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What happens when a summer of UK walking holidays turns into plans to spend most of the winter travelling around Asia?
Malcolm and David pause their usual destination-led episodes for a catch-up on where they have been—and where they are heading next.
David looks back on walking holidays in the Yorkshire Dales, Peak District and Mendip Hills, including Whernside in glorious sunshine, an exceptionally hot walk through Swaledale, Dovedale, Kinder Scout, Cheddar Gorge and Ebbor Gorge. There is also a useful tip for seeing Stonehenge from the surrounding public-access landscape without buying the standard visitor ticket.
They discuss the realities of leading group walking holidays: choosing routes around the weather, carrying enough water, protecting a troublesome knee and understanding why a familiar walk can sometimes give guests a better experience than an entirely new one.
Meanwhile, Malcolm has been preparing his Cotswolds home for Airbnb guests as part of a plan to spend around half of each year overseas. He also reveals the logistical challenge of organising a 40-person party at his remote Czech cabin—including camping, beer, transport, an unavailable army tent and the questionable wisdom of lighting a large fire in a very dry meadow.
Looking ahead, David is planning an extended winter journey through Chiang Mai and Pai in Thailand, Lombok and Gili Trawangan in Indonesia, and Delhi, McLeod Ganj and Goa in India—followed by a return to Bali. Malcolm is considering road trips through Slovenia and Croatia, plus a possible winter escape to Greece.
Along the way, they ask whether travellers should continually chase new destinations or return to places they already know and love.
In this episode:
- Walking Whernside and Swaledale during a heatwave
- Dovedale, Kinder Scout and Jacob’s Ladder
- Cheddar Gorge, Ebbor Gorge and the Mendip Hills
- Walking to Stonehenge from Amesbury
- A short visit to York and its darker history
- Running group walking holidays
- Preparing a Cotswolds home for Airbnb
- Organising a cabin party in the Czech countryside
- Winter travel in Thailand, Indonesia and India
- Chiang Mai, Pai, Gili Trawangan, McLeod Ganj, Goa and Bali
- Possible road trips through Slovenia and Croatia
- Why returning to a favourite destination can beat starting again
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This episode is brought to you by Chiltern Walks who provide guided walks and walking holidays around the UK. If you'd like to be added to Chiltern Walks mailing list to receive details of our walking holidays please follow this link to join the Chiltern Walks WhatsApp community: https://chat.whatsapp.com/I6e0xptc88z0B27aJlEHNw
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Our theme music is Traveler's Blues by Jerzy Gorecki from Pixabay (with licence)
https://pixabay.com/users/jerzyg%C3%B3recki-2233926/
