Four very different weeks in April - starting with a week on Shetland, then a week around Oxford before decamping to warmer parts and a week wandering the hills around Lake Iseo in Lombardy and a week being pampered in a spa town in Val Camonica.
But first the numbers.
Reporting Days: 30
Location: Shetland, Oxford & Italy
Miles Walked: 199
Miles Driven: 971
Miles Trained: 705
Photographs Taken: Hundreds
Shetland
A week is never long enough to be on Shetland - and although I was a week too early for the puffins, there were razorbills and waves and sunshine.
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| Razorbills, Sumburgh Head |
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| White Water, Scat Ness |
Oxford
A week is sometimes long enough to be in Oxford - but there were lots of signs of Spring around, even if it never got warm enough to sit outside.
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| Fritillaries, Oxford Botanics |
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| White Water, Parson's Pleasure |
Lake Iseo
Fast forwarding the seasons to full on Spring in Northern Italy, and time spent walking from hotel to hotel around the southern end of Lake Iseo (everyone has heard of Lake Garda, Lake Maggiore and Lake Como - but few have heard of Lake Iseo, the fourth largest of the Lombardy lakes). And to maintain the green walking credentials, all the travel was by train (Eurostar, TGV, Frecciarossa & Trenord).
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| Lake Iseo, Clusane |
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| Monte Isola & Sulzano, Lake Iseo |
Boario Terme
And having worn out our knees, we travelled north (by train, of course) up the Val Camonica for a spot of restorative neurotherapy and spa time.
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| Old Montecchio Bridge, Boario Terme |
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| Balcony View (Madonna del Alpi), Boario Terme |
And in the next episode, Spa Time Take Two....
