08 Jun Ministry of Silly Names
In the rich lexicon of place names that has guided and amused us, two standout entries sit alongside one another on the way from Blakey to Glaisdale. Our penultimate day, we’ve covered 170 of the 200 miles so more silly names to add to the already long list (Gobble Hall and Intake Bottom being two prime examples) are welcome. They keep you chuckling along in any boring or difficult sections. So yesterday (yes, sorry, I am a day late) the lengthy stretch of road we had to walk as we headed away from Blakey and the excellent Lion Inn, was cheered enormously by the way marker at Fat Betty’s Crossing (no kidding) and the lovely stroll across Great Fryup Moor (still no kidding) overlooking the sensational dale that has been blessed with the same name! Haha!
It was the hottest day so far, well into the 20s and the heat felt fierce. I was a bit jaded from little viruses that had cleaved to my sensitive lungs, left, no doubt, by some other trekker who’d finished with them. So there was much more huffing and puffing than usual on the ups and a need for frequent rests. But we made it across Great Fryup with views either side over the lush, green, voluptuous valleys in such sharp contrast with the bare (save for all that heather) moors above. We cruised (well, Himself did while I croaked and chuntered behind, more croaky and chuntery than usual) into Glasidale where we will stay for the last couple of nights with my niece, Catherine, who lives right by the C2C trail.
Bring seasoned C2C’ers, we continued on past Glaisdale and into Grosmont where the route has a vicious sting up its sleeve. Forgive the inelegant muddling of cliches there, but if anything deserves inelegant cliches to be muddled it’s the mile and a half of road walking up a 1 in 3 gradient the other side of Grosmont. Doing that at the start of a walking day is to be avoided at all costs, so yesterday on we trod and up we trod this unspeakable hill, taking advantage of a pickup from the wonderful Catherine who would drop us back at the top the following morning to continue on our way. Yes!!
And she did drop us back there this morning and we have walked the last few miles and put our toes in the North Sea. Journey’s end. More on that soon….
Andrew Jenvey
Posted at 13:40h, 09 JuneI know you haven’t finished yet but I wanted to be amongst the first to thank you for your eloquent and entertaining blog. I am also unashamedly trying to top it. I too have embarked upon my own C2C (casa to caseta) having taken a couple of sizeable steps on day 1, I went bum over nipple holder, pitched onto my shoulder and broke the upper arm bone just below the shoulder joint. In no way can this be said to be humerus! Resulting time spent in A&E was considerably longer than said C2C excursion itself.I am strapped up ad looking forward to a hot bath,probably not in the very near future. There will be no further postings or drawings for this trip.
I repeat I’ve loved all the stuff you have put on the blog and Jim’s sketches.
Love Jum & Chris