I set out on the South Downs Way in early April, taking my newly finished synthetic quilt with me. I woke up on the second day with ice on the tarp, it having turned significantly colder than forecast. Certainly beyond the limit of the quilt, but just about okay in a bivvy bag with all my clothes. The upside to this cold were beautifully clear mornings where low cloud and mist filled with the valleys, leaving the tops of the downs feeling way higher than they actually are.
In terms of logistics, my main worry was about finding enough water sources, especially since i was wild camping most nights as lots of campsites hadn’t yet opened for the year. i used this resource to help located the water taps on the route:
https://www.southdownsdouble.co.uk/taps/
