Historic walk in Portsmouth to help beat the Christmas bulge

Dec. 18, 2011 - PRLog -- What better way to work off all those extra calories in your Christmas dinner than with a short walk, and www.Citysteps.co.uk has just the thing. Our downloadable audio walking guide to the historic naval city of Portsmouth in Hampshire will take you on a eye-opening journey around some of the oldest parts.

Few cities can lay claim to the sheer historical importance of Portsmouth. A superb natural anchorage for ships in a strategic position ensured that it would become the key naval port for first England and then Britain and her emerging empire. Our Portsmouth guide takes you back to where it all started then puts you right at the heart of the city’s newest developments.

Our Old Portsmouth audio walking guide can be purchased here http://citysteps.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=8&products_id=9 for just £8 .

Starting at The Hard, near Portsmouth & Southsea station and next to the Historic Dockyard, the route follows the harbourside south through Old Portsmouth to the edge of Southsea. After a short diversion to visit a famous engineer and son of Portsmouth and the shipwrights’ church, it enters shopping heaven at the renowned Gunwharf Quays. The route explores this converted former naval base, passing the famous Spinnaker Tower en route, before heading off to Old Portsmouth proper. Circumnavigating The Camber we reach Spice Island, once a notorious den of iniquity at the very entrance to Portsmouth Harbour. From there the route takes you over some of the city’s atmospheric fortifications, stark reminders of less peaceful times gone by, with a short detour to Portsmouth’s Anglican Cathedral.

Returning to the walls, memorials tell of those who gave their lives for freedom in various wars, as well as of the settlers who left these shores in search of better lives in new lands like America and Australia. Now you encounter no less a person than Admiral Lord Nelson himself, as you follow part of the route he took to board HMS Victory near here when leaving for the Battle of Trafalgar. The audio guide takes you through the funfair of Clarence Pier to Europe’s only working hovercraft service, and where Nelson took ship on his last and greatest voyage. To finish we have a stroll along the seafront, with Southsea Common to your left, taking in the views and the naval memorials along the way. Fittingly for this military town, our route finishes at the D-Day Museum and Southsea Castle, both key reminders of Portsmouth’s importance in recent and older conflicts.