Reflections

Two months on

Having returned to Jersey in September I have a had a number of weeks to start to process the impact that my 10 week journey around the counties of England and Wales has had.

I think the most common question I have been asked is whether I was tired? Physically I don’t think I was, but on reflection I think I was mentally drained. Often I just wanted to sit quietly and not make any decisions. The first 50 days of the trip were pretty straightforward, the many hours of planning proving to have being really beneficial. Every day I knew exactly where I was going to park, the route to the county tops, the paddling route and where I was going to spend the night. Almost nothing changed in those first 7 weeks, just a few minor changes as result of Storm Floris battering northern England. Walking and paddling mostly happened on schedule, I think I only had to adjust a couple of sessions and it was not a big issue.

Tuesday 26th August was when it all changed, the winds increased, the rain arrived and my best laid plans were thrown into disarray. Not by much but just enough to increase my daily stress level, nothing catastrophic, but the cumulative effect of 20 days of slight change had started to wear me down. But what were the positives?

I explored England and Wales, in a way, that probably very few people had done before. I am certain that plenty of people have walked to the county tops but how many in 70 consecutive days? Who else has paddled, or attempted to paddle in all of the counties? So I think it was pretty unique in terms of a journey. I was able to visit counties I had never been to before, Norfolk, or not since 1975 when I was walking the Pennine Way, Northumberland.

This is an incredible, well signposted, Public Right of Way, cutting its way across a field. The highest points in Cambridgeshire and Essex were visited on this mornings walk. Amazingly I didn’t see another walker on this particular morning in rural England.

The canals were a revelation, they were like a green ribbon of happiness, winding their way through the countryside. How could those visionaries of the 18th and 19th century, James Brindley and Thomas Telford, understand the impact their canals were going to have on the emotional well being of 21st century Britain. An impact which goes beyond the narrow boating community. Dog walkers, cyclists, fishermen, stand up paddleboarders, all benefiting from access to the canals and being, without exception, friendly and supportive.

It was a journey through landscapes steeped in history, the industrial archaeology of the West Midlands, the agricultural landscape of Cambridgeshire. the upland landscape of northern England etc. It was interesting how quickly the transition from one landscape to another occurred at times. I launched by the Wolverhampton Canoe Club, only 9 minutes from Molineux Stadium, the home of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club but within 5 minutes of paddling I had arrived at the Autherley Canal Junction, the transition from urban to rural landscape was surprisingly swift.

Autherley Canal Junction, looking along the Shropshire Union Canal, not completed until 1835 it was the last major engineering accomplishment of Thomas Telford. A rural landscape close to the heart of the Black Country Conurbation. As one of the Industrial Revolution birthplaces, the name was first recorded in the 1840’s.

One of the aims of the journey was to raise funds for a couple of charities, which are close to my heart. Dementia Jersey, in memory of my parents and Fanconi Hope, in memory of our nephews Toby and Marcus, who both lived with Fanconi Anaemia and died far too young. Toby is well known in the sea kayaking community for his journey around the shipping forecast areas in a sea kayak. Sadly he was unable to complete the journey but his sister Katie did, finishing the book “Moderate Becoming Good Later” using Toby’s notes to supplement her own writing. If you haven’t read the book, I encourage you to do so.

Published in 2023, Katie’s next book is due out in May 2026.

The fund raising was far more successful than I hoped, raising just under £11,000, which was split evenly between the two charities. My original target was £3,000, which I clearly surpassed. Half of the money raised going to a Jersey charity and half to a national charity.

Probably the second most common question has been, “what next”? The honest answer is I am not sure, there are plenty of places I would still like to paddle and walk but at times I feel that I have missed out on “adventure in my own backyard” as I have been focused on distant shores. Sitting having lunch today the visibility was exceptional. To the north the other Channel Islands were visible, whilst to the south Cap Frehel, the highest point on the north coast of Brittany, was standing clear. It has been 2 years since I paddled to Sark and yet it is only 12 nautical miles away, less than 3 hours paddling. So 2026 could well be the year when the focus of my exploration shifts to waters closer to home.

Alex off the west coast of Sark. An amazing sea kayaking destination but Sark is a superb destination without the paddling. It was last feudal state in Europe.

So a summer exploring England and Wales by foot and paddle, confirmed my belief that the reality, of 2025, is very different to the descriptions being published in the popular media. Welcoming people, amazing scenery and fascinating history, all things to celebrate.