All you need to start is a sense of adventure, sturdy walking boots, heavy duty socks, Gore-Tex style wet weather clothing and a serviceable rucksack which, if you’re confident that weather forecasts will always be accurate, can be very lightweight on hot summer days. Dare you be so foolhardy though? Only the true optimist would fail to understand there is nothing worse than being drenched walking in an exposed area an hour into a day’s trek when those forecasts let you down – with six hours of damp, clammy or steaming clothing to tolerate. And, without wishing to invite accidents, a basic first aid kit is essential.
Fortunately Hertfordshire is an even-tempered landscape and will treat you well. After all, it is not known for its mountain rescue teams!
There are parts of the walk across large tracts of farmland where there is no discernible cover. If walking on a very hot day I would suggest taking a sun hat, sunglasses, protective sunscreen and cool drinks. “Stating the blindingly obvious” is the usual put down to such a screamingly obvious statement. It’s generally accepted that 3mph is the average walking speed of a healthy adult. However, I normally settle for 2mph to allow myself time for pictures, to look at the scenery, to be distracted by features off route and to “take it all in.” Plus an hour for lunch at a pre-planned stop, normally a pub. There are many en route, the great majority offering food. Most legs are around 12 miles so – setting out at 10am – you should easily reach the finish by early evening.
If walking in a group there is one golden rule that should never be broken. The speed of the group must be dictated by the slowest, or weakest, member of the party. Charging ahead while a fellow rambler is huffing and puffing simply to keep up isn’t a shared experience. Dogs should be kept on leads among livestock and in woodland to prevent disturbing game birds and deer. You may encounter the latter en route – roe, fallow and muntjac – and they are easily spooked.
You’ll certainly be baffled by some of the road names. Cum Cum Hill. Cucumber Lane. Bread and Cheese Lane. Clusterbolts. To name a few.
A note of caution. If confronted by a field of cows with young calves, when the footpath cuts directly across the land or is near to the herd, seriously consider your options. On one leg I faced a crossfield path well away from a herd of 50 cows with young. With trepidation I decided to stay en route and set out for a distant kissing gate. Almost immediately a cow spotted me, turned and started to move swiftly in my direction. It was followed by four others, then 10, 20, 30 until the whole field was on the move and heading towards me at speed with what looked like malicious intent. I turned, ran and slammed through the welcome kissing gate I’d just come through, worked out a detour and was soon safely reunited with the official route. Discretion was shrewdly the better part of valour. Remember. If an aggressive, fast-moving and overly protective cow(s) charges and hits you you’ll go flying and be trampled underfoot. The cow won’t. People have been killed underestimating these supposedly docile animals. So please be sensible.
One other essential I’d recommend is the third edition of The Friends of the Hertfordshire Way’s definitive step-by-step guidebook. With it you will never get lost, will always be comprehensively informed about the countryside and towns you will pass through – be it history, geology, culture, topography, industry – and its basic but clear hand drawn maps will keep you on the straight and narrow. Well, as straight as the Hertfordshire Way ever gets. Leaving home without it would be folly. And no I don’t have any link to, or financial interest in, the organisation.
TFHW has a website at www.fhw.org.uk or email: [email protected]. My websites hertfordshireway.co.uk / walkthehertfordshireway.co.uk are there to complement the guide book not to compete with it, upstage it or replicate it. It cannot be bettered.
This website has taken considerable time to research, write, design and construct. And walk. I have tried to ensure that all the information is correct and up to date. Life nowadays moves swiftly and it’s possible that pubs, shops and post offices will shut, bus routes will change, opening hours of various attractions will alter and rail timetables will be revised. There may even be more amendments to the route. Sadly the fall-out from the corona virus lockdown may take/has taken its toll on pubs, other stop-offs, transport options and commercial outlets. If there are any obvious changes that need to be made to the website please email me on [email protected]
But however you approach the walk please remember: “Take nothing but pictures. Leave nothing but footprints. Kill nothing but time.” Basic, but true.
