Three Day-les

I've really enjoyed the walking over the last three days, starting from Sedbergh to Burton-in-Lonsdale on Tuesday, on to Hellifield on Wednesday, thence to Keighley today (Thursday).  Each day's walk was more-or-less in Lonsdale, Ribblesdale and Airedale respectively, each with its own character.

I was joined by a longstanding friend for most of Tuesday, and it was good to be able to catch up over several hours, something we've not had the opportunity to do since before the pandemic.  He lives locally so was able to give a bit of running commentary on parts of our route.  Thankfully the rain kept off nearly all day, so one of my only challenges of the day was a further encounter of the bovine kind, albeit that the group I met was somewhat smaller than Sunday's (although Limousines, one of the breeds in the group, are well known for being skittish!)

Shortly after meeting this group of young bullocks, I also had a traverse a somewhat overgrown path, ending with several scratches and nettle stings:

Following a night in Burton-in-Lonsdale, the guest of family members of a colleague, on Tuesday I headed slightly south before heading towards Ribblesdale on minor country roads.  The constant highlight of the day was the view across Ribblesdale towards the Three Peaks of Ingleborough, Pen-y-ghent and Whernside.  I discovered this bench, looking at Ingleborough, but the panorama opened up shortly afterwards to feature all three.

My day ended with a 'short sharp shower' so was reasonably wet when I arrived in Hellifield to be met by another colleague who lives a few miles away in Settle where I spent the night before returning for my final day's walk before talking a weekend back home.

The walk through Airedale was very different, mostly along the towpath of the Leeds and Liverpool canal, winding its way southeastwards through Gargrave, Skipton and onto Keighley.  An easier day's walk in terms of the terrain and navigation, with plenty of time to chat with other walkers and towpath users.  One man was somewhat surprised with my reply 'Yes, of Britain,' to his 'Are you walking the full length?' (he meaning the 127.25 miles of the canal).

One other question I've been asked a number of times is whether I'd be following the Pennine Way during my pilgrimage.  In general, no, but I crossed its route as I walked through the picturesque village of Gargrave.  It's easy to agree with those who claim that the Leads and Liverpool runs through some of the most beautiful spots on the whole canal network.

Looking back towards Airedale from Keighley:

Looking back

More generally, I left Mallaig four weeks ago today.  It feels quite an accomplishment to have arrived in Keighley, with just over 500 miles walked in those four weeks.

Overall I've now walked just over 750 miles since Cape Wrath over 43 days on the move, so I'm averaging just over 17 miles a day (planned average was 15-16); for those who are interested, the total blister count is three!

Several people have asked me whether I am getting tired: whilst I am certainly weary at the end of each day, and certainly need to rest and re-fuel, I'm feeling in good shape physically and spiritually and don't feel particularly tired. I've been working on keeping well hydrated and nourished, equally aware of the spiritual element to my pilgrimage.

I've continued to stop for prayer at each church en route, going in where the building is open.  Yesterday I called in to the small churches in Keasden and nearby Eldroth within a relatively short period of time.  Not only within the buildings but during my walking, I've encountered a palpable sense of God's renewing and re-creating presence. The final few words of this meditation seem apt.

In the present moment

Hurry is an unpleasant thing in itself, but also very unpleasant for whoever is around it. Some people came into my room and rushed in and rushed out and even when they were there they were not there – they were in the moment ahead or the moment behind. Some people who came in just for a moment were all there, completely in that moment.

Live from day to day, just from day to day. If you do so, you worry less and live more richly. If you let yourself be absorbed completely, if you surrender completely to the moments as they pass, you live more richly those moments.

(Anne Morrow Lindbergh)

Betwixt and between

The majority of my walking since leaving Gretna on Friday morning has been close to the M74/M6 and the West Coast main railway line, in the corridor flanked by the Northern Pennines over to the east, the Cumbrian fells to the west.  I've had plenty of good views over to the east, but poor visibility westwards has meant only occasional fleeting glances of Blencathra and the other significant peaks of northern Cumbria.

