Maxine's Walk

Walking, cycling and now...running!

This is not part of my official walk but having gained in fitness over the last year I thought I would also try running. In a moment of confidence I entered the Dalby Dash - a 10K race in Dalby Forest near Pickering in Yorkshire. That was six weeks ago - I began training in ernest, running along the cliff paths in an effort to get some hill work in, I even went to the gym a few times to do a bit of weight training! As the training increased my confidence decreased and I even took a week off, but after shopping for a new pair of trail running shoes I felt much better. So last Sunday we got up at six am to drive down to Yorkshire, the weather was crisp and clear - just 4 deg, I spent the journey drinking coffee for the caffeine and eating bananas and Jelly babies. The race began at 11.02 after the 2 minutes silence, and took a tarmac road up through the forest, after about 3K we turned off along a forest track and then turned downhill for another 3K, the final stretch brought us back along the river valley to the carpark.

 

 

 

The last 2K was really hard work but I managed to put in a final effort for the last few metres and finished in 58 minutes.

 

 

The race entry fee raised funds for Pickering Rotary club and Help for Heroes. It was great fun and I was so pleased to have done it in under an hour.

Summer holidays part 2 - Cycling from Derby to Witney

It has taken me a long time to get around to this post - we actually started this ride on 31st July! It's a long story but includes a lack of time and a broken (now repaired) laptop.

As you will know I have been gradually walking from Berwick towards Helston since January, as I only have time at weekends and during school holidays this is taking some considerable time. The rest of the family have been very understanding but do tend to get frustrated and bored with hanging around for me each time I am walking.  So what to do...cycling that's what! We decided that a good way for all the family to join in would be to try back packing on bikes as we all enjoy cycling. So this is how we ended up in a retail park in Derby looking like this...

 

...all loaded up and ready to go. It took quite a bit of sorting to get all our stuff into the panniers and we had to be quite minimalist in what we took. We ended up with 3 small tents, 6 sleeping bags of varying sizes, 6 camping mats, a small gas canister with click-on top, 6 bowls, 6 mugs and 2 billy cans. We only carried food for that day and stocked up as we went along. We took mimimal spare clothes and only waterproofs for the top half. Everything had to be carried on 4 of the bikes as the boys bikes were too small for panniers. I also took a small first aid kit, a puncture repair kit and reflective tabards for the road sections.

We followed the South Midlands cycle route (available from Sustrans) which goes from Derby to Oxford via Leicester, Northampton and Milton Keynes. This route is a combination of minor roads, cycle paths - some on disused railway lines and canal tow paths.

 
So day 1 (25 miles) saw us setting off from Derby, out past Pride Park football stadium. The first part of the route is easy riding along cycle paths which are well signposted.  There then follows a short section along the Trent and Mersey Canal.

 
All along the National cycle network are these works of art - the Millenium mileposts, all are of a different design which is relevant to where they are situated. This was the first of many that we came across on the route.

 
After the canal the route continues along a disused railway line and takes you past this most enormous quarry.  On leaving the railway line the route moves into Leicestershire and introduces you to the county by taking you along the country lanes through some quiet villages. This doesn't last long though as you cross over the M1 by means of a bridge and then cycle alongside the Loughborough bypass. This was a noisy, busy way to end the day and we were pleased to arrive in our campsite in the village of Quorn.

 
The campsite was a Camping and Caravan Club certificated site, Mill Farm, Quorn - and was a real hideaway. On site was us, a campervan and a caravan, the facilities consisted of just one toilet and a sink but the best thing was as we arrived the owner gave us a menu from the local chinese takeaway, we phoned up with our order and 20 minutes later it was delivered to the gate! In the centre of Quorn is a mini-supermarket so we stocked up with lunch food the next morning before setting off. We didn't have far to go on Day 2 (16 miles) so we began by taking a trip on the Great Central Railway and visiting the fascinating war time displays at Quorn Station.  Just after lunch we followed the A6 into Leicester - some of this route is actually on the A6 separated from the traffic by just a line marked on the road. We all wore our fluorescent vests for this bit. Once we got into Leicester we were back onto city cycle paths again.

 

 
The route goes through Abbey Park in the centre of Leicester where we saw the proud parents of this large group of cygnets.  After passing through the Park the route then winds through some industrial areas before leaving the city on yet another disused railway line.

 
The path runs for about 4 miles dead straight, you just seem to go on and on and on, then it suddenly comes to an end and I had to do a little map reading to get us on the road to Countesthorpe.  We managed to camp at a Fishing Lake just south of Countesthorpe, they normally only take caravans but kindly allowed us to camp in the corner of a field, the showers were a bit expensive though at £1 a time so we gave those a miss! After our luck with the Chinese takeaway last night we thought we might be eating our emergency dried meals tonight but our luck was in as there was a Pizza place nearby that delivered to the site! Day 3 ( 31 miles)  After a good nights sleep we were up early the next morning to cycle out of Leicestershire and into our next county, Northamptonshire.

