Back at Home: Pointers and Ponders for Fellow Coast to Coast Wanderers

Pointers and Ponders

We did the cushier 50+ type of trip where we walked all day and then stayed in a B&B at night with a luggage transport service delivering a suitcase nightly with clean/dry clothing and toiletries in it. We took enough clothes so that we could wash only once along the way and still have sufficient supplies.  We don’t presume that this list is applicable to backpackers/campers and neither should you.

 

WHAT TO TAKE WITH YOU

Essential equipment:

Guide book (We used Stedman and  Bardwell—both excellent. Stedman has great maps with many cues to turns, etc. and Bardwell while less detailed,  has the advantage of being waterproof and is better for the “big picture.”)             

Compass

Map (Used rarely, but was a welcome sight when confused)

Hiking poles (Some consider non-essential, but we found them extremely helpful in tough spots)

Waterproof ankle height boots (We used Salomon, Keene and Meindl)

Sunscreen ( We used  SunX30 sunscreen towelettes we ordered off Amazon to eliminate the possibility of  a spill into our backpacks.)

Rain gear (Waterpoof jacket with hood and pants)

Water container  (Paul used an osprey combination MANTA 28 which included the backpack and built-in rain cover and I used a camelback lumbar water pack/carryall.)

Backpack or lumbar pack (see above) with waterproof cover

Sunglasses (yes, seriously!)

Good socks (We used Bridgedale, Wigwam and Smart Wool)  and thin layer sock liners

Flashlight (We used after the hike, but had it available in case we got lost and were out late.)

Hat (we both used outdoor research seattle sombreros and Paul also had a baseball cap.)

Clothing in layers (esp helpful are wicking base and middle layers. We used LL Bean and Body Sensor for the base layers and Ice Breaker 260 merino wool middle layer. WE used LL Bean and Columbia hiking pants and I often wore winter biking or running tights. We used EX OFFICIO underwear which will quick dry overnight. You likely only need two sets for the rare time one set doesn’t dry completely.)

Gaiters (Frankly, we didn’t need them, but had we been in more rain, they would have been essential.)

Whistle (Again, we never used it, but you never know.)

Blister plasters or moleskin

Toilet paper (We used only twice ,but thank heaven we had it!)

Cash (many places you might stop for a sandwich, etc. do not accept credit cards

Credit or debit card

Ziploc bag for trash

Food (about half the time, you can find food along the way. The rest is packed lunches or energy bars. We used Clif Bars, Luna Bars and M&Ms. The owner of The Old Water View Inn told us he survives on Snickers Bars alone. Many of the villages have NO shopping, so be prepared early. You might not get anything for days along your way.)

Small dry bag (for cash and phone…other moisture sensitive items)

 

Desirable Equipment:

GPS with local maps (We used this often but not as our primary tool. We saw people using it religiously. In general, most hikers did NOT have one.)

Camera and extra memory cards and a spare charger or batteries (or film, if you are into that)

Pen and paper (not much, just a few small sheets for exchanging address etc. Frankly, I wish I had brought a few business cards for this purpose.)

Cellular phone (not always able to use it, but can be helpful at times and in emergency)

Gloves (Might go to essential list in winter)

Ear plugs (for 40mph winds blowing into your ear in the moors. I put the hood up on my raingear and managed.)

Small towel (I bought a super absorbency towel at Eddie Bauer and used it to wipe sweat. Paul never even carried his. Could be useful if you get your feet wet.)

Spare socks (we did not carry or need, but we had little rain)

Binoculars (if you want to see birds or wildlife closer. We did NOT take them.)

Small bivvy sack (We brought one and did not carry it after the Lake District, but it affords some layer of safety in mountains or rain.)

Hand sanitizer. (We used small packaged Purell Hand Wipes which took up very little space and eliminated the possibility of squeezing wet stuff out into our pack.)

Small laptop/IPAD (We left ours in the suitcase, but we saw many people on the trail with an IPAD. We also found it useful to write down our thoughts in a blog in real time to keep our memories accurate and to share our experiences with friends. Almost all the B&Bs have wifi, nearly always free.)

