The Vagabond Hiker

The Southwest Coast Path: Minehead to Westward Ho!

August 30, 2025

More precisely, this installment of my SWCP odyssey turned out to be 5 days of hiking divided into two parts: from Minehead to Combe Martin, and – after suitable recovery – from Westward Ho! to Barnstaple. Enjoy the photos and chronicle. . .

Minehead, Somerset, has the distinction of being the official starting point for the Southwest Coast Path, now a part of the almost-completed England Coast Path. As I just missed the bus from the Taunton train station, I chose to take a taxi to save nearly 2 hours’ journey time. Big mistake. That 23 mile ride set me back more than 110 GBP, about twice the cost of the First Class train from Hastings! Other than the typical August beach vibe, Minehead has little to recommend it and early the next morning I began walking. As usual for these shortish segments, I carried all that I needed in my rucksack, taking advantage of lodging and restaurants each day.

View of Minehead beach towards the west and the start of the Coast Path, on a gray day.

Minehead Coastguard Cottages in a lush garden along Quay Street.

View along the path, with bracken. Despite the overcast, at no time during my walks did it rain.

Valerian. Ok, I was a bit desperate for wildflower photos at this time of year!

Steep descent danger sign. I wimped out and took the slightly less steep, but better protected, route.

Porlock Marsh. It was at this point early on the 2nd day that I performed an emergency duct tape repair on my water bladder. This just about lasted the day.

The remote and picturesque St Beuno’s Church, Culbone

The path through oak woods, with the Bristol Channel below

An elaborate entrance gate along the path. No signage to give a hint of its history.

Two heathers together: common (left) and bell (right). By this point the path had left Somerset for North Devon.

Countisbury Parish Church, appearing half-submerged on its eponymous hill east of Lynmouth

Orchard House Hotel, Lynmouth. A Grade 2 Listed property and highly recommended for an overnight stay if you’re ever in Lynmouth.

Looking back to Blacklands Beach, Lynmouth, on the initial climb to Lynton.

The Valley of Rocks, by a long shot the most popular walk in the area.

A bold robin, hanging out near the bench where I consumed my packed lunch

Looking back on the Coast Path and vertiginous Heddon’s Mouth below

An impressive waterfall. Nearly all “combes” (deep, narrow valleys) had some sort of stream flowing down them to the sea.

An atmospheric coastal view back to the east. This is my favorite photo.

Heather (and gorse) on the Great Hangman

Summit rock pile on the Great Hangman. At 318m, this is the highest point along the SWCP.

View towards Combe Martin. . . still a long ways down!

The first three days of what was intended as a 7 day walk to complete this section of the SWCP ended at Combe Martin. As you can see from the All Trail stats, the walks were long and had many steep ascents and descents. By this point, my plantar fasciitis had become so excruciating that the next morning I resorted to a taxi to my next hotel, and then a bus the following day to my hotel in Barnstaple, essentially granting me two days of rest to recuperate. It was just what the doctor ordered!

After two days lazing around, with limited time completing the entire section of the SWCP was off the table, so instead I chose to walk the last two days in reverse direction (west to east) from Westward Ho! as the path was essentially flat and buses were readily available if plantar fasciitis reared its ugly head (foot?!) again.

The market town of Barnstaple was far better than my (admittedly low) expectations. Staying here the final three nights (that was my plan all along) meant that I only carried a light day pack, taking advantage of the bus connections from the nearby depot. A great vegan restaurant provided a respite from the heavy Devon cuisine. Add in live music one evening and a reasonably priced, yet elegant hotel, and what’s not to like?

Surfers at Westward Ho! beach. Westward Ho! is the only town in the English language with an explanation point in its name.

The natural pebble ridge and sandy beach at Northam Burrows Country Park

View from the RNLI Appledore Lifeboat Station. That’s a Tamar-class lifeboat on the right if you’re curious.

Irsha Street, Appledore. The Coast Path follows this picturesque street.

Bideford’s **Tarka the Otter**, from the book by Henry Williamson. The Long Bridge is behind.

Bridge spanning the Tarka Trail, which here coincided with the Coast Path. The entirety of this day’s walk was on tarmac, hence the 3 star rating.

Barnstaple and the River Taw, end point for my week’s (well, 5 days) walking

A rainy day in Hastings and my mind beginning to shift to my next trip. . .

In six days I’m off to Uzbekistan for some hiking & culture in the country at the heart of the Silk Road. I’ll leave you with two photos from my balcony at Rocklands in Hastings, once again my home away from home.*

The Vagabond Hiker

* – when queried about my “home”, depending on the context I respond either “Utah” or “Planet Earth.”

