On my trip home in April I read an article about a travelling art exhibition of works collected by writer Gertrude Stein and her brothers when they were living in Paris in the early 20th Centrury. This family were collectors of early works by artists such as Picasso, Matisse, Renoir and Cezanne and as such the exhibition became the excuse for last weekend's wonderfully indulgent flit across the channel to Paris with the girls. Saturday morning we caught the Eurostar across then dropped our bags at the cheap and cheerful Hotel Ajiel on Rue de la Convention in Montparnasse. Not the most central location, but not far from the Metro and a wonderful local neighbourhood. The hotel is surrounded by cafes, restaurants, patisseries and bloungeries and on Sunday mornings there is a local market to make ... read more

Its no secret I like to walk or that it's really just a way for me to explore the world around, I especially love it when that walking gives me an excuse to flee the UK for a couple of days. When a hiking weekend was posted for Bray-Dune in Flandres, north France got posted for the weekend before my birthday I decided to adopt it as my abroad weekend to celebrate the passage of the years (well they don't actualy pass as much as swirl in a subjective non linear numerical way!). Bray-Dune is a sleepy seaside town north of Dunkerque, the last bastian of France before the wide beach and rolling sand dunes give way to Belgium. This wide beach was the site of heavy casualties in WWII being one of the many parts ... read more

Last bank holiday of the year and as the days wind down to the chill of autumn it is obligatory to make the most of that last long weekend before Christmas as it’s a long, lonely stretch to the end of the year when you don’t have holiday left. August Bank Holiday is about the hiking trip and this year that meant the Gower Peninsula for a little hiking, dancing, seal hunting (purely in a failed photographic sense) and sea kayaking. Accommodation was at the YHA Gower Bunkhouse just over the sand dunes from the beach at Port Eynon. Great location set in the heart of Gower and an easy commute to our 2 targets for the weekend - Rhossili Bay and the "beat the tide" run out to Worms Head (Day 1), a relaxed prance ... read more

The last day of a holiday is always tinged with a little sadness especially when the holiday has been as amazing as this one. Spring / early Summer in the Dolomites is just stunning with carpets of wildflowers across the meadows, everywhere you look are masses of flowers and while pulling yourself up mountains is fun, I felt the need of a more relaxed day of 'smelling the flowers' before I headed back to London and working life on Thursday. My plan was to find a walking companion for a relaxed 15km stroll, fitting in some time lying in the grass with a book and a long lunch hours in a refugio. For once the plan came together (well kind of). Relaxed 15km stroll, check ... time with book, check ... long lunch, check ... me ... read more

Seriously, even looking back now a few weeks after, easily the bestest day EVER! This route was what I imagined when I signed up for this week. The route has sustained and steep climbs, continuous exposure, a bridge just before the end and is an absolute cracker. On the downside it's a busy, but probably because we were there quite early in the season not as bad as we were told it could get. VF Brigata Tridentina also known as the Pisciadu Climbing Path (Grade 3B, 750m ascent, 400m wire) runs from about midway up the Gardena Pass up the north wall of the Sella Massif. It's great as you basically kit up in the carpark walk for 10m or so and hit the first short section of wire. Easy walk in then a combination of ... read more