CAPE TO CAPE: A 1250-MILE BACKPACKING WALK FROM CORNWALL TO CAPE WRATH John Sutcliffe
Crescent House
There are many, many books made about ‘personal’ journeys – most of which end up being more about the person than the journey. At first glance this might seem to be one of those. But this bright, engaging book is much more about the journey. And the sheer length of this one, and the landscapes it traverses, reminds you of the scenic breadth on offer in Britain.
John Sutcliffe, approaching his 70th birthday, decided in April 2014 to walk the length of Britain on the route known as the Cape to Cape. From Cornwall’s cliffs to Cape Wrath at the north-western extreme of Scotland, this is a hell of a walk by any standards, consuming the Pennine Way, the Cape Wrath Trail and West Highland Way, and still having bags of room to wriggle. It’s over half the length of the Appalachian Trail, which sounds a bit ‘so what’ until you consider the latter traverses the USA and is the longest official footpath in the world – and this one traverses our own relatively diddy nation.
The narrator is clearly an adventurous soul, having been an exploratory geologist in Peru, but the more you get absorbed into his travels the more you start to realise both how easy it is to have a proper adventure in Britain and how impressive it is that a man approaching 70 managed it, let alone with the 20kg rucksack he itemises in the appendix.
But the most wonderful thing about this guidebook – and the thing I found inspiring – was the feeling of this being a series of incredibly varied daywalks, taking advantage of Britain’s ability to offer a varied, very long walk without being away from a pub, a charming town, a nice piece of architecture – and some very wild places – for too long. It ebbs and flows between familiar civility and wilderness, which is something not many walks of this kind do. John takes some great pictures of his wild camps on the sides of bridleways, bothies, his tent nestled in fields and on mountainsides – and keeps the pace varied with snippets of history and colour. Inspiring and enjoyable, you’ll be reaching for your maps. Review by Simon Ingram