Walks, Hikes, and Via Ferrate in the Alta Val Camonica, Brescia (Lombardy)

August 14, 2025

Located northeast of Milan and west of the Dolomites lies Val Camonica, a valley in Lombardy that’s one of the largest in the Central Alps. It stretches about 90 kilometers between the provinces of Brescia and Bergamo, from Lago d’Iseo to Passo Tonale, Passo Aprica and Passo Gavia. The entire valley is crossed by Fiume Oglio, the fifth largest river In Italy, starting a few kilometers above Vione in Ponte di Legno where two streams meet. At the southern end it empties into Lago d’Iseo, with its waters eventually joining the Po River. The largest rock art site in Europe, with more than 300,000 petroglyphs spanning 8000 years, is found in the lower and middle portions of the valley, which in 1979 was designated Italy’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site. With limited time and high summer temperatures, I left exploring this fascinating pre-Roman and Roman history for another visit.

Staying at an Airbnb apartment located in the village of Vione at 1250 mslm, for four weeks I walked, hiked, and climbed via ferrate in the upper (alta) end of the valley, an area I had driven through once in 2018, but had never visited. Portions of two major parks, Stelvio, and Adamello, are found above the Alta Val Camonica, which provided the impetus for my sojourn here. I was doubly fortunate in having my brother and sister-in-law join me for 10 days and a few of the hikes. It certainly took some effort to reduce the nearly 400 photos to some semblance of a reasonable blog post. Enjoy!

Ponte di Legno confluence. This lovely town about 7 km north of Vione was a bit touristy, though I expect nothing like during the winter skiing season.

*Val di Cané* stream and house. This valley, one of numerous side valleys radiating from Val Camonica, was directly behind Vione, and a popular location for both hikes and picnics.

*Laghetti di Pietra Rossa*, above *Val di Cané*, taken on my second hike from this valley.

A frog I spotted at the pond in the previous photo

Vista from *Bocchette Val di Cané* to *Val Grande*. This pass was the turnaround point for my second hike from this valley.

Horses seen on a loop hike to *Bocchette di Val Massa* from *Val di Cané*, my third from this valley.

WWI stone wall at *Bocchette di Val Massa*. The Italian-Austrian front lines were along many of these mountain passes.

The hamlet of Case di Viso, several kilometers above Ponte di Legno, and the starting point for our hike to *Rifugio Bozzi* where we had lunch.

My brother, Mark, walking at Trincee, old World War I fortifications, adjacent to *Rifugio Bozzi*

Mark above Passo Paradiso, a hike that started with taking a cabinovia (gondola lift) from Passo Tonale. We went “off-piste” for a bit of scrambling away from the crowds on this hike.

The Vagabond Hiker relaxing above Passo Paradiso

Presena Glacier and sign mentioning the geotextiles covering it, in a futile attempt to halt the melting. Note Presena Bar 3000 at the upper left. The cabinovia line to the top is not really visible here.

Mark and Norma on a short hike from Bar Presena 3000, at the top station above Presena Galcier. The glacier on the right is the Adamello, the largest in Italy.

Moss campion and granite. Unlike most of the limestone Dolomites to the east, much of these mountains are granitic.

A cottage near Sant’Apollonia, starting point for our challenging hike to the three Laghi di Monticelli

A pano taken at the third lake, the highest of the three

View toward Monte Gavia from the third Laghi di Monticelli. Mark can just be spotted on the right side of the lake here. Less than two weeks later I would attempt to climb Monte Gavia.

The Alta Val Camonica above Temù. Walking in the Camonica Valley proper was a great way to enjoy an “off” day.

A stream on the trail from Val Bione on a *Rifugio Petitpierre – Corno d’Aola* loop from *Rifugio Valbione*

Tall yarrow. Most were white, but some a vibrant pink like this example.

Monte Gavia and Monte Gavia “Sud” (on the left) from the trailhead at Passo Gavia. At 2650 mslm, this pass is the highest vehicular pass above the Val Camonica. (NB: the “Sud” appellation is my own invention).

Monte Gavia “Sud” summit view back towards the trailhead and Lago Bianco.

On the summit with Monte Gavia background. After recent rains, an icy descent to the col connecting them convinced me to defer the higher peak to another day.

My last two excursions of note were both Via Ferrate (VF). Here is the less than exciting start to the *VF Alpini & Austriaci* on the north side above Passo Tonale.

Edelweiss. This single plant near the beginning of the *Via Ferrata Alpini* was the only one I saw the entire month I stayed in Vione.

The remote Cocchiale basin with three (unnamed) alpine lakes

A local I encountered on the route . . .