 

The route took us along quiet lanes and up this really, really steep hill which reduced us to walking and pushing our bikes.

 

We then joined the Grand Union Canal at Foxton, the route just misses the fabulous Foxton Locks so it is worth making a diversion north for about a mile along the canal to see the locks.

 

We left the bikes by the cafe and shop at the bottom and walked up to the top of the locks, we then came back down with a couple of boats as the children helped with the opening and closing of all the lock gates.

After about an hours break we re-traced our tracks along the tow path and then continued along the canal all the way into Market Harborough. Extreme garden envy came over us as we approached the town, on the opposite bank to the towpath are large houses with gardens that include a canalside section. Many had their own moorings- some with boats tied up.

After passing through the Wharf we cycled down into the town and stopped at the supermarket to buy lunch and stock up on drinks and snacks for the afternoon.

The route leaves the town on the Brampton Valley Way - a disused railway line that goes all the way through to Northampton.

After a brief pause to mend a puncture on James' bike (caused by a large rose thorn) we approached the Great Oxendon Tunnel. Having ridden this section before we knew that good bike lights were needed so we had come prepared (or so we thought!) As we started our journey through the first tunnel it soon became blackly obvious that our lights were next to useless. It is so dark in these tunnels that the light from normal strength torches and headlights just gets absorbed.  There was no option, however, but to continue so, singing to keep us going, we pedalled on through the darkness until eventually we came out the other end!

 

 
As you can see from the photo the end is in sight but cycling in pitch black is completely disorientating and you feel like you are going nowhere! Be warned - the second tunnel (490m) is even longer!

After the tunnels we continued on to stay with friends in Spratton.

 

Day 4 ( 29 miles) The next morning the bikes were loaded up again, we were getting quite good at this by now. Kez had developed a stinking cold so I took the tent from her and she had all the camping mats which although it looked like a big pile was at least lots lighter. We set off from Spratton back onto the Brampton Valley Way and into Northampton. Unfortunately this is where our first crash of the day happened. The Brampton Valley cycle path narrows where the  steam railway runs along side for a short section, at this point Kez and I got too close together and she managed to get her handlebars caught on the tent which was on the back of my bike. She almost recovered but ended up sprawled across the track. Luckily nothing was too badly hurt and we continued cautiously in single file until the track widened again  Once again, as we entered the town, we passed through some of the worst areas of the town alongside the mainline railway, an area which has been defaced by fly tippers. After passing sofas and armchairs with their stuffing exploding out and mattresses which had definitely seen better days we continued alongside the main road and through housing estates until we reached central Northampton. At this point the signposts disappeared and we had to retrace our route and negotiate some big sets of traffic lights to find our way out of the town. The next bit of the route was a revelation to us, having lived in Northamptonshire for 3 years we never cycled along the Nene Valley cycle route (didn't even know it was there!), but this was a lovely route out of the town along the river Nene and then (after negotiating another industrial area) through some picturesque Northamptonshire villages. After Quinton the route goes along a busy road up to Salcey Forest - this is a section that you want to get over as quickly as possible, but which also is a long slog up a hill. With the traffic passing just a fraction away at great speed I was pleased to see the entrance to Salcey Forest ahead. We spent about hour making use of the forest facilities including the toilets (smelly) and the cafe (excellent). As a treat for getting there we had lunch in the cafe - sandwiches, soups and salads we much appreciated by all, many thanks to the staff at the cafe for filling up all our water bottles. We also fixed two slow punctures on the bikes which had been slowing us up. After Salcey Forest we sailed on through more villages and were going really well until our second crash of the day. This time it was Ben, who misjudged a move onto the kerb and ended up going flying over the handlebars of his bike. He ended up with large amounts of grazing to both knees and elbows - good job I had a first aid kit. We awarded him 10's for artistic merit, it really was a most spectacular dive! Eventually we reached the outskirts of Milton Keynes, nearly there (or so we thought!). Milton Keynes is great for cycle routes but 1. it helps if you know the city and 2. it is a long windy way from one side to the other. It took us a further hour and a half to reach our friends house in Kents Hill!

