Читать книгу The Cotswold Way. NATIONAL TRAIL Two-way trail guide - Chipping Campden to Bath онлайн

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Although it’s not the most challenging of National Trails, the amount of effort involved in the ascent and descent of so many steep slopes should not be underestimated – especially following periods of wet weather when the paths can be sticky with mud.

The history of the Trail

The Cotswold Way was developed by Gloucestershire County Council as a recreational route following a suggestion made by the district committee of the Ramblers’ Association as long ago as the early 1950s. As one of the county council’s major initiatives to mark European Conservation Year, the route was eventually launched in May 1970 during National Footpath Week. Five years later its full length was treated to a concentrated effort of waymarking, mainly by volunteers from the Ramblers and the Cotswold Voluntary Warden Service, and it subsequently became one of the most effectively waymarked long-distance walks in Britain.

In May 2007 the Cotswold Way became recognised as a National Trail, and with that recognition came financial backing which enabled the whole route to be re-signed and waymarked with the acorn symbol. In addition, countless stiles were replaced by kissing gates, and a few sections of footpath surfaced where before they were either eroded or boggy. Any further improvements will no doubt be posted on the national trail website (www.nationaltrail.co.uk/cotswold-way) and described in subsequent editions of this guidebook.