Tennis shoes/flipflops- (something to rest your feet when the hike is done. You could just saunter about in socks though)

Pain medication such as ibuprofen, aspirin or Tylenol (for some this may be essential)

 

THINGS WE BROUGHT BUT DIDN’T USE:

Low hiker boots

Duplicate set of rain gear

Insect repellant (bothered only rarely by insects)

Headlights (but you do need either this or a flashlight for safety)

Dress clothing. (Casual appearance expected. Anything else will turn heads.)

 

WHAT TO DO BEFORE YOU GO TO GET READY FOR HIKING THE COAST TO COAST

·        Do some mental self-examination. Do you REALLY want to go outside and walk all day for 2-3 weeks regardless of weather, terrain, etc?  Have you ever done anything similar in your life? If not, PLEASE do yourself a favor and at least take a 3-4 day trip to test your mettle.  I cannot imagine anything more miserable than discovering 2-3 days into your hike that you HATE this sort of “vacation.”  We definitely know this happened to other hikers along our way. If you don’t think this will be a challenge, you are wrong.

·        If you feel you are at all overweight and might want to drop a few pounds, DO IT BEFORE you go. When we started planning this trip, we initially aimed for October. After looking at the weather charts, we opted for August. I had lost only 10 of the planned 30 lbs I wanted to lose . I sincerely wished I had been more diligent.

·        Assure your health is good.

·        Anyone in a state of reasonably good fitness can do this. HOWEVER, not without some training.  We began doing long distance hikes (8-16 miles) at least once a week approximately 5 months before our trip.  The last two months, we made sure we did long distance weekend trips covering distances that mimicked the first three days of the hike through the more strenuous lake country: 14, 13 and 11 miles over three consecutive days.

·        Find some strenuous hiking conditions to train in, especially the last 6 weeks before your trip. We thought we had hiked some good sized stuff in Knoxville at the Rich Mountain Loop and House Mountain. In reality, we would probably have been better off walking Chimney Tops at least once a week or a trip to Mount LeConte via Alum Cave Bluffs. Nonetheless, the hill climbing we did was adequate, but we could have been better trained. Find something that makes you walk pretty much straight up for at least an hour or two and then straight down. Due to the conditions of the trails, we often found going DOWN the hardest part.

·        For safety reasons, it is a good idea not to do this alone-- although it certainly is possible and we met solo hikers on occasion.  Whomsoever you might choose to go along, make sure you have personalities well suited to one another, because when the going gets tough, you need an ally, not a future enemy. I would not recommend casual acquaintances attempt this together unless a third party who knows you both can attest that you have similar skills, experience, and drive.

 

TIPS FOR THE ROAD

·       This is a walk. It is not a race. Slow down. Be in the moment. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey.

·       A good night’s sleep cures all sorts of aches. For people in our age class, mild to modest pain is a part of the deal.

·       Talk to your fellow hikers and the locals along the way. This hike is not undertaken nor supported by many rude, boring assholes. You’ll find many kind and interesting folks on your path. The locals can clue you in to information not in the guidebook.

·       A rest day or two or three will do you a world of good.  We found both our “rests”-Kirkby Stephen and Richmond absolutely delightful.

·       Know your limits. Don’t overplan your mileage unless you know in advance you can do it. All the luggage handlers will accommodate a trip of 16-21 days instead of 11 or 15 (the guide book suggested number)

·         Make sure you leave your accommodation with enough water and food to get you to the next point. Even when cafes/tea rooms are listed in guidebooks, they aren’t always open or even in business. We found two spots closed on Tuesdays and two spots no longer viable.

·         Learn to use a compass.  Check guidebooks frequently and whenever there is a question.

·         When you do get lost (and you will), we found some strategies that helped and got us to Robin Hood’s Bay without extreme detour:

 

1.       Read your guidebook carefully the night before and/or day of your journey. Keep it handy for reference all day.

2.       If you cannot see due to rain or fog,  stop and wait until you can.

3.       If you don’t have a clue where you are, retrace your steps to the last place you were certain of your location and scan the area for things you might have missed. This is by far your safest strategy. Sometimes the C2C signs (there aren’t any in the Lake District) are small or covered in brush.  Sometimes the map may confuse you, but on a second look, the path will be obvious. Other occasions, getting your compass or GPS out may help you to recognize a cue you missed  the first time around. Also, there are frequently other hikers coming through, especially in the Lake District. They may know the path or carry a large ordinance map and be willing to help.

