Well we made it so we must have done something right!
After the journey had finished the following day we caught the bus to Scarborough where we wondered around the town for a few hours (plus had a bit of fun at the amusement arcades) before our train back home.
The trip is truly engrossing and it felt like that I had been away for weeks rather than 7 days in total. I think it must be down to the amount of things to see, think and take in whilst on the trip.
Physically me and my partner were well matched. Although Steve did the majority of the leading I think quite a lot of this is just down to routine. For example whenever we came to a gate together Steve would always open it and I would always shut it behind for some reason. The only time when I would do the vast majority of the leading was whenever there were steep uphill sections (of which there were plenty). I think it is fair to say I had the worst of the foot problems, although Steve's feet were very sore by the end too but not to the same extent as mine. However he had a few blisters and his muscles got very tired - none of which I suffered from in the slightest. I'm frankly amazed that I didn't get any blistering or rubs at all throughout the whole trip!
I'm convinced that the majority of my foot troubles were down to choice of footwear - perhaps with hindsight trail shoes are not the best option. I don't blame Innov8 - the shoe wasn't designed with the Coast to Coast in mind! Although this type of shoe has more cushioning than its competitors it clearly wasn't enough. Perhaps a Salomon type shoe (trainer type looking but with walking boot type grip) would have been a better option. That said I'm only guessing - the same problems could still have existed.
What would I change? Well very little to be honest. Perhaps more clothes if possible, but not very realistic. Maybe I should have drank more water whilst on the walk/run rather than waiting to consume most of it at rest stops. The only other main thing that I can think of it that not to trust the weather forecast and to have packed that suncream after all!
Could we have gone any quicker?? Well the answer is yes for several reasons. Had we not taken a tent and provisions then yes we could have gone quicker. Had we had less of the foot troubles then yes we could have gone quicker. And yes we could have made it at the end of the fifth day. If the question is 'Should have we gone any quicker?', then the answer is No. I think we did it at the right pace.
I know the true purists will say that the whole point of the Coast to Coast is to take your time and to enjoy the scenery and I accept that viewpoint. However we enjoy running and yet we still enjoyed the scenery, so why not combine both?
Although the trip is still fresh in my mind it is something I have no doubt I will continue to remember for the rest of my life. If you are planning something similar please feel free to drop me a line and I'll answer any questions as best I can.
Saturday, 31 May 2008
Thursday, 29 May 2008
Day 6 - Grosmont to Robin Hoods Bay (15 miles)
We talked about what time to get up at for our last day but we both agreed that we should stick to the routine and we both were out of bed not long after 5am.
The first mile and a half was steeply uphill on a road with a signpost stating a 1 in 3 gradient which I've never seen before. Just before the start of the climb we passed the steam railway which the area is famous for.
Grosmont Steam Railway
Once the climb was out of the way we ran some more of the moorland before yet another descent into the valley at Littlebeck. We then followed a rather uninspiring forest heading almost due south for 2.5km so in effect we were walking this bit but not actually getting any closer to the coast! My feet were very sore again but at this stage I didn't care. We took the forest section at an easy pace - it was muddy and the rocks we were walking on were slippy. I think we had it in the back of our minds that the only thing that could stop us now would be a broken ankle.
We then had our final climb onto the last section of proper moorland called Low Moor and once we had reached the top we could see the sea! The photo hasn't come out all that well but we could see a ship in the distance and Whitby with the famous monastery at the top of the hill next to it.
First sight of the North Sea!
We kept running as much as we could even though it was yet another warm day but we did stop briefly at Hawsker about a mile and a half from the coast for some drinks. We also came across our first sign for Robin Hoods Bay - I just had to take a picture!
Not far to go!
About 15 minutes later we had reached the coast proper and we took another break to take it all in. Even if we didn't reach Robin Hoods Bay we had at least gone from Coast to Coast. The scenery was breathtaking and was probably the most uplifting bit of the whole trip. It was then just a case of 3 miles along the coast before dropping into Robin Hoods Bay and the steep road down to the sea.
Now reached the coast - just 3 miles to Robin Hoods Bay!
We made it! 190 miles completed in 5 days, 4 hours and 54 minutes! The tide happened to be right in when we got there which saved us the extra 100 metres walk on the beach. All of a sudden the foot pain, which by now both of us had got pretty badly was forgotten in an instant. As we had our photo taken a bigger wave came in - our feet had truly touched sea water!
At Robin Hoods Bay - Made it!
As we were still very whiffy, but also tired we treated ourselves to a B&B that evening where the owners also kindly agreed to do our clothes in a rapid turnaround for a small extra fee. We then had the rest of the day smelling normal to wander around the beach, shops, ice cream and food!
The perfect end to a perfect trip.
The first mile and a half was steeply uphill on a road with a signpost stating a 1 in 3 gradient which I've never seen before. Just before the start of the climb we passed the steam railway which the area is famous for.
Grosmont Steam Railway
Once the climb was out of the way we ran some more of the moorland before yet another descent into the valley at Littlebeck. We then followed a rather uninspiring forest heading almost due south for 2.5km so in effect we were walking this bit but not actually getting any closer to the coast! My feet were very sore again but at this stage I didn't care. We took the forest section at an easy pace - it was muddy and the rocks we were walking on were slippy. I think we had it in the back of our minds that the only thing that could stop us now would be a broken ankle.
We then had our final climb onto the last section of proper moorland called Low Moor and once we had reached the top we could see the sea! The photo hasn't come out all that well but we could see a ship in the distance and Whitby with the famous monastery at the top of the hill next to it.
First sight of the North Sea!
We kept running as much as we could even though it was yet another warm day but we did stop briefly at Hawsker about a mile and a half from the coast for some drinks. We also came across our first sign for Robin Hoods Bay - I just had to take a picture!
Not far to go!
About 15 minutes later we had reached the coast proper and we took another break to take it all in. Even if we didn't reach Robin Hoods Bay we had at least gone from Coast to Coast. The scenery was breathtaking and was probably the most uplifting bit of the whole trip. It was then just a case of 3 miles along the coast before dropping into Robin Hoods Bay and the steep road down to the sea.
Now reached the coast - just 3 miles to Robin Hoods Bay!
We made it! 190 miles completed in 5 days, 4 hours and 54 minutes! The tide happened to be right in when we got there which saved us the extra 100 metres walk on the beach. All of a sudden the foot pain, which by now both of us had got pretty badly was forgotten in an instant. As we had our photo taken a bigger wave came in - our feet had truly touched sea water!
At Robin Hoods Bay - Made it!
As we were still very whiffy, but also tired we treated ourselves to a B&B that evening where the owners also kindly agreed to do our clothes in a rapid turnaround for a small extra fee. We then had the rest of the day smelling normal to wander around the beach, shops, ice cream and food!
The perfect end to a perfect trip.
Wednesday, 28 May 2008
Day 5 Ingleby Cross to Grosmont (35 miles)
What a difference a night makes! From being dry the evening before we woke up to the sure sound of it raining on the tent. As we got out of the tent the rain stopped just long enough to get the tent down to sort the kit out and to be on our way. The hill we could see the evening before had now disappeared amongst the mist and for the first time the wet weather had finally caught up with us.
Misty North York Moors!
For the rest of the morning it constantly changed between heavy rain and drizzle although it didn't dampen our progress. In fact our spirits were fairly high as we were making good progress over the hilly terrain and navigation was made easy as we were following the waymarked Cleveland Way. We reached Clay Bank Top (152.25 miles, 12.25 for the day) in around 3.5hrs which was very good progress considering there were about half a dozen or so 400m+ climbs in short succession. My feet were feeling pretty good for a change due to the up and down nature of the terrain and we ran some of the rocky downhill sections at a fair pace.
The next 18 miles to Glaisdale (our original target for the night) was over much of the same but the moors (from what little we could see) were a bit more undulating with a peaks of 450m. We began the long climb up from Clay Bank and continued along the Cleveland Way until we reached an old dismantled railway which we were to follow until our scheduled rest stop at the Lion Inn, probably another 6 miles away or so. To begin with the railway was fairly flat so we began running it at a fair pace, but it continued to stay flat so we ran some more and more and in no time at all we had reached the Lion Inn! This undoubtedly was our best progress of the whole trip - something like 10 miles in 1hr 50 mins which included a long steep climb at the beginning.
Along the railway line we passed loads of other C2C walkers - strangely most of which were American. In fact I would go as far to so that over the course of the whole trip about 70% were American, 10% other nationalities and 20% British. We were definitely in the minority - I'm sure there is a story there somewhere.
As our progress was so rapid we got to the pub at 11.30am when we expected to reach it at around 2pm. As a result we had to wait 30 mins before they started to serve food. I had a jacket potato with cheese and more lemonade and tea! I was really conscious there how much we were stinking and started to feel a bit embarrassed. We left the pub at about 1pm with just 10 miles or so to Glaisdale so we could afford to take it easy as our work was done for the day. When we stepped outside the weather had completely changed and was again sunny! More sunburn!
