The ‘Lejog’ trip: from Land’s End to John o'Groats

(An article by Mark Worden read at Speak Up magazine long ago)

From Land's End, in Cornwall, to John o' Groats, in Scotland. These are the two points that separate the largest distance in the UK: 1,406 km. Those who tour it will be part of an exclusive club.

There are two areas that visitors to Britain seem to love. One is Scotland; the other is Cornwall. But not all visitors know that there's a connection between the two. Cornwall, in the southwest of England, is home to Land's End, Britain's most south westerly point. Scotland, on the other hand, is where you'll find John o'Groats, Britain's most northeasterly point. The name "Land's End" is fairly obvious, but apparently "John o'Groats" is named after a Dutchman, Jan de Groot, who ran a ferry from there to Orkney.

On foot

If you go to either Land's End or John o'Groats you will find road signs that tell you that the other place is 874 miles (1406 km) away. This is mainland Britain's longest journey and travelling between the two is a challenge. Not by car- that's too easy- but by walking, running or cycling. One person even made the journey in a wheelchair, while others have travelled on horseback or by skateboad.

Charity

The tradition of walking from one end of the country to the other began in 1871 with two brothers, John and Robert Naylor, who even wrote a book about their experience.

Nowadays people often do it to raise money for charity. If you follow the main roads, it takes about a month; longer if you choose a more scenic route. The most famous charity walker is probably the TV personality and former cricketer Sir Ian Botham. He first walked between the two places in the 1980s. He was also hoping to improve his violent, "bad boy" image, and it's a pity that he got into an argument with -and punched- a policeman while making the journey.

Other people prefer to raise money by travelling the distance by bike: this typically takes nine days.

On the buses

But not everybody goes from Land's End to John o'Groats - or vice-versa - for charity. Some people just want to explore the country. Author Mark Mason, whose previous exploits include walking (above ground) the length of the lines of the London Underground (chronicled in his book Walk the Lines), decided to travel from Land's End to John o' Groats by bus. There isn't a single route: he had to take 46 different buses over the course of 12 days. The story is told in his book, Move Along, Please, an entertaining account of an English - and Scottish - journey in which he interviews interesting characters, eavesdrops on bizarre conversations and discovers fascinating pieces of trivia (his other speciality) about the UK.

Move Alon Please

If you have travelled the 874 miles (or 1406 kilometres) from Land's End in Cornwall to John o' Groats in Scotland, then you are entitled to become a member of the Land's End to John o' Groats Association, also known as "Lejog". Mark Mason, who tells the story of his particular journey in the book, Move Along, Please, explains this acronym: The acronym is Lejog, Land's End to John o' Groats. There's an association for people who have done this because people do it in all sorts of different ways. They do it very often by walking, or by cycling, or by running. I think the most unusual was in a fighter jet. Someone took, I think, 40 minutes to do it in a fighter jet! People have swum it, people have swum round the coast of Britain to do Lejog, Land's End to John o' Groats. And the Association were a great help during the book, and I mention them in the book, and I'm now a member of the Lejog Association, but of course if you do it the other way round, some people, they go north to south, they go John o' Groats to Land's End, and then it's a "Jogle", of course, J-O-G-L-E. Land's End to John o’Groats ("Lejog”) tends to be more popular than John o'Groats to Land's End ("Jogle").

Record Times

Flying (McDonnell Douglas F-4K Phantom):

Record: 46 minutes 44 seconds.

Hitchhiking:

Record: 17 hours 8 minutes.

Cycling:

Record: 41 hours 4 minutes 22 seconds.

Average: 9 days.

Running:

Record: 9 days 2 hours 26 minutes.

Skateboard:

Record: 21 days.

Walking:

Average: one month.

For more information, contact the Land's End to John o’Groats Association: www.landsend-johnogroats-assoc.com