We woke up early this morning to the noise of traffic that sounded like it was coming through the room. In the quiet moments between cars and trucks, I could hear the church bells and a rooster. Then the wind and rain hit. 23 mph wind. Oh boy!
After breakfast, we load our backpacks with the lunch provided and get ready to walk. It is raining and the forecast is for rain all day.
Jo Anne took this photo of the rain on a spider web.
Orton Scar
Through the cow pasture we go.
This cow had a runny nose. I took the pic because this has been Jo Anne the whole time 🤣
We are cold and wet!
My AllTrails app keeps us in line.
Ahead lies Severals Settlement - an extremely sensitive area of prehistoric significance, although it may not look like it. Very little is visible at ground level for the walkers. I think a hang glider might have a better view. It is a complex of about 3 acres of prehistoric British villages comprising walls, huts, dykes and pathways. All one can see today are primitive earthworks, raised banks and the vague foundations of former walls. You would have to let your mind run free, back in time a few thousand years, to fully appreciate this place.
My half sandwich with a slice of ham on wheat bread. I haven't eaten this many sandwiches in the last 10 years.
even through the rain, the scenery is magnificent!
This was one of the worst stiles we climbed over.
The stream here is Scandal Beck.
Smardale bridge is an ideal spot for a short rest before the final lap to Kirkby (pronounced Kirby) Stephen. However, we are wet and cold and just want to be done with this day. So on we plod.
Heather covers the open moorland. However, if left undisturbed, heather plants will live for over 20 years and the stems eventually become very tough and woody, with few leaves or flowers. Consequently, gamekeepers manage the heather by burning it when the stems get to about wellie-top height. They burn different patches each year in rotation, so that there are always areas of short heather and tall heather close together.
Burning takes place over the winter and in early spring when there are no birds nesting on the ground and the soil is generally wet. The fires are small and carefully controlled so they don’t spread or damage the peaty soil. The following year new green shoots grow from underground stems and seeds. The result is moorland that often looks like a patchwork quilt, with some areas of short, young heather for grouse and sheep to eat and some patches of taller, older heather for grouse to shelter and nest in. This creates a more diverse habitat, which is better for many other plants and animals too. This is one of the few times we actually saw heather in bloom. It is past the season.
Plodding along to the top.
Me at the top
There was only one significant climb today and cruelly it came toward the end. Trudging up from Smardale Bridge, we needed frequent pauses to pant and gasp while pretending to be gazing back the way we had come, (or as Vicki recently advised - always carry a pair of binoculars when hiking so when you make frequent stops, it looks like you are appreciating nature, not fighting for air). We always wondered why Kody was stopping on our hikes to point out unusual rocks along the way. I believe now it has something to do with bending over to catch her breath. 🤣
We leave the tall mountains behind and the walk is getting easier. The ground beneath our feet is getting softer for the most part. Even the air seems softer.
There are still a few rocky areas but the large majority of today is spent walking on soft green grass, dirt and tarmac.
Giants graves or pillow mounds - raised mounds about 15 yards long and 5 yards wide, formerly described as giants graves on ordinance maps, now described as pillow mounds. Similar mounds in other parts of the country have been identified as warrens made by man to facilitate the capture and breeding of rabbits. Interesting nonetheless. Again, you'll have to zoom in to see them.
We have astounding, panoramic views of the Eden Valley from the top of the mountain. The wind is stiff up here and the rain continues, but the main thing I remember is the spectacular view.
Wet, up down, up down and poo! These are the key words I would use to describe today. Our feet are squishing in our boots. Our hands are frozen to the handles of our walking poles. Our boots, lower pant legs and poles have communed with the sheep poo enough today to be thoroughly permeated, and we have climbed that same 300’ about 20 times.
Our elevation ascent and descent for the last two days.
Hawthorn
Closeup of the berries.
The last two days have given us a sense of a passage through time, extending over two, three, maybe four thousand years into man's time in northern Britain. However, we now head into the busy streets of Kirkby Stephen, where we will spend the next two nights. Tomorrow is a rest day for us. We are so thankful for that as today has been simply miserable.
Our lodging is the Black Bull Hotel, a traditional family inn in the heart of Kirkby Stephen. Our room is over the pub, they don’t have a drying room for our wet boots, gators and packs, and they don’t serve breakfast. Hmmm. Their kitchen was also closed for dinner. I’m not sure if that is a permanent thing or just today. We did not want to get back out in the rain but that half sandwich at lunch is long gone.
The first place we stopped in was very loud and neither of us found anything on the menu that appealed. We walked on down the street and found The Taggy Man bar. They were serving hot food so we had a seat and decided on handmade pies, from “The Pie Mill” in Keswick. Excellent choice!
Jo Anne had the Bannerdale, a traditional steak and ale pie made with local beef and lashers of gravy, and said it’s the best one she’s had since we got here.
We did locate a launderette. so tomorrow after we visit the bakery across the street for breakfast, we will wash all our stinky clothes in preparation for the next part of this sojourn.
Our stats for today:
36,513 steps
15.3 miles
46 floors are
Our stats for first 7 days:
255,401 steps
107.6 miles
444 floors
"He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the later rain, that you may gather in your grain and your wine and your oil."
Deuteronomy 11:14