      Northern Pennines in the distance

My hosts over the weekend, Catherine and Ian, joined me for the first hour of Sunday's walk, enjoying some hare spotting as we walked.  Once they'd looped back, I continued through Penrith, then into the Lowther valley, busy on a Sunday with plenty of walkers, increasingly so as I moved onto the Lowther Estate, where Sandy and I had our first holiday together 30 years ago in one of these cottages, a short distance away from Lowther castle:

The thick blanket of drizzle shrouding the Cumbrian fells slowly encroached on my route and the afternoon was largely wet   If that weren't enough, the last stretch of footpaths was across fields of knee length, very wet grass, reminiscent of We're going on a bear hunt, and amidst all that, a herd of young cattle decided to follow me through no fewer than three fields before congregating right next to the final stile on the edge of Shap (needless to say, no photo for that moment!).

Despite the rain, there was time to notice an overall change in my surroundings, the red sandstone of the area around Carlisle being replaced by the limestone walls typical of the Dales.

'It always rains in Shap'

After a round trip by car to my overnight accommodation, Monday morning in Shap started in a similar vein to Sunday.  Whilst I can only offer limited experience of the local weather, the conversation in the post office before I set off bemoaned another poor day of weather this summer.

Waterproofs on once more, the first couple of hours of Monday's walk climbed the hills to the east of Shap, following the route of the Coast to Coast walk established by Alfred Wainwright, best-known for his Pictorial Guides to the Lakeland Fells, describing the natural features, routes and views from the summits of over 200 Lakeland fells.  Certainly a popular choice on Monday as I shared a couple of hours walking to the small village of Orton with walkers from several places in Britain and from New York too.  Thankfully the rain started to clear and opened up some lovely views for us all.

The second half of the day took me through the Lune Valley, again following part of a Roman Road from Middleton to Low Borrowbridge - follow the link for quite a bit of information, including details of Fox's Pulpit, used by George Fox, founder of the Society of Friends.  The whole of the area around Sedbergh is rich in the early history of the Quaker movement.  

Just to assure you that it's not all been rain, here's a view southwards along the Lune Valley, a few miles north of Sedbergh where I stayed the night with a colleague from the Methodist Church.  Towards the end of my day's walk, my route started to move away from the railway and motorway and the surroundings were silent, excepting the running water.

And how blessed all those in whom you live, whose lives become roads you travel;

They wind through lonesome valleys, come upon brooks, discover cool springs and pools brimming with rain!

God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain, and at the last turn—Zion! God in full view!

(Psalm 84 vv5-7 The Message)

Roman borders

A quick glance at the tracks of the last two days of walking reveal two very straight sections along former Roman Roads.  Carlisle (Luguvallium) was an important town at the NW extremity of the Roman empire and is at the eestern end of Hadrian's Wall, and a number of Roman Roads form part of loday's road network.

First stop on Friday was however Gretna with its history of conducting weddings for those eloping from England.  The practice came into being in the middle of the eighteenth century when a marriage law was passed in England, requiring ceremonies to be conducted in church by an official.  Scottish law allowed couples simply to make a public declaration before two witnesses without a recognised official present, and so the practice began.  The Old Smithy is well known for its links with this, but other locations in the village also carried out such ceremonies.

After a quick look around, complete with a coffee stop, I carried on and crossed the border, at a somewhat unassuming bridge, following a cycle route all the way into Carlisle itself.  The surprise of the day was the last couple of miles which took me through an urban nature reserve, interleaved between housing and a number of small industrial estates to the north of the city centre.

Lightening the load

Having arrived in good time, I had plenty of time to wander around the city centre of Carlisle, via the castle, large park and to do a bit of shopping.  I also took the opportunity to attend an evening service in the Cathedral, just a few minutes walk from where I stayed in a small hostel.

Before leaving for a shorter day of walking to stay with friends for two nights, I parcelled up the tent and a few other camping item and sent them home.  Over the rest of the pilgrimage I'll be staying with a combination of friends, family members, on the occasional church floor and with some colleagues from the Methodist Church who have kindly offered beds for the night.  That's a real blessing for me, with quite a bit less to carry now.

