Walking the Via Francigena Talk

The 2000km Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome is one of the world’s great pilgrim routes, with a history spanning well over a millennium.

Sandy Brown’s guide describes the first section, from Canterbury to Lausanne on the shores of Lake Geneva, a journey of 1090km passing through England, France and Switzerland.  The UK section is a beautiful 33km of Kent countryside along the North Downs Way National Trail.

Join Sandy Brown and National Trail Manager, Peter Morris, in conversation about the guide book, the route, pilgrimage, and managing a national trail and pilgrim route for a diverse and modern audience.

Sandy Brown is a community activist, long-distance walker and ordained minister from Seattle, Washington, now living in Lucca, Italy.  Inspired by The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho, he trekked the Camino de Santiago in 2008 and since then has walked or biked over 14,000km on pilgrim trails in Spain, France, Switzerland, Italy and the United States. Sandy earned his undergraduate degree in medieval history at the University of Washington in Seattle, and in 1997 earned a doctorate from Princeton Theological Seminary in gender, sexuality, and spirituality. In his spare time, he enjoys yoga, sailing and piano.

Peter Morris manages the North Downs Way National Trail from Farnham in Surrey to Dover in Kent and leads on community engagement projects including pilgrim themed art installations, ales of the trail brewery partnerships, and trail maintenance.  Peter actively works for more inclusive and diverse countryside access.

Waterstones, 8 Rose Lane, Canterbury CT1 2SJ