Happy hiking holidays

Walking is one of the best and most rewarding forms of exercise, using large groups of muscles and strengthening both heart and lungs. If you are cooped up in a city office and a centrally-heated flat all week, there is no better way to unwind and combat stress than to walk freely through woods and meadows, rediscovering the wonders of nature — watching out for birds, animals and wild flowers. You can also combine walking with other hobbies, like sketching or photography.

If you have a sedentary occupation don't attempt too much too soon, or you will be stiff all over and even risk minor injuries to joints and muscles. On the flat, you should be able to walk about 4km (254 miles) an hour — 5km (3 miles) if you are walking briskly. But on snowy or slippery paths, you will probably slow down to about 3km (roughly 2 miles) an hour.

The motor car has brought the countryside within our reach and most scenic areas, from forest to moorland, have properly laid out car parks, from which you can start your chosen walk of a couple of hours or a whole day.

Britain, with its variety of scenery and unique system of footpaths and bridleways is good walking country. In England and Wales alone, there are over 160,000km (100,000 miles) of public footpaths and bridleways, once the only way of getting from villages to the church or farms, now open to us all for leisure.

Not all are easily accessible. Some are overgrown, others have been planted over — which is illegal — but you are entitled to walk through the crops, sticking as close as is practical to the line of the path. Footpaths are only for walking, but on bridleways you may find yourself sharing the route with riders or cyclists.

As ancient as the footpaths are the large areas of common land once used by the local villagers for grazing sheep or cattle. They all make good walking country and include areas like Dart moor, the Pennines and the fells of the Lake District; altogether there are 1.5 million acres of common land in Britain.

Both the National Trust and the Forestry Commission, who own much beautiful countryside, generally allow access to their land. There are specially laid out nature trails in many woodland areas owned by the Commission with information leaflets available about the trees and plants in the area. Many of these areas lie in the ten National Parks established in England and Wales. These are state-owned; so much of the land is in private ownership. The parks are: the Brecon Beacons in Wales, Dart moor and Exmoor, the Lake District, Northumberland, the North Yorkshire Moors, the Peak District, the Pem-brokeshire Coast, Snow-donia, and the Yorkshire Dales. Apart from these, there are over 30 areas designated as being of Outstanding Natural Beauty which, like the Parks, are protected by special legislation from over-development; these include the Cotswold and the Sussex Downs.

The Ramblers Association with a membership of 30,000 has done much to promote and improve walking round Britain. Their footpath inspectors throughout the country keep a close watch on the condition of paths. They have also helped to secure public access to many beautiful stretches of country and were instrumental in the creation of long-distance paths like the Pennine Way, the South Down Way and Offa's Dyke Path.

Their headquarters is at 1/4 Crawford Mews, York Street, London WIH IP, and they have 150 branches round the countryside which organize rambles and social events. Members receive an annual copy of their Bed and Breakfast guide, chosen specially with walkers in mind, and three times a year a copy of the Association's magazine Rucksack. The RA also publishes a number of fact sheets and a booklet on walking in the countryside with helpful advice on equipment, maps and publications.

Equipment
The right clothes, and particularly shoes, can make all the difference to the enjoyment of a walk. Gone are the days when Victorian families set out in their Sunday best for a sedate stroll! Today we choose sensible strong boots or shoes, and clothes that are rainproof. Walking shoes or boots should provide a good grip, so choose shoes with a ribbed or thick cleated sole. Boots are better than shoes — they prevent bits of grit getting in, and support the ankle on uneven ground. Wear two pairs of socks for comfort, a thin pair near the skin and a heavy woolen pair on top, and when you go to buy your boots try them on with the socks. The best place to buy walking shoes is a reputable camping or outdoor equipment shop. They will also stock wind and rainproof jackets or anoraks. Choose one with pockets for carrying maps and guide books. It's sensible to invest in a good rucksack for your clothes, food and odds and ends. This leaves your arms free and the weight is evenly distributed on both shoulders. Choose a model in nylon or proofed cotton so that the contents won't get soaked.

The importance of maps
Many paths and bridleways are sign-posted when they start from metalled roads and at junctions with other paths; however, few of them state where the paths lead, so the rambler needs a good map more than the motorist.

The Ordnance Survey, sponsored by the Government, produces maps of the British Isles in various scales; the best for walking are those at 1:25,000 (about 2½ inches to the mile) and 1:50,000 (about 1¼ inches to the mile) which show footpaths and bridleways, towns and villages, farms, churches and pubs and minor and major roads, and indicate the terrain, such as woodland and hills.

The Ordnance Survey also produces "Outdoor Leisure Maps" of attractive walking areas, showing rights of way and giving tourist information. All these maps are available from most booksellers or from the Ramblers' Association, and members of the Association can also borrow maps from the RA's extensive library.

Apart from maps, there are a number of guide books to various areas on the market. One of the best is the series of walking guides published by London Transport under the collective title "Country Walks" which describe walks of different lengths in areas served by London Transport.

The Country Code
Wherever you walk, go as a friend and not as an enemy; don't spoil the countryside for those who may follow you or for the people and wild life who inhabit it. Guard against all risk of fire.
Fasten all gates.
Keep dogs under proper control.
Keep to the paths across farm land.
Avoid damaging fences, hedges and walls.
Leave no litter.
Safeguard water supplies.
Protect wildlife, wild plants and trees.
Go carefully on country roads.
Respect the life of the countryside.

If you go walking with children make sure that from an early age they are taught to treat the country with respect.

Planning your walks
Don't make the mistake of planning a whole day's hiking the day you arrive at your holiday destination.

You will finish the day foot-sore and aching in every limb, and will have to cut down your walking for the next few days. Far better to start with short walks (from breakfast to lunchtime is plenty for the first couple of days) and then go for longer hikes as your body becomes accustomed to the exercise.

Spend the first day of your holiday discovering where things are — the post office, a nice little restaurant, the local cinema and library, the children's playground. As you walk around you may find a pretty path, a quiet lane which will provide ideal walking country for a quiet stroll on your first evening.

The next day, equipped with your Ordnance Survey maps of the area, you can begin to plan longer hikes.

After a couple of days of long walks you can think about whole-day hikes or even staying somewhere overnight. Leave as early as you can in the morning, armed with warm sweaters in case the weather changes, a waterproof and some iron rations — chocolate, glucose tablets and Kendal mint cake.

Walking holidays abroad
As you get more ambitious and the pleasures of walking grow on you, you may want to plan a hiking holiday abroad. Don't just pack a rucksack and go; for this kind of holiday you will need all the help you can get. Both the Camping Club of Great Britain and Ireland and the Ramblers' Association (addresses at the back of the book) can help and advise.

The European Hiking Club has earmarked six long routes through the most beautiful scenery in Europe away from busy roads, railway lines and industrial areas. The longest goes from Copenhagen to Rijeka in Yugoslavia — a total of 2,776km (1,725 miles)! The shortest route may be a more realistic choice. It goes from Lake Constance in Switzerland to Venice in Italy, and is 600km (373 miles) long. With an average day's march of 5 to 7 hours the journey takes a little over three weeks. Information about the trans-European walking routes is obtainable from The European Hiking Club, Europaische Wandervereinigung, Hos-pietalstrasse 21b 7000 Stuttgart 1, W. Germany.