 

Day 4 (33 miles) Our friends in Milton Keynes were fantastic and after being washed, fed and a good nights sleep it was hard to leave and continue in the light drizzle that had descended. We were even provided with a packed lunch to keep us going - this was much appreciated later in the day as the weather deteriorated even further and it took us longer than expected to get to our half way point at Winslow. Part of the reason for this was, once again, the circuitous route of the cycle paths out of Milton Keynes. We passed through too many underpasses to mention trying to maintain a westerly direction, often having to check the signs on the roads to make sure we were still going the right way. Eventually we got clear of the city and started to follow a mix of quiet lanes and cycle track to Winslow, this is when the heavens opened and we cycled through what can only be described as a deluge. Our waterproofs couldn't cope - we got wet from the top down from the rain and the bottom up from the water on the ground. It seeped in through the ventilation holes in our helmets and within minutes we were soaked to our underwear. There was no where to stop for shelter so we just kept on going, as we approached Winslow it eased off and we stopped for lunch.

As you can see we were totally wet and muddy but it wasn't cold and for some reason we all found the whole experience hysterically funny with the slightest comment about something making us all laugh uncontrollably.  

 

 

 

After a quick lunch and stocking up on energy drinks in Winslow we continued on to Bicester.  We were all flagging a bit by now, I hadn't actually let on that this was our longest day. We stopped at Tesco's on the way out of the town to stock up on food for dinner and then cycled the last 8 miles to the campsite just past Bletchingdon - Greenhill Leisure Park which was just what we needed, it had a well stocked campsite shop, a games barn and absolutely superb washrooms. Luckily the sun had now come out and we laid all our wet stuff on the grass to dry. We stayed here for two nights while Tim went back to Derby to collect the car. On the last day of our cycling tour I cycled from the campsite to Witney so that is where we will start from next summer when we continue the journey.

Before that, however, I have some gaps to fill in. The first one of these is the section of the St Oswalds Way from Warkworth to Rothbury - that is planned for two weeks time. The second gap is the last section of the Pennine Way from Hebden Bridge to Edale and then continuing through Derbyshire to Derby - we will hopefully be doing this at the end of April next year.

Watch this space...

 

Summer holidays - part 1 - walking in the Yorkshire Dales

Where has the summer gone?

We have been so busy walking and cycling that I haven't kept up with the blog so now here it is!

In July we went back to the lovely Bainbridge Ings campsite in Hawes to complete the section of the Pennine Way from Thwaite down to Gargrave.

Day 1 - Thwaite to Hawes - 8 miles

 

 

On the first day we took the 'Little Red Bus' from Hawes to Thwaite and then walked back to Hawes over Great Shunner Fell.

The Hawes village bus does a regular run to collect  and deliver train passengers to the station at Garsdale Head, in between these journeys it provides an as required service to other local villages. I phoned the driver on his mobile and we arranged to meet the bus in Hawes Market Square at 11am. The bus is a little old with squeaky, bouncy seats but the children thought the whole experience was great fun!

After being dropped off in Thwaite we set off south on the Pennine Way, following the track up onto Great Shunner Fell.

At this point the weather wasn't too bad but rain clouds were threatening, it alternated between the top being clear to being enveloped in misty cloud.

The boys are the specks in the distance trying to get to the top first - which at this point is clear.

Almost at the top with an amazing view back down Swaledale.

  By the time we got to the top the cloud had closed in again and we were swamped by a swirly mist. We sat in the shelter of the summit cairn and ate our lunch quickly.

About 15 minutes after leaving the summit we were back into the sunshine, the breeze made sure that we were quickly dried out. It was a long walk back down the track to Hawes so we stopped in Hardraw for refreshments before making our way back through the fields to Hawes.

Day 2 - Hawes to Horton in Ribblesdale 13 miles

Livi and I set off from the campsite, through the hamlet of Gayle and then up Rottenstone Hill onto Dodd Fell.

 After the intial grassy paths out of Hawes the route joins the Cam High Road which is an old packhorse trail. Navigation is easy now as we follow the track all the way into Ribblesdale and our lunch time rendevous with the rest of the family.

The half-way point of todays walk - still on the track!

The first view of Pen-y-gent in the distance. I wanted to climb this with the children but they have gone on strike so I will have to come back and walk this another time - perhaps as part of the 'Three Peaks Challenge'.

At last we reached the point where the Pennine Way leaves the Cam High Road, and were met by the rest of the family who walked up the track to meet us. We sat eating with views of the Ribblehead viaduct in the distance - didn't see any trains though.

After lunch Livi went in the car with the others to Horton while James joined me on the track which initially took us over Ling Gill bridge and then along the top of the Ling Gill ravine the sides of which are so steep that some rare plants thrive there being out of reach of their usual predators.

 We are truly into limestone country now and start coming across pot holes and streams like this that disappear into the ground. James and I continued along a grassy track down into Horton finishing in a heavy downpour that left us absolutely soaked.

