Journal:
Had breakfast
at 7:45am and said goodbye to Andy, who I will see
in two nights time in Bellingham (we are staying in
the same B&B), and Shirley. I left soon after
8:30am on a dreary windy, cloudy and drizzling
morning. Andy and I had spent some time the
previous evening reading maps and guidebooks and had
worked out a way of missing Blenkinsopp Common which
seemed to be universally acknowledged as a wet,
boggy and boring part of the Pennine Way.
Instead, we both intended to use the South Tyne
Trail for part of the day which followed a disused
rail line. However, Andy had a few more chores
to do in town before he left, and intended to have a
shorter day today, while I intended to have a longer
day today and a shorter day tomorrow so I would
reach Bellingham, where I had maps to pick up from
the Post Office, in the early afternoon.
I did, however, follow the
Pennine Way for the first 8km and, although a bit
wet underfoot, it passed through some pretty rural
and moorland scenery and close to the grassed
ramparts of an old Roman hill fort at Whitley Castle
before following the River South Tyne into the tiny
village of Slaggyford. It was still raining
and quite windy. After a break, huddled under
some trees on the South Tyne Trail, I left the
Pennine Way and followed the disused railway.
It was a good choice. Not only was the walking
easier and relatively drier underfoot, but the trail
gave good views over the South Tyne valley and
surrounding hills. I made good time until the
spectacular Lambley Viaduct, which took the South
Tyne Trail high above the river. For the first
time for the day, I had mobile phone reception and
took the opportunity to call Alicia for her 21st
birthday. Alas, no answer, but I'll try again
later. I decided to sit on the viaduct and
have lunch since the rain seemed to have stopped for
the time being and I could shelter from the cold
wind behind the ramparts.
I still had quite a long
way to go and the first part of the day had been
slow going, so I kept a brisk walk going when I
resumed, to keep warm, as much as for anything.
Eventually, I had to leave the South Tyne Trail and
strike out across some field footpaths towards
Greenhead. At one point I had to descend a
steep muddy slope and, despite treading gingerly and
using my trekking pole for support, I still managed
to slip and sit down in the mud. No harm done.
At the small village of Greenhead, I called into a
teashop for a warming cup of coffee and fairy cake
for afternoon tea, before walking the short distance
to the crumbling ruins of Thirlwall Castle and
rejoined the Pennine Way.
Shortly thereafter, with
some excitement, I started following the remains of
Hadrian's Wall. It's quite an impressive
structure, several metres wide and high, but it's a
bit difficult to tell what is original and what is
reconstructed. Nevertheless, you had to be
impressed with its size and length, and its location
along the top of an escarpment, making it even more
formidable. The Pennine Way essentially
followed the wall on the southern side for the
remaining 10km of my day, so I got a good look at
it. Much of it was up and down hills so the
walking was tough and the wind strong, but I enjoyed
being so close to a very visible part of history.
Finally, I reached a road
that led down to the Once Brewed Youth Hostel (next
to the Twice Brewed Pub!) and checked in around
6:30pm, just in time to get dinner there. It's
a large hostel, popular with school groups visiting
Hadrian's Wall, and I was lucky to get a bed.
There's two bus loads of Year 6 kids staying here,
but they are well-behaved, if a little noisy.
Flakey internet connectivity again tonight, and I
think this is going to be the story from now on as I
get to the more remote parts of Britain, meaning
that diary updates may come in batches.
A short, though apparently
boggy and muddy day tomorrow.