Although we walked the first road section we decided to run the next bit over the moors and again we made excellent progress - it was even starting to become enjoyable! Not only did we run the downhill bits, but also the flat sections and the uphill bits too; we were flying! Not far from Glaisdale we had only 20 more miles to do (170 miles completed) of the whole C2C I just said to Steve 'I'm harbouring thoughts'. He knew what I was on about - it suddenly became possible that we could finish the C2C that evening. It would mean a very late finish, perhaps 8.30pm before having to walk a fair bit to a campsite, but none the less it was still doable.
In the end we decided against it, not because we didn't think it was possible but because we wanted to savour the moment we reached Robin Hoods Bay, not virtually collapse when we got there. We reached Glaisdale at about 3.15pm and decided that it was too early to camp so we agreed to do another 4 miles that afternoon and stop at Grosmont. Those last five miles was surprisingly up some little sharp ascent and descents, but we took our time as we were in no rush. My feet were bad again over the last few miles but this time it didn't concern me so much.
We reached Grosmont just gone 5pm and literally just a few metres from the route we made camp and cooked our last evening meal of the trip. 175 miles completed, 35 for the day - just 15 left of the journey). The campsite didn't have a shower so we had to stink even more in our sweaty clothes.
Campsite at Grosmont
Misty North York Moors!
For the rest of the morning it constantly changed between heavy rain and drizzle although it didn't dampen our progress. In fact our spirits were fairly high as we were making good progress over the hilly terrain and navigation was made easy as we were following the waymarked Cleveland Way. We reached Clay Bank Top (152.25 miles, 12.25 for the day) in around 3.5hrs which was very good progress considering there were about half a dozen or so 400m+ climbs in short succession. My feet were feeling pretty good for a change due to the up and down nature of the terrain and we ran some of the rocky downhill sections at a fair pace.
The next 18 miles to Glaisdale (our original target for the night) was over much of the same but the moors (from what little we could see) were a bit more undulating with a peaks of 450m. We began the long climb up from Clay Bank and continued along the Cleveland Way until we reached an old dismantled railway which we were to follow until our scheduled rest stop at the Lion Inn, probably another 6 miles away or so. To begin with the railway was fairly flat so we began running it at a fair pace, but it continued to stay flat so we ran some more and more and in no time at all we had reached the Lion Inn! This undoubtedly was our best progress of the whole trip - something like 10 miles in 1hr 50 mins which included a long steep climb at the beginning.
Along the railway line we passed loads of other C2C walkers - strangely most of which were American. In fact I would go as far to so that over the course of the whole trip about 70% were American, 10% other nationalities and 20% British. We were definitely in the minority - I'm sure there is a story there somewhere.
As our progress was so rapid we got to the pub at 11.30am when we expected to reach it at around 2pm. As a result we had to wait 30 mins before they started to serve food. I had a jacket potato with cheese and more lemonade and tea! I was really conscious there how much we were stinking and started to feel a bit embarrassed. We left the pub at about 1pm with just 10 miles or so to Glaisdale so we could afford to take it easy as our work was done for the day. When we stepped outside the weather had completely changed and was again sunny! More sunburn!
Although we walked the first road section we decided to run the next bit over the moors and again we made excellent progress - it was even starting to become enjoyable! Not only did we run the downhill bits, but also the flat sections and the uphill bits too; we were flying! Not far from Glaisdale we had only 20 more miles to do (170 miles completed) of the whole C2C I just said to Steve 'I'm harbouring thoughts'. He knew what I was on about - it suddenly became possible that we could finish the C2C that evening. It would mean a very late finish, perhaps 8.30pm before having to walk a fair bit to a campsite, but none the less it was still doable.
In the end we decided against it, not because we didn't think it was possible but because we wanted to savour the moment we reached Robin Hoods Bay, not virtually collapse when we got there. We reached Glaisdale at about 3.15pm and decided that it was too early to camp so we agreed to do another 4 miles that afternoon and stop at Grosmont. Those last five miles was surprisingly up some little sharp ascent and descents, but we took our time as we were in no rush. My feet were bad again over the last few miles but this time it didn't concern me so much.
We reached Grosmont just gone 5pm and literally just a few metres from the route we made camp and cooked our last evening meal of the trip. 175 miles completed, 35 for the day - just 15 left of the journey). The campsite didn't have a shower so we had to stink even more in our sweaty clothes.
Campsite at Grosmont
Tuesday, 27 May 2008
Day 4 - Reeth to Ingleby Cross (33.5 miles)
As we didn't have to worry about packing away the tent we had a lie in and got up at 5.30am!. We just about got ready on time to be back on the route at 6am. The painkillers seemed to do the job and I found the first 10 miles to Richmond (117 miles in total) not too bad at all. Just as we entered the town (the largest on the route) it started to drizzle which eventually turned to rain. We arrived at Richmond at around 8.50am, so we went to the local Somerfield to stock up before trying to find a cafe that was open early. As usual we hit the jackpot and had a lovely English Breakfast. After an hour or so we set off again and the rain more or less had stopped, just occasional drizzle thereafter.
The next leg was 23 miles from Richmond to Ingleby Cross. As we had now left the Dales this section was very flat and mostly on roads before we reached the North Yorkshire Moors. As a result we were expecting to cover this section very rapidly as it is by far the easiest on paper. How wrong I turned out to be!
The first few miles out of Richmond came and went ok, but the pain in my feet returned and was as bad as ever. I had to rest my feet about 6 miles into the journey in Bolton on Swale for 10 minutes where we came across several others doing the C2C. What lay ahead was about 10 miles of road walking and total agony ensued. The terrain was uninspiring (hence no photos) and just ended up meaning that I just concentrated on the pain within my feet (again hence no photos!). I ended up playing counting games where I would promise myself that I would count 4,000 steps or something before we turned off the road etc. It never really worked but I still did it anyway. This should have been prime running terrain but in the end turned out to be as slow as we went. I think Steve was fairing better, but I think his legs were feeling increasingly tired.
We eventually crawled into Danby Wiske where there was a pub and I had a pot of tea to keep me warm. We came across some more C2C walkers in there, a couple of Americans who got there just before us. It did provide light amusement that along with their ham sandwiches they asked for some Marie Rose sauce!
After about half an hour we continued with our journey and my feet were no better, in fact it was getting to the point whether I was seriously beginning to feel that I might not be able to continue. That said I never considered quitting either. Just after resting my feet again after a railway line I said to Steve that I wanted to run the last section. For some reason the pain was not as bad running and we did the last 7km in rapid time - probably saving about 1.5hrs in the process. We eventually reached Ingleby Cross at about 5pm. We stayed in the back garden of a pub called the Blue Bell Inn. The pub was nothing special but had good facilities and of course only a short walk to get some drinks and food! 140 miles in total and 33.5 for the day.
I hoped that was my worst day out of the way...
Blue Bell Inn
The next leg was 23 miles from Richmond to Ingleby Cross. As we had now left the Dales this section was very flat and mostly on roads before we reached the North Yorkshire Moors. As a result we were expecting to cover this section very rapidly as it is by far the easiest on paper. How wrong I turned out to be!
The first few miles out of Richmond came and went ok, but the pain in my feet returned and was as bad as ever. I had to rest my feet about 6 miles into the journey in Bolton on Swale for 10 minutes where we came across several others doing the C2C. What lay ahead was about 10 miles of road walking and total agony ensued. The terrain was uninspiring (hence no photos) and just ended up meaning that I just concentrated on the pain within my feet (again hence no photos!). I ended up playing counting games where I would promise myself that I would count 4,000 steps or something before we turned off the road etc. It never really worked but I still did it anyway. This should have been prime running terrain but in the end turned out to be as slow as we went. I think Steve was fairing better, but I think his legs were feeling increasingly tired.
We eventually crawled into Danby Wiske where there was a pub and I had a pot of tea to keep me warm. We came across some more C2C walkers in there, a couple of Americans who got there just before us. It did provide light amusement that along with their ham sandwiches they asked for some Marie Rose sauce!
After about half an hour we continued with our journey and my feet were no better, in fact it was getting to the point whether I was seriously beginning to feel that I might not be able to continue. That said I never considered quitting either. Just after resting my feet again after a railway line I said to Steve that I wanted to run the last section. For some reason the pain was not as bad running and we did the last 7km in rapid time - probably saving about 1.5hrs in the process. We eventually reached Ingleby Cross at about 5pm. We stayed in the back garden of a pub called the Blue Bell Inn. The pub was nothing special but had good facilities and of course only a short walk to get some drinks and food! 140 miles in total and 33.5 for the day.
I hoped that was my worst day out of the way...
Blue Bell Inn
Monday, 26 May 2008
Day 3 - Raisbeck to Reeth (35.5 miles)
Another early start the next day ensued and we left on time to walk the half mile or so to get back to the start. Yet again the day looked like it was going to be another warm one, so even more sunburn! I had decided to wrap my helly around the outside of my rucksack so it could air dry.
