Offa-long the Dyke #5: Kington to Knighton

The last day of the hike. I wake up feeling a bit tired (nothing to do with the red wine, of course) and trip down the precipitous stairs to Adam’s excellent breakfast, eaten amid the trays and drawers and crates of coloured threads and yarns and dyes, next to the sewing machine. The electronic spinning wheel is somewhere in the corner.

We walk away from the ODP down into cloudy Kington because the Friday market is on. The market ladies organise to fill our water bottles from the corner bakery where for the first time we meet a lot of other hikers, probably because the sandwiches are home made and the coffee is actually good! 

Offa-long the Dyke #3: Pandy to Hay-on-Wye

Judy Moreland of Ty Clwdd turns out to be a major benfactress of hikers. By the time we leave her comfy B&B, she has organised a local taxi to take our bags to Hay, fed us an enormous breakfast, provided massive cheese and pickle and tuna mayonnaise sandwiches for lunch, and given us advice on a handy short cut to get to the top of Hatterall Ridge.

Offa-long the Dyke #4: Hay-on-Wye to Kington

We almost have to be dragged kicking and screaming back on to the ODP; we love Hay so much we don’t want to leave. From the fresh berries and yogurt at La Fosse, to turmeric-flavoured sheep’s milk ice cream at Shepherds, to trawling the Thursday market for second-hand scarves and fresh welsh cakes - how can we leave this behind?

Eventually, we peel off our reluctance and get back on our path because this sunny day is leading us across green hills and rolling valleys and fields once we have come out on to the open after following the high path above the Wye under the trees.

Offa-long the Dyke #2: Monmouth to Pandy

Up at 6 am and we work round each other well in the tiny twin room at the back of the Mayhill. There’s a lovely view out of the breakfast room window past Lidl and over the bridge into Monmouth’s old grey stones. The view from this table must make it the most popular because the seats are far more worn and saggy than any of the other five tables in the little room where we eat a massive hot breakfast and chat to the breakfast cook.

Offa-long the Dyke #1: getting there

“I reckon this is going to be the next big thing in multi-day hiking.”

“It’s a great way to see a part of the country we don’t know.”

“It will be pretty easy walking every day.”

“You’ll love it.”

This was the quadruple mantra I kept repeating to my sister before we hit the Offa’s Dyke Path (aka ODP) this August - while keeping my fingers crossed that it would all work out.

As my marriage unravelled, my limited remaining energy went on stitching together four days of hiking along the Marches of the Welsh/English border with my dear sister novice-hiker Caro. I planned how we would get in and out of the hike, our accommodation each night, getting our big bags from place to place while we walked, and where we would walk. I was also in charge of map reading and navigation - a big challenge for someone who struggles to find North/South, left/right (and even up/down on a bad day).