Walking the E8, Step by Step
Partners for life on a long-distance hike across Europe — sharing real stories from the trail.
Our journey so far
In March 2026 we started hiking from the most western tip of Europe (Dursey head in Ireland), making our way along the E8 to the most eastern point; the blue mosque in Istanbul. 7000 kilometers (4350 miles) of meeting people, sharing stories, stunning views, food and unexpected hospitality.
We hope to amaze people and spread the feeling that things aren’t as bad as the news sometimes lets you believe.
(stealth/free) camping along the way we will leave nothing other than our footprints.
Each marker shows where a story was written — click a point on the map to open the post from that location.
Tip: Zoom and drag the map to explore the full route.
Latest Trail diary entries
Day 33, 500 miles Doncaster – Apple blossom campsite
Day 32, Barnsley – Doncaster
Definiton of a picnic / a word of thanks
Day 31, 750 km Woodhead Station – Barnsley
Zeroday 6, Barnsley
Day 30, Denton (Manchester) – Woodhead Station
Never want to miss any of our trail diaries?
Who are we?
We are Mark and Jolanda, two hikers and scouts who found each other in hiking and traveling. Now as partners, we decided to follow one of Europe’s great long-distance trails -the E8- as a thru-hike.
We’re neither athletes nor influencers.
We’re just two people who love exploring the world on foot and are strong believers of the – leave the world a little better than you found it- philosophy.
We value conversation near a campfire over scrolling on phones while being open minded to all views, religions and preferences 🙂
Our goal is simple:
- Thru-hike the E8 from Ireland to Istanbul
- Share honest stories from the trail
- Meet people along the way
- Eat as many local dishes as possible
- Drink the nations favorite drink in every country
Thanks for coming along with us. 💛
Everyday is a picnic?
When searching for a name for our website, I mentioned our hiking plan to a family I work with. While the mother clearly thought I was crazy, her son Ryan (10 ys) found it quite interesting. And after a while he said: you know what is great? You will be able to have a picnic everyday!
And this attitude is what truly makes Ryan the happiest child I have ever met.
The more we thought about it, the more this quote seemed perfectly fitting to our journey. open minded, care free and happy!
And of course; because we love a good picnic!
Fun fact: The word picnic is known in every single country we will visit!
Picnic in English, Picknick in Dutch and German, and Piknik in all other countries.
Make us go the distance!
To enable us to complete this rather absurd number of kilometers on trail we are going to need help along the way.
here are two ways you can support our journey:
Donate us a snack
7000 km is the equivalent of 52 kg of oats, 900 mueslibars, 600 wraps and 40 kg of couscous… per person! And while these will keep us going, we’re a big fan of a nice local snack every once in a while.
You can support our happiness on trail by sponsoring a snack.
Help along the trail
Do you live near the E8 or know someone that does? Can you offer a bed, shower, place to pitch a tent or help with getting replacement gear to us? Well gladly hear from you.
also; suggestions regarding must see sights along the route, cool places to stay or restaurants we simply should not miss:
Please contact us!