E2
Description
- Name E2 (E2)
- Distance de sentier 4,850 km, 3,014 milles
- Durée en jours 250 jours
- Début de sentier Galway (Irl)
- Fin de sentier Nice (F)
- Classement Traildino EW, Marche facile, sentier de la nature
North Sea – Lake Geneva – Mediterranean Sea
Trail planned to measure 4850 km, from Galway in Ireland to Nice in southern France. However the Irish portion is as yet non-existent. The trail now starts from Stranrear in Scotland, Great Britain and runs (and is waymarked) through the Netherlands/Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland, meandering in and out of France along the way. It ends on the French Mediterranean coast in Nice.
In Britain, after leaving the Pennine range, the trail splits into 2 alternative routes: the eastern route via Harwich, and the western route via Dover. After crossing to the continent the eastern route continues in the Netherlands, the western route in Belgium. The alternatives rejoin near the Belgian town of Zoersel.
The continental part of the E2 is almost identical to the popular GR5, the trail that connects Hoek van Holland in The Netherlands to Nice in France.
The E2 is made-up of many national trails:
Ireland
- Non-existent
- Galway will be future start
United Kingdom
Northern Route (unofficial)
- Inverness, start
- Great Glenn Way
- West Highland Way
Central Route
- Stranraer, current start
- Southern Upland Way
- St. Cuthbert's Way
- Pennine Way
Eastern branch
- Teesdale Way
- Cleveland way
- Yorkshire Wolds Way
- Viking Way
- Hereward Way
- Fen Rivers Way
- Icknield Way Path
- Stour Valley Path
- Essex Way
- Ferry Harwich – Hoek van Holland (Netherlands, connects to northern branch)
Western branch
- Pennine Way
- Staffordshire Way
- Heart of England Way
- Oxfordshire Way
- Oxford Canal Walk
- Thames Path
- North Downs Way
- Ferry Dover – Calais (France, connects to southern branch). (As some of you pointed out: The ferry Dover - Oostende is not operated anymore. Alternative: Channel Tunnel between Folkestone and Coquelles near Calais, France).
Netherlands (Northern branch)
- First village is Hoek van Holland
- Deltapad (LAW 5-1), Hoek van Holland - Bergen op Zoom
- GR5, Bergen op Zoom - Essen
Belgium
Southern branch, coming from United Kingdom
- First village is Oostende
- GR5a south, Oostende - Antwerpen
- Antwerpen - Deurne, Connecting trail
- GR565, Renier Sniederspad, Deurne - Zoersel,
- GR5 coming from the Netherlands, Zoersel - Diest - Luik - Luxembourg
Northern branch, coming from The Netherlands
- First village is Essen
- GR5, Essen - Ouren
- Last village is Ouren
Luxembourg (212 km)
- GR5 (red paint stops)
This could be broken down to the following paths:
- Our Path, Ouren – Diekirch. Near Hosingen, the E3 coming from the west joins the E2 / GR5
- Maurice Cosyn Path, Diekirch – Echternach
- Lower-Sûre Path, Echternach - Wasserbillig
- Moselle Path, Wasserbillig – Remerschen. Here, the E3 and E2 / GR5 are separated again
- South Path, Remerschen – Tétange / Rumelange
- Last village is Tétange / Rumelange
France
Switzerland
- Jura Höhenweg (southern tip, across Lake Geneva)
France again
- GR5
- Nice, finish