald, and a track leading off behind it. Well, why not walk this part and catch the train from there?
Hmmmm, not sure what the 40min was - possibly that's how long it would take a cross-country skier to ski between Kleine Scheidegg and Grindelwald! It took us more like 4 hours (or did it just seem that long? I suspect this might be a bit like those fishing stories, the beast gets bigger with each telling...), and you'd be surprised just how much your legs hurt when you walk down 3,400 feet on steep, slippery skree! I finally understood why people take walking poles when they go hiking!
It was a fantastic experience, although we did end up wondering, after a few hours, if we were ever going to see Grindelwald, and what it would be like to spend the night practically on the side of the Eiger without even a chocolate bar for comfort! Don't be put off - we can thoroughly recommend this particular walk, but do go prepared, and don't plan a visit to Zurich the next day, those steps at the station are a real killer when you've got jelly legs!
Tip:You will of course be wanting to know what kind of boots to wear for walking through ice-caves (because you get to do this on top of Jungfraujoch). The answer is Dunlop Volleys! (for the benefit of non-Aussie visitors to this site - um, are there any? - Dunlop Volleys are about the most low-tech canvas tennis shoe available, sold for a song in chain-stores here). I'm very happy for all the experienced mountain walkers to howl me down on this, but I went up there in a pair of purpose-bought hiking boots, and Trev wore his trusty old Dunlop Volleys - and guess who had no trouble at all walking around on the ice? I might have ended up with warmer feet, but for non-slip value, if I was going up again, I'd be wearing the Volleys! Does it help my argument to say that a friend told me that at least one roofer she knows swears by Volleys as the best non-slip shoes around? Yes, I knew that would convince you.
Navigate: MustDoTrips homepage -> Walk!
 |