Just a few kilometres north of the city centre of Nairobi lies Karura Forest, a park which covers over 1000 hectares of land. Walk, jog or cycle through this natural landscape, discovering caves and waterfalls, and reconnecting with nature. The park can get busy on weekends and holidays especially the picnic areas and waterfall but if you walk a little further you’ll get the place all to yourself.

Hiking to Britain’s most remote pub, The Old Forge in Inverie, is no joke. The terrain is tricky, the trail difficult underfoot, the weather temperamental; you must be prepared with the correct gear for navigating and hiking in extreme conditions. If you do your research and set out on this hike, you will be rewarded with other-worldly landscapes, mystic surroundings and incredible views, as well as the achievement of getting to the pub and having a pint of course! Inverie, located on the Knoydart Peninsula, is a small settlement of approx. 150 residents, accessible only by foot or boat and feels as though it could be Britain’s last wild frontier. Spend some time here to soak up the atmosphere before getting the ferry back to Mallaig.

The highest mountain in the UK, Ben Nevis is popular with hikers as it is a big achievement, set in a beautiful national park and easily accessible from Fort William. It is also part of the Three Peaks Challenge. We climbed it in April 2024 and started the walk very early, summiting at around 7.20am - we believe we were the first to summit that day as we didn’t see another person the entire way up or at the peak, and met the first other hikers on our descent. The Mountain Track is the most direct and accessible route for hikers, but it is by no means “easy”. We were lucky enough to get perfect weather conditions but make sure you prepare for adverse conditions and take enough water and food as well as layers for the top of the mountain where it is quite exposed. A nice 16km out and back hike which is easily doable in half a day.

The South Downs Way National Trail is 100 miles in length, stretching from Winchester to Eastbourne on the south coast. The undulating pathways are mainly made up of chalk track, gravel and concrete so can be hard on already tired feet but the views across valleys and out to the sea often make up for the difficulty of the walk. We completed this route in just 4 days as part of a much longer hike of 215 miles, and feel that it would’ve been nicer to have an extra day or two to enjoy the villages and towns that the route takes you through. Carrying all of our camping and cooking equipment, food, water and clothes also made this hike more challenging.

A challenge we set ourselves in memory of Tom’s dad Derek - walking from Derek’s front door in Gloucester to where he grew up (and his favourite pub) in St. Leonards on Sea. The route was 215 miles in length and was always going to be difficult to complete in the 9 day timescale we had but we were really up against it with winds and rain as well as countless blisters and sores on our shoulders and backs from our backpacks. We carried all our camping and cooking equipment as well as food, water, clothes and first aid kit. As difficult as it was, we really enjoyed the route which was mainly on footpaths and allowed us to reconnect with nature and the basic necessities.

Scafell Pike is the highest mountain in England at 978m high which makes it a popular hiking destination, it is also part of the three peaks challenge! The Wasdale Head route is the busiest due to it being the most straightforward route to reach the summit. The hike is easily doable in half a day, and we’d recommend starting it as early as you can if you want to avoid meeting lots of other hikers on the trail. Read about our experience on our first time up the mountain here!

A mere hours’ drive from the second city of Kazakhstan, Turgen Gorge national park packs a lot of punch - the area is home to several waterfalls, the highest being the Kairak Waterfall at 55m, as well as alpine meadows, thick pine forests, grasslands and rivers, and hundreds of hiking trails. It is a popular area with day trippers from Almaty and as soon as you arrive it’s not hard to see why. This waterfall hike is fairly easy being mainly flat until the final few kilometres of steep sharp uphill hiking.

Kolsay Lakes National Park in Kazakhstan is quite simply one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to in my life. With breath-taking alpine landscapes surrounding the lakes, the ice-capped mountains, spruce trees and deep blue and green colours from the water invoked scenes of Canada or Switzerland, not what I’d expected from Central Asia. This hike is definitely the most difficult but most rewarding hike I’ve ever done, and requires good hiking experience as well as proper hiking gear and a strong mindset to complete.

The Charyn Canyon National Park in Kazakhstan is known for its canyon and mind-boggling rock formations. It is home to incredible hiking trails to viewpoints over the canyon and down into the gorge itself along to the River Charyn. We undertook both hikes from the main visitors centre - this blog describes both fairly easy 6km out and back routes.

The Brecon Beacons is known for it’s landscape of mountains, valleys, waterfalls, canyons and lakes. A haven for any outdoor enthusiast and providing incredible views from any vantage point the national park is full of great trails. This 20km hike is strenuous and takes in the highest point in the park but is well worth the effort!

Mount Tujanit dominates the skyline of Albania’s capital city, Tirana. At 1583m high the peak of this lofty mountain is high enough to provide incredible views over the city and the valleys which reach hundreds of miles in any direction. Read my guide to find out how to summit this peak and enjoy some mini golf whilst you’re up there! Join us above the clouds on this hike…

Known as Albania’s “Grand Canyon”, the Osumi Canyon is a deep gorge set into the landscape with chalk blue waters running through the centre and surrounded by rocky cliffs and mountain ranges. The scenery on this hike was breath taking - join us as we do an 11 mile loop hike around it’s perimeter.

Have you ever wanted to be in two places at once? How about three? This moderate 20km loop trail takes in the highest point of the Netherlands as well as the point where Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands meet - pretty cool hey! With only a few steep sections, the most difficult part of this hike were the muddy and icy conditions. This guide will lead you from Aachen and take in quaint Dutch villages, national forest parks and several points of interest.

A place I’d longed to visit ever since I first heard William Wordsworth’s poems and Dorothy Wordworth’s hiking journals, Ullswater is the second largest mere in the Lake District and hosts incredible scenery and ample hiking opportunities. This 14km circular route is one not to be missed!

A quiet and peaceful waterfall located 5-6km outside Port Barton accessible by an enchanting rainforest hike which transports you to another world. A must do activity if you are in the Philippines, not for its grandeur; it is certainly not the biggest waterfall in the country, but it is the most special, for its’ unspoilt natural beauty and its’ proximity to my favourite place in the world, Port Barton.

An iconic sight from anywhere in the Bay of Plenty, The Mount or Mauao is an extinct volcano which is relatively easy to hike up from Maunganui beach and rewards you with 360 degree jaw dropping views. A must do if you’re on the North Island of NZ.

In the wild west of Australia you will find Cape le Grand national park, home to incredible peaks to summit, beaches, coves and caves to explore and wildlife to ogle over. This is a short recount of our hike up Frenchman’s Peak and provides top tips if you’d like to tackle this gentle giant whilst you are in the area.

Malta is an island nation known for it’s historic settlements, hundreds of churches and beautiful beaches. Comino is a small island which forms part of Malta and is a tourist hotspot due to the Blue Lagoon; a cove on the island home to incredible snorkelling and incredible contrasting colours of sea against cliffs. We took the chance to walk the entire perimeter of this island which you can do too as it’s just 10km to do the full loop. Here’s my guide on the walking route we took.

A moderate 6km round hike to the highest point on Wayasewa island in the Yasawa island group in Fiji. Tipping Point peak is a ginormous outcrop of rock which defies gravity in the way it sticks out over the beachfront. The views from the peak are well worth the short steep hike and the flora and fauna seen on the way made it an enjoyable and educational walk.

A strenuous section of the Coast to Coast 200 mile route, this section from Grosmont to Robin Hood’s Bay is considered the last part of the trail. We did this walk as we were holidaying in nearby Beckhole (where we started - making it an 18 mile walk). A fantastic walk where we were spoilt with some of the best weather you can wish for in Britain in June! An incredibly scenic walk with moorlands, forest, woodland, villages and sea views along the way.