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 Walk Across Europe

2003-04-13 - Trip 1

Portugal, Algarve West

Beccles to Lagos

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8000 km today.
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 Travel: Car, Air, Taxi.

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The walk markers can be clicked. Year markers are red. Accommodation markers are blue.


The walk is about 8000 kilometres or 5000 miles long. At the present rate of progress it could take 20 years to complete.

April 2003: Margaret, Anne and Neil set out from Cabo São Vicente, Algarve, Portugal. The sunny morning deteriorated into pouring rain in the afternoon. Even so, it was a wonderful walk through some of the most beautiful nature reserve terrain in south western Portugal.

October 2008: Margaret had a stroke triggered by her long-running heart problem. We had to cancel the October trip. By Christmas, Margaret was well enough for Anne and Neil to complete another leg. Margaret could no longer get insurance and was not really well enough to travel so she stopped going on the trips.

October 2009: After 130 walking days and over 2567 km covered, we had reached France but the walk was on pause because Anne (Neil's sister) had cancer and was too ill to walk more than a few metres. The statistics suggested she would be unlikely to recover but we lived in hope for 14 months.

April 2010: Neil's mother (Margaret) who also started the walk, died. She had had a long term minor heart problem. Aged 89 and becoming frail, this lead to her demise. She did well to accompany us until Easter 2008 although she only joined us for the easier legs of the walk.

June 2010: Anne died, finally losing her fight with cancer.

October 2010: Neil resumed the walk in France.

April 2011: Neil is continuing the walk. With two of the three who started, already dead, and looking at actuarial tables for life expectancy, Neil has decided not to walk down to the toe of Italy and back. The chances of reaching Istanbul would be too small. Following the whole coastline of Albania and Greece might also be too far. The latest ideas put Neil nearly half way. Even so he'd be well on the way to 70 years old continuing at the present rate. The new total distance is 8000 km.

November 2013: Neil has reached Vicenza, Veneto, Italy.

November 2013: Ian, Neil's brother died. Although Ian was not doing the walk, Neil now has the task of sorting out Ian's affairs. This has further delayed the walk.

Late 2019: The Covid 19 pandemic started and the walk is on hold yet again ...