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THE ICKNIELD WAY  - OUR  HINTS & TIPS

ROUTE GUIDE AND MAPS

There are a couple of guidebooks available, but none seem to be particularly up-to-date.   A quick online search will find listings, however ...

Lincolnshire County Council have a section of their website dedicated to The Viking Way which provides all the necessary route  information - including bespoke maps - for each of the 13 official stages plus a link route to Market Rasen (an essential diversion for accommodation which is very limited on the route itself).  Each stage is self-contained and can be downloaded as a .pdf file.

We found the information provided was perfectly adequate - in fact better than some expensive 'comprehensive' guides for some other walks.   It is always a good idea, however, to have the appropriate Ordnance Survey maps to refer to - particularly in this instance as the maps provided with the guide are very much restricted to the path and it's (very) immediate environs.

I have invested in electronic versions of both 1:50000 and 1:25000 maps for the whole country over the years that are downloaded onto my smartphone, but I also print out an A4 page(or several if necessary) to carry with us on any given day - just as a back-up.

OUR ITINERARY & TRACKLOGS

In preparing for the walk, I created a Memory Map tracklog for each day and converted them to standard ".GPX" files.   

  • Day 1:  Tring station to Dunstable (13.2 miles) 
  • Day 2:  Dunstable to Streatley (15 miles) 
  • Day 3:  Streatley to Baldock (15.6 miles) 
  • Day 4:  Baldock on Royston (13.4 miles) 
  • Day 5:  Royston to Linton (18 miles) 
  • Day 6:  Linton to Dullingham station (14.3 miles) 

I also recorded our actual route using newly a discovered app View Ranger  which I have found to be much more intuitive to use than Memory Map while 'out-and-about' ... and a whole lot more stable.   The whole experience feels much more customer focussed - and as a bonus Ordnance Survey mapping is also considerably cheaper.  (Incidentally I have just discovered that £8 of Tesco Clubcard vouchers can be exchanged for a 12-month subscription to OS Maps Online.   Now that has to be a bargain!)

You are welcome to download zip files of the tracklogs, our daily routes or both (Right click on the title, and select 'Save Target As...'). 


TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS

On our first leg We chose to travel by train to the start and end(s) of the walk.   There are stations at both Lincoln and Oakham, and both are easliy reached from Peterborough.

For our second leg we took the train to Scunthorpe and enjoyed Mum & D H's hospitality and taxi service to get to the starting point, and caught a train back home from Lincoln.

Online Booking

We have always found the Traveline journey planner to be very useful. It allows you to check a given route for train or bus options in addition to the more traditional depart and arrival times.   Great for deciding how best to get to your destination, but unfortunately contains timetabling information only.

In previous years I have used the National Rail or Stagecoach websites to find the cost of tickets, however, I was recently alerted to the Cheap Train Tickets article on Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert website.   This suggests lots of ways to reduce the cost of rail travel, but just booking early (12 weeks seems to be optimum, but any time before you travel will likely bring a saving), and using the Virgin East Coast or TaketheTrain websites (which not only show the train times for your journey, but also find the cheapest tickets available and let you book online with no booking fee) will likely save you pounds.  

Railcards

We have also invested in a Two Together railcard which costs £30 per year, but gives us a third off the price of rail tickets ... including those already discounted by booking ahead.   Better still you can also purchase the Two Together card with £15 of Tesco Clubcard vouchers, so you can effectively get the card for free.


Using a combination of booking early, online booking and railcards can result in some staggering savings.   It's a no-brainer - use these options to their full potential !!

OUR ACCOMMODATION

Tring Station to Dulligham, September 2018

DAY 1 - DUNSTABLE

The Old Palace Lodge Hotel
Church Street
Dunstable
LU5 4RT
tel. 01582 662201
Website
NGR:   TL 02229 21963
(1 mile off-route)

DAY 2 - STREATLEY

Chequers PH
171 Sharpenhoe Road
Streatley
Bedfordshire
LU33PS
tel. 01582 882072
Website
NGR:   TL 07050 28667
(On route)

DAY 3 - BALDOCK

The George at Baldock
2 Hitchin St
Baldock
Herts
SG7 6AL
tel. 01462 490500
Website
NGR:    TL 24491 33895
(On route)

DAY 4 - ROYSTON

The Old Bull Inn
56 High Street
Royston
Herts
SG8 9AW
tel. : 01763 242003
Website
NGR:   TL 35657 40523
(200 yards off-route)

DAY 5 - LINTON

The Crown Inn
High Street
Linton
Cambridge
CB21 4HS
tel. 01223 891759
Website
NGR:   TL 56071 46660
(On route)