Day 3 Horton in Ribblesdale to Gargrave - 20 miles

On my own today so Tim dropped me off in Horton where I set off up the path that took me to the south side of Pen-y-gent.

I was feeling a bit worn out today but luckily I had a bag of jelly babies in my pocket, these are fantastic for an energy boost! The path up towards Pen-y-gent was easy to follow and is obviously well trodden.

 From the brow of the hill it was a downhill run along a path which luckily is mostly boardwalk as it is very marshy. After a short bit of road walking I set off up over Fountains Fell - another steep climb.

The top of Fountains Fell looking south towards Malham.

This bull was standing just the other side of the stile, I called him Boris, he was not at all interested in me but I kept close to the wall just in case!

I then headed down past Malham Tarn..

then down the Watlowes valley towards Malham pavement.

This is the view from the top of Malham Cove on the limestone pavement, I didn't get any closer to the edge as it is a very long way down.  From here you have to make your way carefully across the limestone pavement and then down hundreds of steps to reach the cove at the bottom. I passed a lot of out of breath people making their way up to the top.

At the bottom I sat and had my lunch before continuing on into the village of Malham.

I was going to stop at Malham but it was only early afternoon so I decided to continue on down to Gargrave. This is the view back towards Malham with the cove in the background.

This last part of the walk was low level following the river valley, making it easy at the end of a long day.

Even the navigation wasn't too difficult.

Over the hill I walked down into Gargrave where I met Tim and the others in the car right beside the Eshton Road Caravan Park.

So I have now completed the Pennine Way from Hadrians Wall all the way down to Hebden Bridge. I plan to return to Hebden Bridge in the spring and walk down to Edale, or as an alternative we might use mountain bikes and follow the Pennine Cycle route.
   
 
 

 

Gargrave to Hebden Bridge 30 miles and a wild camp.

Having skipped a bit of the Pennine Way I travelled down to Gargrave on the 10th of June to join Sue and Megz the dog for a two day walk to Hebden Bridge. This little campsite (Eshton Road Caravan Site) in Gargrave is part of a small, quiet caravan park, we were one of only two tents. The other tent was also occupied by people walking the Pennine Way. This site plus the various pubs, cafes and shops make Gargrave an excellent overnight stop. The following morning we packed up and walked into the centre of Gargrave along the Leeds-Liverpool canal.

We didn't go far, just to the excellent Dalesman Cafe for a cooked breakfast.

This display of second hand baskets for sale was on the railings outside, I was tempted to buy at least one but didn't really want to have to tie it onto my rucksack.

The cafe also sells sweets in the lovely old fashioned jars.

Outside is a Pennine Way milepost - the only one like this that I have seen.

After leaving Gargrave across the fields it was then back along the canal. Easy walking but not for long,

This bridge was amazing - two bridges one on top of the other, this is where the A59 crosses the canal.

After leaving the canal we then passed through fields which led to moorland, alternately dropping down into valleys before climbing up onto moorland again. On arriving at Ickornshaw to find the toilets (and possible source of drinking water) closed we made a detour into Cowling to stock up on water and ice lollies. It was getting on towards late afternoon by now but Ickornshaw was on a busy main road and there was no sign of anywhere to camp so we decided to press on to Pondon.

When we got to Pondon, however, there was no sign of a campsite there either so we had no choice but to slog on up the hill to Upper Heights campsite which we hoped would be open. It was now about 7.30pm and poor Megz was on her last legs. So just imagine our reaction when we got to Upper Heights to discover that it had closed two years ago!! We spoke to the guy who used to run it, at first he suggested we go to the site in Pondon!?! but after we said we would rather wild camp than go back down the hill said that we would be fine up on the moor, he would OK it with the gamekeeper. Another mile up the track was Top Withens a ruin that is said to be the inspiration for Wuthering Heights, he thought that might be a good place to set up camp. We walked on up the track looking for somewhere to set up camp, the ruin was too spooky to camp next to but a bit further on was a small enclosure with a wooden bench which gave us a flat area to set up the tent. By now it was about 9pm, thank goodness it was the middle of summer so we still had light to cook dinner. I was a bit nervous about wild camping but Sue has wild camped a few times and assured me we would be fine, plus we had the dog - she would lick people to death!

These pictures were taken the next morning and as you can see we survived. The night was not without incident however, at some point in the middle of the night I was woken by torchlight. The light was bobbing about and then swept across the tent, I sat up quickly, heart thumping, and then the light disappeared. After a while I must have gone back to sleep again because the next thing I knew it was morning. I told Sue what had happened and she said she was glad to have been asleep. I think it was probably just someone night walking (why I don't know) with a head torch on and must have just looked towards the tent as they passed. Anyway the experience of waking up on that high moorland with such a fantastic view more than made up for any scares I might have had.

