Independent UK guides to National Trails and long-distance walking
Walk the National Trails with facts you can check.
Explore the Horizon is an independent guide to long-distance walking in the UK. The pages here are written from official trail, access and safety sources, not from invented itineraries or first-person trail reports.
Guides
Start with how the trails are designated, then plan a walk, read the access rules, or open a guide to one of the longer routes.
Getting started
- What National Trails areHow National Trails are designated in England and Wales, the official list, the acorn waymark, and how Scotland’s Great Trails fit in.
- Planning a long-distance walkOfficial advice on checking diversions, booking places to stay, luggage, transport, packing and what you cannot usually do near a National Trail.
The trails
- The Pennine Way National TrailOfficial facts on the first National Trail: 268 miles from Edale to Kirk Yetholm, when to go, how it is waymarked, and what the published sections involve.
- The South West Coast PathOfficial facts on the 630-mile National Trail from Minehead to Poole Harbour, including ferries, published walking times and the example weekly sections.
- The King Charles III England Coast PathOfficial facts on England’s still-unfinished coastal National Trail, the 2,700-mile aim, coastal margin access, and the ferries you may need.
- The Coast to Coast Path National TrailOfficial facts on the 190-mile National Trail from St Bees to Robin Hood’s Bay, based on Wainwright’s walk, including published time, terrain and sections.
Access and safety
- The Countryside Code and access rightsThe official rules for walking in England and Wales, open access land, dogs, and how access in Scotland is different.
- Maps, waymarks and staying safeOfficial advice on maps, trail and rights-of-way waymarks, weather, tides, and who to call if you need help on a walk.