Viking Way in 13 stages

Between April 2014 and November 2015 I walked the Viking Way in stages with my partner and various friends, all of whom live in and around Lincoln. Having lived in Lincoln since 1999, I'd enjoyed many walks in the area, particularly in the Wolds, and was feeling in need of something new to encourage me to keep on getting out there. The Viking Way provided this.

I decided to do the walk from south to north, reckoning that would mean the sun was in our eyes less - though this did make following the information in the book I'd bought more difficult! I emailed a few friends and quite a few were interested in joining us at some point when they were free; one was particularly keen and committed to making all the legs. So roughly once a month I fixed a date, worked out a suitable stretch for us, considering distance and parking places, and emailed around. Working out how many cars we needed, depending on numbers and whether some ferrying would be acceptable, was sometimes challenging! Then we met up and walked - and talked - enjoyed the (Rutland and Leicestershire and) Lincolnshire countryside and villages - and visited an array of tea shops and pubs. I let the way most of the time - a new challenge for me. I'm fairly sure it was paper maps only in those days - I'd yet to get the OS maps app.

I completed a table recording all the walks, which I still have. We ended up doing 13 stages of between 9 and 14 miles, finishing on a November day when my notes say 'the forecast was for a lot of rain, so when we only got grey skies and some light drizzle, we were pretty pleased'! Overall 16 people plus two dogs took part, and three of us completed all the stages. I think we all remember it fondly.