Hi Mick and welcome to the forum
It may be worth popping over to the welcome section and introducing yourself to everyone .. .. else only those with a bit of an interest in the SWCP are likely to know you'r around
The whole of the path is well marked and a GPS is unnecessary from a nav point of view .. .. the only benefit of carrying one would be to keep a record of distance travelled and height gained etc if you're going to keep a journal or other record .. .. and possibly to give you an accurate position
When I walked the path in 2005 I didn't take a map .. .. because it meant taking so many
Instead I used the four National Trail Guides which include extracts of the 1:25000 maps for the bulk of the route and a general route description plus a bit of area-specific backgound info .. .. all you need really. I'm also someone who is happy to make notes in the margins of a book so I kept a record of timings etc alongside the route information
The places that tended to present the biggest problem from a route finding perspective were the bigger towns .. . .where it wasn't always obvious exactly where the path went .. .. everywhere else (even in the foulest of weather) was just a question of keeping the sea to my right
For up to date information about the path it's worth joining the SWCP Association and getting their annual hanbook which will also give you a list of B&Bs in close proximity to the path - more critically it gives you up to date information about any path diversions
Most people I walk with complain that I walk too fast (although I'm not sure I would walk 15 miles in 4 hours even on a road) but my average speed over the ground was a shade over 2.25 miles per hour (averaged over the full 630 miles and carrying my tent etc plus up to two days of food and up to 3 litres of water). Note that I've used SoG not walking speed .. .. that includes time to take photographs, chat to people, pick up food and water in villages etc
One of the things to note is that a lot of the walking is harder than you would expect!! And there's certainly a lot more up and down than anyone would expect if they've never walked on the path before (81 000 ft from memory!!)
I have an
excel spreadsheet that I got my accountant to create which allows you to change a number of parameters and will list which villages you will pass through on each day at that speed etc .. .. drop me a PM is you would like a copy - I used it when I was in the planning phase - primarily to work out if it was possible to complete a route that the guide book suggests is a 56-day walk in just 31 days - because that was all the time I had
and to work out the critical points where I needed to carry an extra day's food in order to avoid running out
If you go the B&B route you only need to carry the minimum amount of kit as you would for a day walk and possibly a spare change of clothes for the evening with a pair of light sandles to give your feet a rest
Something that I gleaned from talking with people along the route who were using the B&B option was that they felt compelled to get to the next B&B which seemed to be to the detriment of their enjoyment .. .. whereas I walked until the end of the day and if there was a campsite handy used that .. .. and if there wasn't then I wild camped .. .. no pressure and not a care in the world
On the subject of mobile phones I managed to get a txt msg to my family
most days .. .. but we had an agreement that they wouldn't get overly concerned until the third day of not hearing from me .. .. which gave me a bit of scope on the occasions when I wild camped away from a town or village. Of course, in the ensuing six years things will have improved (hopefully
) but one of the issues for me was recharging the phone .. .. you will just need to pack your charger
Feel free to ask any other questions as you develop your plan .. .. but most importantly, enjoy the walk .. .. it's amazingly beautiful and varied