In very early April I walked a section of the Coast to Coast Path to celebrate its upgrade to a National Trail. I chose the the route between Kirkby Stephen and Richmond, taking in the Yorkshire Dales National Park – one of the three national parks the route covers. Following the River Swale, I walked over high, lonely moorland, down steep gorges and through meadows and pastures where all I heard were curlews and the bleat of newborn lambs. It was three days of heaven, and I wrote about if for The Sunday Times. You can read about my journey here.