Final Day - Robin Hood's Bay

Some final thoughts. I know I get wordy, so just skim through as you please. 

The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land. Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker."

Psalm 95:5-6

“And God said, ‘This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.’”

Genesis 9:12-13

We woke to the sound of howling wind and rain coming down, and for the first time, it wasn’t a concern as we are taking the bus to Whitby. 

Breakfast room

Poached egg on avocado English muffin with her mom’s chili jam. 

Omelette with toast. I love the orange marmalade everywhere in England.  

As I was lying about in bed this morning listening to the wind and watching the rain trickle down the windows, I began to think about one of the tools we couldn’t have done without on this journey - our walking sticks. I feel sure that the first mention of one in the Bible was Moses, where God used that staff for producing water from a rock, turned it into a snake and back again and parted the Red Sea. 

The staff the psalmist refers to could be a scepter, walking stick, crutch, or some kind of support or prop. 

Psalm 23 starts right off with equating the Lord with a shepherd “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”. So, immediately we’re talking about shepherding tools. A shepherd might use a staff as something to lean on in case the ground is not dry or safe for sitting or for support when he needed rest during long days tending the sheep. I can certainly relate to all of those. 

For us today, the staff serves as a symbol that we too can find rest when we lean on the Lord. When we lean into Him, He’ll lean into us. He is both the shepherd and the staff supplying all the rest we need.

God also uses His staff to rescue us from difficult or dangerous situations. In the field, a shepherd would use the curly end of the staff to pull a sheep out of thick brush or to lift it if it happened to fall or was injured. God rescues us the same way. Any time we experience troubles (and He told us we would have them), He promises to be right there to save us from the evil one and lead us to safety. How well we experienced His rescue. 

The staff was also used to guide sheep across open fields and along rocky hillsides. It was a handy tool for making sure they stay on track. Psalm 23, verses two and three say, “He leads me beside the still waters…He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” The staff leads us to places where we can find peace and restoration amid the chaos in our lives, both day-to-day and in the long seasons. The staff also leads us on the paths where we should be so we can make better choices for ourselves and our families.

Our decision-making abilities and Christ-like behaviors are all dependent on God’s staff. Without it, we would never find rest, feel peace, or know if we’re heading in the right direction. 

I think of all the ways He used our sticks to support, rest, rescue, lead and guide us on this sojourn and I, once again, find myself at a loss for words (which you probably find hard to believe).

Begonias after the rain

Tide was in today 

So I decided to dip my feet in the North Sea, just as I had in the Irish Sea. 

A smugglers tunnel. Looking at this quiet fishing village, it might be hard at first glance, to believe that this tiny spot was one of the most important locations for smuggling in the 18th century. It was said that a bale of silk could be unloaded from boats and transported from the bottom of the bay to the top of the hill out onto the moors without ever seeing daylight. Looking at the narrow winding streets and mish-mash of tightly-packed houses, it is easy to see why!

Perched on the coast between the surrounding cliffs of Scarborough and Whitby sits a bay. The backdrop of the bay is an old Yorkshire fishing village. This is Robin Hood’s Bay, the gem on the picturesque coastal edge of the North York Moors National Park. 

Built on a steep hill, the old 17th Century village heads down to the Bay. Winding streets, steep steps and cobbled alleyways make up what was once called Baytown. A maze of a village it’s easy to get lost here in Robin Hood’s Bay. Just all part of the magic of what makes it so special. It's easy to imagine life here as it was 300 years or so ago.

After our massage (more a gentle caress 🥴), we had a proper English tea, couldn’t leave here without that experience.

View from the tea room. 

Jo Anne’s tea tray

In case you didn’t see it all, here’s another shot. 

Fruit Scone, Stamfrey Dairy Clotted Cream, Raspberry & Elderflower Preserve

Kitchen Garden Cucumber & Cream Cheese Sandwich

BBQ Pulled Anna's Happy Trotters Pork Wrap, Sweetcorn Relish & Smoked Mayonnaise

Ham & Ribblesdale Owd Ewe Cheddar Sandwich AND

A variety of sweets

I had lobster salad. Yep. It’s as small as it looks. 

Must have been tasty.

My dessert. A “hot chocolate” candy. Yep, it’s as small as it looks. 

Today has been a day of relaxing and reflection on the days past. It gave our minds time to catch up with our bodies and ponder some thoughts about the trip that we haven't really had time to put together. 

Our hearts are full and overflowing with England, with its fragrant air, peace, solitude, beautiful people, emerald fields, mountains, hills, valleys, melodious birdsong, colorful wildflowers, heather moors, sea cliffs, well-kept yards, narrow roads, stone fences, small spaces, china teapots, hot tea, scones with clotted cream, porridge, fish & chips, puddings (what they call dessert of any kind), the wit, the humor, sweet spirit, intelligence of the people, the ancient history across every square inch of the country (with which I'm sure I overwhelmed you), stone relics, stone cathedrals, sheep, sheep, & more sheep, horses, cattle on the hillsides, gurgling becks, rushing rivers, charming hamlets, quaint town centers, scenic vistas for miles upon miles, sleeping over pubs, fragrances of gingerbread, bergamot and lavender, (just to name a few). England. Beautiful, beautiful England. 

