In March 2024, I set off on a solo trek from Land’s End to John O’Groats. This blog is the story of that adventure.
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 35 – Garth Row to Haweswater
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I had a very comfortable night at Hollin Root B&B and awoke to a delicious breakfast hamper left on the doorstep by the lovely host. Filled with ham and cheese, I set…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 34 – Milnthorpe to Garth Row
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I started the day with a really tasty and hearty breakfast at The Bull’s Head Inn at Milnthorpe before leaving the excellent little B&B and heading along the main A6 road towards…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 33 – Lancaster to Milnthorpe
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… The weather forecast predicted heavy rain and strong winds all day from around 9:30am, so I headed out early to get three hours of dry conditions. The start of the walk was…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 32 – Garstang to Lancaster
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I left the golf course hotel early this morning and walked through the little town of Garstang, which is really handsome. The rain started as I passed through the main shopping street…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 31 – Farington to Garstang
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… The day started with a short bit of road walking from Farington to Lostock, where I took the opportunity to buy some supplies before heading through the village to join a footpath…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 30 – Wigan to Farington
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Despite staying in the very centre of Wigan, it was only a minute or two after stepping from the hotel that I found myself walking along river banks and through beautiful parkland.…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 29 – Warrington to Wigan
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… The day started with some urban walking along the A49 and over the M62 motorway then continuing along the A-road to Newton-le-Willows. From Newton, I left the main roads and headed back…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 28 – Northwich to Warrington
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I set off from the hotel on the south of Northwich bright and early and walked at pace through the entire length of the town. It was nice to see the whole…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 27 – Nantwich to Northwich
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Following a good night and tasty breakfast at The Cheshire Cat in Nantwich, I walked through town to the outskirts and onto country roads for a few miles, taking me towards the…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 26 – Market Drayton to Nantwich
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… After a delicious breakfast at the very good Lansdown House B&B, which I’d recommend to anyone, I walked through Market Drayton to rejoin to Shropshire Union Canal and headed towards Nantwich some…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 25 – Norbury Junction to Market Drayton
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Today was a day of two milestones; a new county and my first Everest – which is to say, my total ascent (29,440 feet) has now exceeded the height of the world’s…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 24 – Wheaton Aston to Norbury Junction
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… A change of plan today. The intention had been to walk to Market Drayton today, but, on closer inspection, the route would be around 22 miles and it seemed a good idea…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 23 – Tettenhall Wood to Wheaton Aston
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I headed away from Tettenhall Wood with a spring in my step this morning. Between Tettenhall and Market Drayton in Shropshire, I have family walking with me, so my heavy backpack was…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 22 – Kidderminster to Tettenhall Wood
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I awoke to glorious sunshine and headed straight out onto the canal, walking through the north of Kidderminster towards Cookley and Whittington. Between which, I passed another milestone as I left Worcestershire…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 21 – Worcester to Kidderminster
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… The weather could not make up its mind this morning. One minute, heavy downpours, the next, sunny and dry. I left the hotel in driving rain, but was warm and dry under…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 20 – Tewkesbury to Worcester
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I stayed at Jessop House B&B in Tewkesbury last night and I must say it is a beautiful place to spend the night with amazing hospitality and tasty breakfast. If you ever…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 19 – Gloucester to Tewkesbury
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I started the day with breakfast in a cafe next to Gloucester Cathedral, which makes for quite the backdrop to any meal. Walking from the cathedral to the river Severn takes just…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 18 – Berkeley to Gloucester
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… The day started with an easy walk through the fields of the Vale of Berkeley towards Purton, where I would join the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal. It’s a truly impressive work of…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 17 – Bristol to Berkeley
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I started the day with a much larger breakfast than usual, figuring I would need the energy for the 18 mile walk to Berkeley. Or, at least, that’s my excuse. Leaving Berwick…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 16 – Yatton to Bristol
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I awoke at 4:10am and could not fall back to sleep, so I spent some time catching up on various admin and waited for the sun to rise. I have had trouble…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 15 – Burnham-on-Sea to Yatton
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… A short walk through Burnham returned me to the promenade and onto the beach, which formed the route for the first leg of today’s walk. I love walking along the beach, although…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 14 – Bridgwater to Burnham-on-Sea
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I awoke to the sound of seagulls and could tell it was going to be a good day. The end of yesterday’s walk brought me tantalisingly close to a total distance to…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 13 – Wellington to Bridgwater
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Today’s walk started with a necessary bit of road walking to take me from Wellington to Taunton. Knowing the full walk would be around 20 miles, I was keen to avoid any…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 12 – Tiverton to Wellington
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I marched up the hill from Tiverton town centre, wandered past Spider-Man and turned onto the start of the Great Western Canal. The path was busy with dog walkers, joggers and couples…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 11 – Coleford to Tiverton
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… The 19 mile walk from Coleford to Tiverton is an interesting mix of hill and dale followed by a riverside section. The day started with a lovely walk through fields and woods…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 10 – Okehampton to Coleford
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I started the day by popping to the bank after discovering the first place I’ve come across in years that would only accept cash. I put my card into the ATM, typed…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 9 – Lydford to Okehampton
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… If you are planning to visit Lydford at some point, allow me to highly recommend the Castle Inn, where I stayed last night. Lovely staff and delicious food. I walked the short…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 8 – Launceston to Lydford
An odd start to the day. Having stayed at Trethorne Golf Club, breakfast was served in the clubhouse, a few hundred metres walk up a lane. On entering, expecting to find others tucking into a full English and chatting, I found a room of sullen looking people sitting in silence at individual tables with no…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 7 – Camelford to Launceston
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I started the day by walking back into Camelford to pick up some supplies and then headed back up the hill towards the track opposite the hotel and off into countryside. Climbing…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 6 – Wadebridge to Camelford
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Setting off from Wadebridge, the sun was shining and the air was still. By the time I had walked the first mile, the skies had darkened and the rain had started to…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 5 – Mitchell to Wadebridge
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Much of today put me in mind of the Tellie Tubies or a Microsoft Windows screen saver from the 90s. The weather was absolutely gorgeous. Heading from Mitchell, I passed the lovely…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 4 – Redruth to Mitchell
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I skipped breakfast this morning and headed out bright and early for an 18 mile walk to the lovely village of Mitchell. Leaving the hotel, I walked through Redruth’s main shopping area…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 3 – Hayle to Redruth
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I had a fairly substantial breakfast at Hayle before setting off along urban streets to Angarrack, where things became more normal again: fields, farms, streams and far reaching views. With Hayle being…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 2 – Penzance to Hayle
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… I have walked many times from Penzance to Marazion on hot summer days. But today I got to try something new; doing the walk in gale force winds and heavy, driving rain.…
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Mark Walks LEJOG Day 1 – Land’s End to Penzance
Hullo. How are you? I hope you are having a good day. I’m Mark and I’m walking from Land’s End to John O’Groats… Following a light breakfast at The Land’s End Hotel, where I had spent the previous night, it was time to set off on a walk I have wanted to do for as…