Boots, Blisters, and the Borderlands: Walking Hadrian’s Wall (Sort of)

Next week, we’ll be setting off to walk a stretch of Hadrian’s Wall. Not the full coast to coast route, but the heart of it: from Corbridge to Brampton. This bit skips the big cities and gets straight to the good stuff. Rolling farmland, remote moorland, ancient ruins, and the bones of the Wall itself winding across the hills like a spine.

This trip is not just another multi-day walk for me. It’s my first proper outing since foot surgery earlier this year. So I’ll be testing out both my new boots and my newly repaired foot at the same time. Possibly unwise. Definitely exciting. Slightly terrifying.

The Route

We’re starting in Corbridge, linking onto the main Wall path via Chollerford, then heading west past Housesteads, Steel Rigg, and Cawfields, before dropping down into Gilsland and finishing at Brampton. It’s only 50-ish miles in total, depending on wiggles and detours. We’ve deliberately missed out Newcastle and Carlisle. Not because they’re not worth visiting, but because we want this to feel more like a countryside immersion than an urban march.

The Prep

It’s been a mix of joyful research and full-blown panic. I’ve booked accommodation ahead. A mix of B&Bs and small inns. I know we’ll need a proper bed each night to let our feet recover. I’ve studied the gradients, checked for pubs, calculated likely snack points, and packed way too many blister plasters. The weather is, as ever, impossible to predict. So I’ve gone for the usual British strategy: prepare for everything.

The Kit List (trimmed but trustworthy)

• Binoculars. Rarely leave home without them.
• New boots. Lightweight and allegedly waterproof. We’ll see.
• Merino wool socks. Worth every penny.
• Compeed blister plasters. Just in case the socks and boots fall out with each other.
• Lightweight waterproofs. The Wall doesn’t care what the forecast says.
• Daypack with hydration bladder. Hands-free water is a game changer.
• Map and compass. Old-school backup if the tech fails.
• Phone loaded with OS Maps and trail guides.
• Snacks, notebook, and ridiculous optimism.

The Nerves

I’d love to pretend I’m just calmly excited, but truthfully? I’m nervous. I haven’t walked more than a few miles at a stretch since the surgery, and this is a big jump. What if the foot swells up? What if the boots rub? What if I can’t finish? It doesn’t help that I also sprained my knee a few weeks ago, which isn’t yet fully healed either.

But I also know what walking does for me. The rhythm. The thinking space. The constant unfolding of the landscape. It’s where I feel most myself. So I’m holding both truths. The excitement and the fear. I’m not aiming to conquer anything. Just to show up and see what happens, one step at a time.

If you’ve been thinking about a long walk, maybe this is your sign. You don’t have to do hundreds of miles. You don’t even have to do it properly. Pick a stretch. Take your time. See what’s out there.

Wish me luck. I’ll report back, feet willing.