GR5: Reflections from the First Five Days

Before I even took my first step on the GR5, I had something I don’t often give myself: time to slow down.

I’d spent around 10 days in London, relaxing, catching up with family who were over from Australia, doing a bit of dog sitting and generally just enjoying the gorgeous weather. It was exactly what I needed. By the time I headed to the Netherlands, I felt physically rested, mentally refreshed and ready to begin.

The journey to the start

I travelled from London St Pancras on the Eurostar to Rotterdam Central. The journey took around 4½ hours and was incredibly smooth. I’d booked the cheapest accommodation I could find that was within walking distance of the station through Booking.com—a small ensuite room for £55, just five minutes away.

I arrived around 7.30pm, sorted out my backpack one last time, read for a while and enjoyed another good night’s sleep before the adventure officially began.

The next morning, I bought a €5.50 two-hour metro ticket and headed down to Hoek van Holland, the official start of the GR5.

Well… almost.

I’d read in the Cicerone guidebook that the trail started beside a large wooden post marking the beginning of the 2,289 km journey to Nice. The only problem? I couldn’t find it anywhere.

My GPS insisted I was standing in the right place, but there was no sign of the famous post. After a few minutes of mild panic and a bit of Googling, I discovered that the marker had been removed during renovation work around the station and hasn’t yet been replaced.

So yes… I was actually standing at the correct start point all along.

Finally walking

It’s funny how these big adventures begin.

After months of planning, training, buying gear and thinking about the challenge, there’s no dramatic fanfare. It’s simply…

“Right then. Let’s go.”

I always feel a mixture of emotions at the start of a long-distance walk: excitement, nervousness, anticipation and, perhaps most of all, relief.

I’ve been thinking about the GR5 since April, when I first decided to take it on. To finally be standing there, knowing I was about to walk all the way to Nice, felt incredibly special.

One thing that has pleasantly surprised me is how well waymarked the trail is. I’d expected to rely heavily on my GPS, but the familiar red and white GR markings are everywhere—painted on posts, trees and signs—making navigation wonderfully straightforward.

So far, there hasn’t really been any drama or stress. It’s all felt surprisingly calm.

Settling into trail life

My original plan for the first day was around 20 miles. Which was a bit of a push! I was feeling it after 16 miles!!

There was one small hiccup involving a ferry. I assumed I’d simply pay onboard, but when I noticed everyone else already had tickets, I quickly realised I’d misunderstood. Thankfully another passenger pointed me towards the ticket machine. I hurried back, bought my €1 ticket, and made it onto the ferry just in time.

A very inexpensive lesson!

That evening I spent my first night back in my Terra Nova two-person tent.

Honestly, it felt great.

I’m incredibly happy with my setup, and I’m especially loving my groundsheet, which has become the perfect place to do my stretching and yoga each evening.

Concrete, concrete… and more concrete

The following day was a 16-mile day.

Lots of cycle paths.

Lots of concrete.

Lots of wide, flat tracks.

But here’s the thing…

I’d actually trained for exactly this.

Back home on the Wirral, we have one of the longest promenades in the UK, stretching for around 22 miles. I’ve spent countless hours walking on concrete, so mentally I came into this challenge expecting hard surfaces.

In fact, I’ve deliberately flipped my expectations.

Rather than hoping for grassy trails and feeling disappointed when I get concrete, I’m expecting concrete.

So every grassy verge becomes a little victory.

It’s a surprisingly effective mindset.

Building hiking fitness

I’m taking things deliberately slowly.

I know from experience that it takes my body around 10 days to become properly “hiking fit”. Once that happens, bigger distances start to feel much easier.

The overall goal is still to complete the GR5 in around 70 days, as I need to finish before the end of September.

At the same time, I’m realistic enough to know that there’s no benefit in forcing big mileage during the first week.

The opening few hundred miles are mostly flat. I’m curious to see when that changes into rolling hills and eventually mountains, and how that affects both my pace and the distances I’m able to cover each day.

Campsites instead of wild camping

Although I enjoy wild camping, I haven’t done any yet.

Simply because I haven’t needed to.

The campsites have been conveniently located along the route, and if I’m finishing walking around 4.30 or 5.00pm, it makes life much easier to stop, pitch my tent, shower, eat and relax.

With wild camping, I’d probably spend another four or five hours waiting for darkness before I could pitch discreetly.

So for now, campsites make complete sense.

They’ve ranged from €12.50 to €26.50 for me and my tent.

Naturally, I much preferred paying €12.50!

The €26.50 campsite felt quite expensive, but perhaps that’s simply the going rate in that area.

Food and keeping my pack light

I did my first proper food shop when I reached Bergen op Zoom.

Nothing particularly exciting—wraps, cheese, tomatoes, breakfast supplies, a few Snickers bars and some jelly sweets.

I’m trying not to carry too much food.

One of the advantages of this section of the GR5 is that towns and supermarkets are never too far away, so I’d much rather keep my pack as light as possible.

My honest impressions so far

If I’m completely honest…

There hasn’t really been any drama.

Or huge excitement.

The scenery has been fairly repetitive—dykes, flat landscapes, cycle paths, canals and windmills.

It’s pretty.

But after about half an hour, you’ve kind of seen the view.

Then you still have another six or seven hours of walking through very similar scenery.

And that’s okay.

Not every adventure is going to deliver breathtaking mountain views every five minutes.

Sometimes a trail is simply what it is.

I also want to say this with a huge sense of gratitude, because I know how privileged I am to be able to do this. I’m incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to spend weeks walking across Europe.

So when I say this section isn’t the most exciting walking I’ve ever done, that isn’t a complaint.

It’s simply an observation.

It’s peaceful.

It’s pleasant.

It’s relaxing.

The weather has been beautiful.

But it doesn’t have that overwhelming sense of awe that I’ve experienced in the mountains before.

I can even see the difference in my GoPro footage.

So far I’ve filmed around 30 clips each day over the first five days.

When I’m hiking through mountains, I’ll often record 80 or 90 clips a day because every corner reveals another incredible view that I want to share.

I know that will come later.

Right now, this is simply the beginning of the journey.

Looking ahead

I haven’t met any other GR5 hikers yet, although I’m hoping that changes over the coming weeks.

Long-distance trails are always made richer by the people you meet along the way.

For now though, I’m happy.

Content.

Relaxed.

I can genuinely feel my nervous system calming down after the busyness of everyday life.

There’s something wonderfully simple about waking up, packing away your tent, walking all day and repeating the process again tomorrow.

It’s a real privilege to be here.

I’m excited about everything that’s still to come and even more excited to be able to share the journey with you.

I’ll continue posting daily updates on Instagram and Facebook, while these longer reflections will appear here on the blog as the adventure unfolds.

Thanks so much for following along—I can’t wait to show you more of Europe over the next couple of months.

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First Five Days at a Glance