Caldbeck to Keswick-16 miles "Toe day"

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Ahhhhhh, day two of the Cumbrian Way.  Or, "Toe Day".  My knee had a nice scab over the wound so I went without a band aid.  Pam and I packed a nice lunch and prepared for rain.  We were to have rain all day.  Make sure, if you do this walk, that you take extra food and water, because there is nothing out there-no roads, shops, nothing-for 16 miles.  Well, lots of sheep and sheep poo.  :-)  Once you start  the day's walk, there is only one way out of the valley-walk.

We ate a big breakfast and walked to the meeting place.  Many jokes about my knee!  We had invited Stephen for dinner that night because we were such a small group and he had no one to eat with, so we were happy about that...had a great start to the day!   Pam planned on toast, bacon, eggs and beans.  Yum!  Something to look forward to after a loooong walk.

The start of the walk is level and pleasant, but then you have to climb over the trackless High Pike, 2600 feet.  There is no real path, and since our guidebook was the reverse of the direction we were going, we got lost twice.  I know, how did we get lost when there were no trees...well, we did!  The pike is long, and there are old miner's paths and such.  Oh!  Pam, Stephen and I all had lightweight hiking umbrellas.  Great idea.  I love my rain hat, but with the umbrella I could unzip my jacket.  I had a new Gore-tex jacket which was too heavy and bulky.  I bought a lighter one when I returned.  I'll use the old one for golf.   We had to walk back down about 200 feet then back up the same 200 feet-twice-so our climb was 3000 feet.  Bugger.  It rained all the way up, and we had to be careful of abandoned mine shafts, but we did make it to the top...finally.  Not a bad climb, just long.

There is a shepherd's bothy on the down side, which is where we had lunch-in pouring, pelting rain.  Nice to be in a dry spot for lunch.  The way down High Pike is very, very steep, narrow and rocky, I stepped in a boggy area and got my shoes and socks wet, and my shoe toes were a bit narrow.  I knew I'd done something to my right big toe because it felt like someone was jabbing a knife point into the quick with every step I took.  Couldn't stop, so I gritted my teeth and went on.  We walked for 12 more miles.  Why yes, I am tough!  Once we were down from High Pike the way was mostly level, with a small grade, but with the rain, the toe and the cold, I had a drop in blood sugar.  Not good.

We came to an old hostel and had to make a very steep climb, and I didn't think I would make it to the top.  When I did get up there, I explained that my blood sugar had dropped, and everyone(lovely people)scrounged extra chocolate and some beef jerky.  Then we kept walking.

I thought it would never end.  I was in agony....  really, and I don't complain.  Every step was horrible.  The last three miles were all on a down grade...so my toe was pushed back into the quick hard with every step.  Still want to do the walk?

When we got into Keswick, the guide had his car there, and I asked him to run me back to the cottage.  We got there, I took my shoes off, and my right big toe was swollen double size...and purple.  Runner's toe.  I had jarred the nail loose so every time I stepped I jammed the nail back into the quick.  Yes, it did hurt like frikkin' hell!  I took a bath while Pam made dinner, we had a lovely meal with Stephen(he brought dessert)and I decided not to walk the next day because there would be a big downhill section.  I could not put my toe under covers for three weeks. 

The toe is healing, as is the knee, but I was so angry that I had to miss a day of the walk.  I could not walk on the toe, nor could I fit the foot into shoes!  I had to rest.

The walk is desolate and beautiful.  You just don't realize that there can be such an isolated valley in the UK.  I have a very light hiking umbrella, which was wonderful.  I also always take a neck gaiter because I know if my neck is warm I keep my body temp up.  Take lots of extra food and water for this day.  And, if there is to be rain, hot tea or coffee.

