Alright world it’s time for my next adventure! Four @SlowWaysUK over two days: Oxford -> Standlake -> Faringdon -> Highworth -> Swindon!! I call it “OxSwi” and it features a very special reward at its end… follow along for the next few days to find out what it is!!
And we’re off!!!! Faringdon, here we come!!!
The Oxford-ites I’m walking with keep saying “we didn’t even know this path was here!” The magic of slow ways!!!
Oxford is already off in the distance, the day is beautiful, the path is lovely, the world is green, this is fantastic!
Less than an hour out of Oxford and we are aloooone!!! 😍
“This is the kind of tree you’d put on the cover of a book!”
🐄🐄🐄🐄🐄🐄
What a PERFECT day, so far so good on the slow way!!
Update: we came across a discontinuity of some kind at the Thames. Not sure exactly if we did something wrong or if a path is missing, but a little brush hopping and we are back on track!
The Thames!
Weather continues to be stunning as join the Thames Path!
The colors of the day are so vibrant. God this is fantastic
We made a snack break friend!
We’ve left the Thames path to head southwest towards Faringdon. Making great time!
This is shaping up to be just a tremendously joyful day!
“There’s just so much variation! This path keeps on giving! This route is showing us so much countryside! You feel so far from civilization despite being relatively close!”
I think I’ve sold my friends on Slow Ways!!
Lovely lunch under the 🌴🌴
Into the woods again!
3 miles outta Faringdon and our energy is fading! Eyes on the day’s prize—a lovely pub garden dinner (we hope)!!!!
I love this—round the corner and the countryside opens up before you!
When an ice cream truck spontaneously appears in your path, you can’t say no!!
The Faringdon Folly Tower!! We’re getting close now!
I’d say we’ve earned this!
Day one done!!!! Swindon we are coming!!!! 23.75 miles!!! God it feels great to be outdoors. This is fantastic.
Day two begins with a symphony of 🦜🦜🦜🦜
We’re off!! Day two!!
Someone’s feeling a little misled… no roundabout in sight??
Slow way number 3 done ✅ heading out of Highworth for Swindon now! A little drizzle won’t stop us 💪
The Swindon un-magic roundabout:
This little guy is really getting into the “Slow Way” spirit!
WE MADE IT!!!!!!!! The transportation nerd in me is BLOWN AWAY. This is incredible!!!!! The magic roundabout!!!!!!
And that’s all from me!!!! Signing off after a lovely weekend adventure. Thanks so much for following along and thank you to @SlowWaysUK!!!!
Up bright and early for my next @SlowWaysUK adventure! Canterbury -> Whitstable -> Herne Bay -> Canterbury! Or maybe Canterbury -> Herne Bay -> Whitstable -> Canterbury?? I haven’t quite decided yet???
Scenes from a quiet and crisp morning in Canterbury! All goes well, I’ll be back here before sunset!🤞🚶
Decided to head towards Herne Bay first, and the route winds through some really quiet residential areas, getting out of the hustle and bustle of Canterbury quite quickly 😌
And I’m off! I’ll do my best to live-tweet my @SlowWaysUK adventure today. If all goes well, I’ll walk from Maidenhead to Wendover and bring three routes up to “fully verified” in the process! I’m a bit nervous for the distance but so excited to spend the day traveling by foot.🐌
Scenes from a quiet, cool, and misty morning in Maidenhead 🌫🌫
Within 10 minutes from the route start, I’m among green and blue! The colors are gorgeous, if a bit muted. The smell of vegetation is rejuvenating. The sound of birds is everywhere!
HOT but really gorgeous day spent walking with @SlowWaysUK between Cardiff and Newport! Overall a great route, with lovely sights, varied terrain, and extensive off-road connections. Thank goodness for the Asda halfway through for a cold drink re-stock!!
Pros:
- Beautiful!
- Gives a taste for the Wales Coast Path
- Miles of oceanfront!!
- Does a great job following quiet streets to get into and out of the urban areas
- Gave me an excuse to go to Wales (my first time out of England since arriving here!!)
Having a difficult time coming up with cons besides “it was 27373°”. There were a few very minor navigational challenges (locked gate pictures, but easily correctable). It really was a good route, and a successful day trip to Wales!
Long and hot @SlowWaysUK walk today, with this sign capturing it perfectly! I walked 22 miles: Frome -> Maiden Bradley -> Bruton. I’ll share more thoughts and pictures once I’m cooled down and full of Oreos and Irn Bru Xtra on the train home!!
A bit humbling that what took me all day GWR covered in less than 12 minutes 🤪
Okay!! Cooled off and had a cold shower.
Pros of my two @SlowWaysUK routes:
- BEAUTIFUL day
- Quiet!!
- Varied terrain
- Lovely towns and villages of the countryside
- A few stunning spots of scenery
- No bad stretches of road walking
Once again I’m off! Second to last mini vacation this week: walking across the Isle of Wight!! Thanks to @SlowWaysUK, the journey planning was easy, and I know I’ll have plenty of small towns to stop off in. Ryde -> Bembridge -> Sandown -> Shanklin -> Ventnor -> Yarmouth!!
Just finishing up #Slowway no. 1 as I arrive into Bembridge! Lovely exploring so far this morning
The path emerged from the woods to this view that was so stunning I stopped dead in my tracks and exclaimed “Oh my god!”
What I didn’t realize is that there was someone just behind me who I quite startled with my exclamation 🤪
Today, if all goes well (aka I’m not deterred by potentially very rainy conditions) I’ll be walking two @SlowWaysUK routes—Romsey to King’s Somborne and then on to Winchester! I call it “RomWin.” Psyched to get outdoors and on the network!!
First footpath out of Romsey… love a quiet morning where the only sounds are the birds
I’ve entered a nature reserve! Still lots of birds to keep me company on an otherwise quiet morning.