Surely there cannot be a finer itinerary for a long-distance walk, although a daunting one, for the Lakelands is a land of superlatives. It's the largest national park in England, home to its longest and deepest lakes and nine of its ten highest mountains. It's also holder of the national rainfall record.

And Wainwright's book is a must - it's not just a guide, it's a companion. The pipe-smoking, flatcap-wearing Lancastrian became an informed and opinionated member of our team, providing draftsman style drawings of the route and encouraging comments like "The first mile done and still going strong!" 😂

One. Step. At. A. Time, became our mantra; get up, walk, eat, sleep and repeat, became our refrain; and getting to the next destination - we will get there when we get there - became our goal. We shared so many emotions, overwhelming at times: gratitude for each other and the ability to complete this journey together, awe for the beautiful landscape, joy, contentment, love for where we are and what we are doing, but most of all, a better understanding of who God is and who we are in Him.

"O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you, I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure."      Isaiah 25:1

"Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him! Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness; tremble before him, all the earth; yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, 'The Lord reigns!'"

I Chronicles 16:29-31

Tomorrow we are off to catch a bus and then a train and then a taxi to our hotel close to the Manchester Airport. 

Some interesting stat totals:

250.3 miles 

590,935 steps 

1224 floors

22 days 

209 Stiles

18 Inns and bag pack-ups

Hundred upon hundred of gates 

Numerous fish and chips,

steak and ale pies and sticky toffee puddings

It is a magnificent world. We have more blessings than we could ever count...so, I will sign off by saying thank you for following along, for all your delightful comments, and by wishing all of you, many more happy sojourns.

The Walk - Stage 16 - Grosmont to Robin Hood's Bay

 

One more birthday wish: Happy Birthday Juniper! You are fearfully and wonderfully made! May your day be filled with His blessings! Love you!

The Grosmont House B&B was a nice place to stay. The breakfast was good and offered things we didn’t get in other hotels. Soft music was playing in the dining room. The hostess wasn’t too friendly but all in all a good place to stay, and the best part is it was right on the trail. 

And so it dawned, our final day of the coast to coast. After a lovely breakfast, we were keen as mustard to get going. Well mentally we were. Our bodies told a different story, but with 15 miles left it was a case of mind over matter.

So, this really is the final stage of the journey. It is one to be savored and enjoyed, to be embarked upon both with a sense of happiness and of sadness - happiness at having achieved a personal goal and overcome such adversity as we have encountered, and sadness that such a good thing is coming to an end. We have had bad days, when our spirits were low, feet and shoulders ached, the “hurricane” blew us off our feet numerous times causing Jo Anne to have a tailbone injury, but the greater part is of good memories, unsurpassed scenery, historic moments, great companionship, and of course, walking of the highest (literally) order.

The grade of the road we are walking up. 33% (burn burn burn)

It is very overcast and windy but no rain yet and we are so very thankful!

Succulents growing out of the stone. Elaine, this reminded me of the orchids you had growing on your trees. 

There’s no shortage of sheep 

Lots and lots of tarmac. Up and down, over and over. 

Interesting hand hewn stone flowers. 

This part of the cemetery is overgrown. 

This half is maintained. 🤷‍♀️

Love these instructions: if the stream is in spate backtrack to the farm bridge and locate a path on the opposite bank that will bring you to the same spot. Not really sure what 'spate' means. 

Ok, I looked it up and it means "the river is very full and flowing very fast".

Our first real view of the North Sea. We had seen it a couple of days before but it was just a blue line on the horizon that you weren’t really sure if it was the sea or the horizon. The village is Whitby and you can see the ruins of Whitby Abbey to the right.  

So close and yet so far. 

We’ve had the most splendid clouds today. 

Getting closer to the finish line. Of course that mileage is for driving down the road. 

Closer still 

Not quite sure what this is. 

I’m fairly certain we have been in low gear all day so no downshifting for us. 

High Hawsker has one of Yorkshire's many legendary links with Robin Hood, and since his bay is close by, it justifies telling the story.

Both Robin Hood and Little John, on a visit to Whitby, were accommodated at the abbey, where they were invited to demonstrate their archery skills. From the top of an abbey tower they each fired an arrow to the southeast, and each landed on Whitby Laithes, a stretch of ground, now a farm, near Hawsker. The abbot was so impressed with these shots that he ordered standing stones to be fixed where the arrows had landed, and to this day those places, Robin Hood Field and Little John Field, are still shown on maps. That the arrows would have had to travel a distance of just over 1 1/4 miles for this to be an accurate account is the sort of thing sceptics deal in to spoil a good yarn. 

We made our way down through a caravan park and finally reached the coastal path! Hoorah. It felt like we might actually be getting there at last. With stunning sea views to our left, we pushed on, each step painful but that much closer to the finish. It was remarkable to walk along looking at the North Sea, knowing that three weeks (has it really been three weeks?) before we had walked along on the opposite coast of England looking at the Irish Sea.