Very early on (about 6.30am) we came across another C2C walker so we had a brief chat. Up until this point we hadn't really come across anybody else who looked like they were obviously doing the C2C - I suppose I was expecting a whole stream of people but the reality until now was nothing like it. My feet in the first few hours held up pretty well although as before we only ran the sections which were downhill and walked the rest.
After a few miles there was one section where the Ordnance Survey map and Harvey's went in different directions. For the rest of the trip whenever this happened we generally opted to follow the more recent Harvey's maps. Again the early section just came and went. It was starting to get more hilly and we were crossing more bleak moorland as the morning progressed.
Towards the end of the morning and a few miles from Kirkby Stephen my feet started to get very sore again but as we had already been going for about 2.5 hrs we opted for a rest stop anyway at a lovely bridge, in a beautiful valley and just as importantly out of the wind (sorry - recurring theme!). We then covered the remaining 4.5 miles into Kirkby Stephen (82.5 miles total, 11.5 for the day) fairly rapidly and we even managed to run a good deal of it before stopping outside a local shop for provisions at around 9.30am.
After about half an hour of resting we started the major climb of the day to Nine Standards Rigg (88 miles, 17 for the day) at 662m. It was a long long climb but again I managed to cover the distance pretty easily and my feet were ok for the majority. It was at this point I realised that whenever there is a steep uphill section my feet were generally ok, anything flatter and they got really bad for some reason. As before as we climbed up it got more and more windy so yet again, where you wanted to put your feet and where they ended up were two different things. From a distance we could see the Nine Standards and not long after we had reached the summit. I can not even begin to tell you how windy it was up there. Basically we took a photo and then proceeded to get the hell off the summit!
Nine Standards Rigg - Very Windy!
To build up some warmth we ran down the other side of the hill and decided to take the less trodden optional Eastern route and follow Whitsundale Beck. It was good to be by ourselves again doing this as the trek to Nine Standards had a lot of day trippers plus by this stage there were loads more people doing the C2C. We ran the vast majority of this section and made really good progress. We did have a quick break towards the end of the Beck mainly because it was so warm as we need liquids but also because it was sheltered from the wind. I found crossing the peat hags and the solitude of this section one of the most enjoyable sections of the whole trip.
We had now done over 92 miles of the whole trip and were only 2.5 miles from Keld - the halfway point of the C2C. Again at this point my feet were very very bad - every time I thought they couldn't get any worse they did. On the plus side I had no blisters or sores and my legs felt surprisingly fine. Steve's feet were faring better although he kept getting the odd blister and tired legs. That last mile or so to Keld mainly along the road was a truly dreadful experience. At one point Steve said to me 'Did you see that deer?'. I just went 'No' and didn't bother looking, just about summed things up for me. I was in my own world of pain.
We reached Keld at about 2pm ish and we took a long break at a farmhouse tea room cum shop. Although we at first sat on the benches outside with most other people it was still very breezy so we retired inside. We were now halfway - just another 95 miles of pain to go! Frankly I was in a bit of a state, I just had a bottle of coke and nothing else even though I hadn't eaten anything other than a few snacks for most of the day day.
The long rest stops were always a good opportunity to take weight off my feet so generally meant that I was able to make good progress for the first hour or two afterwards with just achy feet rather than being painful. As we were now in the Yorkshire Dales the terrain had changed yet again. We now had just 11 miles or so to get to Reeth although progress was going to be slow as it was a series of up and downs. The first section was steeply uphill and as before I found it a lot easier on my feet. Although the rough moorland was very scenic what added to it was all of the disused workings, building and mines that scattered the area. It is difficult to imagine that literally thousands of people lived and worked in the middle of nowhere centuries ago. The photo below shows one of my favourite valleys of the whole journey - the photo does not show the contrast so well but trust me the view was amazing with the buildings in the background. My feet throughout this section felt pretty good and we ran a good deal of the flat and downhill bits at a fast pace.
Old Buildings at Gunnerside Gill
Not long after we seemed to lose the right path and there were loads of tracks going in all sorts of directions due to the worked nature of the landscape. We probably lost a good 20 minutes getting back onto the proper route. Steve then suggested going dead north to avoid a bend in the path. I agreed and of course we ended up losing track of where we were on the map as the landscape was so well worked it was impossible to see all of this detail on the map. As usual it was very windy and I must admit I lost my temper a bit. We happened to be on the right track, not that either of us knew it but eventually the map began to make sense. Steve was adamant that he knew where he was all of the time but I could just tell he hadn't got a clue either!
A long downhill track then ensued for several kilometres which we ran as much as possible going past loads more of old mines, smelting buildings and so on. A truly different world. We now just had about 6km left for the day before we reached Reeth and what looked like good tracks. In the end the navigation turned out to be quite tricky and progress a lot slower than it looked like it would be on the map. This last section probably took us best part of an hour and a half at least. My feet had again started to get really painful and about a mile before Reeth the pain got to a new level where I was virtually limping and any worse I'd have been crying it really was that bad.
We found the campsite at about 6pm called Orchard Park and paid our £5 each. She offered us use of one of the Caravans for the same price (perhaps she could see we were in a bit of a state!) so we jumped at the chance. It was a great feeling not have to put our tent up and to be able to leave our stuff lying about rather than having to keep everything in the rucksack. We then paid 20p for a hot shower each and I necked my first couple of ibuprofen as my feet were in a shocking state and my right foot was badly swollen. As before I didn't have any blisters, just very sore soles of my feet.
Steve in the caravan!
We finished off the evening by going to one of the local pubs in Reeth and I had lasagna and chips which was great with a couple of pints of lemonade and Gooseberry Crumble to finish. I have to say that Reeth was a lovely North Yorkshire village. At about 9pm we turned in for the night. 106.5 miles in total and 35.5 for the day.
Very early on (about 6.30am) we came across another C2C walker so we had a brief chat. Up until this point we hadn't really come across anybody else who looked like they were obviously doing the C2C - I suppose I was expecting a whole stream of people but the reality until now was nothing like it. My feet in the first few hours held up pretty well although as before we only ran the sections which were downhill and walked the rest.
After a few miles there was one section where the Ordnance Survey map and Harvey's went in different directions. For the rest of the trip whenever this happened we generally opted to follow the more recent Harvey's maps. Again the early section just came and went. It was starting to get more hilly and we were crossing more bleak moorland as the morning progressed.
Towards the end of the morning and a few miles from Kirkby Stephen my feet started to get very sore again but as we had already been going for about 2.5 hrs we opted for a rest stop anyway at a lovely bridge, in a beautiful valley and just as importantly out of the wind (sorry - recurring theme!). We then covered the remaining 4.5 miles into Kirkby Stephen (82.5 miles total, 11.5 for the day) fairly rapidly and we even managed to run a good deal of it before stopping outside a local shop for provisions at around 9.30am.
After about half an hour of resting we started the major climb of the day to Nine Standards Rigg (88 miles, 17 for the day) at 662m. It was a long long climb but again I managed to cover the distance pretty easily and my feet were ok for the majority. It was at this point I realised that whenever there is a steep uphill section my feet were generally ok, anything flatter and they got really bad for some reason. As before as we climbed up it got more and more windy so yet again, where you wanted to put your feet and where they ended up were two different things. From a distance we could see the Nine Standards and not long after we had reached the summit. I can not even begin to tell you how windy it was up there. Basically we took a photo and then proceeded to get the hell off the summit!
Nine Standards Rigg - Very Windy!
To build up some warmth we ran down the other side of the hill and decided to take the less trodden optional Eastern route and follow Whitsundale Beck. It was good to be by ourselves again doing this as the trek to Nine Standards had a lot of day trippers plus by this stage there were loads more people doing the C2C. We ran the vast majority of this section and made really good progress. We did have a quick break towards the end of the Beck mainly because it was so warm as we need liquids but also because it was sheltered from the wind. I found crossing the peat hags and the solitude of this section one of the most enjoyable sections of the whole trip.
We had now done over 92 miles of the whole trip and were only 2.5 miles from Keld - the halfway point of the C2C. Again at this point my feet were very very bad - every time I thought they couldn't get any worse they did. On the plus side I had no blisters or sores and my legs felt surprisingly fine. Steve's feet were faring better although he kept getting the odd blister and tired legs. That last mile or so to Keld mainly along the road was a truly dreadful experience. At one point Steve said to me 'Did you see that deer?'. I just went 'No' and didn't bother looking, just about summed things up for me. I was in my own world of pain.
We reached Keld at about 2pm ish and we took a long break at a farmhouse tea room cum shop. Although we at first sat on the benches outside with most other people it was still very breezy so we retired inside. We were now halfway - just another 95 miles of pain to go! Frankly I was in a bit of a state, I just had a bottle of coke and nothing else even though I hadn't eaten anything other than a few snacks for most of the day day.
