2023 Rescheduling our Camino...to the Cotswolds

As the world began to open up in 2021 and 2022, our group of 7 kept discussing  whether not to try going on the Camino.Alas, some folks had illness and injuries that make doing the Camino more daunting than before.

We all agreed that being together was more important than the route and so ended up planning a 10-day walk in the Cotswolds for the fall of 2023. We had a marvelous time on that walk which I'll write about separately. 

Alas, even after this Cotswold walk, my friends were unable to join me in walking the Camino in 2024.

But the Camino kept calling to me. 

I loved our Cotswold trip.  I loved getting up every morning, putting on my boots and a day pack and heading out to the next town, walking with friends in the beautiful countryside.  I kept thinking, could I do this alone?  

I decided yes.  

For our Cotswolds trip, we had booked via Contours, a company that will arrange your lodging, luggage transport and provide maps. We quickly learned that in England, there are literally trails and paths everywhere - I mean EVERYWHERE - and we could have easily arranged our trip ourselves. 

We also met lots of walkers along the way. Walking or rambling or hiking- whatever you want to call it - is a way of life in England - and in Europe. 

In England, the Ramblers Association was created in 1935. And the Countryside and Rights of Way Act(2000) had expanded the rights of access across large parts of England and Wales. See https://www.ramblers.org.uk/go-walking-hub/where-you-can-walk-england-and-wales) 

Every town has a map of where you can walk and trails are generally well marked. It was amazing walking across farm fields and small towns. We'd meet locals out for a walk with kids and dogs, seniors out for a daily constitutional, and folks from all over. There were pubs and cafes.We learned about ploughman's lunch and shandys.  It was great.

That experience gave me the confidence to really consider doing the Camino on my own.