Friends Way 1

The Friends Way is a grand walk that starts in Barley, Lancashire, passing over the summit of Pendle Hill to and through some of the finest parts of the Yorkshire Dales to end at Sedbergh. It combines glorious scenery with superb wildlife and striking geology, and it also visits many places that were crucial in George Fox’s journey of 1652. He preferred to deliver his sermons outdoors, dismissing churches as ‘steeple-houses’. His long walk and discussions with Seekers and other dissidents were the catalyst for the creation of the Society of Friends, first known as Quakers.

From Pendle Hill, where Fox had his vision, to Fox’s Pulpit, where he gave his ‘Sermon on the Fell’ to a crowd of over 1000, the route is steeped in Fox’s personal journey. This 62-mile Way ends at Sedbergh, a town rich in Quaker heritage, to be followed by two day-walks, one a circuit that takes in Fox’s Pulpit. The whole route can be completed comfortably inside one week. It will appeal not only to all Quakers who enjoy walking, but also to those walkers who don’t yet know the remarkable story of Fox’s 1652 journey and life.

The guidebook is richly visual, with mapping at 1:35,000 on 17 of its pages and nearly 140 colour photos. It is robustly bound and printed on rainproof paper.

Author Biography

Since 2019 Martin has lived in the Eden Valley, Cumbria with his wife and four labradors. His lifelong love of the hills and mountains stems from childhood family holidays in South Wales, and developed further while at music college in Cardiff, when he spent much time in the Brecon Beacons in all seasons. He qualified as a Mountain Leader in 2001 in order to lead school groups in the high mountains of England and Wales, and also to run outdoor pursuits courses, usually in the Lake District, for his local ambulance service.  
Sedbergh has featured in Martin’s life since 1988 as the base for school and adult residential trips, and a multinational youth summer camp he jointly led in 1999, which added a personal enthusiasm to his work on the Friends Way. Martin combines various musical interests – as an orchestral player, conductor, and organist – with being an active member of Kirkby Stephen Mountain Rescue Team.  
After a long career in education, information technology and academic publishing, Jacquetta became interested in long-distance walking and trekking. After completing the West Highland Way, her first long walk, in 1998 she progressed to Mount Kilimanjaro, and set up Rucksack Readers to publish guidebooks that remain usable in wind and rain. She has written or coauthored some 25 books in the series. She is a member of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild and has a special interest in pilgrimage walks.