This is the view from our tent looking across the valley to the North, with the ruins of Top Withins to the left. Wild camping was a great experience and one I hope to repeat sometime. It also meant that we started our second days walk from the top of the hill.

We were quickly down into the valley on the other side and walked along the banks of this reservoir with the glorious Rhododenron bushes flowering on the other side.

After another stretch of moorland walking, and a slight detour because we missed the path, we made another detour to visit May's Farmshop at Highgate Farm. This is a gem of a place, I asked for a pot of tea so the lad running the shop took the money then shut the shop door and went down to the Farmhouse Kitchen to make it! It was lovely sitting outside in the sunshine. They also have a toilet which is an original composting toilet (a deep hole in the ground) with a bench like seat with a hole in (we had one just the same when I was a child living in Leicestershire, as an outdoor toilet, we had a proper one in the house).  When I went in and shut the door it was completely dark, no light, so I had to use the head torch.

After our refreshment stop we continued over the fields for a few more miles before dropping down into the town of Hebden Bridge.

Thanks to Sue and Megz for walking with me and sharing some great experiences. At the end of July I will be returning to Hawes to fill in the gap from Thwaite to Gargrave. I am really looking forwards to this as it is supposed to contain some of the best bits of the Pennine Way - Great Shunner Fell, Pen-y-gent and Malham. Fingers crossed for good weather.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Bowes to Thwaite 14 miles

Walked this section on Thursday 3rd June 2010. James and I set off from Bowes very early in the morning, Tim and the others went off to the RVI in Newcastle to get Kez's ingrowing toe nails seen to. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and we set off in good spirits keen to get going and away from the A66, the noise from which followed us for the first hour out of Bowes.
 
 

Eventually we climbed up out of the valley onto the moorland and at last put the A66 behind us. The weather was really warming up by now so we stopped to change into shorts. It was just a little further on from here that we had our naked man experience! It is quite secluded up here so when we turned a corner to walk down past a couple of cottages we startled a man who was just having a quiet stroll around his garden. He did have a dressing gown on but it was open at the front, he retreated into his cottage very quickly.

This sheep was sporting the latest look in wooly garters!!

This was a lovely section, having left Bowes and the A66 in the valley we passed through a number of upland farms, mostly sheep farms but also some cattle.

Then we were up onto the high moorland, lucky the weather was this clear and sunny because although the first section was an easy to follow track it soon degenerated into braided paths through the peat bogs. At times we had to leave the 'main' path to pick our way across the tussocks, we passed a man going the other way doing the same thing and we pointed out the way to each other before hopping on.

At last after 3 1/2 hours we reached Tan Hill and the highest pub in England.

Time for a nice cold half of lager!

We also had lunch here but it wasn't the best pub meal we have ever had, James' burger had to go back because it was pink on the inside. Lots of people stop here though, walkers, cyclists and motorcyclists. While we were here a horse and cart pulled in, probably on their way to the Appleby Horse Fair which was on this week.

James made some new friends.

After Tan Hill it was easy, though hot walking along a track which took us through to the Yorkshire Dales. This is the view as we started to descend down off the moorland and into the village of Keld. We stopped here for a well earned ice lolly at the farm where there is also a lovely campsite.

After Keld there is a noticeable change of scenery and you definitely feel that you have entered the Yorkshire Dales. We continued on to the village of Thwaite where Tim picked us up in the car. The journey from here back to Hawes by road goes over the Buttertubs pass, very scenic and obviously a favourite of people on motorbikes and in open top sports cars.

The following day Kez had to go back to the RVI with Tim to have her toenails operated on so the children and I stayed in Hawes and did a short walk to Hardraw force waterfall. Some people were walking round the back of it but there isn't much of a path so we stayed in front. While we were there a couple of men absailed down from the top right next to the waterfall, I would have taken a picture but the camera had just run out of battery.

Because of Kez's toe nail operation and all the driving back and forwards to Newcastle we didn't get as much walking done as I had hoped so will be going back to Hawes at the end of July to carry on.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Three days on the Pennine Way. Greenhead to High Force Waterfall. 56miles.

Last weekend I began to head south along the Pennine Way, being a Bank Holiday weekend I managed three consecutive days of walking. After work on Thursday I loaded up my Rucksack and took the train down to Newcastle followed by the train to Haltwhistle. From there I had a lovely evening walk along lanes and across fields to Greenhead where I stayed the night in the Hostel. This is one of those YHA Hostels which is independently owned (it is actually owned by and run from the hotel over the road). Here I met a large group of cyclists who were cycling Hadrians Wall- from Ravensglass to Newcastle, as well as a pensioner who was walking the Pennine Way North to South to raise money for WaterAid.

