From the Peloponnese to the Pyrenees: readers’ favorite long-distance walks in Europe | Strolling
Successful tip: wild tenting and strolling within the Pyrenees
One of the best ever stroll I’ve been on was really two weeks of strolling, alongside the GR11 on the Spanish facet of the Pyrenees from Candanchú to La Guingueta d’Àneu. We acquired the prepare to France, packed meals for every week and restocked half approach, and wild camped every evening. So not solely was it one of the best journey ever, it was additionally low cost and eco-friendly. Every night we’d camp by a lake, and begin our day with an (extremely bracing) dip. It’s so extremely lovely and peaceable, and there’s plenty of pleasant refuges alongside the way in which in order for you a chat, a mattress and sizzling meals. The route is difficult, however doesn’t require any specialist gear. On the finish, all I wished to do was keep it up strolling.
Rachel
A tour of Iceland’s geological wonders
Beginning at Skóga waterfall, the 15-mile (25km) Fimmvörðuháls mountaineering path initially passes numerous spectacular cascades because it follows the course of Skóga river earlier than passing between the Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull ice caps. As you climb and the panorama turns into more and more barren, you’ll quickly be choosing your approach over ice, and lava from the well-known 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull volcano. There’s more likely to be excessive winds on the high, however you’ll be rewarded with breathtaking views of dramatic mountains, deep gorges and craggy cliffs as you descend in the direction of Þórsmörk. A difficult however memorable hike! We used the bus service to get again from Þórsmörk. One for subsequent summer season – the path shouldn’t be open in winter.
Julia
Up and down Kosovo’s tallest peak
We went on a visit to hike up Gjeravica, Kosovo’s highest mountain at 2,656 metres. Ranging from Dobërdoll, a shepherd’s hamlet in northernmost Albania, the out-and-back route began with a steep climb as much as the ridge the place we reached the tri-point of Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro. Following the ridge, we surveyed the pastureland of Albania and the peaks of Kosovo. Skirting lakes and pastures, the height of Gjeravica emerged amid rocky terrain. On the ultimate climb we handed NATO peacekeepers from Latvia. On the high, we sat for a very long time gazing at views east onto the contested plains of Kosovo because the flag of the Kosovo Liberation Military waved. Quickly it was time to hint our steps again to Dobërdoll, having fun with half board at Guesthouse Bashkimi (half board €40 per individual).
Ryan
Biblically lovely path in Georgia
It doesn’t get significantly better than Georgia and the 37-mile (60km) hike from Mestia to Ushguli, one of many highest frequently inhabited settlements in Europe. The four-day/three-night route winds by way of biblically lovely countryside – all rolling inexperienced hills, grazing animals and snow-covered mountains – peppered with distant villages showcasing the traditional defensive towers distinctive to the area. The stroll is hard sufficient to really feel you’ve earned the views however by no means too exhausting and is easy to do with no information; for 2 individuals, funds round £40 a day for guesthouses and meals. Simply beware the chacha (native brandy), it’s deadly!
Joanne Woodage
Eye to eye with ibex, Swiss-French Alps
On the Swiss-French border within the Alps, I like to recommend the little-known Tour du Ruan (4 days, 40 miles/61km). Beginning at Lac d’Emosson, my pals and I headed anticlockwise, over excessive snow-covered passes and alongside glacial lakes. We climbed the thrilling Ottans Scales, regarded down on eagles from ridgetops, and hiked alongside the Frêtes du Grenier with views south to Mont Blanc. We even got here face-to-face with an ibex. This hike actually shows the grand majesty of the Alps, and is the proper quick break. You’ll be able to keep in refuges alongside the way in which (72 Swiss francs an evening together with bathe and sizzling meals), or wild camp above the tree line.
Alasdair
A winding path within the Peloponnese, Greece
Greece provides some breathtaking hikes, and the Menalon Path on the Peloponnese is among the most interesting, winding by way of eight naturally fashioned sections. Stretching 47 miles (75km), this historic path, utilized by villagers and mules for hundreds of years, connects settlements and monasteries. We walked the primary nine-mile part, beginning in Stemnitsa and ending in Dimitsana, passing by way of the beautiful Lousios River gorge. Alongside the way in which, we encountered the Sixteenth-century cliffside Prodromos Monastery and historic ruins of the Previous and New Philosophou Monasteries, one other monastery clinging dramatically to the rockface, and nonetheless house to monks.
Shirley
Strolling the Iron Curtain, Germany
The Grünes Band (additionally referred to as the Iron Curtain path), the previous inner-German border, stretches 870 miles (1,400km) from the Baltic Sea to the Czech Republic. The part close to Hof was excellent for a weekend journey. After a calming spa night in Unhealthy Elster, our hike from Hranice (simply over the border within the Czech Republic) to Hirschberg – about 40 miles – supplied solitude, nature and historical past. We discovered tales of lives disrupted by the border, visited the Iron Curtain Museum in Mödlareuth, and noticed locations the place houses as soon as stood. Whereas social and financial scars stay, nature restoration is a optimistic legacy of the wall. Journey, lodging and meals got here to about £300 pp.
Bridget
Jagged landscapes in Norway’s Jotunheimen nationwide park
An unimaginable four-day mountaineering journey throughout Norway’s Jotunheimen nationwide park from Gjendesheim to Sognefjellshytta. We began by clambering over Besseggen – an unimaginable ridge with deep plunges right down to Lake Gjende and Bessvatnet on both facet and views far throughout the jagged Jotunheimen panorama. The journey is wild and ranging. There are moonscape-like large plateaus and slim clambering ridgelines, awe-inducing views of mountains, fields of cottonball seedheads and forests of gnarled birch bushes that create fairy landscapes within the valleys. We traversed small streams, handed waterfalls and glimpsed glaciers whereas following a treasure path of crimson Ts painted on rocks, bushes and finger posts to succeed in a combination of “middle-of-nowhere” self-service and warmly hosted DNT cabins that had been cosy and welcoming, the place we ended every night with plates of reindeer meatballs. DNT (Norwegian Trekking Affiliation)-staffed huts are about 990 Norwegian krone (£70) full board.
Julia Dorrington