The long rest stops were always a good opportunity to take weight off my feet so generally meant that I was able to make good progress for the first hour or two afterwards with just achy feet rather than being painful. As we were now in the Yorkshire Dales the terrain had changed yet again. We now had just 11 miles or so to get to Reeth although progress was going to be slow as it was a series of up and downs. The first section was steeply uphill and as before I found it a lot easier on my feet. Although the rough moorland was very scenic what added to it was all of the disused workings, building and mines that scattered the area. It is difficult to imagine that literally thousands of people lived and worked in the middle of nowhere centuries ago. The photo below shows one of my favourite valleys of the whole journey - the photo does not show the contrast so well but trust me the view was amazing with the buildings in the background. My feet throughout this section felt pretty good and we ran a good deal of the flat and downhill bits at a fast pace.
Old Buildings at Gunnerside Gill
Not long after we seemed to lose the right path and there were loads of tracks going in all sorts of directions due to the worked nature of the landscape. We probably lost a good 20 minutes getting back onto the proper route. Steve then suggested going dead north to avoid a bend in the path. I agreed and of course we ended up losing track of where we were on the map as the landscape was so well worked it was impossible to see all of this detail on the map. As usual it was very windy and I must admit I lost my temper a bit. We happened to be on the right track, not that either of us knew it but eventually the map began to make sense. Steve was adamant that he knew where he was all of the time but I could just tell he hadn't got a clue either!
A long downhill track then ensued for several kilometres which we ran as much as possible going past loads more of old mines, smelting buildings and so on. A truly different world. We now just had about 6km left for the day before we reached Reeth and what looked like good tracks. In the end the navigation turned out to be quite tricky and progress a lot slower than it looked like it would be on the map. This last section probably took us best part of an hour and a half at least. My feet had again started to get really painful and about a mile before Reeth the pain got to a new level where I was virtually limping and any worse I'd have been crying it really was that bad.
We found the campsite at about 6pm called Orchard Park and paid our £5 each. She offered us use of one of the Caravans for the same price (perhaps she could see we were in a bit of a state!) so we jumped at the chance. It was a great feeling not have to put our tent up and to be able to leave our stuff lying about rather than having to keep everything in the rucksack. We then paid 20p for a hot shower each and I necked my first couple of ibuprofen as my feet were in a shocking state and my right foot was badly swollen. As before I didn't have any blisters, just very sore soles of my feet.
Steve in the caravan!
We finished off the evening by going to one of the local pubs in Reeth and I had lasagna and chips which was great with a couple of pints of lemonade and Gooseberry Crumble to finish. I have to say that Reeth was a lovely North Yorkshire village. At about 9pm we turned in for the night. 106.5 miles in total and 35.5 for the day.
Sunday, 25 May 2008
Day 2 - Grisedale Tarn to Raisbeck (30 miles)
After a reasonable nights sleep we woke up at 5.30am to another morning of extremely windy conditions. In fact one of the tent poles had bent a fair bit during the night. Other than that the morning was dry and we seemed set for a similar day as yesterday. In some ways I wished it would stay overcast all day as I had caught the sun quite badly on the first day so ended up wearing my cagoule hat as much as possible to protect myself from the sun.
The tent was taken down in record speed and we were ready for the off at 6am. I wasnt feeling very fresh (and smelt pretty bad as did Steve) but not too bad all things considered. We finished the last part of the climb in no time at all and then had the long descent from Grisedale Tarn down the valley to Patterdale. As it was mostly a gentle drop we managed to run most of the way although again we were not running as many sections when compared to the start of the previous day. I think we reached Patterdale (46.5 total, 5.5 miles day) at about 7.20am. I needed to rest my feet pretty badly so things were not looking great already.
Up ahead was the hardest section of the whole journey towards Haweswater but once we had cleared this section the rest of the day beyond the Lake District was relatively flat. First we had a 2km long steep uphill section to Angletarn Pikes at around 550m. In the end I think neither of us felt that it was as bad as we feared and for some reason my feet had recovered a little. We then had a quick rest just before Angle Tarn itself amongst beautiful scenery. Again the wind was even worse here so we had to wear our cagoules most of the way.
Angle Tarn in the background - Very Windy!
We had another long climb towards The Knott at 739m, followed by Kidsty Pike at 780m, our highest peak of the whole trip. We went a bit off route for some reason around this area, but it was obvious where we needed to head so very little distance was added. Again the wind just got worse and worse to the point of where you wanted to put your feet and where they ended up were two different things. You also had to lean quite strongly against the wind to move forward in a straight line. Almost the whole way (and for the majority of the trip as it turned out) the wind was against us just for added insult!
Our last major climb of the day was now over and it could have been a lot worse - we could have easily been bogged down in this section for hours but in the end it was all done and dusted in about 3hrs. After running most of the way downhill we stopped just as we reached Haweswater at a bridge sheltered from the wind over a stream. Steve decided to have a wash and I followed suit. Jeez it was bloomin cold, although I must say I felt a lot better for it afterwards! We were probably half an hour in total.
The next section was about 6km long following the line of Haweswater. It was quite up and down surprisingly although we ran as many sections as possible but my feet were getting very sore to the point of just feeling significant pain with each step. At the end of Haweswater I needed another rest. My legs actually felt pretty good and I was beginning to wonder whether my choice of footwear was the right one? Either way we had now covered 57 miles in total and 16 for the day at this point.
The plan was to now reach Shap where the terrain had clearly changed from fell type to more like undulating farm, river and meadow. The pain from my feet were just getting worse and I was also starting to get dehydrated again as it got warmer. Quite a lot of the terrain we would normally have ran but I just wasnt able to and Steve led most of the way. We reached Shap (62 miles, 21 for the day) at around 2pm ish and headed straight to the Bull Head for a Sunday Lunch and more lemonade. I have to say that although a locals pub the Sunday Lunch was absolutely fab and was just what the doctor ordered! The two and a half pints of lemonade just about managed to quench my thirst too! About an hour later we headed onwards although unfortunately all of the village shops were closed. It was not a major problem though as we still had plenty of snacks to see us through.
It was at this stage we were now starting to look for where would be the best place to camp that night. We decided upon a campsite at Raisbeck, a couple of miles East of Orton which would mean 30 miles for the day and 71 overall. We left Shap in good spirits and my feet felt much better. We then crossed the M6 and took one of our final views back towards the Lake District - one National Park down, two to go!
Last look back to the Lake District!
Smiling as just had a good Sunday Lunch and about to cross the M6!
The rest of the journey that day was just rolling hillside although the scenery began to change towards more of protruding Limestone Scars. Although there were a few hills, none of them were major although again we ran very little - only the more steeply downhill sections. As the afternoon progressed my feet were just getting worse and worse and I was beginning to hold secret doubts as to whether I could last the trip. The worst surface by far was tarmac - I was getting horrific pains whenever we walked on the road sections so would try to walk on the grass verges. Even this still hurt my feet but at least wasnt quite as bad.
We eventually rolled into the New House Campsite at about 5pm. The next campsite was a further 6 miles further along the route which I guess we could have made but to be honest my feet were just too sore so was glad to stop when we did. Steve's feet werent quite as bad, but I think his legs were tired. Although we only covered 30 miles today we had got the worst section of the whole route out of the way. It was just a case of whether we could keep things going or would we deteriorate further?
We paid our £6 each to camp and our surburn was pretty bad by this stage. I promised myself to buy some suntan lotion at the next village shop. We then paid another £1 each for some hot showers in an old portacabin which were great.
Campsite at Raisdale
I did try to wash to helly (my clothes stank) with a bar of soap which improved things a little but not much. The downside was that it didnt dry in time that evening and fearful of rain I didnt leave it out for the night. We then just pitched next to some trees which kept us away from the stiff breeze and cooked our dinner. I had two curry pot noodles - yum...!
As before we were too tired to do much else so turned in for the evening at about 9pm.
The tent was taken down in record speed and we were ready for the off at 6am. I wasnt feeling very fresh (and smelt pretty bad as did Steve) but not too bad all things considered. We finished the last part of the climb in no time at all and then had the long descent from Grisedale Tarn down the valley to Patterdale. As it was mostly a gentle drop we managed to run most of the way although again we were not running as many sections when compared to the start of the previous day. I think we reached Patterdale (46.5 total, 5.5 miles day) at about 7.20am. I needed to rest my feet pretty badly so things were not looking great already.
Up ahead was the hardest section of the whole journey towards Haweswater but once we had cleared this section the rest of the day beyond the Lake District was relatively flat. First we had a 2km long steep uphill section to Angletarn Pikes at around 550m. In the end I think neither of us felt that it was as bad as we feared and for some reason my feet had recovered a little. We then had a quick rest just before Angle Tarn itself amongst beautiful scenery. Again the wind was even worse here so we had to wear our cagoules most of the way.
Angle Tarn in the background - Very Windy!
We had another long climb towards The Knott at 739m, followed by Kidsty Pike at 780m, our highest peak of the whole trip. We went a bit off route for some reason around this area, but it was obvious where we needed to head so very little distance was added. Again the wind just got worse and worse to the point of where you wanted to put your feet and where they ended up were two different things. You also had to lean quite strongly against the wind to move forward in a straight line. Almost the whole way (and for the majority of the trip as it turned out) the wind was against us just for added insult!
