Notes from Big Trails

Big Trail Adventures // Rob Savin

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Notes from Big Trails: Stories from Big Trail Adventures is a podcast about finding joy out on the trail. In each episode, we share stories from the people walking, running, and adventuring on the world's best long-distance trails. Sometimes it’s reflective, sometimes it’s funny — always grounded in the real highs and lows of life on the move.

Aug 28

Don't Let Fear Win: Kit Birks' 5,000-Mile Walk Down Europe

What would happen if you set off alone to walk the entire length of Europe? Kit Birks found out. She spent 343 days walking from Nordkapp in northern Norway to Gavdos, the southernmost point of Greece, covering more than 5,000 miles. She spent 308 days walking completely alone, often carrying around 20–23kg and sometimes going for days without seeing another person. But the walk wasn't simply an attempt to complete an enormous endurance challenge. Kit was using it to raise awareness of suicide prevention, drawing on her own experiences of mental illness, addiction and recovery. She wanted to turn advocacy into activism and use an adventure big enough to get people talking. In this episode, Kit talks about the reality of life on the trail: waking up alone in the Arctic, walking 20 miles a day, dealing with swollen rivers and knee-deep snow, and carrying a pack that could weigh 23kg. She also talks openly about loneliness and solitude, the terrifying moments when being alone became genuinely dangerous, and the point in Austria when her mental health deteriorated so badly that she stopped for three weeks and realised she needed help. Asking for that help, she says, was one of the bravest things she has ever done. And then there are the people she met along the way — strangers who offered food, water, shelter and companionship, including a German couple who drove to meet her and walked with her through Slovenia and Croatia with their four dogs. Kit also explains why she believes getting outside can help when you're struggling with your mental health. For her, walking doesn't magically cure anything. It gives the brain space to slow down and notice something beyond the negative thoughts — a bird, leaves moving in the wind, or simply the beauty of the world around you. It's an extraordinary story about walking across a continent. But ultimately, it's a conversation about fear, recovery, loneliness, resilience, kindness and what happens when an adventure becomes bigger than the person who set out to do it. See more from Kit at https://www.instagram.com/kitbirks/ and support Stride Beyond Silence here. To find out how to do your own solo adventure, head to https://bigtrailadventures.com/solo-friendly
Aug 7

Coast to Coast in Seven Days: Running Across England

Lisa Herbert took on Wainwright's Coast to Coast as a seven-day trail run. In this conversation we talk about why solo adventures can become life-changing, how grief reshaped Lisa's relationship with running, and why spending several days on a trail helped her find a sense of peace she'd struggled to find elsewhere. We also discuss: Why she chose the Coast to Coast as training for a 100-mile ultra.Running almost 200 miles in seven days.The brutal weather crossing the Lake District.Losing a trekking pole in a mountain stream.Why she never once wished she was back at work.The unexpected conversations with strangers along the trail.Why fitness isn't the biggest factor in completing a long-distance trail.What it really feels like to take on a big adventure alone. If you're considering walking or running the Coast to Coast yourself, Big Trail Adventures creates personalised self-guided itineraries, organises accommodation, luggage transfers and navigation, and helps you build a trip that matches the pace you want to travel. Find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.
Jul 24

400 Miles for Love | Elsey Davis and the Cornwall FKT

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.
Jul 10

Overnight at the Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon

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 daysThe difference that route choice can make on the hillThe joy found in partners on the trailHow the Saunders has become a family tradition that spans entire generations and ages.Love and loss and how people find connection on the hills. Follow & Support If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast and leave a rating or review on your podcast platform of choice. Get out on your own adventure - find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.
Jun 26

380km Across the Swiss Alps

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 involvesWhy Scott attempted it twiceThe extraordinary mountain landscapes that stayed with himRacing without rushingThe people who carried him through difficult momentsUnexpected challenges on the route (including one memorable bog)The “day five effect” and how time outdoors changes perceptionBringing lessons from the trail back into everyday lifeWhy you don’t need a 380km race to experience adventure Scott is also the author of Swimming Through Rocks. Follow & Support If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast and leave a rating or review on your podcast platform of choice. Get out on your own adventure - find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.
Jun 12

How to Walk The Pembrokeshire Coast Path in 7 Days

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 trailThe Pembrokeshire Coast Path DistanceAround 186 miles / 300km Start / FinishAmroth → St Dogmaels (or reverse) How long does it take?Many walkers take around 10–15 days. Rick completed it in 7. TerrainCoastal trail with frequent climbs and descents, grassy cliff paths, beaches, occasional road sections and excellent waymarking. Wild campingNot officially permitted in most places — always check current guidance and follow leave-no-trace principles. Enjoyed the episode? Follow Notes From Big Trails and leave a review — it really helps other listeners find the show. Find more at bigtrailadventures.com.
May 29

The Alpamayo Circuit and the Most Beautiful Mountain in the World

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 timeWhy the first three days nearly ended the tripSleeping above 4,000 metresMeeting Quechua farming communities in the mountainsCondors, hummingbirds and collapsing glaciersCarrying seven days of food through the AndesWhat adventure teaches you about resilience and partnership Route Facts Route: Alpamayo Circuit, PeruRegion: Cordillera Blanca, AndesDistance: Approx. 120kmDuration: 7 daysHighest passes: Over 4,500 metresStyle: Self-supported wild campingResupply points: NoneDirection walked: Anti-clockwise Follow & Support If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the podcast and leave a rating or review on your podcast platform of choice. Get out on your own adventure - find out more at bigtrailadventures.com.
May 22

Elise Downing on the Ridgeway: Britain's Oldest Road, in Three Days

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 trailWalking and running on Britain's oldest road29 and 33 mile days, and how miles reframe themselvesThe running-and-walking format, tried for the second timeThe day-two overtake and the frosty receptionThe empty Avebury Stone Circle at the endA chance meeting on the trailIf listening to this has got you thinking about your own adventure, head to bigtrailadventures.com.

Notes from Big Trails: Stories from Big Trail Adventures is a podcast about finding joy out on the trail. In each episode, we share stories from the people walking, running, and adventuring on the world's best long-distance trails. Sometimes it’s reflective, sometimes it’s funny — always grounded in the real highs and lows of life on the move.

Creator

Big Trail Adventures // Rob Savin
Years Active

2025 - 2026
Episodes

53
Rating

Clean
Copyright

© Big Trail Adventures // Rob Savin
Show Website

Notes from Big Trails