Journeys by hiking, running, cycling and touring
Day 0 Familiar stations flashed by as the train made its way through Devon - Tiverton Parkway, my old city of Exeter, then the highlight of the whole route with the coastal section through Dawlish and Teignmouth. Soon we were passing Dartmoor, and I craned my neck to get a glimpse of a favourite place. … Continue reading The Far End of Cornwall – Part 1: The Plodders of Penzance
I pulled up in the car park at Lane End and spotted Paul (@paulgbuck) and Col (@colinastbury) over to the right, so hobbled over to meet them. Quite a bit of time was spent milling around while we tried to decide whether Phil (@daylightGambler) had actually already turned up or not. He'd got a new … Continue reading A Misty Meet
East Hill was a riot of purple and yellow as I climbed up and contoured around to find the first tor of the day – Ashbury Tor. I managed to overshoot it and doubled back through the gorse fringing the edge of the hill to find it. Unsure at first, I managed to find … Continue reading Clitter and Clotted Cream
Being the hostelry I'd visited for a restorative lunch on the day in 2008 when I decided what my final fell would be, it seemed fitting that I should mark the completion of the project in The Bridge. I sat in the pub with a pint and a pie and whilst taking advantage of the free wifi … Continue reading What Do I Do Now ?
Daylight’s fingers crept over the surface of the tent and the wind that had blown malevolently all night finally disappeared. It wasn’t supposed to be especially windy according to the forecast, but it seemed that it must have been funnelled in such a way as to enhance its force. Either that, or it’s just out … Continue reading And Then There Were None
I stood watching the black silhouette of the Scafells against a redish glow gradually infiltrating the sky above. As more light spread across the land, the glow became an intense orange concentrated behind Great Gable. A time for contemplation of the walk so far, and the walk ahead. Today was forecast … Continue reading The Valley of Sluggishness
The whistling and roaring sounds from outside that I heard whilst safely tucked up in my YHA bunk were all the confirmation needed that I’d made a good call last night. I didn’t feel a bit bad about taking the easy option this time. A deliberately leisurely breakfast took place before I went off to … Continue reading More Jam Than Hartleys
I woke knowing I had a little head start on the day’s walk, by virtue of my camp at High Nook Tarn. I was a bit slow packing up and it was nearly a quarter to nine before I was away. But it didn’t matter – it was likely to be quiet being midweek and … Continue reading Fog, fences and forests
A mere two sleeps after getting home from Dartmoor, and I was off again, riding my by now “usual” trains up to Penrith. With a flexible return ticket in my wallet, that was about the extent of the formal planning for this trip. Nearly at the end of the Wainwrights, maybe it was time for … Continue reading A Little Bit of Misadventure
...I'll be heading north to do battle with the last dregs of my Wainwright round. With 10 Western fells to do to complete the 214, plus another two nearby Southern fells that I want to redo as I used a car to get to them, I'm hoping that by the weekend I'll be celebrating the … Continue reading By the time you read this…
Every year close to Easter, we get together with a group of old university friends - a tradition that's been going on for 20 years now. Consequently we're running out of new places to go, and as we've evolved into family groups and acquired children and dogs, additional criteria that further restrict our choice of location … Continue reading Tors and Beaches – A week in Devon
Sunday: Tonbridge to Ashdown Forest I got off the train at Tonbridge, and was immediately struck by the relative cold compared with both home and London. It was also trying to rain, but thankfully without much success. I'd planned this walk to fit nicely in a period of forecast dry weather and really didn't fancy another couple … Continue reading Deer and Detours (Wealdway: Tonbridge to Uckfield)
Tuesday The sense of aborting my foray into the Western Fells in favour of getting the Northern Fells to 100% soon became even more obvious. With today being travelling home day, there wasn’t much else I could do that hadn’t already been done, and Carrock Fell was, sort of, on the way home. The forecast … Continue reading Finishing Off the Northern Fells – Part 3: Carrock Fell
Sunday Afternoon …The bus departed for Penrith, and I turned round and headed in the opposite direction. With Cath now on her way home, here on in was a solo trip. The Western Fells were waiting. The plan was much simpler than that for the Northern Fells – simply a two day walk from Buttermere … Continue reading Beach Boys, Buttermere and A Bail-Out
Friday The forecast for the weekend was poor, maybe even bordering on lunacy, and was the main reason why we’d decided not to camp this time out, preferring instead the security of hostels and especially the chances they afforded to get dry and warm after a day out on the fells dicing with the conditions. … Continue reading Finishing off the Northern Fells – Part 2: Blencathra & Friends