Our last major climb of the day was now over and it could have been a lot worse - we could have easily been bogged down in this section for hours but in the end it was all done and dusted in about 3hrs. After running most of the way downhill we stopped just as we reached Haweswater at a bridge sheltered from the wind over a stream. Steve decided to have a wash and I followed suit. Jeez it was bloomin cold, although I must say I felt a lot better for it afterwards! We were probably half an hour in total.
The next section was about 6km long following the line of Haweswater. It was quite up and down surprisingly although we ran as many sections as possible but my feet were getting very sore to the point of just feeling significant pain with each step. At the end of Haweswater I needed another rest. My legs actually felt pretty good and I was beginning to wonder whether my choice of footwear was the right one? Either way we had now covered 57 miles in total and 16 for the day at this point.
The plan was to now reach Shap where the terrain had clearly changed from fell type to more like undulating farm, river and meadow. The pain from my feet were just getting worse and I was also starting to get dehydrated again as it got warmer. Quite a lot of the terrain we would normally have ran but I just wasnt able to and Steve led most of the way. We reached Shap (62 miles, 21 for the day) at around 2pm ish and headed straight to the Bull Head for a Sunday Lunch and more lemonade. I have to say that although a locals pub the Sunday Lunch was absolutely fab and was just what the doctor ordered! The two and a half pints of lemonade just about managed to quench my thirst too! About an hour later we headed onwards although unfortunately all of the village shops were closed. It was not a major problem though as we still had plenty of snacks to see us through.
It was at this stage we were now starting to look for where would be the best place to camp that night. We decided upon a campsite at Raisbeck, a couple of miles East of Orton which would mean 30 miles for the day and 71 overall. We left Shap in good spirits and my feet felt much better. We then crossed the M6 and took one of our final views back towards the Lake District - one National Park down, two to go!
Last look back to the Lake District!
Smiling as just had a good Sunday Lunch and about to cross the M6!
The rest of the journey that day was just rolling hillside although the scenery began to change towards more of protruding Limestone Scars. Although there were a few hills, none of them were major although again we ran very little - only the more steeply downhill sections. As the afternoon progressed my feet were just getting worse and worse and I was beginning to hold secret doubts as to whether I could last the trip. The worst surface by far was tarmac - I was getting horrific pains whenever we walked on the road sections so would try to walk on the grass verges. Even this still hurt my feet but at least wasnt quite as bad.
We eventually rolled into the New House Campsite at about 5pm. The next campsite was a further 6 miles further along the route which I guess we could have made but to be honest my feet were just too sore so was glad to stop when we did. Steve's feet werent quite as bad, but I think his legs were tired. Although we only covered 30 miles today we had got the worst section of the whole route out of the way. It was just a case of whether we could keep things going or would we deteriorate further?
We paid our £6 each to camp and our surburn was pretty bad by this stage. I promised myself to buy some suntan lotion at the next village shop. We then paid another £1 each for some hot showers in an old portacabin which were great.
Campsite at Raisdale
I did try to wash to helly (my clothes stank) with a bar of soap which improved things a little but not much. The downside was that it didnt dry in time that evening and fearful of rain I didnt leave it out for the night. We then just pitched next to some trees which kept us away from the stiff breeze and cooked our dinner. I had two curry pot noodles - yum...!
As before we were too tired to do much else so turned in for the evening at about 9pm.
Saturday, 24 May 2008
Day 1 - St Bees to Grisedale Tarn (2 miles North of Grasmere) - 41 miles
We woke up at 5am as planned as it was already light by then and tried to get ready as soon as possible so we could leave for 5.45am. Although it was cool the weather was pleasant and was looking like the day would be a good one. I did have in the back of my mind though that the weather was due to turn for the worse two days later, so it was essential to make as much progress as possible whilst we were fresh and had the opportunity.
As it turns out we were ready for 5.30am and we set off for the beach eating a snack or two on the way (neither of us were particularly bothered about cooking a breakfast or making a hot drink before departure). We arrived at the beach some 15 minutes later and performed the obligatory tasks of dipping our toes in the Irish Sea and collecting a pebble to carry for our journey ahead. Spirits were good and we officially set off on our journey at 5.50am.
The Start
The first mile or so was gently up and down along the coast and we jogged anything which was flat or downhill. I did begin to count the number of stiles we crossed over but gave up after 7. We did have a bit of an incident early on as we crossed into a field full of young cattle. Every time our heads were turned away they started to run at us, but when we looked back at them they would suddenly stop although they were getting closer and closer to us. In the end I lost my nerve when the cattle were only a couple of metres from me so I jumped over the barbed wire fence boundary. They were only being inquisitive but it wasn't worth the risk.
Looking Back to St Bees
Obviously the navigation early on was pretty straight forward since we were following the coast and I was also familiar with this section anyway having done it two times previously. In no time at all we had already made in to Cleator where we came across our first shop. Unfortunately we arrived at 7.50am which was 10 minutes earlier than the shop opened so we decided to push on. Just after I remembered that we still needed to get a lighter so knew in all likelihood that we had missed our opportunity until Grasmere - but would we get that far that day as its 37 miles?!
Moor Row just before Cleator
We knew in all likelihood that we would be wild camping this evening and as Grasmere doesn't have a campsite we would either need to stay in the valley towards the village, or just after. That either meant about 33-35 miles or 38+, which I think by most peoples book, especially considering the terrain it was going to be a long day. I think that because of this we tried to make as much progress as we could early on whilst we had the opportunity.
Just after Cleator we had the first climb of significance of the trip, a testing 352m peak called Dent Hill. As we were still feeling fresh we walked up in virtually no time at all and it offered us a superb view looking back towards the coast. We then had a nice easy descent down the other side although Steve was going a touch too fast for my liking, but either way were making excellent progress. All that was left was the remaining few miles mostly downhill on road into Ennerdale Bridge and I think we arrived there around 9.15am, only 3hrs 25mins since setting off yet had covered some 14.25 miles.
As we arrived into Ennerdale Bridge I did warn Steve that the last time I was here there was only a small Post Office that sold next to nothing. As it turned out it's now closed down due to 'lack of profits'. We had now completed day 1 of the 14 day walk! We just used the bench outside the village school to have a quick rest before pushing onto the enormous Ennerdale Water, some 4km long. I didn't expect to make such rapid progress here as I remember the path to be surprisingly up and down although again we seemed to make short work of it and ran most of the time. As it was now mid morning it was getting increasingly warm and I was starting to sweat buckets.
At the far end of Ennerdale Water we had another rest stop at around mile 18 and used the opportunity to take on some fluids and another snack. The next section along the forest tracks I feared the most as this was where on the previous two occasions I had to stop. Although the track is dead easy it is gently uphill almost all of the way as we head further up into the valley. The scenery is surprisingly good, but looking dead ahead all you can see is forest track and more forest track, in fact some 4.5 miles of it in total so it can play havoc with the mind. I think that it was along here that our early blistering pace dropped as we both began to tire a little, the opportunities for running became less and less and it got warmer and warmer. I remember about half way up we stopped to top up the water bottles from a stream.
Eventually we passed the area where I had dropped out previously so from now on everything was new to me. Not long after we passed the famous Black Sail Hut YHA which can only be accessed by several miles of walking. It was then a case of our first and one of the hardest uphill sections of our walk peaking at about 590m. Quite early on I couldn't quite get the map to fit the ground even though we were seemingly on the track. Eventually I twigged what was happening - we were going up the wrong stream! Although we were only a short way up the climb it was still quite a way to go back so we decided to go 'off-piste' and continue the climb before eventually heading back onto the route.
It was with this sort of climb that it is very much the case of getting into your rhythm so I worked my way up most of the hill and surveyed the scene back down the valley and Steve followed in a couple of minutes later. One of the bizarre things I remember was that just thirty or so metres away in the stream we had followed I came across a frog! How on earth it worked its way up here and decided to stay put is any ones guess!
The view back down the valley. Off route but worth it!
We now had a choice of either taking one of the two paths that would take us back on route but would be a bit longer or continue up the climb and progress more directly to Honister Hause. In the end we went for the latter option which involved a bit more climb, but at least we bagged two more fell tops called Brandreth and Grey Knotts, peaking at 715m. As things panned out it wasn't the wisest move as the downhill section down to Honister was a total nightmare. The path when it existed was very steep and rocky making progress extremely slow. To make things worse I was beginning to run out of water and was pretty much knackered. I think Steve was feeling fairly similar. We reached Honister (25.5 miles) feeling awful!
We then had a good descent down towards Seatoller (27.25 miles) where there was a pub and although we had originally planned to continue onward to Rosthwaite (28.75 miles) I needed to stop to get a drink and just generally have a 10 min rest before moving onwards. In the end it was academic as the map became a bit vague and although we could see the pub, we couldn't see any path that took us there so we ended up just moving on. About half a mile later I ended up getting some water from the river. I only drank what I needed as it was a bit lower down the valley than I would have liked. We made it into Rosthwaite at about 2.20pm totally shattered and I mean shattered!