Two lovely days

I'm currently sat in the warm sunshine of the early evening, recalling the places I've walked through since leaving Mary's in Beattock yesterday morning.  I followed the Annandale Way for the entire day yesterday, continuing on it for a while today before moving onto National Cycle Network route 74 (which runs close to the route of the M74, which carries traffic between the northern end of the M6 and the central belt of Scotland).

Annandale is a strath (large valley), and runs north–south through the Southern Uplands from Annanhead, close to Moffat near where I stayed with Mary) to Annan on the Solway Firth, just a few miles away from where I am tonight.  The Annandale Way runs close to the river, providing lots of views of the mostly agricultural land it supports - some arable, but plenty of grazing land being managed alongside mixed forest.

The weather has been dry, and nicely warm with a cooling breeze, except for the last few miles today when it was beginning to feel hotter.

A small, municipally-run, campsite in the centre of the small village of Lochmaben provided last night's resting spot right on the loch edge.  After an early start, I was on foot just after 8 today, reaching Kirkpatrick-Fleming in the early afternoon.  I passed through Ecclefechan around lunchtime, strongly linked with Thomas Carlyle, 

essayist, historian and philosopher who influenced (amongst others) Oscar Wilde.  One unusual fact about Carlyle is that he decided to study Theology at Edinburgh, but in the eight years of doing so, lost his faith.  He developed strong links in London for most of his life, but asked to be buried in Ecclefechan.

For what should be my final night's camping, I'm at Bruce's Cave Campsite which includes a cave where Robert the Bruce, Scotland's national hero is reputed to have stayed, contemplating some of his defeats.  Legend has it that whilst in the cave, Robert noticed a spider trying time and again to make a web.  Robert was inspired to continue to try again to achieve his ambition of a free Scotland, which came to be in the early 14th century.

Crossing the border 

I'm now just a handful of miles west of Gretna, the border town known for elopement!  All being well I should pass through in the morning as I head to Carlisle for the night in a youth hostel.  It's taken 35 walking days to reach here from Cape Wrath.  It feels quite an accomplishment to have reached this point, equally a moment to be thankful for the beautiful surroundings I've walked through, soaked up and tried to learn more about as I've passed through.

I don't want to say which has been the particular highlight so far, but several have contributed to the sense of well-being that's developed over the past weeks.  Amongst the mountains of the Highlands and Islands, equally the Southern Uplands, it's easy to recognise these encouraging words of Scripture:

I will lift up my eyes to the hills—

From whence comes my help?

My help comes from the Lord,

Who made heaven and earth.

(Psalm 122 vv1-2)

Friends reunited

My place of welcome last night and today is Lochhouse Farm on the edge of Beattock, at the point where the Southern Upland Way crosses the M74.  It's home to Mary, a friend who Sandy and I first knew when we were all connected with Wimbledon Methodist Church in the late 1980s and early 1990s.  Not my first visit here, as we stayed whilst travelling to a family holiday in Scotland some years ago, but this time with a degree of sadness as it's the first time Mary and I have met since her husband Martin died suddenly last year.  So we've had valuable time to share some memories.

Looking forward, I'm going to be staying with friends, family members and colleagues for much of the rest of the pilgrimage.  After a couple more nights of camping in the next few days, I'm planning to parcel up my tent and a few other backpacking items and send them home.  That will certainly lessen my load!

'Proper hill walking day'

Looking back, I really enjoyed yesterday's walk onwards from Wanlockhead, continuing eastwards on the Southern Upland Way (SUW).  The first few hours of the day were taken up with ascents in the Lowther hills, including some challenging sections, where the walking poles were a real asset.

The 'golf ball' (a radar station) was an early milestone of the day, following the first climb up from Wanlockhead, and was visible for a large part of the walk.  Equally notable was a small 'picnic hut' which I passed, although I only looked in briefly as it was well before lunchtime!

Despite the need to concentrate on the climbs and descents, it really was a day to soak up the views, including those over the Daer Reservoir which I passed in the early afternoon - this view is back towards the golf ball.

