News & Events in Europe's mountains

Coast to Coast in full

December 2007
We've been busy during the autumn, making forays to the North York Moors and Yorkshire Dales. In addition to our Coast to Coast West route between St Bees and Kirkby Stephen, for 2008 we shall be offering the whole route as far as Robin Hood's Bay. This is our new Coast to Coast self-guided holiday.

We'll also be offering an East route from Kirkby Stephen to complement the West, so that people can complete the route over two separate weeks off work. This is similar to our North and South options on the Tour du Mont Blanc. Hence we now offer:

Coast to Coast
13 stages plus 1 rest day - 15 nights
This is the whole trek and one that will stick in the memory for a long time. So much of England is on display on this very clever route as devised by Arthur Wainwright in the 1970s.

Coast to Coast West
6 stages - 7 nights
Check out the Lake District stages on a hilly week.

Coast to Coast East
7 stages - 8 nights
The Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors complete the trek.

As always, we're fully geared up to offering tailor-made treks along the Coast to Coast route. We anticipate that some people will fancy longer trips to further break up the stages, while others will prefer quick dashes. We'll tweak the trips to suit, so just contact us to discuss how you'd like to approach this superb route.

New Three Peaks holiday

November 2007
After some more good walking in the British Autumn we've developed our Yorkshire Dales Weekend trip into a longer route. It's now a circuit of Ingleborough, passing Whernside and Pen-y-ghent, and we call it the Tour of the Three Peaks. For a 4-day break it gives a chance to become in tune with this very pleasant area, and discover some lesser-known corners. It's a flexible route and each day you can climb one of the hills or take valley paths to the next stopping point.

Tour of the Three Peaks

More Pennine Way exploration

November 2007
We've just finished researching a new holiday, running for 6 days between Edale and Malham on the Pennine Way. These are the first 6 stages of the famous route. Linking Edale to Malham lets us offer the route as far as Alston in the North Pennines, roughly two thirds of the way up. The new trip is the Pennine Way South and is offered as a self-guided walking holiday of 7 nights.

Apart from being a good chunk of this national trail, the holiday gives a week's exploration of some lesser-known upland areas in England. Moors and fields dominate the scenery. It's a walk of gently changing, open views rather than spectacular sights but one that leaves a lasting impression.

Pennine Way South

Kendal Mountain Festivals

November 2007
Kendal is hosting its annual mountain film, book and art festivals between 9 and 18 November 2007.

Kendal Mountain Festivals - the official website

Events take place in the evenings as well as during the day. From a base in the South Lakes it's possible to combine visits to the festival events with walks in the Autumnal landscape. Check out this trip for more information:

South Lakes Explorer - easy walks in the intriguing rolling terrain of South Lakeland

Adventures in the French Alps

July 2007
We have put together a new trip that we hope will offer our clients old and new a different way to enjoy the Alps. Bring your family, friends or colleagues for a week of action or relaxation in the Tarentaise region of the French Alps.

Based in a very comfortable chalet, take advantage of as much or as little of the activity as you wish. Walk in the beautiful Vanoise National Park or the Beaufortain and Tarentaise areas; go white water rafting or canyoning; take a mountain bike on the many local trails served by lifts; try paragliding; enjoy some horse riding; you can even take the chance to improve your golf!

The chalet can be taken in its entirety (it sleeps 10 people in 5 bedrooms) or you can come along on your own, in a couple or with a smaller group of friends. See full details of this new trip:

French Alps Multi-Activity - read our detailed 2-page Holiday Notes too, to see all the local activities available

Marathon & Cross du Mont-Blanc

June-July 2007
On the last day in June and first day in July, Chamonix hosted a weekend of racing. There were two main events: the 21km Cross, which left Chamonix for Argentiere along the valley, then climbed up via La Flegere to Planpraz; and the Marathon which did the same but added a loop over Col des Montets, past Vallorcine and back over Col des Posettes to Le Tour and Argentiere. The Marathon was won by Nick Sharp from Britain in a time of 3h 27m 26s.

Mont Blanc Marathon - find out more about the weekend's events

Miss Potter

January 2007
The movie Miss Potter, about the life of famous children's author Beatrix Potter, came out in January 2007. Beatrix Potter is well known for having lived in the Lake District and the film was shot at various locations in the area, particularly in the South around Hawkshead, Yewdale, Windermere and other places. If seeing the film has made you keen to visit the Lakes, you'll find the region geared up to welcome you! UK Exploratory can also help out.

