Author: jim earlam

Posted on

Coast to Coast Danby Wiske to Osmotherley

Danby Wiske to Osmotherley 10 miles

We had breakfast with a couple who had stayed in the same B&B as us in Richmond, Michelle and Richard. They were fellow Coast to Coasters but were travelling light, they looked fit, had caught us up and would leave us behind today. Today will be the shortest day of the whole walk so we are not in any hurry to leave, finally getting on the road about 9.45am. It was another dry day with the sun breaking through the rolling clouds just occasionally. Continue reading “Coast to Coast Danby Wiske to Osmotherley”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Richmond to Danby Wiske

Richmond to Danby Wiske 14 miles

When I first walked this section of the Coast to Coast 26 years ago Gary and I walked (on the recommendation of Wainwright no less) from Richmond to Osmotherley all in one go, twenty three miles on a baking hot day. By the time we got to Osmotherley youth hostel our feet were throbbing from the road walking and we were pretty tired and dehydrated. Today will be a little bit more leisurely, we’re splitting the Vale of York in two and only walking to Danby Wiske. Richmond was quiet and the shops just opening as we pottered about a bit before setting off just as the church bells in Market square chimed for 10am.

Continue reading “Coast to Coast Richmond to Danby Wiske”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Reeth to Richmond

Richmond comes into view

Reeth to Richmond 10 miles

After a comfortable night in the Dales Bike Centre we enjoy a leisurely continental breakfast in the bright dining room, surrounded by cycling posters and bike gear and feeling only a little out of place among the half dozen or so cyclists dressed in their Lycra. A relatively short stage to Richmond is the order of the day so we are in no rush to get out and we find ourselves in a bit of a holiday mood. Eventually we get ourselves moving, pack the rucksacks and head out into the fresh air. Continue reading “Coast to Coast Reeth to Richmond”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Keld to Reeth

Keld to Reeth 12 Miles

Keld sits right in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. If you are a long distance walker, the chances are you have passed by this village on your travels as it lies not only on the Coast to Coast Walk but also the Pennine Way. Keld is a quiet, settled kind of place. Visiting it is a bit like going to your grandma’s house when you were a child, it’s safe, comfortable and reassuringly unchanging. Continue reading “Coast to Coast Keld to Reeth”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Kirkby Stephen to Keld

Kirkby Stephen to Keld 12 miles

We don’t often consider it, but sleep is a powerful healer. Despite going to bed shattered and aching, this morning I woke up feeling renewed, the throbbing legs were feeling better and I was ready to get moving along the trail again. Like yesterday, we had breakfast with Bob and Alan who had also spent the night in the hostel. Apart from the four of us, there were only two other guests, two lads who I heard coming in in the early hours, drunk, loud and laughing. Denise the warden said they went around the country dressed as Spiderman but their car had broken down so they were stuck in Kirkby Stephen! Sounds like the plot of a road movie to me. Continue reading “Coast to Coast Kirkby Stephen to Keld”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Shap to Kirkby Stephen

Shap to Kirkby Stephen 20 miles

 

Had a leisurely breakfast catching up with Bob and Alan who were also staying at New Ing Lodge. Gwen and I left at about 10am and as we stopped off at the Co Op to buy our chocolate supplies for the day my eyes were drawn to the newspaper headline on the billboard outside which read, “Gales batter the Lake District!”. Gwen and I of course didn’t need to be told this news, we had lived (and walked) through it. Continue reading “Coast to Coast Shap to Kirkby Stephen”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Patterdale to Shap

Patterdale to Shap 17-18 Miles

Overnight, Gwen and I had talked and we decided that if the wind was still strong to gale force today we wouldn’t be going over Kidsty Pike. Kidsty Pike, at 2,560ft is the highest point on the whole Coast to Coast walk and is on today’s route but the wind, although not as strong as yesterday was still blowing very hard this morning and having been blown off her feet yesterday, Gwen was in no hurry to repeat that experience and indeed it would be dangerous to do so. So over breakfast I had a good look at my newly purchased 1:25000 map and hatched a plan that would take us to Shap via Boredale, under Arthurs pike, onto Divock Moor and then down to Shap via Bampton. Continue reading “Coast to Coast Patterdale to Shap”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Grasmere to Patterdale

Grasmere to Patterdale 8 1/2 Miles

Today turned into a very eventful day for what was meant to be a ‘short’ walking day. Chatted over breakfast in the hostel with Vanetta and Gabrielle and got to know them a bit and then Gwen and I walked into Grasmere for some supplies and some Ginger Bread before setting off at about 10.30am.

Continue reading “Coast to Coast Grasmere to Patterdale”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Rosthwaite to Grasmere

Rosthwaite to Grasmere 9 1/4 Miles.

Today was the day I got a twenty six year old monkey off my back. Twenty six years ago, crossing from Rosthwaite to Grasmere I got Gary lost on Greenup Edge, it was a wet and cloudy day with zero visibility and after wandering around lost for an hour or two we dropped down into, believe it or not, the Langdale valley. It was a long walk to Grasmere that day and I have never forgotten it. Today though was clear and sunny and I achieved the redemption I was longing for.

Continue reading “Coast to Coast Rosthwaite to Grasmere”

Posted on

Coast to Coast Ennerdale Bridge to Rosthwaite

Ennerdale Bridge To Rosthwaite 14 1/2 Miles.

Day two dawns dry but misty. We set off from our B&B about 9.30am and walk through a silent, sleepy Ennerdale Bridge, quiet and still in morning mist. Passing the Fox and Hounds and over the old packhorse bridge we reach the shoreline of Ennerdale Water in no time. The Coast to Coast path follows the South shoreline along the whole length of the Lake and there are a couple of notable features. Robin Hoods chair, topical for us as in two weeks will will be at Robin Hoods Bay, and Anglers Crag, where the path has a bit of an incline, the first of the day to crest the crag itself.

Continue reading “Coast to Coast Ennerdale Bridge to Rosthwaite”