What makes someone decide to run 400 miles around the Cornish coast?

For Elsey Davis, the answer wasn't simply to chase a Fastest Known Time.

After her mum was diagnosed with young-onset Alzheimer's, she found herself looking for a way to channel grief into something positive. The result was an extraordinary six-day journey around the entire Cornish coastline, raising money, raising awareness, and discovering that some adventures change far more than your fitness.

In this episode we talk about the planning behind the challenge, how her body coped with six consecutive days of huge mileage, why the inland section proved tougher than the coast, and the emotional finish alongside her mum at Land's End.

It's a conversation about resilience, purpose and the remarkable things people can achieve when they have a powerful reason to keep moving.

The overnight camp at the Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon must be one of the best places in the world. The shared stories from the day bring everyone together in a way that you don’t really experience in other areas of your life - getting lost in the cloud, the various degrees of ankle pain from contouring around hills and doing battle with tussocks, the happy realisation that there’s life beyond footpaths.

It all adds up to the joy of spending time outside.

We talk about:

• The best food to eat between Saunders days
• The difference that route choice can make on the hill
• The joy found in partners on the trail
• How the Saunders has become a family tradition that spans entire generations and ages.
• Love and loss and how people find connection on the hills.

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Get out on your own adventure - find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.

What happens when a race stops feeling like competition and starts feeling like exploration?

In this episode, Rob talks to trail runner and author Scott Williams about taking on the Swiss Peaks 360 — a multi-day ultra across the Swiss Alps involving huge climbs, sleep deprivation, technical mountain terrain and six days on the move.

But this conversation goes well beyond racing.

Scott shares why he keeps returning to difficult places, the surprising role of kindness and support, what happens when normal life falls away for a few days, and why adventure doesn’t need to be extreme to change us.

We talk about:

• What the Swiss Peaks 360 actually involves
• Why Scott attempted it twice
• The extraordinary mountain landscapes that stayed with him
• Racing without rushing
• The people who carried him through difficult moments
• Unexpected challenges on the route (including one memorable bog)
• The “day five effect” and how time outdoors changes perception
• Bringing lessons from the trail back into everyday life
• Why you don’t need a 380km race to experience adventure

Scott is also the author of Swimming Through Rocks.

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This week’s guest is Rick Clark.

Rick joins me to talk about walking the Pembrokeshire Coast Path — a week-long journey covering around 186 miles of coastline from Amroth to St Dogmaels.

Walking south to north, Rick covered big days carrying a full pack and wild camped for much of the route, balancing the practical challenges of water, recovery and finding camp spots with the simplicity that long-distance walking brings.

We talk about:

• Why the Pembrokeshire Coast Path feels different to other long-distance trails
• Walking 25–30 mile days with a loaded pack
• Sharing the opening days of the journey with his son
• Companionable silence and conversations that only seem to happen on trails
• First experiences of wild camping and learning systems as you go
• Finding places you would otherwise never stop in
• Water, feet and the surprisingly important role of foot cream
• How fitness doesn’t automatically translate into long-distance walking
• Wildlife, sunsets and sleeping beside the sea
• Why the end of a trail isn’t always the best part

Trail fact file:

The trail
The Pembrokeshire Coast Path

Distance
Around 186 miles / 300km

Start / Finish
Amroth → St Dogmaels (or reverse)

How long does it take?
Many walkers take around 10–15 days. Rick completed it in 7.

Terrain
Coastal trail with frequent climbs and descents, grassy cliff paths, beaches, occasional road sections and excellent waymarking.

Wild camping
Not officially permitted in most places — always check current guidance and follow leave-no-trace principles.

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In this episode, Rob speaks with Bodil Oudshoorn and Ross Brannigan about their seven-day journey on Peru’s Alpamayo Circuit in the Cordillera Blanca.

Carrying around 16kg each — including a full week of food — they crossed multiple high passes above 4,500 metres, wild camped throughout the route and spent days without seeing another hiker.

The conversation explores the realities of trekking at altitude, the logistics of self-supported travel, the impact of isolation, and the moments that stay with you long after the trip ends.