Carlisle to Caldbeck 16 miles

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Day one of walking the Cumbrian Way.  I trained for this walk!  I walked 9-12 miles a day after the snow melted in....I think May.  We had so much snow this winter. I started in January at the gym-stair climber, treadmill, bike, pool.  I was determined to walk all 76 miles!  So what happens??????  I fall on the way to the meeting point the first day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Oh, I fail.  :-( 

I gouged a chunk from my left knee about 1 inch by 2, blood ran down my leg...we did not have time to go back to the cottage and clean it off, so we trudged(I was so embarrassed)along Keswick's lovely and uneven cobblestones to the town center.  There, we met the other walkers and our guide..for the first time.....while Pam hunted up a rag and some water.  I wiped off the blood, we slapped a big band aid on it and got on the bus.   Yes it hurt!  It hurt really bad!  I wasn't about to tell them that!  Oh, I was so angry at myself.

So, we got to Carlisle and the guide didn't really know how to get to the path.  One problem I have with Footpath Holidays is that thetheir guides do not walk the Trails first!  We had trouble last year when our guide got lost.  When you walk 16 miles you don't want to add a mile or two because the guide should have prepared better!

We found the statue that marks the start of the walk...and who do we see but Stuart and Anne from Offa's Dike!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Oh, it was good to see them!  We'd had dinner with Hillary and Allan the night before, so this was great!  Stuart guides for H-F Holidays and always does a walk before he leads it.  So, his group was out for a little 10 mile Sunday jaunt, we talked, posed for pics and went on our merry(and in my case, bloody)way.  Pam and I would go with H-F because they do the same walks, but have some easier methods-not as long each day and such, but you have to stay in the accommodation they arrange...this can be pricey!  With Footpath you get your own place to stay.  Which is really great if you have a caravan!

We found the start of the walk and walked on a paved walkway/bike trail for about 3 miles.  The start is down by the train tracks...not a lovely place.  No place to wee!  So many people out for Sunday mornings!  So many back yards.  I was bleeding from the knee and had to wee!  Not good, not good.  Finally we found some trees and fields and...well, I felt better.  We washed the wound a bit better with water from the crick(you call it a river, I call it a crick).  On and on we walked-sheep, cows, fields, river.....really quite boring.  Since we walked the Cumbrian way North to South, and the guidebooks are all South to North, our guide got us lost a few times.  Not good, Footpath!  So, we decided he should write a North-South guidebook, and I made sure to take pics of the places we got lost.  Lovely area, rather flat, evidence of terrible flooding!

There is an old Bishop's Castle on the route, and some private school, but that's about it.  Near the end of our day it started to pour rain, so out came the waterproofs and my lovely gore-tex rain hat.  We walked into Caldbeck in a pouring rain to the sight of a warm, dry tea room.  Pam and I were the first ones in, ordered our scones and tea for two, shed our rain gear...and checked my knee.  It had stopped bleeding.  Bus ride back to Keswick, great dinner of chicken and pasta, many cups of tea....some TV and a warm bed.  Little did I know what would happen the next day.

I bought a new pack for this year-Osprey Exos 34.  I bought this one because it is very light and has straps so you can store your walking pole as you are walking when you don't need it.  Very good pack.  Fully loaded and I didn't feel it.  Walk with it first before you walk on cobblestones.   Oh, We saw several Border Terriers that day.  Lovely dogs.

Castlerigg Standing Stones

Some friends of mine suggested going to see the Castlerigg Standing Stones while I was in the Lake District, and since I had never heard of them I Googled them, read a bit about them and suggested to Pam that we go.  I did not mention them before because I want to talk about them on their own.  On the morning of June 5th Pam and I started our sightseeing(which ended with the Beatrix Potter place for the other day).

I love going to ancient spiritual sites because I feel they still hold their magic.  You go to these places, especially on a misty, cool early morning and you can sense the spirit of the people who built them.  We had such a morning.  I do love how there are sheep at these national heritage sites!  I imagine there were some sort of sheep there 4000 years ago.  The mountains were swathed in clouds and mist, very few people were there, and the air was damp and chilly.  I could easily picture the scene as it was 4000 years ago...and I always like to think that some of the people who live in the area, or who were there that morning are descended from the people who built it.  Great book: "Blood of the Isles" by Bryan Sykes about the DNA of the people of the British isles....Worth a read.

