Jess and Charlie have been sharing their Achievable Adventures around the UK for the past five years. What began as an Instagram account has now spilled over into their first book, Achievable Adventures, and they’ve added two new companions to their travels – their first child Sonny was born during the first year of their adventures and their second will be joining them very soon. We caught up with Jess to chat about their favourite UK adventures and how their travels have changed since having children. 

Find out more about Jess and Charlie’s achievable UK adventures on their website. 

How did the idea come about for your book, Achievable Adventures?

We initially started The Travel Project when we were working in advertising and wanted to do something different and see the world. We went away on a year of adventures far and wide, and came back and realised what an amazing benefit having regular adventure had done to us, physically and mentally. We realised it was something that we didn’t want to give up but also it isn’t realistic to keep travelling the world forever from a monetary and sustainability stand-point. People can’t afford to do that and if we’re all flying that much, the world can’t cope. We wanted to find a way of incorporating regular adventure into our life in an achievable way and that’s when Achievable Adventures started. We tried to look closer to home to see if there were ways to do that. We decided to do a year of adventure, and decided to do 52 UK adventures in 52 weeks, really exploring this set of islands that we call home. That’s really where it started. We went on this incredible journey and I ended up getting pregnant halfway through – it was a full on year! It really opened up our eyes to what was on our doorstep. Both Charlie and I had grown up thinking the UK was quite boring – soggy sandwiches and National Trust properties. I remember hiking in Yorkshire in the winter and it being wet and cold and not exciting. But over the course of these 52 weeks, we realised that there are some really incredible things to do year round in the UK. From that year, we haven’t stopped exploring – the more we explore, the more we see that the UK is just jam-packed with options for adventure and the longer our list of places to visit grows. The book incorporates our favourite 52 UK adventures rather than every single one from our 52/52 challenge – it’s been almost five years that we’ve been exploring the UK now meaning we have a lot to choose from.

What are your personal favourite UK Achievable Adventures you’ve been on so far?

Sailing in Norfolk’s salt marshes with a company called Coastal Exploration Company (CEC). It was just something really surprising to us. It was January (so not the usual time of year you’d expect to embark on a UK adventure). We got really lucky with a beautiful morning. It’s known as England’s last true wilderness, as you can only get out to the salt marshes on very small sailing boats and you have to know how to navigate as the channels change with the tides. Being out there was an unbelievable experience and the guys who run it are incredible. People have compared the photographs to Swallows and Amazons! We felt a million miles from England and it felt really adventurous. You’re all alone, exploring old smugglers' routes, and there’s lots of wildlife because there aren’t many humans.

Another stand-out adventure for us was the Cairngorms. We went up the Cairngorm Plateau when I was heavily pregnant in thick snow, so we’d love to go back and spend more time up there and go snow-holing for example. It’s known as the UK’s only Arctic wilderness (I didn’t even know there was one here!) and it just feels so vast and is such an incredible landscape. Again, it felt really surprising that we were in the UK. 

And are there any UK adventures or destinations that are currently calling your name?

Something we’d love to do (just outside of the UK, but the British Isles!) is island hopping in places like Jersey and Guernsey. We went to Sark once, which was amazing. Also, the Scilly Isles look really beautiful and we’re very keen to visit. It’s also on our list to explore more of Yorkshire – we both visited when we were younger and that’s perhaps stopped us going back. We went to the North York Moors recently, but otherwise haven’t really travelled there over the past five years. We absolutely loved it and there’s so much more to explore there it feels like it’s a good time to return and dig a little deeper. 

How have your travels changed since you became parents?

Firstly, whatever you’re planning to do, expect it to take 50% longer. We used to try to fit so much into a day because we were desperate to see sunrise in one place and sunset elsewhere and make the most of our time. Nowadays, we try to do one or two things really well, but if you lean into that you gain a whole new appreciation for slowing down. Seeing your children interact with travelling is an added enjoyment. It really depends on the age though. We got told all the time that we couldn’t keep travelling with kids, but they love it. Depending on their age, just do what suits them. When Sonny was about six months old, we went on a really long road trip because he was napping twice a day. We just drove during his naps and planned stops in between, which felt so free! When they’re tiny you can keep hiking with them strapped in front of you, whereas now he won’t sit in a backpack for too long and he’s heavier, so it’s less about adventures that are distance based and more about getting him involved. We love building fires together, going for swims, playing in the water and roasting marshmallows over a fire. That time of not being able to walk far doesn’t last forever, and you will eventually be able to do long mountain treks again with them by your side. If you lean into it, it can be a good thing.

