LEJOG day 33: Hebden Bridge to Cowling
Boy, I think both Sarah and I are glad tomorrow's a rest day!
Today looked better to start with- less misty, with it all rising off the hills in columns as we set off, and although we set off in waterproofs most of the wet was coming from the grass rather than the sky, and with our hostess' instructions in mind we strode off across the fields, down into a valley and immediately back out of it again, unconcerned by the Pennine Way's ongoing reticence regarding signposts.
We made our way across some moors and Proper Yorkshire Scenery, finally realised that the birds we've been hearing and calling skylarks for two days are in fact curlews (they were next to each other on the information board, give us a break) and generally waltzed along enjoying ourselves. Sure, it constantly threatened rain and it wasn't wonderfully warm but we could at least actually see where we were going and it's much easier to keep up the pace when you've got actual scenery to progress through rather featureless mist.
We made it to Top Within, a farm which causes the Brontë society problems: in 1984 they stuck a plaque on the wall proclaiming that it probably had nothing to do with Wuthering Heights but since the thing looks over a moor it probably has views vaguely resembling those from Heathcliff's house, but by the time they got round to putting up an information board more recently they'd decided it most definitely was Emily's inspiration, honest. As it had more connected and semi-complete walls standing than Glastonbury Abbey, it made for good shelter for lunch, and unlike the Abbey it was free. There was a depressing board on the inside about the farm itself, a sparse tale of slightly-less-than-subsistence farming in the South Pennines over the 400 years between 1591 and 1890. No, not a typo, that's what the board said.
We marched on, found ourselves in sunshine with six miles to go at around 2:30 and celebrated by walking down to have tea at a café- which was definitely closed, but when we arrived the lady owner was there and seeing as how we were walkers and she'd just put the kettle on anyway she made us a cup each, and then regaled is with stories of her treks in Nepal and driving through Afghanistan and Iran.
Sadly, some time after all this everything took a bit of a turn for the worse- we hit a moor after a long climb up a rough path and I got fed up and then it started raining and the last five miles seemed to take approximately four hundred years to disappear, hindered by a path that alternated between bog and boulders and was never easy, plus the fact that the valley containing Cowling was hidden until we'd virtually fallen into it. But we arrived, and there was tea and cake and then an excellent pub meal, and the glass of wine is really helping me to forget it all.
Distance walked: 15.66 miles
Time taken: 6h40
Percentage completed: 45.5%
Miles per £1 of boot: 4.28
Days since I was last rained on: 0
Lunch: a single round of ham and pickle sandwiches, which wasn't enough, a carton of orange juice, a pepperami (carried since Marsden), a bag of crisps and a knock-off Penguin bar; snacks were an apple and bag of crisps, and later a chocolate brownie and the remaining three pieces of very oily cheese from Penkridge, and that cake on arrival.
Last night's B&B: Badgerfields, near Hebden Bridge: a phonecall to check we were ok when we were late arriving, a proper tea tray when we finally got there, a cracking roast chicken dinner with Yorkshire pudding and a great ginger and rhubarb sponge for dessert and an amazing breakfast spread, plus a really lovely cosy twin attic room with its own little reading nook: this place Looked After us!
Another pointful stile
Curlew!
Moor
Today looked better to start with- less misty, with it all rising off the hills in columns as we set off, and although we set off in waterproofs most of the wet was coming from the grass rather than the sky, and with our hostess' instructions in mind we strode off across the fields, down into a valley and immediately back out of it again, unconcerned by the Pennine Way's ongoing reticence regarding signposts.
We made our way across some moors and Proper Yorkshire Scenery, finally realised that the birds we've been hearing and calling skylarks for two days are in fact curlews (they were next to each other on the information board, give us a break) and generally waltzed along enjoying ourselves. Sure, it constantly threatened rain and it wasn't wonderfully warm but we could at least actually see where we were going and it's much easier to keep up the pace when you've got actual scenery to progress through rather featureless mist.
We made it to Top Within, a farm which causes the Brontë society problems: in 1984 they stuck a plaque on the wall proclaiming that it probably had nothing to do with Wuthering Heights but since the thing looks over a moor it probably has views vaguely resembling those from Heathcliff's house, but by the time they got round to putting up an information board more recently they'd decided it most definitely was Emily's inspiration, honest. As it had more connected and semi-complete walls standing than Glastonbury Abbey, it made for good shelter for lunch, and unlike the Abbey it was free. There was a depressing board on the inside about the farm itself, a sparse tale of slightly-less-than-subsistence farming in the South Pennines over the 400 years between 1591 and 1890. No, not a typo, that's what the board said.
We marched on, found ourselves in sunshine with six miles to go at around 2:30 and celebrated by walking down to have tea at a café- which was definitely closed, but when we arrived the lady owner was there and seeing as how we were walkers and she'd just put the kettle on anyway she made us a cup each, and then regaled is with stories of her treks in Nepal and driving through Afghanistan and Iran.
Sadly, some time after all this everything took a bit of a turn for the worse- we hit a moor after a long climb up a rough path and I got fed up and then it started raining and the last five miles seemed to take approximately four hundred years to disappear, hindered by a path that alternated between bog and boulders and was never easy, plus the fact that the valley containing Cowling was hidden until we'd virtually fallen into it. But we arrived, and there was tea and cake and then an excellent pub meal, and the glass of wine is really helping me to forget it all.
Distance walked: 15.66 miles
Time taken: 6h40
Percentage completed: 45.5%
Miles per £1 of boot: 4.28
Days since I was last rained on: 0
Lunch: a single round of ham and pickle sandwiches, which wasn't enough, a carton of orange juice, a pepperami (carried since Marsden), a bag of crisps and a knock-off Penguin bar; snacks were an apple and bag of crisps, and later a chocolate brownie and the remaining three pieces of very oily cheese from Penkridge, and that cake on arrival.
Last night's B&B: Badgerfields, near Hebden Bridge: a phonecall to check we were ok when we were late arriving, a proper tea tray when we finally got there, a cracking roast chicken dinner with Yorkshire pudding and a great ginger and rhubarb sponge for dessert and an amazing breakfast spread, plus a really lovely cosy twin attic room with its own little reading nook: this place Looked After us!
Another rest day Louise! Good to hear from you. We are at St Marys Loch now, celebrating 26 years of terror and torture as Arne says it...
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