Days 1- Hardy's Cottage to
See all the images for this section by following link below: Hardy Way Day 1: Higher Bockhampton to Culpepper Dish 10 miles 20 February 2025 Ever since moving to Dorset I have been interested in Hardy Way Trail. It is unusual, if not unique, in being an almost circular trail, from the author's birthplace in Higher Bockhampton to Stinsford Church where Hardy's heart lies buried. The Trail was created by Margaret Marande whose book is a useful accompaniment, albeit she seems to think 20+ miles walking in a day is perfectly normal! When walking in the county, anyone will encounter the path at some point as it snakes for 215 miles, almost all of which is in Dorset. At a guess, I have walked about a third of the Trail, mostly in the latter part where it passes very close to home in Beaminster. This leaves a substantial part (mainly in eastern Dorset) of the Trail that will be new territory. Our aim is to complete the Trail in about 18 months by a series of day walks, probably 18-20 ...