It’s not the end of the warmer season just yet! Here are 14 ideas to help squeeze a bit more out of summer


1.Walk the Bob Graham Round

Traditionally this is a 24-hour fellrunning challenge, but for those who prefer a slower pace Bob Graham’s 1932 run makes a rewarding summer backpack. Starting and finishing at Keswick Moot Hall, the 120km route tours around the Lake District and takes in a few peaks along the way (42!) including Helvellyn, Blencathra, Scafell Pike and Great Gable.

2. Visit Britain’s best beach

Luskentyre on the Isle of Harris is surely a contender, and can be combined with an easy hillwalk onto Beinn Dhubh and Beinn Losgaintir for an exceptional viewpoint.

3. Visit a National Park you’ve never been to

4. Paddle the Teifi

The best place to kayak or canoe on this 122km river in west Wales is through the Teifi Gorge between Cilgerran Castle and Cardigan. It’s one of Wales’s hidden gems, where thick woodland hangs to the cliffs on each side of the gentle waters and where otters and kingfishers thrive. If you’re very lucky you’ll catch one of the locals fishing for salmon by coracle (a small traditional fishing boat): it’s something the river has been heavily associated with for centuries.

5. Go on a mid-week wild camp

6. Complete the Lyke Wake Walk in a weekend

This traverse of the North York Moors is a a cult classic thanks to its creator, the late Bill Cowley, and the club he established to honour it. The Lyke Wake is usually walked as a challenge, the aim being to complete a roughly 65km crossing of the entire National Park within 24 hours. Challengers will traditionally follow along the watershed though there’s no official route.

7. Walk to from your front door to the nearest body of water

8. Climb onto the top of the Devil’s Pulpit

Get one of the finest views of the ruins of Tintern Abbey and the Wye Valley.

9. Create your own Lake District ‘Spider’

Trace your own route through the Lakes, starting and finishing at the borders of the National Park. Make sure your walk goes through Grasmere (essentially the heart of the Park) in order to qualify as a ‘spider’ – visit www.walkthespider.com to read more and to see other people’s routes.

10. Host a picnic on top of a mountain

11. Swim in Pembrokeshire’s ‘Blue Lagoon’

One of the finest sea swimming spots in the UK is the ‘Blue Lagoon’ near Abereiddy in Pembrokeshire. It’s a sea-flooded quarry that appears – irresistibly – to be an almost turquoise blue thanks to the minerals of the purple-green slate stone.

12. Stew blackberries for a wild camp dessert

13. Walk across a Scottish island

The Isle of Raasay in the Inner Hebrides is only a short ferry ride from Skye. It’s possible to walk the length of this 23km-long island via tracks or, if you’re looking for a challenge, off the beaten path. Dun Can, at 443m, is the high point of Raasay.

14. Volunteer to repair a footpath for a day