We made our way to the pub and I quickly downed a pint of lemonade before ordering food. I wanted a meal that would go down easily so we both opted for Cumberland Sausage and Mash. I ordered it from the bar but it came out wrong with my dehydration and I asked for two 'Sausage and Massages'. Never mind! I have to say the meal was disappointing and in fact was probably our only poor meal of the entire trip. The food was fine, what little there was of it. For £8.50 we got a small sausage and about 1 potato equivalent of mash - poncey food at its best. I had another pint of lemonade and started to feel a bit better although my feet were starting to feel a bit sore.
We then headed to the village shop where I remembered to buy a lighter! I then topped up on snacks and drinks and a nice home made cherry muffin before setting off at about 3.30pm.
Although Grasmere was only 9.25 miles away it included one of the hardest climbs of the journey, mostly uphill and with the time we were beginning to think we would not get that far this evening. We kept plodding along and eventually reached Greenup Edge at 610m before the long descent down into the Grasmere Valley. Although I found the climb ok having had the benefit of the long rest stop at Rosthwaite my legs had just about gone and my feet were extremely sore. With my tiredness I turned my ankle fairly badly but managed to just take my weight off the leg in the nick of time so no damage was done. I was now beginning to seriously think that we would need to camp somewhere within the next mile or two. After another 5 minute rest we kept plodding on and ran most of the downhill although our pace was slow and we were not running some of the sections we would have run earlier on during the day. As we got close to Grasmere we agreed to push on and aim to have another pub stop at the Travellers Rest just north of Grasmere on the A591. I think we got there at about 6pm (38.5 miles).
We were totally shattered, even more so than earlier! The pub stop was worth it though as it meant another opportunity to rest, drink and eat. The pub was extremely expensive so I opted for the cheapest sandwich on offer - Chicken at £4.55! It seemed to do the trick and we headed on at about 7pm and we decided to do one more hour of walk before camping for the night. It made sense to do this though as it would mean that the majority of the steep climb out of Grasmere would be done that evening rather than first thing the following day.
I was starting to feel better again after the rest stop so didn't struggle as much up the climb. Just gone 8pm we were probably about 50 metres climb short of the peak so decided to try to find somewhere suitable to camp. It is at this point that I will mention the wind - it had been extremely windy for most of the day. When I mean windy I'm talking about very very windy. This valley seemed to be about the worst we had experienced all day so one of our main criteria was to find somewhere reasonably sheltered. Our tent was a very light weight competitional one weighing 1.3kg with only a couple of half poles, so you can imagine it is not exactly designed for windy conditions. We eventually found somewhere suitable which happened to be where someone else was pitching their tent as well! Who would have thought that a couple of miles from anywhere two tents would be virtually next to each other! In the morning we found another tent nearby and it seemed to be a continuing theme throughout the trip.
The campsite!
We quickly got the tent up but were struggling to get the pegs all that far into the ground and taking consideration of the wind I re-inforced the pegs with rocks on top which gave more protection. I think we were in bed for not long after 8.45pm but we had covered a huge distance of just over 41 miles or 66km (not including the 1.5 mile walk to the start at St Bees). It was a huge day and one to be proud of regardless of whether we would finish the walk or not...
As it turns out we were ready for 5.30am and we set off for the beach eating a snack or two on the way (neither of us were particularly bothered about cooking a breakfast or making a hot drink before departure). We arrived at the beach some 15 minutes later and performed the obligatory tasks of dipping our toes in the Irish Sea and collecting a pebble to carry for our journey ahead. Spirits were good and we officially set off on our journey at 5.50am.
The Start
The first mile or so was gently up and down along the coast and we jogged anything which was flat or downhill. I did begin to count the number of stiles we crossed over but gave up after 7. We did have a bit of an incident early on as we crossed into a field full of young cattle. Every time our heads were turned away they started to run at us, but when we looked back at them they would suddenly stop although they were getting closer and closer to us. In the end I lost my nerve when the cattle were only a couple of metres from me so I jumped over the barbed wire fence boundary. They were only being inquisitive but it wasn't worth the risk.
Looking Back to St Bees
Obviously the navigation early on was pretty straight forward since we were following the coast and I was also familiar with this section anyway having done it two times previously. In no time at all we had already made in to Cleator where we came across our first shop. Unfortunately we arrived at 7.50am which was 10 minutes earlier than the shop opened so we decided to push on. Just after I remembered that we still needed to get a lighter so knew in all likelihood that we had missed our opportunity until Grasmere - but would we get that far that day as its 37 miles?!
Moor Row just before Cleator
We knew in all likelihood that we would be wild camping this evening and as Grasmere doesn't have a campsite we would either need to stay in the valley towards the village, or just after. That either meant about 33-35 miles or 38+, which I think by most peoples book, especially considering the terrain it was going to be a long day. I think that because of this we tried to make as much progress as we could early on whilst we had the opportunity.
Just after Cleator we had the first climb of significance of the trip, a testing 352m peak called Dent Hill. As we were still feeling fresh we walked up in virtually no time at all and it offered us a superb view looking back towards the coast. We then had a nice easy descent down the other side although Steve was going a touch too fast for my liking, but either way were making excellent progress. All that was left was the remaining few miles mostly downhill on road into Ennerdale Bridge and I think we arrived there around 9.15am, only 3hrs 25mins since setting off yet had covered some 14.25 miles.
As we arrived into Ennerdale Bridge I did warn Steve that the last time I was here there was only a small Post Office that sold next to nothing. As it turned out it's now closed down due to 'lack of profits'. We had now completed day 1 of the 14 day walk! We just used the bench outside the village school to have a quick rest before pushing onto the enormous Ennerdale Water, some 4km long. I didn't expect to make such rapid progress here as I remember the path to be surprisingly up and down although again we seemed to make short work of it and ran most of the time. As it was now mid morning it was getting increasingly warm and I was starting to sweat buckets.
At the far end of Ennerdale Water we had another rest stop at around mile 18 and used the opportunity to take on some fluids and another snack. The next section along the forest tracks I feared the most as this was where on the previous two occasions I had to stop. Although the track is dead easy it is gently uphill almost all of the way as we head further up into the valley. The scenery is surprisingly good, but looking dead ahead all you can see is forest track and more forest track, in fact some 4.5 miles of it in total so it can play havoc with the mind. I think that it was along here that our early blistering pace dropped as we both began to tire a little, the opportunities for running became less and less and it got warmer and warmer. I remember about half way up we stopped to top up the water bottles from a stream.
Eventually we passed the area where I had dropped out previously so from now on everything was new to me. Not long after we passed the famous Black Sail Hut YHA which can only be accessed by several miles of walking. It was then a case of our first and one of the hardest uphill sections of our walk peaking at about 590m. Quite early on I couldn't quite get the map to fit the ground even though we were seemingly on the track. Eventually I twigged what was happening - we were going up the wrong stream! Although we were only a short way up the climb it was still quite a way to go back so we decided to go 'off-piste' and continue the climb before eventually heading back onto the route.
It was with this sort of climb that it is very much the case of getting into your rhythm so I worked my way up most of the hill and surveyed the scene back down the valley and Steve followed in a couple of minutes later. One of the bizarre things I remember was that just thirty or so metres away in the stream we had followed I came across a frog! How on earth it worked its way up here and decided to stay put is any ones guess!
The view back down the valley. Off route but worth it!
We now had a choice of either taking one of the two paths that would take us back on route but would be a bit longer or continue up the climb and progress more directly to Honister Hause. In the end we went for the latter option which involved a bit more climb, but at least we bagged two more fell tops called Brandreth and Grey Knotts, peaking at 715m. As things panned out it wasn't the wisest move as the downhill section down to Honister was a total nightmare. The path when it existed was very steep and rocky making progress extremely slow. To make things worse I was beginning to run out of water and was pretty much knackered. I think Steve was feeling fairly similar. We reached Honister (25.5 miles) feeling awful!
We then had a good descent down towards Seatoller (27.25 miles) where there was a pub and although we had originally planned to continue onward to Rosthwaite (28.75 miles) I needed to stop to get a drink and just generally have a 10 min rest before moving onwards. In the end it was academic as the map became a bit vague and although we could see the pub, we couldn't see any path that took us there so we ended up just moving on. About half a mile later I ended up getting some water from the river. I only drank what I needed as it was a bit lower down the valley than I would have liked. We made it into Rosthwaite at about 2.20pm totally shattered and I mean shattered!
We made our way to the pub and I quickly downed a pint of lemonade before ordering food. I wanted a meal that would go down easily so we both opted for Cumberland Sausage and Mash. I ordered it from the bar but it came out wrong with my dehydration and I asked for two 'Sausage and Massages'. Never mind! I have to say the meal was disappointing and in fact was probably our only poor meal of the entire trip. The food was fine, what little there was of it. For £8.50 we got a small sausage and about 1 potato equivalent of mash - poncey food at its best. I had another pint of lemonade and started to feel a bit better although my feet were starting to feel a bit sore.