4.       We were able to reroute once by using our GPS to aim for a known target on the trail. This strategy may not always be effective especially prior to the Moors, where there are many animal enclosures and not always an easy way out or around them.

5.       If you are lost and discover you are a good distance from your desired location (>1mile), you may want to consider re-routing altogether along a road or bike path. This is where a map of the area and the GPS came in handy. We did this only once outside Richmond. It wasn’t as enjoyable as walking along the Swale River, but we rejoined the Coast to Coast easily after about 3 miles and didn’t actually add any time or mileage to our day.

Remember, it’s a  walk Coast to Coast. You don’t have to follow every step of Alfred Wainwright to be a success.

 

 

Day 11; Keld to Reeth

Subtitle: Grouse in the House

This was one of the sunniest day's we've had. As optimists, we did bring sunscreen! Reading up on the terrain before starting out, we found there were two routes: the high one and the low one. The high one climbs up onto the ridge where all the strip mining of lead took place in the 19th century and the low route, in theory, gives wonderful views of the Swale River which is the scenic waterway through the Yorkshire Dales. So after many miles of hiking (officially 93 and in reality, well over a hundred), we decided to go the low road. Of course, the promise of walking in sight of the Swale River in no way explained the heights from which one might be viewing it! (Chant the Coast to Coast local advice mantra: Take the obvious path. It's easy. It's not very far. The worst is behind you.)
We started out by visiting the church in Reeth and praying we make it to the North Sea :-). From there we did indeed follow the lovely Swale River. If you don't count nearly breaking our legs on the slippery rock path down the river, it was nice and uneventful. We walked up to an old mine site where there was a old house called the Crackpot Hall (No, not Crack House, you silly Americans.) This was a farmhouse in ruins built originally in the 1600s with a big smelting area above it and a lead mine. It's basically a ruin now, but stark stone and really pretty. The large yard is apparently a latrine for rabbits. If I have ever seen as much rabbit scat in my whole life as was in that yard, I don't know it (and I used to own a couple of rabbits.) One of the nice things about this section of the walk was that there was some wildlife. Rabbits apparently really do what rabbits do in that region, because we saw bunnies everywhere. A disturbing thing was that we saw about as many dead rabbits as live ones. At dinner last night, a local told us they had most likely been poisoned. So if it is near Easter and you have a child, don't go up there or they'll be visiting their psychiatrist for years. And since this subtitled "grouse", we saw several of those and heard the report of shotguns while people nearby tried to kill them (more on that later). We saw a beautiful pheasant and a not so gorgeous groundhog. We heard there might be deer, but not for us.  We did see a very amorous bull and a cow who was not in the mood for love. That was actually a pretty amusing sight watching the interaction...but hardly wildlife. Ms. Cow made sure of that!
 We really were above the river a few hundred feet,  but came back down to the town of Muker. Muker has the distinction of being a town that saved itself when the mines closed by developing the cottage industry of woolens which is still in business today and recently visited by Prince Charles to commemorate 30 years of knitting. (Oh to be a prince!) The woollens were actually very beautiful and artistic as well.
However, we bought cheese, another Yorkshire Dales delight. Then we climbed up over the river again and passed several "towns"--these places have people in them and houses, but they don't have so much as a store or  even a nearby phone booth. (No Superman for you Ivelet, Blades, Gunnerside, Kearton, and Healaugh.) We wound through all of these spots and finally down to Reeth, a bustling town of perhaps two or three thousand people. We stayed at the Cambridge House--very nice and our host (and big-time cyclist) who looked to be about 60ish (and could be older) had already carried our fifty pound bag up to the second story. We had made arrangements to eat in a local hotel, the Bourgoyne, and were told well in advance that it might get loud as they had a "hunting party." Turns out, it's grouse season here in the UK and the consolation offered to us for dining with the "hooligans" (who were actually all lords and dukes and such-or so the waitstaff claimed) was that there was grouse on the menu. I had it and Paul had venison. I have to say I was glad I tried it, but it isn't a bird I would fly much out of the way for. It's about the size of a cornish hen and when it lies on your plate, you actually feel sorry for it. The hunting party was pretty well behaved...a bit boisterous at first, but then much subdued after many glasses of wine...an older crowd :). Overall, we had a nice walk on a lovely day, a very good B&B and very British game meal at the Bourgoyne. That is nothing to grouse about.

