The Pennine Journey follows Wainwright's original route closely

A major new long-distance walking trail, following in the footsteps of Alfred Wainwright, will be launched later this month.

The Pennine Journey roughly follows the route undertaken by a young Wainwright in the months preceding the start of the Second World War and makes its way up the Pennines to Hadrian’s Wall before heading back south.

The new guide to the Pennine Journey route

The launch marks the production of a new guide to the route, compiled by Wainwright Society member David Pitt with help from fellow society members. It covers the 398km (247-mile) route which starts in Settle. The launch will include a walk along a section of the route through the nearby hamlet of Feizor.

Profits from the book will go towards a waymarking campaign for the route which works its way through the Yorkshire Dales, to the north Pennines and back south.

John Burland of the Wainwright Society outlined the history of the route. He said: “In September 1938, Alfred Wainwright made a solitary walk through the Pennines to Hadrian’s Wall and back.

“Upon completion of the walk he wrote up an account of this walk, which he then put away in a drawer. However, whilst putting together Wainwright on the Pennine Way in 1982 he was reminded of this writing and after discussions with Jenny Dereham, his editor at the publishers at the time, this book was eventually published in 1986.”

David Pitt’s guide book adapts the route to modern walkers’ needs and has drawings by Colin Bywater and Ron Scholes’s route maps.

David and Heather Pitt at Feizor, with Ron Scholes, left, who has collaborated on the guide

David Pitt and his wife Heather, who have worked together on the book, will be joined at Settle station, starting point for Wainwright’s original journey, by society members for a 14.5km (9-mile) mini Pennine Journey to Stainforth and back on 17 April.

The guide book will be published by Frances Lincoln in June.

Mr Pitt told grough earlier this year: “90 per cent of the royalties from the guide book will go into a waymarking fund. I have started a campaign to get the whole of the route waymarked.”

He paid tribute to Wainwright Society members for their help. “Without the help of the Wainwright Society, it would have been very difficult,” he said. The project also received the ‘nod’ from Wainwright’s widow Betty before her death.