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Walking Gear

The West Country is a wet place. You only have to look at the geography of the peninsula to know that. It is cut, scarred and grooved with river valleys. Western Exmoor is the second wettest place in England. So it's best to have good walking gear if you are intending to do anything more than a casual stroll in the region.

I was out on one of my WMN hikes recently and it poured. Cats and dogs didn' t come into it. The rain didn't bother falling in sheets - it deluged. Wet through, I was, not just damp. That was when I realised that the orange Gore-tex anorak I've worn for years, was past its useful life. No matter how expensive hi-tech modern gear maybe it, like everything else, has a finite amount of time to do its duty upon your back.

Or on your feet. I looked down to discover my beloved Brasher boots were no longer capable of keeping out the mire. They've done pretty well over the past three years, but now they are beyond their tread-by date. Winter walking - summer walking too, for that matter - is all about wearing the right gear. Go for a half-hour stroll and you can get away with wearing almost anything - but go for a half-day or all-day hike on Dartmoor or Exmoor and get caught by the weather, and it will ruin your day at the very least.

I reckon if we'd been out on those sleet-stung West Country hills another hour, one or two of us may have been in trouble. Which is why, before I take to the hills again, I shall be buy a decent anorak. If the worse comes to the worse just about anything else can get wet, but allow moisture to seep onto your torso and you have a problem.

The latest Gore-tex breathable anoraks are superb. Not only do they keep out the heaviest fall of rain, they manage to keep out the wind too. This year I might plumb for the Berghaus High Trek XCR jacket which has excellent Gore-Tex technology - fully breathable, with a rollaway hood, draw cord hem, and adjustable cuffs. Needless to say, it is just about 100 percent waterproof - and you can buy it for around £179.99.

Even when walking in ordinary mild West Country weather, protecting your feet is imperative. Over the years I have tried numerous makes of hiking boots, and have nearly always come down on the side of the Brasher products. They are light, durable and very comfortable. They last for years and I reckon mine would still be waterproof now if I'd looked after them better. They do however have one, occasionally alarming, drawback. On certain surfaces - mainly hard rock that is wet - they can slip like ice skates. I think it might me something to do with the sort of almost invisible lichens that can grow on such surfaces.

However, armed with this knowledge, I am extremely careful whenever I am walking on damp rock. And I am willing to persevere with Brasher because of the comfort of the boots. I want to try the company's Trailmaster GTX products, especially the Supalite model which is one of the lightest walking boots on the market.

As I tend to wear walking boots even when going about my journalistic business (because of the support and comfort they afford) I think I might also try Brasher's new Kamati - a rather strange but handsome looking boot which seems to be a cross between an outright trekking and general usage shoe.

Also from Brashers I shall be getting replacement gaiters for the pair that mysteriously disappeared from the back of my car. For anyone who has never tried gaiters, you are in for a delightful surprise, especially when walking in the West Country. As I've said, the region can be notoriously damp - and damp means mud. Lots of it. Gaiters make wellie boots a thing of the past. Being made of Gore-tex, they're lightweight and breathable. Velcro fastening means they're a doddle to put on and take off, so you need never suffer damp muddy shins again.

I have walked knee deep across rivers in my gaiters and not had a drop came through. They can be a little on the hot side in mild weather though, so this year I'm thinking of trying Brasher's smaller ankle gaiters which I hope might do a 99 percent job without boiling the lower end of my leg. I know that walkie-talkies might sound a little on the childish side - but they are a wonderful invention if you are in the habit of walking with other people. Nowadays they are tiny, lightweight and the rechargeable batteries last for hours. Moreover, they're powerful and operate up to five kilometres apart.

Imagine being with friends in the summer when most West Country resorts and hill villages are packed. Lose your mates - no problem. Or if you're doing a linear walk and someone drives around to pick you up the other end. Fantastic. Okay, mobile phones are also useful but in many places in this region they do not work and when they do the calls can be expensive. Blacks will sell you a Motorola walkie talkie with eight channels for - £79.99. My Oregon Scientific set-up is excellent and cost just £49.99 from Asda.