Many public footpaths give access to farms where fields are grazed by cattle. Cattle will invariably approach walkers out of curiosity and you should be prepared for cattle to react to your presence especially if you have a dog with you.

Farmers are aware of the public rights of way that cross their land and the need to ensure that livestock will not endanger walkers. It is sensible however to treat the cattle you encounter with caution.

Cow's behaviour can change when they are calving or accompanied by young calves and they can become extremely protective. Be particularly wary of cows with young calves which may be threatened by a dog. Keep your dog on a lead unless you feel the cow is threatening to attack. If it looks likely, let your dog go and make your own way to safety.

Advice for walkers who encounter cattle en-route is as follows:
 

• Move carefully and quietly around cattle
• Be particularly wary of situations where you may be unintentionally herding cattle into a confined space where there is no means of escape
• Never pass between a cow and its calf
• Leave all gates as you find them
• Be prepared for cattle to react to your presence especially if you have a dog
• Always keep your dog close to you and on a tight lead
• Do not hang onto your dog if you feel threatened by cattle - let it go

Taking note of these points and behaving accordingly will ensure your own safety and a pleasant walk.

We recently featured a blog post from Ian Dommett who was taking part in a bike ride and trek from Fort William to Inverness to raise funds for Cancer Charities. He has sent us through an account of the event which seems to have been quite a challenge, however extremely worthwhile.

"The last of the aches and strains have worn off now and it's possible to look back on the Maggie Monster Bike 'n' Hike with a bit of pride. Setting off from Fort William it was a 30-mile bike ride to Fort August and then on with the brasher Supalite XCR's for the 43-mile trek to Inverness.

Through the beautiful scenery in the Great Glen, along the banks of Loch Ness and in (mostly) sunny weather, the brashers carried me on, at a little over 3 miles an hour towards Drumnadrochit, where we arrived at about 9 o'clock on Saturday evening.

Here's where the fun started as, after changing into our night gear (I thought they meant pyjamas), we were off, climbing over 400 metres to the high moorland that sits over Inverness. This was exhausting work, two hours of uphill walking through woodland lit only by my head torch before we reached the water stop and a welcome break.

We plodded on for the final 12 miles, crossing the finish line at 3.40am, 19 hours and 40 minutes after setting off.

And my verdict on the boots? No strain, no trouble, no blisters. Add a good pair of poles (which transformed my walking style and performance) and you've got the perfect walking boots.

Over £7,500 raised by my team, and two Cancer Caring Centres supported for a year by this event made it all worthwhile.

But I won't be doing that again!"

You can still sponsor Ian at www.justgiving.com/iandommett

Well done to Ian and the rest of the team for all their hard work and determination!

Oonagh and Steve recently headed to Arunachal Pradesh for their very own Indian adventure. Oonagh set us through an account of their trip.

"Our adventure to Arunchal Pradesh in the far North East of India started 15km from the Chinese Tibetan border where we encountered a few problems getting our permits which add some (Indian) spice to the beginning of the trip!

It took us five days to get to our destination from the UK, travelling on planes, ferries (well it floated) and 4x4's.

One of the highlights was white water rafting down the Brahmaputra river which crosses several countries. The upper part of this river is called the Siang and has only been run 8 times due to it's trecherous conditions. Even the Indian Army think 'you'll die' on some sections of the rapids and watched us from afar on the cliff.
Though other rivers around the world are the same grade the remoteness and the water volume make this part of the river one of the biggest in the world with rapids of grade IV+ with some of the standing waves reaching heights of 30ft. 

We continued our high adventure wild camping each night at the side of the river. A few other highlights of the trip included:

 - Eating live beetles which Steve did not like due to the fact the legs were still lingering in his teeth 2 days later.

 - I was sold for 3500 mice which is apparently a very good price, possibly due to the fact that the sight of a white female was such a scare occurance that I seemed to cause a stir in most of the places we travelled through.

 - Lots or rum which is apparently a popular drink in India and boy can they put it away. They did find me a bottle of malt whisky for my bithday which was very considerate considering where we were.

 - Rain and of course the sun.

