CHANNEL ISLANDS
Paddy Dillon wonders whether two books is better than one …
People don ’ t visit the Channel Islands . It ’ s true , they don ’ t . Instead , they visit Jersey or Guernsey , with an emphasis on the word ‘ or ’. I didn ’ t realise that when I pitched the idea for a Channel Island Walks guidebook to Cicerone in the late 90s . At the time , the Channel Islands weren ’ t really walking destinations either . Instead , they were places where people went for a holiday but somehow ended up walking . Anyway , I had a contract in hand and I just needed to write the guidebook .
I don ’ t see the point of travel agents . I like to do my own thing , but back when the internet was a baby , it wasn ’ t easy to check and co-ordinate transport and accommodation . Reluctantly , I went to Thomas Cook ’ s and asked them to book everything for me . I wanted a �light to Jersey , accommodation for two weeks , a ferry to Guernsey , accommodation for two weeks , and a �light home . That ’ s the one and only time I ’ ve ever used a travel agent .
I ’ d never set foot on the islands , so I had no idea what the walking was like , but I ’ d had a dozen guidebooks published so I reckoned I ’ d be �ine . However , I wasn ’ t prepared for a magazine to ask me for a major centrefold feature about walking on Jersey before I ’ d even got there . The deadline was extremely tight , in that I had to deliver before leaving Jersey . That was guaranteed to keep me on my toes .
As for the walks , I had Military Survey 1:25,000 mapping as my only reference . Military Survey ? Yes , because the Ordnance Survey never published maps of the Channel Islands . As one of the islanders told me , ‘ I remember them coming . They had landing crafts and soldiers . It was like being occupied again !’ A casual reminder that the Channel Islands had been occupied through World War II , as evidenced to this day by massive concrete defences erected by the Germans , guarding against a counter-attack that never came . At least it was a massive drain on Hitler ’ s funds .
The maps were good enough to reveal some interesting paths . Of course , I ’ d heard that the coastal walking was pretty scenic and occasionally
rugged , but I ’ d heard nothing about the interior , apart from the fact that it was built-up and agricultural . The maps revealed very few paths in the interior , but I was delighted to �ind a network of ‘ green lanes ’ with 15mph speed limits . It didn ’ t take me long to realise that if I concentrated entirely on the coast , then I ’ d end up with very few walks . However , both the coast and interior were full of interesting tourist sites , so I structured all my coastal walks to duck inland at certain points to reach intriguing attractions and heritage features , linking as many �ield paths and green lanes as I could .
A quick ferry to Guernsey and I applied the same ‘ rules ’, in that I made all my coastal walks head inland at some point . The only difference was that instead of the ‘ green lanes ’ I used in Jersey , Guernsey had a network of ‘ ruettes tranquilles ’ ( quiet lanes ) that also had a 15mph speed limit . The other things that Guernsey had were extra islands . I knew from the outset that I would have to visit Alderney , Sark and Herm , but if there ’ s one thing I really like doing , it ’ s island-hopping . I reached Alderney by �lying on ‘ Joey ’ – the Trislander mascot for Guernsey ’ s own Aurigny airline . ( Joey is now housed in a children ’ s play barn .) I had a whole day to run myself ragged , so that I ’ d be able to offer two days of walking to my readers . Sark was easily reached by ferry and I did the same thing , making a hefty day ’ s walk so that I could write it up as two days . The island was Europe ’ s last feudal state at the time , but has since embraced democracy . The tiny island of Herm only took a few hours to explore , but that almost began with a disaster when I leapt for the ferry as it was already departing Guernsey … and damn nearly landed in the harbour !
I �inished with 47 walks after 27 days in the Channel Islands , and I had a day to spare at the end , so I took a day-trip to St Malo in France . Channel Island history is inextricably bound to that of France , or more particularly to Normandy . Despite the islands being loyal to the Crown , they have never been part of the United Kingdom , but
4 outdoor focus / winter 2022