Paul's ponderings:  Overall, this was a pretty easy day, although it did not turn out to be a "river path walk" as we thought.   There was a bit of that though.   So far, we continue to be very lucky on weather -- no rain today and quite warm.   This month seems to be a good one to do the hike.   We ended up with about 15 miles today, but the side trip into Muker probably added about two miles.   Note to self:   Think about your feet when you consider side-trips.    The good news is we appear to be fairly well out of serious mountain walking now and just have some "hills" to deal with.   Beer note:  The Black Sheep Bitter is outstanding.   Also, you rarely see game bird out on hikes in the US (at least where we live), so seeing pheasant and grouse is pretty interesting.

Pheasant near Muker

Church in Muker

Trail Marker Near Crackpot Hall

Crackpot Hall (or what's left of it anyway)

Butt House - Our lodging in Keld (yes, it's really called that)

Day 20: High Hawsker to Robin Hood's Bay

T

Subtitle: The Triumphant Entry 

I'm gonna make it after all!

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by -----John Masefield

Or in our case...maybe a GPS, two guide books and one map.

Back to the sea and walking the cliffs toward Robin Hood's Bay

After a good night's sleep and some diet Coke, off we went on our last five miles. Ah, such bittersweet thoughts. 195 miles (HA! Unofficially about 210) behind us, and the North Sea, the finish, and a sense of accomplishment ahead. We exited High Hawsker and wandered through a trailer park (here a house trailer on blocks is a STATIC) and down to the water. All great endings should by definition involve a trailer somehow?
It was misty our this morning which gave an ethereal feel to the experience. The tide was out when we arrived at the edge of the North Sea (but not Robin Hood's Bay) to the calls of gulls, the rocky coastline and the cliffs awash in a light fog. We could hear boats sounding foghorns as a baseline to the cacophony of natural sounds and waves. It was really an absolutely beautiful walk along the headlands leading into Robin Hood's Bay with literally an astounding panorama over every hilltop and around every corner.

The pleased expressions of joy on our face when we saw the ocean again after >200 miles!

We stopped numerous times just to watch the walk unfold. We cross our last stile and turned around nostalgically to see where we'd been.

The ever styling Paul Parris

Tide out, mist in

And finally, on the top of the last knoll, we could see our goal, Robin Hood's Bay. No one has a clue what connection if any there is to Robin Hood. But since he probably never really existed, is this a big surprise? After 200 miles, I don't think we really cared all that much anyway.

The bay of the day: Robin Hood's

 Apparently, this picturesque village started out in the fishing business which has since died down and now revived with the crabbing industry. We marched through town, past our hotel for the evening, the Victoria, through the very narrow steep lane down to the sea.

Walked right past our hotel, the Victoria and bound to the North Sea

We walked out to the beach, took the stones we picked up and transported from St. Bee's on the Irish Sea and tossed them into the water.

The narrow lane of Robin Hood's Bay. One car wide.

A man tossing a pebble from St. Bee's into Robin Hood's Bay!

Interestingly, the folks who served us dinner in Grosmont were on the beach and took our photo. Then we had a high five and kissed for five seconds.

Our feet in the North Sea. Michele Baker will be happy to note that there is essentially no circumstance during which I will abandon my Diet Coke.

 We walked up to the Bay Hotel and went to the bar there where they keep a book for Coast to Coasters to sign. We had a celebratory half pint at 12:30pm (way before the usual "O beer thirty" and read all the comments of our predecessors. We were the first finishers today. A dozen people signed the book yesterday (and we know there were more than that.) The comments ranged from "life changing adventure" to "Never again!!"

Paul signs the book.