Along the way they talk about:

• Seeing Alpamayo emerge through cloud for the first time
• Why the first three days nearly ended the trip
• Sleeping above 4,000 metres
• Meeting Quechua farming communities in the mountains
• Condors, hummingbirds and collapsing glaciers
• Carrying seven days of food through the Andes
• What adventure teaches you about resilience and partnership

Route Facts

• Route: Alpamayo Circuit, Peru
• Region: Cordillera Blanca, Andes
• Distance: Approx. 120km
• Duration: 7 days
• Highest passes: Over 4,500 metres
• Style: Self-supported wild camping
• Resupply points: None
• Direction walked: Anti-clockwise

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Get out on your own adventure - find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.

Elise Downing ran 87 miles of the Ridgeway in three days in 2020, between lockdowns, with her friend Sophie. Their two friends, Ange and Oscar, walked the same daily distances - the same format the four had tried on the West Highland Way two years earlier, when Ange and Oscar bailed after day two.

We talk about why running suits the less-scenic sections, the feeling of walking an ancient road, a chance meeting on a footpath, finishing at an empty Avebury Stone Circle, and whether the running-and-walking format worked any better the second time round.

About Elise Downing

Elise is part of our team at Big Trail Adventures, where she runs our social media. She's also one of Britain's best-known long-distance runners. A few years before this trip she ran 5,000 miles around the coast of Britain on her own with her kit on her back. She's written about it in a book and a newsletter.

What we talk about

• The Ridgeway as a "gateway" first trail
• Walking and running on Britain's oldest road
• 29 and 33 mile days, and how miles reframe themselves
• The running-and-walking format, tried for the second time
• The day-two overtake and the frosty reception
• The empty Avebury Stone Circle at the end
• A chance meeting on the trail

If listening to this has got you thinking about your own adventure, head to bigtrailadventures.com.

Show notes

Chris Townsend walked the Alpine section of the GR5 in autumn, as the mountain huts and village shops were closing for the season. He took about a month, slept under a tarp, and bought the food for his first week at a supermarket in Geneva train station before he started.

We talk about the rhythm of a month-long walk, finding water in unfamiliar mountains, the surprise of the southern forests, and the strange business of walking out of the mountains and onto the beach at Nice. There's also a story about singing Italian waiters in a near-empty hotel and a tangent into Death Valley, which last we checked is nowhere near the GR5.

About Chris Townsend

Chris is one of Britain's most experienced long-distance walkers. He's been writing about backpacking and the outdoors for decades, including books on his walks across the USA, Scandinavia and the UK, and regular work for outdoor magazines and his blog.

What we cover

• The two halves of the GR5: high alps in the north, rocky forested mountains in the south
• 1200 metres of ascent every day, and how to pace it
• Sleeping under a tarp rather than a tent
• Water and food planning when the season has ended
• The thunderstorm decision and the snow the next morning
• The sweet chestnut forests of the southern half
• The Italian-run hotel and the casual shopkeeper
• Walking into Nice with a rucksack and hill clothes
• Why a long walk feels different from a short one

Links

• Chris's blog: https://www.christownsendoutdoors.com
• Chris's books: https://www.christownsendoutdoors.com/p/publications.html

If listening to this has got you thinking about your own adventure, head to bigtrailadventures.com.

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Most people tackle the Cape Wrath Trail as a challenge of endurance — covering big miles through some of the wildest terrain in the UK.

Stephen Passmore took a different approach.

In spring 2023, Stephen spent 31 days walking north from Fort William to Cape Wrath. Along the way he wild camped, stayed in bothies, carried painting supplies in his pack, and created a watercolour painting almost every day of the journey.

In this episode we talk about:

• Walking the Cape Wrath Trail slowly
• Carrying a heavy pack for 31 days
• Bothy life in the Scottish Highlands
• River crossings and navigation
• Following spring north through Scotland
• What changes when you stop rushing through landscapes

Stephen also shares stories from Torridon, Sandwood Bay, Knoydart and some of the quieter moments that stayed with him long after the trail ended.

Links

Stephen Passmore
Book: Painting the Trail – Cape Wrath
https://www.artpassmore.art/product/painting-the-trail-cape-wrath/3

Get out on your own adventure - find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.