As you can see in the picture above it had just started to rain as I left the Hostel in Greenhead on Friday morning. I set off along the old A69 out of the village, this has now been left as a dead end road since the bypass was built but it is still possible to follow this and join up with the Pennine Way on its route down from Hadrian's Wall.

The point where I had to cross the A69 was treacherous to say the least. It is three lanes here and the traffic thunders past at 70 mph, add to this the spray thrown up by the lorries after a rain shower and it becomes a dangerous game. I waited several moments before walking across as quickly as possible, I heard similar tales from other walkers.

As I walked up the hill onto moorland, and away from the A69 the weather cleared up a bit and I looked back to see Hadrian's Wall along the crags over to the East.

The path was quite easy to follow here but it didn't last...

...after these few flagstones the path became very faint across the high moorland. The weather also changed for the worse, I stopped at the barn and put all my waterproofs on. As I climbed higher I could see the rain storms as they came towards me, and when they hit it was like walking in a bathroom shower!! I soon found that my waterproof coat had a design fault in the hood, namely that it did nothing to keep the rain out of my eyes and face, so much so it was difficult to see where I was going and I lost the path for a while. I was soon back on track though and heading downhill again into the South Tyne valley. With the change of landscape came a change of weather and I had sunshine for the rest of the day.

The meeting of the walkers..several times over the three days I met other walkers mostly going the other way (most people seem to go South to North).

This pretty little valley is actually the border between Northumberland and Cumbria so at this point (with the exception of 18 miles still to do)  I achieved walking the length of my home county. 

Counsulting the map to ensure I get the last bit of the day right. (Thanks to Andrew, a fellow North to South walker for taking the picture)

At last I reached Alston, the highest market town in England. This is a pretty little town with a steeply cobbled main street running through the centre.

I stayed at the YHA Hostel in Alston, again with other Pennine Way walkers and also more cyclists - this time doing the C2C cycle route from the west coast to the east coast. Alston was a lovely hostel with great facilities, I enjoyed a full english breakfast on Saturday morning and just as I left the lady that runs it gave me a £5 donation for Cancer ResearchUK.

So on to day 2 - Alston to Dufton - a 21 mile stretch which includes the highest point of the Pennine Way over Cross Fell. I had friends walking with me today and it was great to have company on this, one of the most challenging sections of the Way.

The first part of the walk was easy enough, along the Tyne valley again and then up the 'corpse road' from Garrigill. This track continued for 7 miles, almost to the top of Cross Fell. Just before the summit is a bothy called Greg's Hut which was a welcome respite from the weather, which by now had really closed in around us. We stopped there to have lunch, some people also sleep there and it must be haven if coming off Cross Fell late in the afternoon in bad weather.

On top of Cross Fell, in thick cloud and a very cold north east wind. Note the compass in my hand, without a compass bearing it would have been very difficult to acurately find the path off Cross Fell and onwards towards Great Dun Fell. At the top of this fell is a Radar Station but the cloud was so thick we almost missed it!! After another couple of hours we came down off the fells and into the village of Dufton.

We stayed Saturday night in a campsite in Kirkby Stephen, not without mishap due to the wrong tent poles and a missing sleeping bag! Less said the better...

Day 3 Dufton to High Force - 18 miles.

We all set off together from Dufton up the track towards High Cup Nick. Although the weather looks sunny it was still a really cold wind blowing from the North East. 

So although at this point coats were being rapidly shed, they just as quickly got put back on as we climbed higher and the track became more exposed.

Looking back in the other direction were great views of the Lakeland fells.

On the track up to High Cup Nick with Dufton Pike in the background. I am beginning to feel like a proper Pennine Way walker and actually getting quite fit now!!

The view from the top of High Cup Nick was absolutely stunning, we would have lingered here for longer than a few minutes but for the biting North East wind which was making it very, very cold. Livi is sat on the edge of the cliffs that form the end of this amazing glaciated valley.

Cauldron Snout waterfall, apparently it is normally bigger than this but rainfall has been low recently. Actually I am quite glad it was only this big as the path involves climbing down the rocks right next to the waterfall and it is a lot steeper than it looks in the photo.

From Cauldron Snout waterfall we followed the Tees river all the way through to High Force waterfall. Today was a long walk into a biting wind, great views but too cold for hanging around to enjoy them. After High Force it was into the car to drive home again, we will return to continue along the Pennine Way at the beginning of June.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Great Whittington to Once Brewed 19 miles.

This was a long, long, long walk with a lot of up bits and down bits, by the end we all had aching knees, hips and calf muscles.

