Go Your Own Way

What's the perfect trail for a summer trek? The one you design yoursef. Pick a region, plot a route, pack it with things you love: it's your-name-here way.

- Matthew Pike

HOW ON EARTH would I manage three pubs in one lunchtime? I mused this crisis for a moment, wishing the cluster of top-notch drinking dens was a little more spread out. This wasn’t a problem I’d envisaged when deciding to plot my own multi day trail through the South Downs. It was my first trip to the rippling chalk hills of this national park and I was determined to make an adventure of my three days. The question was how best to enjoy this part of the world.

The South Downs Way National Trail was the obvious choice, yet beautiful though it looked, I wanted to plot my own trail. There’s something very appealing about forging your own way – the freedom to pick places and daily mileages that suit you, the sense of accomplishment at doing it yourself – and the gentle downland slopes freckled with friendly villages seemed like a good place to give a home-made trail a try.

The first task was choosing a theme. This means incorporating the things you most enjoy, rather than relying on someone else’s taste, and it keeps morale high with regular landmarks of achievement. The theme can be anything from waterfalls to Norman churches to hilltops to places with amusing names. My choice was the good old British pub. I have a deep affection for these ancient inns and I liked the luxury of knowing I’d have food, drink and a bed for the night. What’s more, I was certain the South Downs would have a liberal spread of fine hostelries, with the warmth and welcome you crave after a long day’s trek.

I opened my laptop and began plotting the location of every pub approved by The Good Pub Guide within the national park. My computer screen was soon covered in red flags, with a particularly appealing cluster around the market town of Midhurst. I now had my start and end point, and it was time to join the dots on the map.