We then headed to the village shop where I remembered to buy a lighter! I then topped up on snacks and drinks and a nice home made cherry muffin before setting off at about 3.30pm.
Although Grasmere was only 9.25 miles away it included one of the hardest climbs of the journey, mostly uphill and with the time we were beginning to think we would not get that far this evening. We kept plodding along and eventually reached Greenup Edge at 610m before the long descent down into the Grasmere Valley. Although I found the climb ok having had the benefit of the long rest stop at Rosthwaite my legs had just about gone and my feet were extremely sore. With my tiredness I turned my ankle fairly badly but managed to just take my weight off the leg in the nick of time so no damage was done. I was now beginning to seriously think that we would need to camp somewhere within the next mile or two. After another 5 minute rest we kept plodding on and ran most of the downhill although our pace was slow and we were not running some of the sections we would have run earlier on during the day. As we got close to Grasmere we agreed to push on and aim to have another pub stop at the Travellers Rest just north of Grasmere on the A591. I think we got there at about 6pm (38.5 miles).
We were totally shattered, even more so than earlier! The pub stop was worth it though as it meant another opportunity to rest, drink and eat. The pub was extremely expensive so I opted for the cheapest sandwich on offer - Chicken at £4.55! It seemed to do the trick and we headed on at about 7pm and we decided to do one more hour of walk before camping for the night. It made sense to do this though as it would mean that the majority of the steep climb out of Grasmere would be done that evening rather than first thing the following day.
I was starting to feel better again after the rest stop so didn't struggle as much up the climb. Just gone 8pm we were probably about 50 metres climb short of the peak so decided to try to find somewhere suitable to camp. It is at this point that I will mention the wind - it had been extremely windy for most of the day. When I mean windy I'm talking about very very windy. This valley seemed to be about the worst we had experienced all day so one of our main criteria was to find somewhere reasonably sheltered. Our tent was a very light weight competitional one weighing 1.3kg with only a couple of half poles, so you can imagine it is not exactly designed for windy conditions. We eventually found somewhere suitable which happened to be where someone else was pitching their tent as well! Who would have thought that a couple of miles from anywhere two tents would be virtually next to each other! In the morning we found another tent nearby and it seemed to be a continuing theme throughout the trip.
The campsite!
We quickly got the tent up but were struggling to get the pegs all that far into the ground and taking consideration of the wind I re-inforced the pegs with rocks on top which gave more protection. I think we were in bed for not long after 8.45pm but we had covered a huge distance of just over 41 miles or 66km (not including the 1.5 mile walk to the start at St Bees). It was a huge day and one to be proud of regardless of whether we would finish the walk or not...
Friday, 23 May 2008
Travel and St Bees
As we both live in the Midlands we decided the best way to get to St Bees would be by train as the village has a station. However the standard single fare from Birmingham was £63.50 which is frankly ridiculous! After checking several times each day for several weeks we eventually managed to get the cheap tickets on the day they were released about six weeks in advance for £13.50. We were prepared to do the journey by coach for £30 but would have involved something like 9 hours of travel to only go as far as Whitehaven. As a result we would have needed to get a taxi for the remaining 5 miles.
The journey itself was pretty uneventful other than stopping off for 40mins at Carlisle so took the opportunity to get some fish and chips. The only bit of 'team' kit I was to contribute was the lighter for the cooker. Unfortunately I forgot whilst shopping as Tesco's the day before so thought I'd just get one in Carlisle. Unfortunately I forgot again so in effect we would be starting the journey with no means to light the stove. I think Steve was less than impressed with my lack of competence, but I assured him we would get one at a shop on Day 1!
When we arrived at St Bees we found the campsite (Stonehouse Farm) pretty easily as it was just 50 metres from the station. In reality it wasn't really a campsite but a back garden of a house with some stables. That said it was only £4 so was pretty reasonable with good facilities and only a short stroll away from the pub! The only downside was that the centre of the village (where we were at) is a good 1.5 mile walk to the start at the beach.
We got the tent up in no time at all and the evening sun was very pleasant, if not a little too warm. Steve was carrying a balloon bed (http://www.balloonbed.co.uk/) in case you were wondering what he is doing in the photo. Basically its loads lighter and more comfortable than a sleeping mat, but believe me way loads more faff too. I would say on average it takes him at least 30 mins to get the thing sorted. Unfortunately at St Bees one of the balloons failed and another one he leant on too hard so had do make do with being two short that night. Thankfully I had my normal blow up mat, which although weighed a lot more only took a couple of mins to setup. You can see my mat already done in the left hand side of the photo!
Stonehouse Farm - St Bees
We then headed off to the pub for a bowl of chips and I had a couple of pints of Guinness before having an early night. We had decided to make as much use of the early morning light so had set the alarms for 5am, ready to leave the campsite at 5.45am and be at the start line at the beach for 6am!
The journey itself was pretty uneventful other than stopping off for 40mins at Carlisle so took the opportunity to get some fish and chips. The only bit of 'team' kit I was to contribute was the lighter for the cooker. Unfortunately I forgot whilst shopping as Tesco's the day before so thought I'd just get one in Carlisle. Unfortunately I forgot again so in effect we would be starting the journey with no means to light the stove. I think Steve was less than impressed with my lack of competence, but I assured him we would get one at a shop on Day 1!
When we arrived at St Bees we found the campsite (Stonehouse Farm) pretty easily as it was just 50 metres from the station. In reality it wasn't really a campsite but a back garden of a house with some stables. That said it was only £4 so was pretty reasonable with good facilities and only a short stroll away from the pub! The only downside was that the centre of the village (where we were at) is a good 1.5 mile walk to the start at the beach.
We got the tent up in no time at all and the evening sun was very pleasant, if not a little too warm. Steve was carrying a balloon bed (http://www.balloonbed.co.uk/) in case you were wondering what he is doing in the photo. Basically its loads lighter and more comfortable than a sleeping mat, but believe me way loads more faff too. I would say on average it takes him at least 30 mins to get the thing sorted. Unfortunately at St Bees one of the balloons failed and another one he leant on too hard so had do make do with being two short that night. Thankfully I had my normal blow up mat, which although weighed a lot more only took a couple of mins to setup. You can see my mat already done in the left hand side of the photo!
Stonehouse Farm - St Bees
We then headed off to the pub for a bowl of chips and I had a couple of pints of Guinness before having an early night. We had decided to make as much use of the early morning light so had set the alarms for 5am, ready to leave the campsite at 5.45am and be at the start line at the beach for 6am!
Foreward
Late in 2007 myself and a colleague from work talked about doing the Coast to Coast in 2008 following the Alfred Wainwright's classic 190 mile Coast to Coast route as closely as possible with one exception. The exception being that we would attempt to do the crossing as quickly as possible and to be relatively self sufficient so all equipment, including tent would be carried between us with the exception of food and water.
I think now is the time to mention that I have attempted the Coast to Coast twice before and failed both times on the first day. The first time I was attempting a solo four day crossing with full equipment including food - it soon became obvious that it was just not going to happen so gave up quite early on. The second time I was nowhere near fit enough and mentally its a very tough ask to do a solo crossing of this nature with full kit by yourself. On both occasions I got beyond the High Gillerthwaite YHA but had to stop before Black Sail and head north towards the Buttermere Valley to get home. As a result I had some unfinished business...
In those days although I was generally active I had not done any specific long distance training except for one of the shorter classes at the then Karrimor International Mountain Marathon (known as KIMM). I was also a competent navigator having done quite a bit of orienteering in the previous couple of years. I was pretty much just doing the events without any training in between so I suppose I could class myself as fit by most people's standards although nowhere near enough to be competitive. The main issue I had at the time was a bad left knee caused by running as a junior resulting in it being too painful to train and a lot of the time very painful to compete. I always knew it was going to hurt, it was just a case of when!
I'm now 26 and have discovered cod liver oil which has pretty much kept the knee pain at bay. Although not completely sorted, things are far better than they were a few years ago. At the start of 2007 I started to train again, beginning with 3.5 mile runs doing about 20-30 miles per week. Although I had various other injuries I eventually started to ramp up my mileage to about 65 miles a week with individual sessions anywhere up to 21 miles. In February this year it culminated in my first marathon and I finished in a time of 2.53 which I was extremely pleased with, especially considering that the field was only 100 strong so ended up running the vast majority of the course by myself. Just to give others a sense of perspective my 10k pb was 34.35 and half marathon 1.20. Although the majority of my training was on road, I was well versed in off road running having done several OMM's (Original Mountain Marathon which was previously known as the KIMM) so was not as if that sort of terrain was unfamiliar to me.
My work colleague, Steve, was to be my partner for the Coast to Coast attempt. In his late thirties he is a bit slower than me (39 min 10k and 3.08 marathon), but off road he is far more experienced so as a result we are virtually of the same standard. We knew each other fairly well as we did the OMM together in 2007, finishing 28th Overall in the Medium Score Class.
