The final leg

It is over and this might just be our final entry unless something noteworthy happens in the next two days. 

Today's walk was our longest yet, 16 miles! We knew we had a long way to go so set off early at 7:50 plus we were anxious to leave our bad B&B. They were nice people who are trying to make a little extra money but they should not be in the hospitality business.

At the very beginning we had a very steep climb and we were glad we had fresh legs. Once we reached the top the views were pretty spectacular! I had dreaded that climb and it turned out to be no big deal, the hard part was yet to come. After the climb we entered the LittleBeck woods, the woods were beautiful and you felt like you were in a fairyland. We past a waterfall and crossed a stream where we first submerged our boots in water! After that we headed across the moors which were indeed the very worst part of the day. Our guide book warned that they might be boggy but we never imagined that we would be in ankle deep water! It was just awful, there are no other words to describe it. Once out of the bogs our walk ended with a three mile hike along the cliffs and finally down to Robin Hood's Bay. It is a lovely little village and quite different than the others places we have been. For the first time the homes are made of brick and not stone. We have not seen one wooden house the whole time we have been here.

Tradition has it that you must first put your feet in the Irish Sea at St. Bees when you start and at the end you must put your feet in the North Sea. We were very tired but we did make our way to the sea. It was a long downhill walk which frightened us because we were not sure we would be able to climb back up but we had to do it. We were just about to the water when we heard all this screaming and we turned to see our California friends who had been waiting for us to arrive. They had made friends with some locals who joined in cheering us on! Nice folks! We ended the evening with a nice meal and in a few short minutes we will both be fast asleep dreaming of home and family and good friends! Thank you for all you kind words of support.

One more day!

We left the Lion Inn on Blakey ridge and walked 14 miles to Grosmont, where tourists flock ( we've seen none) to ride the North York Moors Railway, featured as the Hogwarts Express in the Harry Potter movie. The tunnel here is thought to be the oldest passenger train tunnel in the world (remember they lie).  

Grosmont is a gritty, industrial, soot laden    Town, although it has a store, gallery, and used bookstore.  But, really, think Dickens. 

To the walk:  we left Blakey Ridge in rain and walked the winding road, with fog chasing us. Soon, we left the road for a wide path through expansive  rain and windswept moors. Think Wuthering Heights. We rounded a curve to behold valley views and drumlins? From glaciers? Help us here. Something very new. Sheep, as always, our companions. 

The topography quickly changed as we descended the moors to the valley of Glaisdale where we enjoyed hot soup and fellowship in, of course, a pub. 

After, we walked on a stone path through  a forest along a stream.  Think Shakespeare's  Midsummer Night's Dream. 

We dined with our dear friends, walking companions, West Coasters, Jason and Nicola. Happy Birthday, Jason!  Take the penicillin, Nicola.  We so enjoy walking with you two!

Tomorrow, big day!  Steep ascent to begin and 16 miles. ME says," No stopping for soup tomorrow." She is a hiker on a mission!  We have dinner reservations for 6 with friends, so hike we will!  

 

Thoughts on nearing the end

Things we will not miss:

1. Misery Farm

2. Mountains and rocks

3. English breakfast which includes: roasted tomatoes, mushrooms, baked beans, some kind of meat and slimy eggs!

4. Rain

5. Unmarked paths

6. English miles ( we are sure they are longer)

7. Stiles

8. Bullocks

9. Sheep poop

10. Pub food.

Things we will miss:

1. Warm and friendly English people

2. Beautiful scenery

3. Fellow walkers

4. Quaint villages

5. Katie's shower

6. Wild flowers

7. Flat paths

8. WiFi

9. Grasmere

10. Laughter

Happy Hikers!

Our kind B&B owner (Neil Young look alike) drove us to Clay Bank Top where we commenced the trail with our

new angels of mercy, Jason & Nicola.  It was an initial uphill charge, but the rest was a simply delightful walk on a wide path, some of which was a disused railway bed  from the ore mining days.  It was too good to be true.