 And then to add to the atmosphere of triumph, we did what all Americans do at moments of great personal achievement: We ate an ice cream cone. Oh, yeah. If I had to summarize it up, it was a beginner to intermediate orienteering vacation over mountains, hills, valleys, man eating bogs, farms, poop of all sorts, across the high moors and through the low ones, over roads, lanes, highways, through the woods and over the river many, many times in the fog, the rain, the wind, the cold, the brilliant sunshine... and then some. What an adventure. The Coast to Coast is the Most-to-Most. (Or at least the most to us.)

Look Ma! We made it!

One tired pup

Paul's Ponderings: To quote Johnny Carson on his last evening on the "Tonight Show", "....and so it has come to this". And in this case, that means an ice cream cone and some rocks in the water at the end of the hike. What a great adventure over nearly three weeks. Looking back, I'm surprised we made it thru the lake district, with those massive hills and even more massive climb-downs. Everything after has been less physically strenuous, but not always less challenging from a navigation viewpoint. Mainly, we've been blessed with the one thing we can't control, above and beyond all those things we actually can, and which makes mucho difference in an outdoor experience: GOOD WEATHER. And that is a really good thing in general, but in particular when hiking through a peat bog or down a steep rocky slate path in a high wind. Today we saw our last really interesting thing from an engineering perspective: a rocket field. In summary, this is a high pole with a stand at the top and some climbing aids that was used to fire a rocket over with an "endless rope" to a foundering ship, after which the sailors were offloaded using a breeches buoy arrangement. Apparently it was in use until 1980. Of course, it only works for ships near shore. The Sea King helicopter now serves that rescue function.

A rocket rescue field

I'd recommend this hike to anyone looking for an extended outdoor adventure, but concur with what the Stedman book says: This is a tough trek, particularly if undertaken in one go. Do not underestimate the physical effort and prepare with some serious extended hill hiking (and hill means "very steep up and down" in this case). As Stedman says, most folks don't walk 14 miles a day ever much less for two weeks or more every day. What he leaves out is not only do you get the 14 miles, but you may get 3-4 extra due to getting lost, general side trips, and such, and a lot of it will be in potentially not so pleasant conditions. On the latter, we were lucky due to dry weather and that helped a lot. If it had rained "a lot", that would have been a morale killer for us when coupled with the physical effort required. Caveats aside, when you get to the end and toss your carefully selected rock into the sea, you've done something you'll always remember and it's a pretty great accomplishment to be able to say you walked across a country of the size of England.

Day 19: Grosmont to High Hawsker

Subtitle: On the Up and Up
                        or
            Of Stoats and Goats

Lisvane House. A lovely place to spend the night in Grosmont. Although for posher types, we would try the Geallery next time!

Today we planned to go almost to our goal, Robin Hood's Bay. We left Lisvane House and said goodbye to Kerry and Gordon, the two Australians we seemed to run into pretty regularly throughout our journey. (Fortunately, we did actually see them again at the Tea Shop at Falling Foss.) They were a real pleasure to meet and we exchanged addresses/email hoping to one day see them again.

Aren't people from prison colonies the best? Gordon and Kerry. Love ya!

 Today's course, if you go all the way to Robin Hood's Bay would be about 20 miles, so we left off the last five miles and headed to High Hawsker. The road out of Grosmont was no formality. It was a steep climb up to Sleights Moor. I am reading an autobiographical book by Alfred Wainwright, the first to publish information about the coast to coast walk, and although I don't know much about him, I know this: If there was a way to get somewhere that involved an uphill climb, he took that route. Never mind the flat, the downhill, the minor bumps. The man loved climbing. Sometimes, I found this trait unforgivable. Especially after all the Brits keep telling us, "It's pretty much all downhill from here." They must laugh wildly as we walk away.
We hiked up to the area called Eskdaleside Cum Ugglebarnby. (Really? Should ANYTHING on the planet be named this....of course, there are also two towns in England called Backside and one named Balls, so what should we expect after all?)

Eskdale cum Ugglebarnby (need I say more?)