To start todays walk, Livi and I were dropped off in Great Whittington which was the point on the St Oswald's Way where we had finished last time.

We had just a couple of miles of field walking before...

...reaching the point where the St Oswald's Way joins the Hadrian's Wall Path. At this point it is right along side the road called The Military Way, which is a B road but one which cars and lorries thunder along at great speed. The fact that it is a Roman road makes it very straight!!

Unfortunately quite a lot of this section of the Wall path follows the route of the Military Road. Luckily the footpath is separated from the road for most of the time.

This section is mostly farmland with little actual evidence of Wall.

But as you walk along you start to spot earthworks and ditches and see that although the wall may be gone the evidence still remains of its existence.

It was at this point that we caught up with a group of University students who were walking the whole path (84 miles) in four days. One of the group had a striking resemblence to Andy Murray so we nicknamed them the Andy Murray Crew! At this point there were about 15 of them but when we saw them the next day the group had halved in number - I think 21 miles a day might have been a bit much!

At this time of year the fields are full of sheep and their lambs. We spotted a number of very cute ones, many of which were so unafraid they came right up to us and sniffed our trousers and hands. 

This was a Herdwick ewe whose lamb had a black coat with white ears.

A couple of fields further on we came across these sheep whose farmer must have great skill in writing with a spray can as all their numbers were really clearly written.

Number 65 was one of the cutest!

Heavenfield marks the end of the St Oswald's Way, so just that other bit to fill in then...

At last after almost 5 miles walking on the Hadrian's Wall Path we came across this short section of actual wall. It was quite exciting at the time but after walking the rest of the way to Once Brewed we definitely saw plenty more.

The rest of our party caught the Hadrian's Wall Bus - the aptly numbered AD122 - and joined us at Chollerford. After some lunch we continued all together with Margaret here being the one leading the way.

At Brocolitia the three youngest decided that they had done enough for the day and stopped to catch the AD122 back to the Youth Hostel.

I was joined by Diana, a school friend, who accomanied us through to Once Brewed.

After Brocolitia the Wall path starts to become very up and downy as can be seen in the next picture which looks back towards Housteads. The crags, however, are quite breathtaking and the views were amazing. It was very rewarding to look back and see the bits we had done. After a while though and being late in the day we decided to take the parallel but slightly lower path which was a little easier on the legs!

Sycamores gap - made famous by Kevin Costner in Robin Hood.

At last after 10 hours of walking we arrived at Once Brewed Youth Hostel where Tim welcomed us in with a cup of tea and dinner of Pasta to replenish all those lost calories!! At least tomorrows walk is only about 7 miles.

Kirkwhelpington - Great Whittington - 10 miles

After our night at the Youth Hostel we began the day with a lovely cooked breakfast - bacon, sausages and eggs bought from the shops in Rothbury yesterday. Then Livi and I were dropped off in Kirkwhelpington to start todays walk. We set off  initally walking along lanes through several upland sheep farms.

These were some of hundreds of sheep we saw today. Unfortunately not all of them were alive, we saw two dead sheep but also lots of baby lambs - the realities of farming life.

After a few miles we came to the village of Great Bavington, with streets like these it reminded us of Larkrise from the TV programme. The house on the left used to be the village school.

After Great Bavington we walked across fields to Little Bavington, from there it was two miles of road walking to Hallington. We passed these two lovely horses, they were having a great time racing round their field and were very interested in us.

As you come into Hallington you pass these man made water races which take water from nearby reservoirs down to Tyneside and Newcastle. Livi and I stopped to play Pooh sticks - I won.

Although you can't really see it from this photo there were great views north back towards the Cheviots and the rest of Northumberland.

We then walked down to the village of Great Whittington where we had to finish our walk for today.

Today was also Mothers day, you remember in my previous post I said that the children had been shopping? Well this is what they bought for me...

a St Oswalds Way T-shirt - front

and back...

a St Oswalds Way fridge magnet and...

a pair of lovely mohair socks, which are very warm and according to the label never get smelly! (They are currently under test!)

Thank-you children for my presents (and Tim for paying), now I just have to finish the last bits of the St Oswalds Way.
   

Craster to Warkworth - 13 1/2 miles

Last Sunday was wet...

Kez was wet...

I was wet...

the path was wet...

but we soldiered on, battling against the North East coast winds!

This house is part of the Howick estate, built by Earl Grey (of the tea), as a bathing house. There are steps down to a bathing area in the rocks below. It looked a bit cold and wild for any bathing today.

Just look at those chimney pots, this is obviously not your average seaside cottage. I wonder what it is like inside.
 