  These North York Moors, rich in plant and bird life, are never ending, surprisingly green and colorful, even though the heather isn't in bloom. Sheep, grouse butts (for hunters),  and cairns dot the moors. 

 As we turned up the path to the Inn, a gentleman inquired if we were Coast to Coasters, eager to know about the walk, as he and his wife had hiked a bit in the Lake District.  That was enough for us. With tongue in cheek, we replied, "Oh,you'll  have no problem at all."

We walked today with Jason and Nicola, enjoying their company. The previous evening at dinner, they assured us even we would arrive here, at The Lion Inn, one of the fourth highest inns in Britain, at noon. We laughed, guessing more like 3:00. Well, the laugh is on us!  A mere 9 miles in 3 hours. Piece of cake.  We don't know what to do with our free time!  What a nice problem.  

Off the grid

Tomorrow we are walking to Blakey Ridge the highest point in the North Yorkshire Moors and we may not have wi fi so do not panic if you do not see a post tomorrow. We promise to fill you in on our adventures as soon as we can. Only THREE more days!!!!!!

Recovering

Last night we spent the night In a B&B that reminded me of my grandmothers house, lots of angels and teddy bears etc. I counted 45 angels hanging from the beams in her living room and more angels along the stair rail. In the bathroom I saw my first lilac tub, sink, and toilet. Ann was a good hearted woman who has helped many weary hikers over the years. While we were at Four Bell View Cottage Ann rang up the Sherpa people and reserved a seat for us on the luggage van today. My screaming calves were very grateful. 

Our van arrived at nine and as we rode along John our driver pointed out the path we should have taken and we were happy to be with the luggage.

We arrived at Dromonby Farm on the outskirts of Great Broughton. It is a beautiful Victorian home run by an old hippie named Dave who has bent over backwards to make us feel comfortable. Before lunch he drove us to Stokesley where we spent a few hours. I was able to get more cream for my stinging nettles  rash and we sat down for the first real lunch we have had in over a week.

Dave picked up us at two and we returned to our B&B and were soon joined by speedy walkers and our new angels Jason and Nicola. These are the two people we first met and ID as tennis pro and stunt woman, they now have names! They have replaced Ralf and Sonja, the German couple who saved us daily during the first week. It was Jason who scratched "no Sue" into the gravel yesterday!

Dave ushered us all to the local pub where we had the worst food of the trip. I ordered Chicken Parm and was served a fried chicken patty with melted cheese, no tomato sauce to be found! Yuck!

We are now back and getting prepped to get back on the trail tomorrow. The prepping involves bathing our bodies in Bio-freeze and taking ibuprofen! We calculated today that we have about 40 miles to go in three days. We think we have already walked 132 miles! Everyone has told us that tomorrow will be an easy walk but we no longer believe anyone because we now know that they all lie and we are pretty sure that English miles are longer than American Miles!

Tricky ending

We left Danby Wiske in great spirits assured that this was a short easy day. It was very easy until the last three miles which were all uphill. We were both wearing our hiking pants with zip off legs and we converted them to shorts about a mile into the ascent! We found out today what nettles looked like and will try hard to stay away from them in the future! We both have welts on our legs and my left hand and arm still burn from hitting them. It is a nasty plant akin to jelly fish! We met a new group from Australia and another angel who helped us when we feared we were lost. The uphill area reminded us of Colton only steeper. We walked through fields of crops, barley, beans, alfalfa and hay. Once when we thought we were lost we came upon the words " no Sue" scratched in the dirt! What nice friends we have met! Our B&B is interesting, not one of our best but it is clean. Anne, the owner seems a bit eccentric but kind. We are exhausted after walking about 60 miles in the last four days. Tomorrow looks like a very hard day so we are skipping it and riding in the van with our luggage! After tomorrow we have three days left and we plan to walk all three, say a prayer that we make it. The last day looks very hard but we are determined to walk or limp into Robin Hood's Bay!