 After a steep downhill, we reached the small village of Littlebeck. You really need a dictionary over here to interpret all the language. Here's some things we've encountered repeatedly:
beck= stream
gill-stream
pike=peak
moor=open grassland on peat
combe=valley
dale=valley
clough=valley
dub=pond
tarn=pond on a mountain
how=knoll
scar=cliff
foss=waterfall
force=waterfall
bield=animal pend
bog= no explanation needed as you wade knee high in a mudpit


The village was charming but I doubt 30 people live in it. It is the start of Littlebeck Woods, which reminded us of the Smokies with its hardwoods and streams. Another thing that reminded us of home was the alum harvested there. We even encountered an alum cave!

A UT alum at the alum cave of Littlebeck Woods

 We also passed a strange small structure called the Hermitage. I don't think Andrew Jackson ever lived there, but apparently some recluse holed up in this structure about the size of a closet for a good long while.

A great place to live if you are hermit.

This is a big time "force" in the UK

Eventually, we came to Falling Foss, a waterfall of about 20 meters in height. For people from Tennessee, it wasn't that impressive, but for people from the United Kingdom, Louisiana, Mississippi and Illinois, it was fair sized. Some enterprising Pommie has repurposed a gamekeepers house into a tea room with yummalicious scones.

Our snack/lunch for today. YUM!

On a personal note, it appears that the gamekeeper was awash in weasels and "stoats." If you have never heard of a stoat, it is a rodent looking thang that was the subject of a disagreement (friendly one) between my husband and I in the USA long before our jaunt here. In an extremely rare moment, it appears that my husband was more savvy about all things stoat than I during that spirited discussion. Admittedly, I was stoat cold ignorant. I think I lost a quarter during that episode. Today, I thought we had let bygones be bygones and put the stoats to bed. But, NO! I was assaulted with the word STOAT for several hours until having to make a rather serious and unprintable threat to my spouse's manhood before he stopped. :)
 From the tea room, we managed to complete the remainder of the 15 miles over hill, dale, low moors, roads and yes, even a stinging nettle lined ditch (Thank you, Alfred Wainwright) before making a 1/2 mile wrong turn detour AWAY from High Hawsker...oh well, we figured it out, as has often happened on this trek. On our last little portion of our walk today, we encountered some goats (no, not stoats) and we got the biggest kick out of them.

These little beggars have no shame whatsoever.

Apparently, they are expert beggars and have conned many a walker near to the end out of their remaining Clif Bars. We were no exception. These characters were literally crawling over the fence to get at our oats and almonds. We spent the night at another Victorian house, the York House.

York House-adjacent to a trailer park.

 We were the only guests. The desk receptionist was the cleaner, bartender, and chef...and everything else it appears. She told us she started as a "cleaner" and was constrained to go to school for four years to learn to be a "cooker." In her strong Yorkshire accent, this word became "Kook-er" which she used repeatedly. I know plenty of kookers and none of them studied a lick!

Our room at York House. It was prepared by a "kooker."

PAUL'S PONDERINGS: The last day of big hiking ended up being about 12 miles and a kind of replica of the previous days all thrown together: bog, moor, a good steep climb, windy weather, rocky paths, etc. We were at York House by 3 pm or so anyway. We could have gone on to Robin Hood's bay, but that would have violated our 14 mile a day rule. The B&B was quite nice, even though we had it to ourselves it appeared. We had a nice long chat with the guy that runs it, who has traveled extensively in a lot of odd places....Nepal, Africa, India, Thailand, and more. He worked on the North Sea in the oil fields for a while as well. One equipment note is the utility of a GPS. We've had a nice Garmin unit with maps for this hike. While we used the books most of the time, the GPS saved us a few times from compounding errors and also served to be useful for keeping track of distance, as a compass, altitude, and more. While the device cost us several hundred dollars including maps, I think it added value to the other navigation tools. That said, I would not rely on a GPS solely for navigation and such. Another pleasure of the hike is the wide variety of folks we've met, some of whom we've seen multiple times, both locals and other hikers. And, as noted, my wife now knows that stoats really exist and have apparently been around for quite a long time. ( Apparently my husband has no interest in protecting his manhood.)

Day 18: Blakey Ridge to Grosmont

Subtitle: Hamlets and Piglets

This little guy greeted us about the time we left the hotel. I wonder if the Famous Grouse scotch is looking for new bottle artwork?