. . . and the rest of this Ibex’s family

Up close with some moms and kids. I saw Ibex three days, but on the *VF Austriaci* I finally managed some decent photos.

Screenshot from the PeakFinder app, taken from my balcony. The two labelled peaks on the *Via Ferrata Dei Fiori* in the Adamello Mountains are circled in red. Pardon the elevations in feet rather than meters.

Another less than exciting start on *Via Ferrata dei Fiori*, from Passo Paradiso.

View from the Passo del Castellaccio. Some major wooden structure was built here during WWI.

Plank bridges aid this traverse, with two climbers seen in the V-notch on the right. Neither this nor the previous day’s *Via Ferrate* were all that difficult, provided one doesn’t suffer from vertigo!

Several climbers heading up to Panorama Point, about the only actual climbing on this VF route

A selfie view north on the *Via Ferrata dei Fiori*

The first Passerella, a VERY long cable suspension bridge

Looking back on a dramatic vista with the second Passerella

Glacier buttercup. Yes, there were some flowers in this land of rock and ice. Hence perhaps the name *Via Ferrata dei Fiori* has some justification.

View along the *Via Ferrata dei Fiori* towards Presena Bar 3000

My lunch view from the *Corno di Lago Scuro*. Note *Bivacco Passo Lago Scuro* (bivouac) at the lower right.

*Punto di Lago Ghiacciato* (upper left) with *Bivacco Passo Lago Scuro*. From here it was a 45 minute walk to the top of the cabinovia at Bar Presena 3000. Altogether a fine, if a bit crowded (even mid-week) ferrata.

And the obligatory mountain sunset photo. Alpenglow from my balcony in Vione. The amazing views made returning to my apartment each afternoon a pleasure.

Following a brief stay in Hastings, I will depart on Sunday for Minehead in Somerset to embark on another installment of the Southwest Coast Path. Seven days’ hiking west from there will bring me to Westward Ho!, where the challenge of completing this long distance trail started for me more than seven years ago. Stay tuned,

The Vagabond Hiker

Images from Arco, Trentino & an eastern European city break

July 26, 2025

Confession: I almost decided not to publish this blog. After all, I already posted twice in 2019 and 2023 on hikes and ferrate in the Lago di Gardo area of northern Italy. In addition, city cultural walks are not the main focus of my vagabond life, though I have published two blogs, in 2022 and 2023, featuring some amazing cities – predominantly European – that I have had the fortune to visit. However, my month-long stay in Arco highlighted different aspects of the environs of my favorite town in Italy that I have not yet shared. Furthermore, a chance to travel to two of the three remaining countries in Europe that I hadn’t yet visited, convinced me to post this blog. I hope you’ll indulge me a few photos from this past month. . .

Arco (TN), Italy

Located only 6 km north of the northern tip of Lago di Garda, to me it seems a world away from the water-sports and beach tourism of the lake. As arguably the outdoor capital of Trentino, Arco certainly attracts its fair share of active adventurers and all the climbing, hiking, and mountain/road biking shops to support them. With a two-week heatwave engulfing much of Europe, as well as some (thankfully) short-lived physical maladies, my excursions were generally short, always directly from my apartment, and early in the morning, often finishing about the time the sun appeared from behind the mountains, signalling the onset of another baking summer day in the Anthropocene epoch.

View of Arco Castle Hill with tower from my apartment balcony. The Sarca River (*Fiume Sarca*) is visible below.

*Fiume Sarca* and old mill near Arco. Several times I did an 8 km early morning loop walk up one side of the river and back the other side.

Roman bridge at Ceniga, rebuilt in the late 19th century. This was the farthest point of my many riverine loop walks.

Massone village street with clock, a few minutes’ walk from my apartment. From here there are numerous hikes through the *Bosco Caprone* and up into the nearby mountains.

Morning view towards Riva and Via Ferrata Susatti from above Arco. This lovely lane with oleanders and olive trees was part of the approach walk to the *Monte Baone* scramble.

*Eremo* *di San Paolo* along the *Fiume Sarca* above Arco. Near this hermitage a plethora of climbing gear is attached to an overhanging cliff.

Night view of Castle Hill with moon from my balcony

A morning view of the *Monte Baone* scramble route just outside of Arco

An early morning view of *Fiume Sarca* and community choir hall from the pedestrian and bicycle bridge 3 minutes’ walk from my apartment

My *Sarca Riverside Apartment*, a fantastic value with its own parking space. A faint blue rectangle shows my balcony. No AC for the summer months, though!