Oh, what a wonderful day!

Yahoo!   We didn't get lost once! Knute, you are no longer Hawkeye, ME is!   We even arrived early--too early--B&B not even open.  Wow! This is a first!  But nothing to do here.  Very small.  Three uniformed school children walked off the public bus.   But, oh yes, good time to organise suitcases.  Yes, how pathetic, but you have to do this kind if trip to know about such organisation.  And, as Matt, says, we are organised women.  

Lovely walk today.  The wildflowers continue to be breathtaking!  Sue identifies and ME  captures with stunning photography.  All of these gorgeous flowers brighten our walks, as do your comments, dear friends and family.  

Oh, met a cyclist, aka Wally, Bill Bender!!!  See photo of ME!  Met 2 lovely women, mom and daughter, horse back riding

for cancer.  

Dinner at pub with fellow hikers from    Tustin, CA, Greg!  Close to Newport Beach, Matt.  

Another great day, and our German friends emailed us.  Lovely dinner with our Canadian friends last night. 

Those who wander might be lost!

Before we left Reeth we checked the weather and the forecast called for rain all day. At that point we checked the map and made the decision to walk on the road for the first three miles and then rejoin the hiking path. We thought we could go faster on the road than on the rocks and we were hoping to stay dry. Well, we somehow missed our turn and ended up walking eleven miles on the road!  The roads here are very narrow and there are no shoulders and they drive on the wrong side of the road so our walk today was as scary as walking through fields of bullocks. We did today's walk in record time for us and we walked into town at 1:30. Our early arrival gave us time to walk around the city for a bit. It is the biggest place we have been in since we left St. Bees. Lots of little shops but it is Sunday and very little was open. We made our way to our B&B which is in a very old section of the city called French Gate. This section was once held by the French after one of the many wars they fought with England. There is an old castle here. The home we are staying in dates back to the 1300's. We are meeting our Canadian heroes for dinner and then we will be in bed early because we have 14 miles to go tomorrow!

Arrived in Richmond

We have arrived in Richmond and are staying a house that was probably built in the 1300's.

Rain, rain, go away!

Last night we basked in the luxury of a lovely B&B in Keld, population 24, and dined there with a British couple touring the Pennines in their Morgan, a young S. Cal. couple (stunt woman and tennis instructor; she had blisters--not us!), and 2 Dutchmen hiking the Pennines. 

This morning we set off walking along the banks of Swale

river, a path of verdant grasses, pinks, bluebells, and even white masses of leeks (you know by the smell).  

This is James Herriot land and if you watched the PBS series or read his books, you'd know you were there. These Yorkshire Dales (goodbye Lake District) are fields of the greenest grass, masses of golden buttercups, populated by Swalesdale sheep ( and their poop), sectioned by dry stone walls, of which England boasts 125,000 miles. We squeeze through breaks in the walls just big enough for us, but not if we keep eating the ploughman's breakfasts. 

As we walked on a bridge over a babbling brook, surrounded by moss laden trees and intertwining vines, Vinny told us that if we believed, this was the spot of fairies. 

New friends-Brits, Kay, Emma& Vinny, arrived just when we needed confirmation of our direction (we are blessed) & we walked until tea time with them, Vinny treating us to our first tea & fruitcake with local cheese (odd but tasty) at a tea room. 

Then our Canadians came upon us, happy to see us ( whew-  they have a GPS) and we walked and talked the rest of the trek to Reeth, the Capitol of Swalesdale, one of the nicest villages, but we're too tired to explore--in bed at 7:00. Another lovely B&B! 

Although we walked in 7 hours of rain, high winds, and sleet, our hearts were warm by our walking companions.

Keld marked the halfway point!  We've walked 82 miles and taxied for 26. Last night at dinner the Dutchmen suggested trying rail transport. We may!