So, we spent some time at the site, read about it on the little marker, took in the views of the surrounding hills.  Now, how to get there...I have no idea.  Pam drove.  I know it isn't far from Keswick.  Sorry.

I like to think about the ancient people and how they may have gathered there for the Summer Solstice, or the Winter Solstice, how happy they must have been in Winter when the days started to get longer(just as I am).  I think about why they chose that place, how they found the stones, how they moved them.  I also think about what happened to them and where their descendants are now. 

So, I have given you several places to see on your next visit to the Lake District.  Oh!  Don't forget "George Cottage", where we stayed in Keswick.  I will be posting the links when I finish the commentary.

One more thing!  This is where I met a border terrier for the first time!  Fabulous dogs!

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Touring around The Lake District. June 5th, 2010

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I flew to Birmingham from Pittsburgh on June 2nd, landed on the 3rd. I use Kayak and Booking Buddy-checked them daily for three months until I found a deal for $800.00 $400 cheaper than any other, so I flew Aer Lingus. Lovely people. We had a bit of Turbulance about two hours in, the pilot went a bit higher and we were fine. Airbus 330. Sit in the back row or two in the middle-no one likes to sit there so I had the four seats to myself! Some man kept talking, so I put on the headphones and listened to Tony Bennet till I fell asleep.
It was a 21 hour flight because of a 5 hour stopover in Dublin. I met some young men in the airport pub and had a lovely time...sleepless in Dublin. Pam met me at the airport, I slept, we drove to Keswick the next day...you have seen my pics of the Tudor place. So, we had a lovely little cottage in Keswick.
The way Footpath Holidays works it, you get your own accommodations, they provide the sorry excuse of a guide and the transport to and from the walk every day. I like Footpath because you can save money on where you stay! Their guides should walk the trails first though. :-(
We got there a day early and drove around to do some sightseeing. We went to these lovely gardens with the azaleas, then to Townend. The Hall had been lived in by the same family for hundreds of years, till some spinster sisters were left...they left it to a cousin who donated it to the National Trust. If you want to travel in the UK you should join the National Trust because you get into all these places for free. Oh! The farmers at Townend raised(I think) Souay(sp) sheep because they were hardy and could survive in the hills better. And the carvings and dates? One of the owners in the 19th century did most of them, and added whatever date he fancied. The carvings are wonderful! Evidently he made some people angry, because he petitioned to add on to the farm or something and the townsfolk told him no. They had a special smoking place over the fireplace for the meats. If you stood in front of the fireplace and looked up you could see the space. The servants lived next to this area...had to breathe the smoke.

We tried to get into the Beatrix Potter place, but they were closed. We did see a little building that has a great many of her original drawings. That was cool. There is a little place on the road to park so you don't have to pay.
We spent too much time at "Chesters",(look for the pics with the blue VW van in them...we sat on the terrace on the left-overlooking the little river. Sun was wonderful. ..... which has the most wonderful cream tea! There was a couple there who invited us to share their table...originally from London, but who had retired to the lake district. We discussed politics, and he told us about a friend of his who was a policeman...on duty when Bush was at some conference...The policeman walked somewhere he shouldn't have, was tackled by a Secret Service man(although he was in uniform)and had his arm broken. He was in the hospital the next day-recuperating-in pain-when he got a phone call. The man said he was President Bush. The policeman, not believing this, told the caller to bugger off, shove it up his ass...you know. Turns out it was Bush. It makes me glad to know that someone..even because of a case of mistaken identity......well, you know..

This is why I love traveling. This was just the second day of my stay and we already met these lovely people with their fabulous story. It made our day. So many stories I have from this trip! It seemed that every day there was a little incident that defined the day-made it good. The sun shone the whole day, everything was beautiful, and the cream tea was sublime. Neither Pam nor I are timid eaters. :-) This set the tone for my encounters along the way...interesting people with interesting stories. Wait till I tell you about P. G. Wodehouse!.

