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Have you ever considered a radical change to mark a new chapter in your life? What fears hold you back from taking on a huge challenge, like walking for weeks on your own? Zoe Langley-Wathen talks about conquering her fears on the 630-mile South West Coast Path, and how it led to an even bigger goal: to walk the entire coastline of Great Britain.

Zoe is the author of 630 Miles Braver: Midlifing on the South West Coast Path. She’s also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, an award-winning teacher, and host of the HeadRightOut podcast.

Why Zoe chose the South West Coast Path to mark a rite of passage into midlife
The beautiful highlights and the brutal, challenging aspects of the 630-mile trail
Overcoming fears of walking and wild camping solo
Practical advice on training, managing physical pain, and preparing for a long walk
How the experience built lasting resilience and changed her life trajectory
Zoe’s next epic adventure with her husband: walking the 7,300-mile coastline of Great Britain

You can find Zoe at HeadRightOut.com

You can find my tips on long-distance multi-day solo walking in my book, Pilgrimage: Lessons Learned from Solo Walking Three Ancient Ways, and more pilgrimage resources here.

Writing Partition: Merryn Glover on History, Home, and the Hill Stations Of India

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How does a childhood spent in the Himalayas of Nepal and India shape a life and a love for the mountains of Scotland? How can fiction help us understand the complex, painful history of India’s Partition? I discuss all this and more with the award-winning author, Merryn Glover.

Merryn’s nomadic “third culture kid” upbringing with missionary parents in Nepal and India
The experience of attending an international boarding school in a North Indian hill station.
The history of Indian Hill Stations like Mussoorie, from their origins in the British Raj to modern-day holiday destinations.
Weaving the complex history of India’s Independence and Partition into her novel, A House Called Askival.
The perspective of writing about India as both an insider to the international community and an outsider to the wider culture.
How her childhood in the Himalayas influenced her love for her current home in the mountains of Scotland.
Recommended travel books

You can find Merryn at MerrynGlover.com

Durham Cathedral, England

Religious

There are some places you walk into and feel a special kind of atmosphere. Durham Cathedral is one of those places (and I certainly don’t say that about every cathedral!) I hope you enjoy this virtual tour.

Durham Cathedral stands on a rocky peninsula in a tight loop of the River Wear. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site (inscribed 1986) together with Durham Castle, recognised as an outstanding example of Norman (Romanesque) architecture and for its influence on the development of Gothic.

Durham Castle and Cathedral from River Wear Photo by JFPenn

Construction began in 1093 for a new Benedictine monastery to house the relics of St Cuthbert and attract pilgrims.

British Pilgrimage: On This Holy Island With Oliver Smith

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What makes a place sacred, and can you find spiritual transformation without traveling thousands of miles? Why do ordinary English villages and Scottish islands continue to draw seekers from around the world? Award-winning travel writer Oliver Smith talks about British pilgrimage sites from Lindisfarne to Iona, and Walsingham to Glastonbury, and how these ancient places still draw even secular pilgrims today.

Oliver Smith is a multi award-winning travel writer and author of The Atlas of Abandoned Places, and On This Holy Island: A Modern Pilgrimage Across Britain.

The double lives of pilgrimage places, and how ordinary locations can offer transcendent experiences
Lindisfarne’s tidal causeway
The tension between commercial tourism and genuine spiritual seeking at sacred sites
Iona’s remote Scottish island setting and the challenging journey required to reach it
Walsingham’s remarkable history from medieval powerhouse to modern multicultural pilgrimage destination
Why Glastonbury might be Britain’s best pilgrimage
The philosophy of traveling deeper not further, and finding extraordinary meaning in familiar places

You can find Oli at OliverSmithTravel.com

You can find more Pilgrimage Resources here, as well as my book, Pilgrimage: Lessons Learned from Solo Walking Three Ancient Ways.

York Minster, England

Religious

Romans. Vikings. English Kings. And Harry Potter. York has it all! I’ve visited the city several times but returned in early August 2025 to spend more time at York Minster, the city’s Gothic Cathedral.

Dominating the York skyline, the Minster is more than just a cathedral, it’s a treasure house of English history, art, and culture. From Roman foundations to royal statues and some of the world’s finest medieval stained glass, every stone tells a story. Join me for a virtual tour through this masterpiece of Gothic architecture.

You can find more Gothic Cathedral articles and photos here.

Founded as a timber-and-earth fortress in AD 71, Eboracum was the northern power-base of Rome in Britain. By the 2nd century the Sixth Legion Victrix had rebuilt its walls in stone.

When Emperor Constantius died here in 306, his son Constantine was hailed Augustus on the spot, commemorated by a bronze statue outside York Minster today.

Gloucester Cathedral, England

Religious

Gloucester Cathedral began life as the Benedictine Abbey of St Peter, founded in 1089 and re-designated a cathedral when the Diocese of Gloucester was created in 1541. The building contains the tomb of King Edward II, buried here in 1327, whose cult of pilgrimage financed much of the 14th‑century expansion. Find out more at GloucesterCathedral.org.uk

I visited in the winter and it was pretty chilly in the cathedral! Well worth the visit.

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