 Paul and I got up and at 'em after breakfast and walked down the road about 2 miles to intersect with our pathway nine miles across the moors to Glaisedale. Along the  road is a "fat" rock called Fat Betty. It is a tradition for coast to coast hikers to offer a sweet of some sort to the rock (which we did) and to take one for yourself from the prior offerings (which we didn't do.)

 Today's moors were a bit lower in elevation and thankfully didn't have much wind. We saw some wildlife--grouse and even a friendly frog and enjoyed the colors of the heather which stretched out before us. This section of  North Yorkshire is the largest biosphere of heather moors in England and they do go on for an impressive while.

A grouse in action

A look out over the moors to the North Sea in the distance.

Paul fell in love with these "twins."

I almost stepped on this little croaker.

Close up of heather

 Finally, we reached the end of the moorland and headed off the high plains down to the hamlet of Glaisdale. We met numerous Brits having picnics on the moors and an advanced age lady who clued us in to eat at the Tea Room just off the path. The town of Glaisdale is a pleasant place with a few houses, a hotel, a couple of churches, a post office, the village store and the tea room.

A good place to be a piglet and have a sammie!

We enjoyed a yummy sandwich at this small tea room in Glaisdale. The proprietor had only opened it 10 weeks ago. It had a beautiful deck so we could enjoy the view and the weather. Well fueled, we then made our way to the end of town and the "beggar's bridge.: The legend has it that in the 1600s a poor young man named Tom Ferris wanted the hand of a lovely girl in town. However, he had nothing to offer and the father refused. So off he want to sea to make his fortune (apparently as something of a pirate.) He captured a Spanish galleon and came home a rich man. The girl had waited for him and they married. He was the benefactor of the church in Hull and at the time of his wife's death, built this bridge across the river in Glaisdale in her honor. You could wade across the river in the modern day without much trouble...in fact, I stood out in the middle of it to make this photo. But it makes a romantic story! Who knows? It could have been raging in the 1600s.

The beggar's bridge

St Hedda's Church in Egton Bridge

From Glaisdale, we entered the woods and hiked UPHILL (on this highly theoretically downhill day) to the city of Egton Bridge. Unfortunately, somewhere around this point Paul started to develop what seemed to be a case of shin splints. So I went the extra length to the St. Hedda' church--about 5X the size of the churches we've been in recently. And very lovely. The roof was a departure from the spiked rooves we've seen, but still arched and incredible.

From Egton Bridge, we walked down an old toll road to the city of Grosmont (pronounce GROW MONT--the "s" is silent...of course, it is.) The old toll house is still there with all the former prices of the road's use posted on the side.

We finally made it to Grosmont and discovered they have a steam train still in operation run by about 170 volunteers. Paul was reading to me about it at the Station Tavern and we were sitting outside at a picnic table when the train whistle blew and it pulled into the station. The are several engines, all polished and pretty. The train will take interested parties on a two hour ride.

The toll house on the "toll road" between Egmont and Grosmont. No cookies though!

The steam railway in Grosmont--run by volunteers!

We are staying tonight at Lisvane House, a lovely Victorian B&B. They serve breakfast but not dinner. We went downtown ( a couple of blocks from here) to the only place for piglets to eat besides the tavern: The Geallery B&B. It's a beautiful new B&B run by a local artist, so really wonderfully decorated. In fact, had we known about it, we would have stayed there, even though Lisvane House is nice. The Geallery had a decidedly modern flare and spacious stylish rooms. Oh, well...next time?   They serve you a local feast. We had chicken and wonderful healthy veggies. Not a drop of gravy or a French fry in sight for a change! The food was served in the lovely pottery of the artist.  Sometimes it's nice to be a piglet in a hamlet!

Paul's Ponderings:

A 15 mile day today for our last big day of hiking.   Only about 16 miles left to go in total.   Tomorrow it's off to High Hawsker, then on to Robin Hood's Bay the next day.    Oddly enough, we saw some donkeys today for the first time on the hike.   More hiking around high moors with purple and orange heather all day, followed by some downhill to Grosmont.   We met some very nice folks from Australia and New Zealand (Gordon and Carrie) a few days ago that we keep running into that we had dinner with tonight at the Gallery.    Great fresh food looking out a small balcony toward the sunset.   A great setting for a meal and while the pub would have been good, this was better.  We found out from our hosts that over 7000 hikers come down this path per year.   During the hoof and mouth disease problem of 2001, it caused huge problems for the businesses, because the footpaths closed down.   