The SUW is a significant walking route across Southern Scotland, in effect the equivalent of the well-known Coast-to-Coast route in Northern England, although the SUW is well over twice the distance long.

All-in-all a good walking day, including the sunny weather, complete with cooling breeze.  A safe arrival at Lochhouse, where friends had arranged to meet up for an evening meal.

By contrast

Today's walk was somewhat shorter than the last few, somewhat welcome, as I've had an afternoon to relax and enjoy the surroundings of Wanlockhead, the highest village in Scotland in the Southern Uplands.  More on that later.

Water water everywhere!

Friday's walk followed the banks of the River Ayr upstream, following a well marked trail throughout.  It's fair to say that I wasn't really up to taking in much of my surroundings as the predominant feature of the day was several hours of heavy rain (as forecast); in addition quite a few sections of the trail were waterlogged so keeping upright with feet as dry as possible was quite a feat.  There were also a couple of landslips, around which diversions were in place (although the permanent nature of the signs for one suggested that the landslip was far from recent).  By early afternoon I was wet, including socks and feet for the first time in the whole walk.

Conditions did improve in the mid-afternoon with 'a good drying wind' and I arrived at my campsite for the night almost dry.

Amidst the rain, I was able to visit Highland Mary's Monument, marking the traditional last meeting place of poet Robert Burns and Mary Campbell, known to posterity as 'Highland Mary'. Mary Campbell was perhaps the great love of Burns' life, although he was a man who liked to spread his favours around!

A construction of a different nature also towered above the River Ayr Trail towards the end of the day.  I'd travelled over the Glenfinnan Viaduct whilst travelling from and to Mallaig, but the Ballochmyle Viaduct deserves a mention with its largest masonry arch in the UK.  Unfortunately, a good view wasn't practical as you can see below.

After a good dry night, Saturday's walk continued with some of the Burns theme, seeing a statue or some reference to him in most of the villages I walked through on my route from Auckinleck to Sanquhar.

The villages were nearly all former coal mining communities, some still looking quite uncared for, and I'm unsure as to what employment in some of them followed the demise of coalmining.  Nearly all had a memorial to those killed in mining accidents, some with quite lengthy lists of names. Sobering.

I was just starting to think about a possible place for camping for the night when I entered Kirkconnell, where the annual gala, complete with pipe band, parade and fair was in full swing.

In light of that, I finished the day in Sanquhar, where my route joins the Southern Upland Way.  The town has many historical links, including those with the now ruined castle, but also to the Covenanters, members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland, and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs.

So to the Southern Upland Way, which I followed today and will again tomorrow across to Beattock.  Grateful to Margaret, whose maps I'm using for this stretch, for all her notes which are added to the detail already there.

Really enjoyed this morning's climb up from Sanquhar, crossing a couple of valleys where it was completely silent, excepting the breeze.  Stunning views as I approached Wanlockhead, on the right of this panorama, one of two former leadmining communities here.

Only a day or two ago, I was put in touch with someone who is part of the GBUltras running community who lives here. Having spoken to them about finding a possible wild-camping spot, I'm more than grateful to report that I have been warmly and completely welcomed into their home this evening.  Another experience of the generosity of strangers - thank you Gareth and Carole for your hospitality and welcome.

On Father's Day I've had more than a few messages from my own children, likewise have thought much about my own Dad.  He'd have loved this area with its mix of natural beauty and industrial archeology.  He'd have loved walking around and learning about the local history.

The hospitality of friends

On several occasions, I've been blessed by the support and help of complete strangers over the past six weeks.  Since the weekend, all bar one night has been taken under a solid roof, thanks to friends who live on or close to my route.  It's been good to renew and deepen existing friendships, and to be the recipient of generous hospitality, not only shelter and a comfy bed, home cooked meals and offers of laundry too.  Thank you.

Today and yesterday I've been house guest with Anne-Claar and Keith: Anne-Claar was one of my tutors at theological college between 2012-5 and it was a happy coincidence to discover that theyd moved here recently to allow Keith to take up a position in the Scottish Episcopal Church.

