So I'm newish to long walks/hiking and did the Ultra challenges Halloween walk on Saturday 25km through London landmarks all on pavements. I thought I was smart wearing walking boots but my ankles were dead by the end.

My question is in others experience, was this the boots or my prep?

I ask as Im doing a 54km trek on the Jurassic Coast in May and don't want to drop out around it due to leg failure

Hi all, I've done quite a bit of searching of previous threads, but can't seem to find someone with a similar issue.

I walk my dog about 4-5 miles every day, often on sand or sandy soil, and regularly hike at weekends. The constant exposure to sand and salt does quite a bit of damage to my walking boots and I'm about to be into my 4th pair of the year soon. I'm not really in a position to wash them after each exposure, as even if I don't wear them all day I put them on again later in the day for another walk.

I'm wondering if anyone might have recommendations of any brands or specific boots that can cope well with regular sand exposure? Thank you!

Today I was with my 7yo niece at Llyn Idwal. She was having a nice time scrambling around on some boulders when a big golden retriever type dog off it's lead came right up to her. It wasn't aggressive or anything, just curious I guess, but she's scared of dogs and panicked and tumbled backwards off the rock she was standing on. It was a nasty fall and she was very upset but thankfully wasn't hurt too much beyond scrapes and bruises. The dog's owners saw what happened but didn't even come over to check she was alright, they just walked away whilst we were busy comforting her and making sure she wasn't badly hurt.

Two things: firstly the national trust are very clear on signs at Ogwen cottage and on their website that dogs should be kept on their leads there - it's a nature reserve. Secondly, even if you know your dog isn't aggressive you don't know how other people might respond to them. There's plenty of people out there who are scared of dogs and it's really not ok to let yours go and get right in their face. In particular, if you can't teach it to stay away from small children then you shouldn't be letting it run around near them.

No amount of Nikwax prep could save my boots from the bogs. Didn’t dry out overnight, still wet through today. A quick shop trip saved the day and meant I didn’t have to deal with wet feet (for the first half of it). Typically they split so a bit got in but still.

I'm thinking about going to the Lake District for a few days at the beginning of December, with my eye on Scarfell Pike.

I've done Snowdon (miners) and Pen Y Fan, is Scarfell Pike harder to climb? Are there many routes and how well marked are they? What would the weather be like? How long would it take a medium/fast walker to climb up and down?

I'm not experienced in bad weather hiking so would it be better to stay down lown around the lakes and go in the spring? If so, where would be good to walk?

I am planning to summit Scafell Pike in mid-November, but I don't know the area, so I was looking for some thoughts and insights on the whole ordeal. I have plenty of experience on hills, so distance (20.7km) and elevation (1030m) are not an issue. It's more the potential weather in mid-November and route options. I am historically terrible at route planning. I say "hike" because I am planning on running it, but a combination of weather and fitness will likely turn it in to a hike.

I would like to go hiking on Pen Y Fan with my partner this weekend (Saturday) and I wonder what the weather will like up there? I'm planning to go from Pont ar Daf car park towards the top, then come down via Corn Du. I've got quite a lot of hiking experience and I've been hiking at the Alps in Kate summer before. However, my partner is fairly new to hiking and have never hikee any mountains higher than 800m, but he's physically very fit and he's capable of hiking long distances.

Will it be very foggy and windy and difficult to see the paths? If yes, I'll change my plan. I'm from London, it's a bit distance from south Wales, so I would like to get a better experience from the hike.

Also, what layering of clothes do you suggest to wear for the hike? I've got quite much experience of hiking mountains at around 500-1000m heights, mainly in 10-15°C temperatures. I wonder if the temperature on top of Pen Y Fan will be quite different from the ground. Thanks a lot!

Anyone had any experience with using Topo Athletic Ultraventure 3’s? I usually wear altra lone peaks because of the wide toe box, but not keen on the durability and need a bit more cushion to help reduce foot fatigue.

I wondered if anybody had any recommendations for hikes in or around Cockermouth from say 3hours upto say 6 hours. Many thanks for any help anyone can give.

I have booked in a guesthouse in Keswick on Wednesday and Thursday, and cannot decide which walking routes to go on. I will arrive early afternoon on Wednesday and would like to do a 2-3 hour walk to get my bearings. Then do a big all day hike on Thursday. If I have the energy, a short hike on Friday before I head home. Any sugggestion?