Back to the Coast to Coast 2008...
We had no real idea how fast we would do the crossing, so decided to allow 9 days, minus 1.5 for travel. We originally looked at the possibility of 4, 5 and 6 day crossings and potential rest stops, but for this type of trip it is almost impossible to say exactly how far you are realistically going to travel each day. In the end we opted not to book anything and go for the 'suck it and see' option. This way as we were carrying the tent it maximised our flexibility. The only thing we did do in advance was buy one of the handy guides detailing all of the accommodation on route. I got mine from www.coasttocoastguides.co.uk for £4 and then marked the locations on my map together with the phone number. I have to say now that it proved very useful. We decided for an end of May attempt, mostly for convienience, but also because it coincides with longer days so gave us maximum daylight and thus that little extra flexibility.
In terms of maps I still had the old 1:25,000 Ordnance Survey Outdoor Leisure strip maps from my earlier attempts which are no longer in production, although can still be found on eBay. My partner got the Harvey's 1:40,000 maps which are up to date and although a bit more expensive were very good too. In the end it proved very complimentary as I had the detail of my map that Harvey's lack whilst Steve had the most up to date route on his. The majority of people seemed to be using a thickish book containing hand drawn strip maps with a descriptive text but I came to the conclusion that it was not suitable for a fast crossing and even less so if you can competently read a map. By all means use the book, but take a 'proper' map with you too is my recommendation. However, I am aware that what works for one person may not work for the next, so please go for what you feel works best for you!
Finally a section on kit. As we were intending to run a lot of the route our kit needed to be as lightweight as possible. As a result we both opted for lightweight rucksacks (30 litres for me and 25 for Steve) which we both used for the OMM. As a result we were limited in what we could take when you consider it has to carry sleeping bags, tent, cooking equipment, food, snacks, waterproofs, spare clothes etc. The only luxuries I took was a blow up sleeping mat because it might be possible we would be sleeping on very rough ground if we opted to wild camp, plus if it got cold at night I would be better insulated. Although I am used to cold nights at the OMM (held at the end of Oct in an upland location) I felt it best to avoid 'sleeping cold' for several nights in succession. I also took a camera to take snaps on route although with tiredness setting in and a limited battery I did not take as many photos as perhaps I could have done. I know this will sound pretty disgusting to most but along with Steve we opted to carry virtually no spare clothes, just a spare pair of socks, a fleece to be used on the run as of when required and a spare top. For the whole of the journey I was to wear the same pair of tracksters, lycra shorts underneath and helly top. Needless to say we whiffed a lot and was probably amongst the least enjoyable part of the journey!
The total weight of the rucksack varied considerably throughout depending upon how much water and food were being carried but excepting these items I'm guessing it was around 6.5kg (mine was a bit heavier than Steve's as I was carrying the main part of the tent).
We happened to choose exactly the same footwear - Innv8 Roclite 315's. Walking Boots although comfortable would make running virtually impossible, trainers would be potentially dangerous over the hills, so fell shoes with a bit more cushioning seemed the sensible option.
We opted to do the crossing in the classic way by going from St Bees to Robin Hood's Bay. Although there is something to be said for doing the crossing the other way round - i.e. do the easiest bit first so you get fitter as you progress before hitting the hardest section at the end in the Lake District, I don't feel this rule works when running the C2C. 1) You should already be fit enough to run the C2C anyway and 2) you are probably going to get more tired rather than fitter as the route progresses, so makes more sense to get the hard section out of the way earlier on.
Now for the journey...
I think now is the time to mention that I have attempted the Coast to Coast twice before and failed both times on the first day. The first time I was attempting a solo four day crossing with full equipment including food - it soon became obvious that it was just not going to happen so gave up quite early on. The second time I was nowhere near fit enough and mentally its a very tough ask to do a solo crossing of this nature with full kit by yourself. On both occasions I got beyond the High Gillerthwaite YHA but had to stop before Black Sail and head north towards the Buttermere Valley to get home. As a result I had some unfinished business...
In those days although I was generally active I had not done any specific long distance training except for one of the shorter classes at the then Karrimor International Mountain Marathon (known as KIMM). I was also a competent navigator having done quite a bit of orienteering in the previous couple of years. I was pretty much just doing the events without any training in between so I suppose I could class myself as fit by most people's standards although nowhere near enough to be competitive. The main issue I had at the time was a bad left knee caused by running as a junior resulting in it being too painful to train and a lot of the time very painful to compete. I always knew it was going to hurt, it was just a case of when!
I'm now 26 and have discovered cod liver oil which has pretty much kept the knee pain at bay. Although not completely sorted, things are far better than they were a few years ago. At the start of 2007 I started to train again, beginning with 3.5 mile runs doing about 20-30 miles per week. Although I had various other injuries I eventually started to ramp up my mileage to about 65 miles a week with individual sessions anywhere up to 21 miles. In February this year it culminated in my first marathon and I finished in a time of 2.53 which I was extremely pleased with, especially considering that the field was only 100 strong so ended up running the vast majority of the course by myself. Just to give others a sense of perspective my 10k pb was 34.35 and half marathon 1.20. Although the majority of my training was on road, I was well versed in off road running having done several OMM's (Original Mountain Marathon which was previously known as the KIMM) so was not as if that sort of terrain was unfamiliar to me.
My work colleague, Steve, was to be my partner for the Coast to Coast attempt. In his late thirties he is a bit slower than me (39 min 10k and 3.08 marathon), but off road he is far more experienced so as a result we are virtually of the same standard. We knew each other fairly well as we did the OMM together in 2007, finishing 28th Overall in the Medium Score Class.
Back to the Coast to Coast 2008...
We had no real idea how fast we would do the crossing, so decided to allow 9 days, minus 1.5 for travel. We originally looked at the possibility of 4, 5 and 6 day crossings and potential rest stops, but for this type of trip it is almost impossible to say exactly how far you are realistically going to travel each day. In the end we opted not to book anything and go for the 'suck it and see' option. This way as we were carrying the tent it maximised our flexibility. The only thing we did do in advance was buy one of the handy guides detailing all of the accommodation on route. I got mine from www.coasttocoastguides.co.uk for £4 and then marked the locations on my map together with the phone number. I have to say now that it proved very useful. We decided for an end of May attempt, mostly for convienience, but also because it coincides with longer days so gave us maximum daylight and thus that little extra flexibility.
In terms of maps I still had the old 1:25,000 Ordnance Survey Outdoor Leisure strip maps from my earlier attempts which are no longer in production, although can still be found on eBay. My partner got the Harvey's 1:40,000 maps which are up to date and although a bit more expensive were very good too. In the end it proved very complimentary as I had the detail of my map that Harvey's lack whilst Steve had the most up to date route on his. The majority of people seemed to be using a thickish book containing hand drawn strip maps with a descriptive text but I came to the conclusion that it was not suitable for a fast crossing and even less so if you can competently read a map. By all means use the book, but take a 'proper' map with you too is my recommendation. However, I am aware that what works for one person may not work for the next, so please go for what you feel works best for you!
Finally a section on kit. As we were intending to run a lot of the route our kit needed to be as lightweight as possible. As a result we both opted for lightweight rucksacks (30 litres for me and 25 for Steve) which we both used for the OMM. As a result we were limited in what we could take when you consider it has to carry sleeping bags, tent, cooking equipment, food, snacks, waterproofs, spare clothes etc. The only luxuries I took was a blow up sleeping mat because it might be possible we would be sleeping on very rough ground if we opted to wild camp, plus if it got cold at night I would be better insulated. Although I am used to cold nights at the OMM (held at the end of Oct in an upland location) I felt it best to avoid 'sleeping cold' for several nights in succession. I also took a camera to take snaps on route although with tiredness setting in and a limited battery I did not take as many photos as perhaps I could have done. I know this will sound pretty disgusting to most but along with Steve we opted to carry virtually no spare clothes, just a spare pair of socks, a fleece to be used on the run as of when required and a spare top. For the whole of the journey I was to wear the same pair of tracksters, lycra shorts underneath and helly top. Needless to say we whiffed a lot and was probably amongst the least enjoyable part of the journey!
The total weight of the rucksack varied considerably throughout depending upon how much water and food were being carried but excepting these items I'm guessing it was around 6.5kg (mine was a bit heavier than Steve's as I was carrying the main part of the tent).
We happened to choose exactly the same footwear - Innv8 Roclite 315's. Walking Boots although comfortable would make running virtually impossible, trainers would be potentially dangerous over the hills, so fell shoes with a bit more cushioning seemed the sensible option.
We opted to do the crossing in the classic way by going from St Bees to Robin Hood's Bay. Although there is something to be said for doing the crossing the other way round - i.e. do the easiest bit first so you get fitter as you progress before hitting the hardest section at the end in the Lake District, I don't feel this rule works when running the C2C. 1) You should already be fit enough to run the C2C anyway and 2) you are probably going to get more tired rather than fitter as the route progresses, so makes more sense to get the hard section out of the way earlier on.
Now for the journey...
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