Saturday 23rd July 2022, the last leg(s)

 

The Oddfellows Arms does a mean Full English and the best coffee, so we powered out of Caldbeck on a light cloudy day, joining the trail by the River Caldew. In fact the source starts up on the Skiddaw massif, so it was like being reunited with an old, slightly bigger friend.

The Caldew was to be a constant companion all the way to Carlisle, as we meandered through lovely woodlands and fields, staying by the riverside and moving steadily away from the fell country. Looking back, the dominant forms of High Pike and Carrock Fell receded into the distance with every step, before disappearing altogether.

Lots of historic bridges and churches along the way, as well as bucolic little villages and the odd stately manor; the landscape around here is quite different to the rest of the Lake District, gently rolling and somewhat similar to parts of Somerset. We were entertained by swifts (quick check against the bird identifier on Google) swooping, darting and pirouetting with graceful agility across the top of the wheatfields.

By the 8 mile mark, every strain, bruise, ache, twinge and muscle spasm in our bodies was screaming for respite, so we made a welcome stop for lunch at the Bridge End Inn just outside Dalston. Mushroom crostini for Em, haddock goujons for me, for those collating daily gastronomic details.

The second half of the walk was spent spent mostly on punishingly hard tarmac cycle ways, fiercely concentrating on placing each foot one in front of the other in a recurrent forward propulsive motion. It was walking, Jim, but not as we know it. A steady drizzle set in, forcing us to don raincoats for the first time, but it didn’t call for the full set of waterproofs. We finally reached Carlisle railway station, by way of some astute industrial estate cut-throughs, took the celebratory selfie, and quickly bundled out of town to our plush comfy country hotel in Wetheral. 

There’s a big wedding reception on at the hotel, and we presented  a somewhat bedraggled contrast to the guests in their spruced-up finery, as we traipsed into the lobby in our 5 day old walking clothes, streaked in sweat, footsore and weary. This was soon put right by a restorative visit to the on-site spa suite, where we spent a relaxing couple of hours alternating between the swimming pool and the jacuzzi. Bliss.

Tonight we tucked into a scrumptious 3 course meal (humus dips, chalk trout, chicken ballotine, lemon tart and mango parfait) and raised several glasses of Sauvignon blanc to a most excellent 75-mile trek across the Lakelands, a region with a unique character and exceptional beauty. Does anyone know a good physio?

Joff x