The sand did seem to get everywhere - and I mean everywhere - think about it - we'd be up at 6am and be on the river for a paddle till 11am for lunch. Then more paddling - with the sun beating down - the river is Himilaya melt so didn't feel too stifling. We usually stopped at 2pm to set up camp and dry everything out as fast as possible due to the fact that the sun would go down at 3:30ish along with the temperature and it would usually start raining. 
If you hadn't managed to dry your wetsuit in time then you'd be stuck with pants full of wet sand for the next day!

Incredibly the Indian people were some of the nicest people I've ever met.

We had a fair few adventures along the way -One night we got stuck on a sandbank and needed rescuing, we went to a temple in construction which is very rare, so got to wander through it and talk to the monks.

The Delhi traffic was an experience in itself - the car horns are still ringing in my head!

The whole trip was brill - fantastic - wonderful - literally out of this world! 
And an added bonus was that we actually got back in one piece - and you've only heard half of the stories."

You can check out more of Oonagh and Steve's pics on Flickr

Firefighters Lee Peyton and Garry Mackay will be heading to the Outer Hebrides this month to complete a 300 mile challenge. Travelling from the south of the islands to the most northern tip, The Butt of Lewis, visiting all 15 inhabited islands along the way.

The challenge is to help raise funds for CLIC Sargent, a charity dedicated to caring for children and young people with cancer. 

We supplied Lee and Garry with a pair of our new Helium XCR footwear to wear during their challenge and they were keen to get out and try them.

"When we set out for the Outer Hebrides Sub 60, our 300 mile mixed cycle, trail run and kayak over two and a half days, we knew straight away that we needed to get our footwear just right. Furst stop: brasher! Zoe Brookes suggested we try their new lightweight performance trail and fell running shoes, Helium XCR. They sounded exactly what we were after.

I couldn't wait to try on the trainers; so much so that myself and Garry drove the 90 odd miles to the nearest Helium XCR stockist, in Kendal. The fit was snug with none of the heel-lift I had experienced in the past from other brands, due in part to the stitched in tongue which grips the upper foot precisely.

Later that week, the Heliums arrived at the house from the brasher warehouse. I was like a kid at Christmas and quickly arranged to try them out on a forty mile route around the Pentland Hills outside Edinburgh. I was pretty confident that they would stand up to the test and provide 'out of the box comfort'.

Weighing in at only 780g for the pair was a real bonus when after 35 miles on the road bike I was faced with a five mile mixed trail run around Scald Law, the highest hill in the Pentland Hills Regional Park. The Pentlands are a great range of hills located southwest of Edinburgh, they are easily accessed from several different points. One of the most popular is from the ranger station on the road to the Glencorse reservoir which gives direct access to a great route over Turnhouse, Carnethy, Scald Law and finally to the East and West Kip. The terrain is steep grass slopes which after the rain during the week had turned into muddy chutes, but the Helium's sole coped well even on the running descents. A series of lung-busting, leg aching ascents and descents leads over the ridge to West Kip and the turn around for the return route and a welcome refreshment back at the car.

A fairly rigorous test of the Helium XCR which they passed with ease. Fantastically comfortable all day long, the sole performed well in mixed terrain including rock, steep grass and even stream beds, the Gore-Tex lining keeping my feet dry. We'll be testing the shoes during the Outer Hebrides Sub 60 where we'll need all of the Helium's ability to keep us moving pain-free for 60 hours."

Lee Peyton

You can find out more details on the website www.300miles.org

For two years Ian Dommett, MD of our web company, Golley Slater, has used his Supalite XCR's for little more than walking across muddy football pitches. But an invitation to join some friends in the Maggies Centres' Monster Bike 'n' Hike has changed all that. Since Christmas Ian has been putting his boots through their paces as he builds up to the 30-mile bike ride and 43-mile hike this Saturday, from Fort William to Inverness.

Through hills, along coastal and canal paths and down city streets the Supalites have been with him, making the training a little more manageable, week after week. And even when it snowed Ian and his boots weren't put off and a trip to the Pentland Hills gave a bit of gradient practice.

With just a couple of days to go, over £700 raised and most of the equipment packed, Ian is ready.

You can still sponsor him at www.justgiving.com/iandommett 

Ian will post a blog next week to tell us how he got on.

Come on the Supalite's!