Maw Wyke Hole, a pause to savor what we have achieved. Only a final scamper to Robin Hood's Bay remains, and we'll do that on all fours if need be! It’s not like we haven’t been on all fours before on this journey. 

Down we go

And up again

Down and up, up and down 

And again

If you zoom in really far, there’s a couple walking on the path at the very center of the photo, where we’re headed. 

Sheer drop off. 

This reminds me so much of our Cliffs of Moher walk in Ireland 6 years ago. 

The path follows the cliffs north of Robin Hood’s Bay and passes Ness Point, one of the most treacherous headlands along this coastline. Looking at the jagged rocks, it’s not hard to imagine small fishing boats being tossed about at the mercy of the sea. 

And now here we are at the place the other couple was, a few pics back. 

Watching the clouds roll in. 

Aw man. I made it all this way without getting my boots muddy or wet today, and this is the last climb up. 

At last Robin Hood’s Bay hove into view. The stiff breezes, wheeling seabirds and clifftop panoramas where occasional benches, hedgerows and wildflower patches offer a gentle approach to the age-old fishing village of Robin Head’s Bay.

Legend has it that Robin Hood found a quiet bay on the edge of the northern moors and decided on this as an ideal retreat from danger. Here, under the name of Simon Wise, he returned time and time again, keeping a small fleet of fishing boats, which he used to go to sea whenever danger threatened. 

The village, which bears his name, was once a fishing community, with a bit of an emphasis on smuggling. 😀

It’s houses and shops perch precariously at or above the water's edge, in imminent danger of collapse or flooding, many of its red-roofed houses so small and narrow that they have a 'coffin window' above the door designed to enable coffins to be removed. 

We had no idea how steep the hill going down to the sea is. It's as though Wainwright thought he'd have a final trick up his sleeve to completely write off any knees that were still functioning. But by this point we didn't care. We could see the end in sight and the emotion of completing it overrode all feelings of pain and exhaustion.

At high tide the sea runs into the village street, and comes in alarmingly quick. At low tide the Scars, a layer of harder rock underlying the soft boulder clay, runs far out to sea, and is full of fascinating rock pools.

Obligatory photo under the sign.

And here we are at the end of the road, literally. That's it - well done! It is now time to dip our feet into the North Sea and toss our 3 pebbles, carried along this journey, into the sea.

I can't really describe the feeling as we do that. It seems another farewell - farewell to the moors, vales, rivers and history of England, farewell to this memorial adventure, farewell to you who have accompanied us on this indescribable journey, farewell to wracking my brain for new and appropriate adjectives to describe what our eyes have beheld, and finally, a last farewell to this sojourn in memory of Kathy, Mother and Daddy.

For us, this is the end of this story, but only the beginning of the real story. All of our life in this world, and all of our adventures here, are only the cover and the title page. Soon, we will begin Chapter One of the Great Story. (Paraphrased C.S. Lewis)

By God's grace, I know that what awaits me in his presence, for all eternity, is something so magnificent it takes my breath away even now. Wondrous are His works. If the earth is this beautiful, how beautiful Heaven must be. C.S. Lewis captured the thought beautifully, “Heaven is the greater glory of which nature is only the first sketch.” I've truly experienced this verse:

"Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory." Isaiah 6:3

The prospect of seeing God, eclipses all our heartaches. Death is painful, and it's an enemy. But for those who know Jesus, death is the final pain and the last enemy.

"God will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; and he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces." 

Isaiah 25:7-8

Paul says, "When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory.' 'Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?'" 

I Corinthians 15:54-55

What's the worst that death can do to me? 

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?...Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

Romans 8:35, 38-39

If my descendants, children or grandchildren or even great-grandchildren, should read these words now or after I have died, know this: I'm looking forward to greeting you when you arrive in Heaven. What a world it will be! I'm overwhelmed just thinking of it. What a great God we'll enjoy and serve forever. What a great time we'll have together there. I can't wait for the great adventures we'll have with Christ and each other. 

Randy Alcorn says, "We were all made for a person and a place. Jesus is the person. Heaven is the place. If you know Jesus, I'll be with you, with the Lord we love and with the friends we cherish. We will embark together on the ultimate sojourn, in a spectacular new universe awaiting our exploration and dominion. Jesus will be the center of all things, and joy will be the air we breathe.

And right when we think 'it doesn't get any better than this - it will.'

Walking back up the steep hill to our B&B. 

Stats for today:

36,634 steps

15.3 miles

134 floors 

C2C walk stats:

519,423 steps

219.5 miles

1,169 floors

But today hasn’t ended yet. 

We had a mishap with the hotel we were supposed to have booked for tonight and tomorrow night. Just one final irritating blow from the tour company we used. 

However, it was all resolved and we are nicely tucked into a lovely B&B, the best we’ve had so far, after filling our tummies with delicious fare and celebrating with a sweet. 😁

Spinach and ricotta filled tortellini with pumpkin seed pesto. 

No explanation needed here. 

Sticky toffee pudding with cream

Mixed fruit crumble

And because we hadn’t gone up and down enough today, we’ve been up and down these two flights of stairs 3 times already. 

Tomorrow we will head up the coast to Whitby for a spa day before we depart on the long journey home. So, until tomorrow.