Are there any places you’ve visited in the UK that are particularly well suited for travelling with young children?

Almost everywhere we’ve been has something to offer for kids. We’ve taken Sonny to Scotland to the Outer Hebrides where we drove around in a Land Rover with a roof tent. He slept up there with us and loved it. Being in Cornwall was great – we spent a few months there when he was very young. It was amazing being able to go to the beach and play in the sand. We find on the whole that as long as you keep them warm and fed, they’re happy! It’s more about trying to find suitable accommodation for babies or toddlers. We’ve had to stop staying in romantic, quirky places so much, such as A-frame huts with long ladders to the bed. There are still some really lovely places out there, but we're having to think a bit more about practicalities and booking accommodation with a little more room. There’s loads of amazing cabins and Airbnbs where they have space to play. 

You recently posted that it has been five years since you decided to stop flying and focus on UK travel completely – do you think attitudes have changed towards adventuring within the UK and do people seem to be following your lead?

Yeah we have felt that change quite a lot actually. Our message isn’t saying never fly again as a) it’s not realistic and b) we do think there’s lots of benefits to seeing and interacting with different cultures. It’s more about trying to have a regular fix of adventure in a more sustainable way. Especially when we were London-based, we noticed that people would jump on a plane for a weekend away due to the proximity of airports and cheap flights. But we have found people are opening up their eyes to more local, UK-based holidays and saving one trip a year for a bigger holiday abroad to really experience a place. More and more people seem to be interested in the UK and what is available. Visit Scotland are doing very well – it’s a beautiful country but they’re really showing what’s on offer. The England and Wales tourism boards seem to be slowly getting there. They promote the National Trust properties well, which is great for a certain type of person, but in our opinion they need to do more work on attracting younger, adventure-seeking types. There are other creatives really showing epic things to do in the UK, and it’s definitely starting to snowball. In the time we’ve been doing this, we’ve noticed accommodation has really improved with tons of amazing places to stay, especially off the back of Covid. There are very cool places opening up, with people who are really creative, who have really thought about it and really want to create places that live in harmony with the nature around them. With all these places opening up, people have started taking more staycations. We’re catching up with how the Scandinavians do it with all their amazing huts and saunas! 

What are your favourite achievable weekend adventures close to London?

It really depends on which side of London you’re based in, as crossing the city can take forever, especially on a Friday night. We lived in Hackney for years and used to love going to Norfolk which has things like sailing and Holkham Beach to offer. Holkham is one of our favourite beaches in the UK, backing on to a nature reserve and sand dunes - well worth a visit if you don’t know it.  There are great pubs around there, and things for kids like crabbing. 

For anyone south London based, we’d recommend the New Forest or South Downs. You can drive to Seven Sisters in less than two hours and be there for sunset in the summer! We did that one night, staying in a lighthouse on the cliff edge which was amazing. There’s a place nearby called the Cuckmere Meanders where you can kayak, SUP and swim. The New Forest is a lovely place with wild ponies and incredible drives. There’s an amazing drive called Rhinefield Ornamental Drive, where you can see some of the largest and oldest Redwood trees in the UK. 

North-west London, you can go up to the Cotswolds, which is slightly less adventurous but still beautiful, with cool places to stay and lots of great pubs. We’ve canoed the River Thames from there all the way to London. We started at a place called Lechlade near the source of the river. It’s really beautiful here and you can spend a couple of days just exploring this local area by canoe/kayak if you don’t fancy the whole trip.

What are your must-have garments you always pack for your adventures?

1. More socks than days (and make sure they’re comfy hard wearing ones). We’re on our feet a lot and love to explore, so being warm and comfortable on foot is a non-negotiable! 

2. Layers. Every adventure needs to include a big comfy jumper, even if the weather’s great. It’s good to have something to pull on early in the morning or in the evening that’s comfy, functional and looks nice (Genevieve Sweeney jumpers being the perfect example of this!). Plus a waterproof layer of some sort – this is the UK after all.

3. Good comfy boots. As mentioned in the two points above, you never want comfort or warmth to get in the way of having fun, and so these are a must. As the Scandinavian saying goes, “there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing”.