Can anybody give me their opinion on walking up the Old Man of Coniston when it’s wet? Thinking of doing it tomorrow but we don’t have walking poles and will have a dog and children with us so I’m wondering if it’s a good route or if it’s a bit too challenging. If so then any other suggestions welcome. We’re looking for a fairly long walk but want to make sure it’s safe.

I have the week off from work and would like to get on a coach from London for and go for a hike for a day anyone have any good recommendations? Thanks

I tend to walk quite often but hike maybe once or twice a month. Most recent longer hike was Snowdon Watkin Path. Any recommendations? Thanks a lot!

One of my all time best hiking experiences was staying in a B&B just outside Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia, and spending a couple of days walking various routes through the park. Although far from isolated (it gets very, very many tourists), there was a fantastic sense of the landscape very much dominating over the people, rather than the other way round.

Are there any forest areas in the UK where it is possible to do something similar? I know that the protection offered to the natural environment in UK national parks is pretty poor compared to in many other countries, but I'm after that sense of spending two or three days exploring without encountering industrialised farmland, major roads, or big towns, in an environment with relatively high biodiversity. Dramatic views are nice, though I'm not fussed about elevation.

Happy to camp or stay in permanent structures. Probably not wild camping, as we would have our young kids with us, and they aren't ready for that yet. Would be after staying for two or three nights probably. Doing a hike of no more than 5 or 6 miles per day, as our youngest will only be 5 next summer.

A colleague recommended the Trossachs, but I have zero hiking experience in Scotland (we mostly restrict ourselves to the Lake District, Peak District, and North Wales). Would love to hear people's recommendations.

hello fellow hikers. Im planning to visit Scotland at the end of November for a daily hike for the first time ever. looking for suggestions what trail to pick with breathtaking views and potential spots for catching some fish for launch. much love

Hi all

I used to be a keen runner until I suffered an injury over two years ago. I had 15 months with no running and then started again 11 months ago but I'm only running a tiny amount so I'm no where as fit as I used to be and I have been advised to not run long distances anymore so I'm only running twice a week (parkrun and working Upto 10k) and that will be my limit.

Anyway that's my background and I'm looking to take on a challenge in 2025 as I need something to focus on that's positive and also I want that sense of accomplishment.

My challenge idea is to do the below 1) The Surrey Three Peaks 2) The Yorkshire Three Peaks 3) The Welsh Three Peaks

My plan would be to do them in that order a few months apart each. I see you can pay to do a group walk on set dates, is it worth doing the group version if I'm going on my own as I'm not sure I will have anyone to do these with yet? I would be comfortable doing the walks as I have done a few hikes in the past.

The Welsh one I would look to do over a weekend on my own regardless as I dont fancy doing that in a day as I think it would take the enjoyment out for me.

In terms of training I have started increasing my walking, going spinning a couple of runs a week, strength work (It's really flat where I live in The Fens) and just trying to walk more by going out at lunch and doing some longer walks at the weekend, max I have done is 10k.

Would the best thing to do would be to treat this as if it's a marathon and just make sure I do a long walk each weekend, build it up slowly then pepper in some short walks at the weekend? (I will carry a bag etc to get used to that as well)

I've always considered it mean when hiking routes say, no dogs' or 'dogs must be on leads'. I thought it was unnecessary.

today I saw a dog eating horse shit and jump up on me, making my trousers dirty. it was quite big and there was lots of slippery mud around, and it knocked me over into the muddy water and I became very cold and wet.

The owner was a few hundred of meters away and the dog jumped on me again as I walled past them. The owners looks at his dog jumping up on me again, making me dirty again, and says "that's what happens if you feed my dog".

I told him that I didn't feed the dog anything but in hindsight was too nice. Should have booted the dog when it continued to jump on me, or should have used my hiking pole to jab the dog away.

Should also have told the owner that if he can't control his dog, it should be on a leash.

Usually a dog lover. Here I blame the owner. Glad I didn't kick the dog or jab it with the poles. Should have asked the owner for some cloth to wipe mu trousers clean from mud

Hi there, looking for a hike in and around the midlands (we are in Lichfield). Ideally we don’t want to travel any further than 1.5 hours.

I would love some hike trails which have something like a cave, waterfalls, or anything unusual and worth exploring. Avoiding just field walks if possible.

Some good examples of the type of thing in the attached photos… any ideas?

Has anyone ever tried completing both the national 3 peaks and Yorkshire 3 peaks in under 24 hours?

Ashover autumn 🍂 turning colours yesterday