The Shropshire Way

Chosen by Matt Jones, outdoors writer

Distance: 202 miles / 325km
Time to walk: 11-16 days
What to expect: rolling hills, history, villages and pubs

Offering panoramic views, bucolic countryside and some of the most charming little villages in England, Shropshire is a great place to stretch the legs. Walking the Shropshire Way will take you from the iconic Stiperstones in the Shropshire Hills to Wenlock Edge, Ironbridge Gorge and the Wrekin – and that’s just the southern loop. This long, figure-of-eight trail also traverses the great Shropshire plain, a landscape of meres and mosses that are amazing havens for wildlife. I spotted dozens of buzzards overhead in the course of just a few days.

There’s plenty of history and heritage on offer too, from the castles of the Welsh marches to the iron heritage of Coalbrookdale and Ironbridge, birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. At nearly 200 miles in total, doing the whole thing is no small undertaking, but it can be split into sections and is easy to follow too – in fact, there’s a great website (shropshireway.org.uk) with downloadable route guides.

Related: Best Walks In The Lake District
Related: Best Walks In The Peak District

The Cambrian Way

Chosen by Will Renwick, editor of Outdoors Magic

Distance: 298 miles / 480km
Time to walk: 15-20 days
What to expect: difficult mountain terrain, moorland, large remote sections

They call this the “mountain connoisseur’s walk” and for good reason. It’s a 298-mile route that starts on the south Wales coast and finishes on the north Wales coast, taking in just about all of Wales’s mountains in-between – mountains like Snowdon, Cadair Idris, Pen y Fan, Rhinog Fawr and Pumlumon.

When I walked the Cambrian Way a few years ago over the course of 18 days, I loved how the route seemed to locate the wildest parts of Wales. At times, I really felt like I was on an expedition. Bear in mind that at the moment, the way-marking along it is basic, so you’ll need to brush up on your nav skills before taking this on.

The London Loop

Chosen by Dee Dee O’Connell owner of The Brokedown Palace outdoor store.

Distance: 150 miles / 242km
Time to walk: 7-14 days
What to expect: urban walking, tow paths, parkland, historic surprises

The London Loop is the walkers’ M25; a trail that circumnavigates the capital in a 150 mile ring divided into 24 sections. One of my favourite things about it is that each section is planned for you to get there and back using public transport – figuring out the TfL routes is almost as fun as navigating the Loop itself. It takes you through a mixture of ancient woodland, bucolic countryside and industrial edgelands. Highlights include London’s longest pier at Erith (the official starting point of the Loop), the ‘Wilberforce Oak’ where William Wilberforce resolved to abolish the slave trade in Britain, several groves of giant sequoia trees, the aptly named ‘Happy Valley’, and the ending point at Rainham Marshes where you’re reunited with the Thames. After doing the Loop I’ll never see London in the same way again. 

Snowdonia Slate Trail

Chosen by Will Renwick, Outdoors Magic editor

Distance: 83 miles / 134km
Time to walk: 5 to 9 days
What to expect: mainly valley level walking with some climbs, riverside walking, plenty of villages and towns

With its wild mountains, deep green valleys and unshakeable mysticism, Snowdonia National Park has to be one of the finest parts of the UK, and this walk – the 83-mile Snowdonia Slate Trail – is the best way to see it.

The Slate Trail is a young path, officially opened as recently as 2017 and it would be fair to say it’s still a little bit under the radar, not yet having managed to build up its own notoriety just yet. I can definitely see it getting very popular though. I walked it over four or five sunny days a couple of years ago and remember swimming in rivers each day and having an idyllic camping spot each night. Don’t be put off by the fact the route is designed to take in the area’s industrial heritage. Think crumbling chapels made from purple stone and rusted antiquarian machinery smothered in green ferns, instead of concrete chimneys or burnt out nuclear reactors behind barbed wire fences. 

The Coast To Coast

Chosen by Abbie Barnes, walking vlogger (songthrushproductions.co.uk)

Distance: 182 miles / 293km
Time to walk: 11-15 days
What to expect: moorland and farmland walking, quaint villages and pubs

The Coast to Coast is hands down one of my favourite long distance walks in the UK. I’ve hiked it twice now and every time relished in the feeling of freedom and satisfaction gained from walking from one side of the country to the other.

Starting in St. Bees on the west coast, the route heads into the Lake District National Park then works its way through the Dales and on to the North York Moors, finishing on the east coast at Robin Hood’s Bay. It is a walk of mountains and moors, forest and rivers, coasts and farmland. It is certainly one not to miss for anyone looking to enjoy some of the wilder spaces of our country.

The South West Coast Path

Chosen by Will Renwick, Outdoors Magic editor

Distance: 630 miles / 1014km
Time to walk: 6 to 8 weeks
What to expect: lots of ups and downs, historic villages, excellent waymarking, boat rides across estuaries.

A confession: I’ve not actually walked this trail, but it’s right at the very top of my bucket list. I just need to find a nice chunk of time to be able to commit to the whole thing.

This route that starts in Minehead in Somerset and finishes in Poole in Dorset, takes in the entire coastlines of Devon and Cornwall, along the way visiting every beach, cove and fishing village along the way.

The overall ascent totals 115,000 feet (35,000 m) – the equivalent of scaling Mount Everest four times, so you’ll need good fitness, stamina and technical ability to take on this challenge.

If I’m honest, it’s the prospect of all the old pubs that’s always made me fancy this walk. Reading Raynor Winn describe the incredible scenery in her best-selling book, The Salt Path, really sealed the deal. A whole June and July devoted to this would be a fine way to pass the time.

Finding Other Long Distance Trails

The reality is that those trails mentioned above make up just a snapshot of what’s out there. There are plenty more popular paths that deserve to be mentioned, like the Cape Wrath Trail and Skye Trail in Scotland, for instance, or the Pembrokeshire Coast in Wales and South West Coast Path in England. There are Northern Ireland’s options as well, most notably the 625 mile Ulster Way (time for that sabbatical?).

Don’t forget those tucked away ones either, there are little-known trails all over the UK – hundreds of them.  Komoot is a very handy app for finding trails in your local area, throughout the UK or even globally and you can use their app to navigate each one when you’re out on it as well. You can even use it to make up your own long distance route, as our editor Will did when he ran from one side of the New Forest National Park to the other. You can watch that adventure in the video below.

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