Chișinău, Tiraspol, and Odesa

Low-cost Wizz Air offers direct flights from Verona, Italy to Chișinău, Moldova three times per week. Many of you dear readers may know that I suffer from chronic FOFE*, but the opportunity to visit Moldova and Ukraine was too good to pass up. Flying out on a Sunday and returning Thursday gave me 3^1/2 days to experience the culture and history of an area I had never visited.

Map of Moldova, showing Transnistria and Odesa, Ukraine

Day 1 in Moldova featured a guided tour visiting the Curchi Monastery, walking around the historical and archaeological complex of Old Orhei (sorry, no pictures), lunch at a local rural restaurant, and an afternoon tour & tipple at a unique winery. The next morning I enjoyed a private guided walking tour of Chișinău and an afternoon relaxing by the lovely hotel pool. The “5 star” Diplomat Club Hotel I stayed at in Chisinau was a solid 3 star experience, nothing more. (To be fair, the price reflected this reality). The quiet location and outdoor pool were certainly unusual in the city, and with only a 20 minute walk to the center or 10 minute walk to Valea Morilor park, it was a good choice despite the run-down rooms. The third full day I took a private guided tour to Transnistria and Odesa, Ukraine. The final morning before my return flight I spent walking around Valea Morilor park.

* – FOFE: Fear Of Flying Economy

An Orthodox church at Curchi Monastery. Less than 2 hours’ drive from Chișinău, it was wonderful walking around the grounds and enjoying the art and architecture.

The recently renovated orthodox church dome at Curchi monastery

With our small group at Milistii Mici Winery. Their wine-cellars are the largest in the world, with more than 200 km of underground galleries and 1.5 million bottles. The tour was fascinating and the wine’s not bad, either!

Mihai Eminescu National Theatre in Chișinău. I missed a wonderful piano concert here as I did not get back from Odesa until late that evening.

Saint Pantaleon Orthodox Church, Chișinău. The historic center of the city was very leafy.

St. George the Victorious Chapel with WW2 tank at the Memorial of Glory in Tiraspol. The landlocked breakaway state of Transnistria, internationally recognized as part of Moldova, is a throwback to the Soviet Union, with 1500 Russian troops stationed there. I am assured that most are locals, however.

Catherine the Great Monument Park, Tiraspol. The city is not all that walkable, but this large park is lovely.

Ladas at a Tiraspol Soviet-era cafeteria. Lots of relics and mementos from the Soviet Union make this a popular spot with tourists.

Moldova-Ukraine border crossing. It took almost an hour each way to cross. Not all that bad considering the country is at war.

A traditional (though a bit kitschy) Odesa restaurant, where my guide and I had a late lunch after crossing the Ukraine border from Moldova.

Odesa National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet. I grabbed the photo of this lovely institution from the internet. (My photo, taken from a moving buggy, was horrible). Though the theater reopened a few months after Russia’s invasion, for obvious reasons all museums in Odesa remain closed.

Old Odesa Corner, a lovely quiet spot in the bustling city

Lion statue at Old Odesa Corner, symbolizing power, courage, and guardianship. Definitely appropriate for these troubling times.

Odesa’s Potemkin Stairs, immortalized in Sergei Eisenstein’s 1925 silent movie **Battleship Potemkin**. Intriguingly, one can see only the landings from the top and only the stairs (no landings) from the bottom. Note the hotel on the pier that was bombed by Russia in 2023.

A gorgeous (IMO) 19th century baroque revival building in Odesa

Odesa Passage (shopping arcade) in Derybasivska Street, another gorgeous example of baroque revival

Damage to a side chapel of the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa, sustained on on 22/23 July, 2023 from missile and drone strikes by Putin

Valea Morilor Park steps, 10 minutes walking from my Chișinău hotel. Circumambulating the lake was wonderfully peaceful after a long, stressful day in Transnistria and Ukraine.

Despite the lovely city of Odesa and the great winery we visited, I must admit to being glad to return to Italy. Moldova was certainly interesting, but ex-soviet countries almost invariably lack any service-oriented culture and their infrastructure is spotty at best.

It is a rainy Saturday in Vione, Brescia, two reasons not to be out hiking today. However, I’ve done some amazing hikes in this mountainous area of northern Italy that I will post next month when I’m enjoying the seaside in Hastings, East Sussex. Until then, stay cool outdoors,

The Vagabond Hiker

The Southwest Coast Path: Minehead to Westward Ho!

Walks, Hikes, and Via Ferrate in the Alta Val Camonica, Brescia (Lombardy)

Images from Arco, Trentino & an eastern European city break

Arco (TN), Italy

Chișinău, Tiraspol, and Odesa

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