We toured, then went back to Keswick(silent w)..ate dinner, made our lunches for the next day, watched tv and settled in for the 16 mile first day of The Cumbrian Way.

Pam and I travel well together.

Days One and Two

I flew Aer Lingus because I got the flight for $800.00.  I use Kayak and Booking Buddy to find flights and this was a tough one!  The prices were stuck at $1400.00 for the longest time, but one Tuesday I found the $800.00 flight and jumped on it!  That was a few weeks before the trip.  I guess the lesson is to be patient!

I found a very lightweight wheeled duffel at ebags for $30.00...quite large but without the center supports for the handle, so I can roll it up when I'm done with it. I packed rather light, but did take two pairs of hiking shoes.  My list included: 6 pairs of undies, 3 bras, long underwear, two pairs of: cropped pants, shorts, pants.  I wore jeans to travel in.  4 pairs of socks, sandals, one pair nice cropped pants.  2 wool t-shirts, fleece, wooly hat, gloves, neck gaiter, wool vest, rain pants and jacket, rain hat, umbrella.  In my carryon I took food, books, knitting.  Yes, you can take the needles, but the should be bamboo.

I also packed my backpack while I carried the lighter one.  I always have a penknife, food, flashlight, sink stopper, conversion plugs.  I just got myself a new netbook.

I would buy shampoo over there.  I also found a tiny hairdryer!  I will post about these things tomorrow.  I have onions to clean tonight.

My friend picked me up at 2:00 and dropped me off at the Pittsburgh Airport at 3.  Security, baggage...all that and I was at the Jet Blue gate.  Pittsburgh is pretty fast.  Took off, landed at JFK, collected my wheeled duffel and found Aer Lingus check-in.  Pain in the ass!  Oh! it was terrible!  I did get a cart for the duffel because it was too heavy to pull well, and I had a long way to go,  I made sure I had an aisle seat because I get up every hour.  If you ask for the middle of the last row in the Airbus 330 you may well be alone.  Check Baggage, go through security again.  Evidently an Air India flight leaves around the same time as the Aer Lingus, so about 300 Indian nationals were at security to wave good bye.  WTF?  Most people drop you off in front!  .  I fought my way through the crowd, found my gate for AL and settled in.  It was very confusing.

Flight was choppy and some man talked the whole way...6 hours.  I popped in the earphones, turned Tony Bennet up and slept.  Landed in Dublin the next morning...you guessed it...customs and more security.  I hate security.  Then I waited for five hours.  They have a nice pub in the Dublin airport!  It was a long trip but I saved over $400.00.

Took off, landed in Birmingham, collected the baggage....and went out to see..another 300 Indians waiting to greet a plane coming in from India.  Fought my way through that crowd, made it to the sidewalk and called Pam-who had just parked and was looking at me!  Big hugs, in the car, off to Kidderminster!  We had a lovely dinner, talked a bit and I went to bed.  I was beat.

Next morning we set off for Keswick!  We stopped at this wonderful Tudor house on the way, and had a picnic lunch there.  Their coat of arms has a greyhound!  We spent a long time there-wonderful place.  Free with a National Trust card.

Evidently they were Royalist during the civil War, had farmers take over till the land and house were donated to the Trust.

Then off again to Keswick!   We found our cottage in Keswick, unpacked, had dinner...watched a little TV and crashed.

Pam is great for taking me to interesting places.  I was astounded by the beauty of the Lake District, and was glad we were in Keswick and not one of the more touristy towns.  Pam has done quite a bit of walking and climbing in the Lake District, and I watched all of the Wainright Walks on TV, so it was wonderful to be there!

Here is the slide show for day one and two:  http://s251.photobucket.com/albums/gg288/multreda/Cumbrian%20Way/?action=view&current=283311d3.pbw