We've been so lucky on weather on this entire hike....minimal rain, lots of sun, and only a bit of wind.   We hope that will continue for two more days!

Day 17: Chop Gate to Blakey Ridge

Subtitle: We couldn't agree to one so here are three possibilities

(1) Lying In at the Lion Inn
(2) I've Been Walking on the Railroad
(3) More Moor
Take your pick!

Today was spent walking across the moorland. After seeing so many old British horror films, I always thought of the moors as the desolate home of werewolves. But in reality, they are high grasslands. In England, the grass is growing on peat.  The wildlife up here is mostly birds, curlew and grouse abound. The grouses house is called his "butt."  These animals are really amazing. The male's call sounds like someone screeching "Back up, back up, back up." Paul used a good part of his day trying to engage in earnest communication with these birds. They are like little submarines, wandering around amongst the endless sea of heather plants and occasionally bobbing up their heads. Many are currently on the nest. The only other wildlife I saw today were rabbits and a couple from Lichtenstein. :)

Our friend the red grouse lives on  his or her "butt" amongst the heather. I know people like that!

 We started the day by being dropped off by our host at the Buck Inn, Wolfgang, at the Clay Bank Top parking lot where he picked us up yesterday. Our first task of the day--climb the hill to Urra Moor. Thankfully, it was our only 'real climb' of the day. Although we walked uphill most of the day, we did most of it on the old Rosedale Railway. Built in the 1850s to transport iron ore out of the North Yorkshire moors, the line was retired in 1929 and is now a normal gauge track with a very, very gradual ascent. We hardly noticed it. The old line is now used for foot traffic and is part of both the Cleveland Way and the Coast to Coast routes. We used it to cross Urra, Farndale and High Blakey Moors.

We spent most of the day walking along an old rail trail.

One of the nice things about the moors is that you can see really great distances across the countryside and have amazing panoramas. The things that are less desirable: a constant wind of at least 15-20mph, gusts up to 30-40mph and nowhere to hide! It was a nice sunny day, but we had to leave our middle layers on pretty much the whole way. Another slightly disturbing thing---while we were looking at the grouse and trying to figure out if we could get in a bit closer to them for a photograph, we saw a lovely sign describing the wildlife of the moors. Included in the wildlife: adders. Adders are amongst the most poisonous snakes on the planet. As you wander through grouse butts, just to be "cheeky," the British National Park adds, "If you or your dog are bitten by an adder, seek immediate medical attention." Very funny. As you look out across the moors, you don't even see a village much less a facility containing adder antivenin. Oh, well. I always thought there weren't poisonous snakes in England. Apparently, St. Patrick's charity didn't extend to the bloody Brits. How very Irish!

We reached our accommodation for the evening, the Lion Inn after 9 miles and about 3.5 hours, arriving at 1pm--just in time for lunch. The current building of the Lion Inn is a converted 10th century farm house and has been assisting travelers for centuries. We were actually glad to have a short day for a change. As you might imagine,walking 6-8 hours per day for a couple of weeks, although enjoyable, leaves you happy to get a nice nap in a comfy warm bed out of the wind and safe from adders at three in the afternoon!

Our lodging for tonight, the Lion Inn, seen from across the moors. The building dates back to 1700.

The remote moorland. Great place to get bitten by an adder, eh?

So all in all, a short walking day across the beautiful English countryside complete with wildlife. Who could ask for moor?

Paul's Ponderings:

This is the shortest and easiest day we've had so far....mostly flat other than the initial climb.   The usual stark and beautiful moors to walk on.   We are now about 30 miles from the end of the walk. 

We arrived at the historic Lion Inn early and had most of the afternoon to loaf about, which was welcome. 

Tomorrow it's off to Grosmont, which is pretty much all downhill.....an unusual state to us on this trip.