A number of our self-guided walking holidays in the Lake District happen to pass filming locations and by taking the odd detour you can see the full range of locations.

South Lakes Circuit - hike a 4-day circuit with nights in Hawkshead, Coniston and Great Langdale
South Lakes Explorer - gentle walking in the fells and forests of the Ambleside, Langdale and Grizedale areas
North Lakes Circuit - make a spectacular circuit of the North Lakes in 4 days from Keswick
North Lakes Explorer - Derwent Water features highly in this week of walking based in Keswick

Beatrix Potter lived from 1866 to 1943. As well as her series of books, the first of which was 'The Tale of Peter Rabbit', she is known for a great interest in conservation. This led her to acquire over 4,000 acres of land, including 14 farms, in order to preserve its natural beauty. She left this land to the National Trust; it is frequent to come across sections of it as you walk through the South Lakes.

Visit Miss Potter - the tie-in website with Cumbria Tourism

Tour de France 2007 and the Tour du Mont Blanc

July 2007
The 8th stage of the Tour de France, the world's most famous cycle race and arguably the biggest sporting event in the world, met the route of the Tour du Mont Blanc this summer. On Sunday 15 July 2007 it was possible to watch the 165km stage between Le Grand Bornand and Tignes, from a vantage point near the village of les Chapieux on the TMB. The stage was won by Michael Rasmussen from Denmark in a time of 4h 49m 40s after a long solo breakaway. Rasmussen's ride also gave him the leader's yellow jersey, thanks to the time he made up on the previous holder.

Tour de France - the official website of Le Tour

Les Chapieux is a staging post on the typical Tour du Mont Blanc route, two stages from the start in Les Houches. It marks the Southern extent of the Mont Blanc circuit. Our accommodation in les Chapieux is a welcoming auberge that makes a good base for exploring the surrounding Beaufortain Alps. The route also passed a few km from our chalet in the Tarentaise, up the hill from Bourg St. Maurice, where we run summer walking and multi-activity holidays.

Tour du Mont Blanc - our popular self-guided walking holiday along this classic trail
French Alps Multi-Activity - rafting, mountain biking, paragliding, you name it!

The North Face Ultra Trail Mont Blanc

August 2007
Each August a race is held on a circuit of Mont Blanc, roughly following the Tour du Mont Blanc route. In 2007 look out for the race on 24-26 August, starting and finishing in Chamonix. The course is 163km long and climbs more than 8,900m. The fastest competitors expect to run it in under 25 hours and there is a limit of 46 hours for everyone. Around 2,500 runners took part in 2006 - watching them fly by is a real spectacle and was remarked upon by some of our clients last year. Disruption to walkers should be minimal.

Ultra Trail Mont Blanc - the official website of the race

West Highland Way Race

June 2007
Another spectacle takes place each year on one of our long-distance paths, this time in Scotland. At 1am on 23 June 2007 runners set off from Milngavie to complete the West Highland Way to Fort William in under 35 hours. The record has been brought under 16 hours and a total of 76 runners completed the 2007 race.

West Highland Way Race - the official website of the race

New for 2007 in the Julian Alps

September 2006
We have added two new itineraries in the Julian Alps ready for summer 2007. Both are self-guided holidays. The new trips complement our existing trips in Slovenia, making 5 in total. The trips range from easy walking holidays based in the valley to more strenuous high-mountain treks.

Trek for 5 days in the high mountains of the range, staying in a range of huts, on our Hut-to-Hut holiday. Previously this longer trek was only available as a guided holiday.

For something totally flexible and (we believe) different to anything currently offered in the industry, take our Julian Alps Starter Pack. This is a pack of information, maps and accommodation bookings designed to let you hit the ground running. For experienced trekkers who know their mountains but don't yet know the Julian Alps, this service has two benefits - reduced time spent planning, and being pointed to the best walking.

Julian Alps Hut-to-Hut
Julian Alps Starter Pack

New option on the Tour du Mont Blanc

July 2006
Are you interested in the Tour du Mont Blanc but would you prefer to spend only one week on trek? As well as our main TMB holiday we offer the route in two week-long trips. Choose the Northern or Southern half then walk the other section in the future! The 6-stage Tour du Mont Blanc North leaves the Italian Val Ferret and follows the TMB route via Champex to the Chamonix valley. High-mountain glacial scenery and charming valley floors characterise the stages; your accommodation is varied, characterful and friendly.

Tour du Mont Blanc North

Guided and Self-Guided Holidays