Welcome to our first newsletter of 2016; we hope you all had an enjoyable festive period and are feeling refreshed and ready for the New Year. The Contours Walking Holidays team have really hit the ground running after returning from their Christmas breaks, with lots of exciting new developments in the pipeline for the next few months, including new holidays and exciting changes to our annual competitions!

In this month's newsletter, learn running secrets from Sarah Rowell, find out why your GP may be recommending a dose of the great outdoors in 2016, another monthly competition to get involved with and much more. We hope you enjoy this latest newsletter and thanks for reading!

Have an idea, article or account of your walk you'd love to share? Email newsletter@contours.co.uk to contribute.

The start of a new year is an ideal time to take stock of our walking achievements; what we’ve achieved in the previous year and what we’d like to achieve in the year ahead. In 2015 I focused on shorter walks, so my walking goal for 2016 is simple; I want a challenge, and for me that means walking for longer!

In the past I’ve accomplished many long-distance walks both in this country and abroad, but regardless of the location, I derive the most satisfaction from completing a walk of several days or more. I’m happy to walk in all kinds of weather conditions and across all sorts of terrain; it really doesn’t matter. For me, it’s the feeling of completing a long-distance walk that is unbeatable!

One thing is certain; once you’ve completed a long-distance walk you’ll be hooked, and it won’t be long before you’ll be planning another one!

Read the full story here.

Exciting Changes to 2016 Competitions!

Make sure to keep your eyes on our blog and Facebook for more news and updates!

We all know it: walking is excellent fun. It keeps you fit, too, and can help you stay trim. Laced into your hiking boots, you can undertake journeys from A to B, enjoying all the best views along the way. From time to time it’ll even yield some hairy adventures: ideal story fodder. As a year-round form of exercise it’s hard to beat.

But what if you want to add to your challenge, or to explore further afield? The answer may be to try going a little faster. Perhaps you have thought about it, perhaps not, but for many there is an obvious transition from walk to run. It’s a transition, however, that comes with a degree of doubt and uncertainty.

With Contours about to launch a range of trail running holidays and New Year’s resolutions approaching fast, it seems like a good time to tackle those doubts so those who want to try moving faster can get out on the trails and give it a shot.

Some running secrets

No one runs all the time
Even the best runners in the world will walk up the very hardest hills. If the descents are steep and rough, they may well slow right down on those, too. Don’t let visions of slogging up the hardest terrain put you off. Setting out on the trails as a runner does not bar you from walking the hard bits; it allows you to cover the easier bits at speed.

Stopping for photos is absolutely allowed
Just because you are running does not mean you can’t stop to enjoy the views, the wildlife or an interesting site and take pictures. Some people can run and look at the same time; I certainly cannot.

Read the full story here.

Our new routes offer a wealth of stunning scenery and fresh explorative opportunities; an extension section to one of our existing paths takes in both urban stretches and countryside vistas, while another brand new route could have you facing challenging hill climbs, to be rewarded with welcoming rural pubs and teashops in which to unwind.

Not only do our new holidays offer amazing views and snapshots of wildlife, but many of the trails also carve unique windows into the past; rediscover the turn of the Industrial Revolution while chasing the surging river that fuelled it through rolling hills and traditional market towns, or alternatively you can immerse yourself in Britain's rich invasion history by exploring Bronze Age burial mounds, ancient settlements and a rather famous circle of stones.

Keep your eyes on our blog and Facebook for news and updates!