Wanderlust Europe – A manual for those in search of breathtaking beauty and freedom.
Although this podcast goes into the background detail of what is involved in compiling a compendium like this which contains some of the best hikes in Europe, there is much else we discuss.
Including the Cape Wrath Trail and the story of meeting Skye MacGregor, the 16-year-old lad hiking LEJOG via the CWT in winter through February.
The Tour of Monte Rosa: benighted on the Europaweg. Hear how this was his first Alpine long-distance hike where he felt like he vaguely knew what he was doing, but still very much a learning curve, and what went wrong!
How the Lochaber Traverse became his obsession over many years and several attempts, starting with a friend’s broken ankle back in 2006.
Finally the Mercantour Traverse: thunderstorm at altitude. Spark flying everywhere. It was his first real ultralight trip in a highly technical Alpine environment, going fast and light and pushing close to the limits of my comfort zone.
There’s so much more we touch on too. What lightweight equipment he was using when camping in winter at the top of Ben Nevis to be rewarded by a superb temperature inversion.
If you can join the newsletter and keep in touch with our shows and future plans.
The routes
Here is the complete list of hikes featured in Wanderlust Europe:
Western Europe
The Pennine Way, England
The Kerry Way, Ireland
The Cape Wrath Trail, West Highlands, Scotland
Rothiemurchus Forest and Ryvoan Pass, Cairngorms, Scotland
The Lochaber Traverse, West Highlands, Scotland
Bonus section:
Great Gable, Lake District, England
The Dingle Way, Ireland
The Mourne Wall Walk, Northern Ireland
The Three Sisters of Glen Coe, West Highlands, Scotland
Eastern Europe
Baltic Coastal Hiking Route, Latvia and Estonia
Făgăraş Mountains Traverse, Romania
The Menalon Trail, Greece
The Slovene Mountain Trail, Slovenia
Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia
The Transcaucasian Trail, Georgia
Bonus section:
The Polonya Borzhava Traverse, Ukraine
Mount Olympus, Greece
Białowieża Forest, Poland
Kom-Emine, Bulgaria
Omu Peak, Romania
Northern Europe
Nordkalottleden, Norway, Sweden and Finland
Kungsleden, Swedish Lapland
The Hornstrandir Trail, Iceland
The Kerlingarfjöll Circle Route, Iceland
Bonus section:
Skaftafell, Iceland
The Besseggen Ridge, Jotunheimen, Norway
The Hetta-Pallas Trail, Finland
The Karhunkierros Trail, Finland
The Camøno Trail, Denmark
Southern Europe
The Mercantour Traverse, Maritime Alps, France and Italy
The GR221 Dry Stone Route, Mallorca
The GR131, La Palma
The Ordesa Canyon, Pyrenees, Spain
The Canigou Traverse, Pyrenees, France
The GR20, Corsica
Pico de Aneto, Pyrenees, Spain
Bonus section:
Veredo do Arieiro (PR1), Madeira
Mont Granier, Chartreuse, France
The Torrent de Pareis Gorge Walk, Mallorca
Mont Buet, Western Alps, France
The Jermoso Traverse, Picos de Europa, Spain
Central Europe
The Western Brenta Circuit, Dolomites, Italy
The Tre Cime Circuit, Dolomites, Italy
The Rheinsteig Trail, Middle Rhine, Germany
The Harz Border Trail, Harz Mountains, Germany
The Tour of Monte Rosa, Western Alps, Switzerland and Italy
The GR57 Valée de l’Ourthe and Sentier du Nord, Ardenees, Belgium and Luxembourg
The Mettelhorn, Western Alps, Switzerland
The Alpine Pass Route (Via Alpina 1), Switzerland
Bonus section:
Imbachhorn, Salzburg, Austria
The Adlerweg, Tyrol, Austria