Why a picnic turns a walk into a proper day out

A walk and a meal are two good things. A walk with a meal in the middle of it is better than either, because the meal gives the walk a purpose and the walk gives the meal an appetite. Somewhere between the second mile and the first sandwich, the day slows down of its own accord. That is the whole idea: not a hike with a rushed snack at the end, but a leisurely lunch beside a footpath, with nowhere else to be.

The trick is to plan it loosely enough that nothing feels like a timetable. A little forward thinking about route, food and shade is all it takes — after that, the afternoon can look after itself.

Build the walk around the meal, not the other way round

Choose a route of roughly four to six miles, with a clear halfway point that has somewhere pleasant to sit. Circular walks work best, so you are not simply retracing your steps with a full stomach. Look for a route that passes a churchyard, a village green, a riverside meadow or a stretch of common land — all reliable places to stop, and all usually within easy reach of a gate or stile where you can sit without blocking anyone's way.

Timing matters more than you might think. Set off mid-morning and aim to eat between half past twelve and two, when the sun is high and you will be glad of the rest. Take a paper map rather than relying on a phone, and check the footpath markings before you go. If the route crosses farmland, note where the livestock are likely to be and whether there are any stiles that would be awkward with a bulky bag.

Tell someone where you are going and roughly when you will be back. It costs nothing and it means you can properly switch off.

Pack light, but pack well

Weight is the enemy of a good picnic. The aim is a rucksack that still feels light at mile four, which means food that is dense, sturdy and does not need fussing over. Think in terms of a single bag of everything, carried between two people if possible.

• Something savoury and robust: a pork pie, a wedge of hard cheese, scotch eggs, falafel, or cold sausage rolls. Avoid anything with heavy mayonnaise, which does not enjoy a warm rucksack.
• Bread that travels: a small sourdough loaf, oatcakes or flatbreads survive far better than soft sliced bread.
• Fruit that will not bruise: apples, cherries, grapes or a melon cut into wedges at home and packed in a rigid tub.
• Water in a frozen bottle: freeze it the night before and it will keep the rest of the bag cool as it thaws.
• A flask of tea or coffee: deeply civilising, even in July.
• Kit: a thin groundsheet or large cotton cloth, a small knife, a couple of cloths, a bin bag, and sun cream and a hat.

Leave the plates, glasses and heavy cool box at home. A shared cloth, a knife and one bag of food is the whole kit. If you want to eat off something, a folded square of greaseproof paper does the job and can go straight into the bin bag afterwards.

Find shade at the right time of day

Shade is the difference between a lovely lunch and a hot, fly-blown one, and the place to find it depends entirely on the hour.

• Early afternoon: sit on the eastern side of a hedgerow, where the sun casts shade across the ground.
• Late afternoon: move to the western side of a wall or hedge as the light swings round.
• All day: a mature oak, beech or ash gives a broad, dappled canopy — the best shade there is.
• Any time: a churchyard yew, a stone wall, or the deep shadow of a railway bridge or barn.

Sit on dry grass or a flat stone at the edge of the path rather than in the middle of it, and leave gaps at gates. A handy rule: if someone else could not comfortably walk past, you have parked in the wrong spot.

Leave no trace — and a few small courtesies

The countryside is someone's working environment as well as your afternoon out, and a picnic should leave it exactly as you found it.

• Take everything home. That includes apple cores, orange peel, eggshells and crusts. None of it belongs in a hedge, and some of it takes years to break down.
• Never leave food scraps behind — they draw rats and foxes and can harm livestock.
• Close every gate behind you, even if it was open when you arrived.
• Keep dogs on a lead around livestock and near ground-nesting birds, and pick up after them.
• Take your litter home in the bin bag you packed — do not rely on a village bin being empty.
• Stick to the footpath across crops and meadows, and give growing crops a wide berth.

Then do very little

The last part of the plan is not to have much of one. After you have eaten, lie back for twenty minutes. Listen for skylarks, watch the clouds move, let the flask go round a second time. This is the slow-living bit, and it cannot be rushed or scheduled.

When you do pack up, do it slowly, check the grass around you for anything dropped, and set off at a gentler pace than you arrived. The walk home, pleasantly heavy-legged and slightly sun-warmed, is often the best part of the day.