Crossing the Clyde on Tuesday morning marked what I feel is a period of transition in the whole walk.  For the last three days, the islands and mountains to the west have continued to be visible, but have diminished into the background.  Many moments taking in the impressive, awe-inspiring geography of the Highlands and islands will remain with me, and I hope that I have the opportunity to revisit at least some.

The lower-lying geography of the Clyde and Ayrshire Coastal Paths have made for easier walking, not least because the trails are both well marked and easy to navigate.  Wednesday was delightful, with sunshine and a cooling breeze, today (Thursday) more overcast but almost dry for the whole day.

Since leaving Largs, my boots have trod a variety of surfaces - tarmac of the cycle path which runs along the coast and is shared at times eith the trails, through sand dunes, and a lot of time on the beaches themselves.  It's been interesting to note some of the history of the small coastal ports (Irvine,Troon, Ayr) and see some of their current businesses including the large sawmills here in Troon.  I've also passed a nuclear power station in the process of being decommissioned, Prestwick airport and several golf courses.  Oh, and this serpent!

Amidst all that, there's plenty of flora and fauna in what might be described as the coastal fringe.  In some sense, the environment is fragile, but amidst that fragility is tenacity in the way in which the plants grow and survive.  In weakness and in a harsh environment, there's strength.  Even the seaweed has variety in the colours.

All in all, an enjoyable three days walking along this coast. As I turned to head inland through Newton-on-Ayr, I dipped my boots in the sea as I left the West Coast of Scotland.  In the coming days I'll be walking ong the River Ayr Trail and then the Southern Upland Way towards Beattock where I hope to be after the weekend.

'This, this is the God we adore,

Our faithful, unchangeable friend,

Whose love is as great as His power,

And knows neither measure nor end.

‘Tis Jesus, the first and the last,

Whose Spirit shall guide us safe Home;

We’ll praise Him for all that is past,

And trust Him for all that’s to come.'

(Words: Joseph Hart)

Quieter times

Sunday evening was spent in the relative luxury of a holiday lodge overlooking Loch Goil, thanks to the hospitality of former colleagues from John Lewis who have been following my progress, and realised that I'd be very close to them over this last weekend.  Given the overnight rain, I was all the more grateful for their offer.

The majority of Monday's walk was down the western shore of Loch Goil, passing Carrick Castle, towards Ardentinny and Loch Long.  It's an area with significant WW2 and Cold War history and there is still a significant military presence in the area, including the home of the UK's nuclear weapons.

The main thing on my mind during the morning, however, was how I would get completely along the lochside, as there was a gap of about 500m without a marked path.  Fearing private property en route, I'd wondered if I might need to take to the beach to join the gap, but I was passing through the gap around high water, so that was as a potential issue.  I needn't have worried:

There followed a lovely trail through some forest (no logging operations this time!) which came out at the small bay at Ardentinny, somewhere that I'd previously visited by boat.  My first glimpse of the Firth of Clyde felt significant: although I still have several days of walking in Scotland before me, the lochs and mountains are now largely behind.  I spent a bit of time during my lunch break just remembering some of the early days of pilgrimage.

Loch Goil joins Long Loch, then a few miles south, Holy Loch.  Again, a place with military connections but, in common with much of the area adjacent to the Clyde, a place for recreation and leisure.  In the early 19th century, 'trips down the watter' gained in popularity as the population of industrial Glasgow sought somewhere to escape the fumes and dirt of the city.  Holy Loch and Dunoon both share plenty of evidence of this, including their piers an other traditional Victorian seaside architecture.  Today's ferry plies her trade across the same route to Gouruck, where I arrived on Tuesday morning after a night in the tent at a small site at the head of Holy Loch.

After a somewhat grey start to the day, things slowly brightened up as I headed south along the Clyde and Ayrshire Coastal Paths.  The last few miles took me above the shoreline itself, a place to savour views across the Clyde over Great Cumbrae, towards Bute, with the Kintyre Peninsula in the background as I headed towards Largs to meet up with friends who are hosting me overnight nearby.

To finish, those of you familiar with a particular Scottish folk song might find this amusing.  I'll let you guess which route I took!