This house is also on the Howick estate. It is a replica of a stone age dwelling of a type which has been found in this area. The actual dwelling would have been larger than this.

From the picture on the display boards it looks like a cosy, lively place to live. Kez thought they may have been a bit cold, especially given the weather we were experiencing!!

With a warm fire, some fish to cook and furs to sit on it could almost have been cozy! I don't think Kez was convinced.

From Howick we continued down the coast to Boulmer and Kez made a couple of new friends...

Barty Owl and

a Tern.

Between Boulmer and Alnmouth we went through yet another caravan park, although the accomodation was a little more eccentric in this one!

After Alnmouth, Kez hopped (literally) into the car while I continued on down the coast. The first bit was on the cycle path, a bit boring but interest was added by various sculptures. This first one is a mile post, 4 miles to go today, how many to Helston?

After the cycle path I walked through the dunes and then back down to the beach for my last section on the North East coast.

My last view of the North Sea before turning inland to Warkworth.

This is the old bridge and gatehouse into Warkworth, now only open to pedestrians. This was a lovely end to the walk today. After crossing the bridge you walk along the river and then up through the town to the castle.
 

Hope you enjoyed todays walk. Next I am temporarily skipping a section and will be doing Rothbury to Kirkwhelpington. Perhaps the weather will be drier.....some warm sunshine would be nice...OK it is March I'll maybe have to wait for warmer weather.
  

Bamburgh to Craster - 14 miles

I was listening to a discussion on the radio last week as I was driving home from work. One of the women was talking about why she doesn't take her children out for a walk at this time of year because it is cold, wet and muddy and everyone just gets miserable. Anyone coming the other way would have seen a mad looking woman shouting at the radio. You don't have to go out and get muddy, anyone wearing the correct clothing and is prepared for the weather can have a very enjoyable walk. Anyway, enough of my ranting, the point is James and I walked 14 miles this weekend and had a thoroughly - muddy and wet - good time.

As you can see we are suitably attired in our winter gear, and ready for all weathers, which was just as well as that is what was thrown at us!

We did decide, however, that taking the footpath route was perhaps not the best option!!! This muddy field was the result of a lot of rain and cows. We decided to take the road instead...

 
   
The advantage of taking the road route meant that we were closer to the sea so every now and again we could walk along the beach. This is the stretch that leads to Seahouses.

Seahouses Harbour. You can take boat trips from here out to the Farne Islands, famous for both the birds that live and nest there, as well as being the setting for Grace Darling's heroic rescue of sailors off a sinking ship. There is a museum celebrating Grace Darling's life in Bamburgh. There weren't any trips going to the Farne Islands today - perhaps the sea was a bit rough!! In fact most of Seahouses seemed to be closed.

After Seahouses we continued to walk (along the road again) until we reached Beadnell. We laughed at this sign as just moments before a young lad in a car had appeared, at great speed, around the corner and proceeded to overtake another car, doing anything but 'driving carefully'.   

Is this how old I will be this year?????

At Beadnell the St Oswald's Way follows the road through the village but it is well worth taking the road straight ahead down to the picturesque harbour. (We actually went this way looking for the toilets but didn't find them). Because of the turn of the bay this is, apparently, the only west facing harbour on the east coast of England.

The three disused lime kilns that form the harbour buildings are in the care of the National Trust. Although small it is still a working harbour as can be seen from the stacks of lobster pots. From the harbour we made our way through the sand dunes onto the beach.

As we walked around Beadnell Bay we passed these two men trying to fly this huge kite, I am not sure who was flying who. It was taking the strength of both of them to hold it down. I expected them to go flying across the bay at any moment!

At this point the tide was coming in quickly and we had to walk fast to get to the end of the bay and then through the dunes to Low Newton by the sea. Here we were met by Tim, Kez and Ben with lunch and a warm flask of coffee. I didn't get any photos of this as it started to rain and we jumped into the car for some shelter.

After Low Newton we headed towards Newton Pools where we came across this bench made entirely of beach finds (mostly driftwood and fishing remnants) with a backing screen woven from willow.

The footbridge across the river is the route of the St Oswald's Way. This picture sums up the walk as we make yet another detour caused by flooding. To be expected at this time of year I suppose.

  James was getting a bit tired now so we were relieved to see this little causeway just before Dunstanburgh Castle, a few metres before we had been worried we might be forced to turn back and take the road route through Embleton. We continued on across the hill under the castle and were met by the welcoming sight of Tim, Kez and Ben walking up from Craster to meet us.

Just to return to the point I made at the beginning, it was a joy to do this walk with my son where we could chat to each other without any interruption from TV or computer games. He was so proud of himself for completing the whole 14 miles. I have been out today and bought him a new pair of walking boots as a reward!!