July 26, Melrose

 I had booked a taxi to take me to Melrose—could I have taken a bus?  Yes, but I did not want to schlep with my back pack and a suitcase on a bus, so I opted for comfort—worth every pence.  The taxi driver was very nice but drove too fast, just like the other taxi driver.  Because he showed up 25 minutes early due to a miscommunication (actually, a non-communication), I was worried that I would get to the hotel before the doors were unlocked and would be standing outside in the rain, which would be most unpleasant.  However, maybe because I had been such a pest about the whole thing, the door to the hotel was left slightly ajar, so I went in; no one was there; I hunted for a bathroom, found one, used it, came back to the front desk and a few minutes later the receptionist showed up.  It all worked out perfectly except for the rain.  It was raining—but not too heavily!

Off I went to Abbotsford, home of Sir Walter Scott.  It was a lovely riverside walk.

This is not the riverside, it is Eyemouth Beach at 6:15 a.m. (I had time for a walk before the taxi came.)  Prizes it won't win even at its best:

This is a section the riverside walk path:

And this is the river Tweed with one of its residents:

The bottom of the bottom sign reads, "Walk your way to health and happiness:

Who might this fellow, near the entrance ot Abbotsbury, be:

Why, it isTam Purdie.  This is the story:

"In 1804, the 37-year-old Tam Purdie was caught poaching on Scott’s land at his former Borders’ home of Ashestiel, near Selkirk, poaching back then being an extremely serious offence. Scott himself had been appointed Sheriff Depute in the County of Selkirk in 1796. Purdie pleaded his case, citing his impoverished circumstances and duty towards his family as motivation for his crime. “Work is scarce and game plentiful,” he protested, adding slyly that he had merely “girned a hare or twa to prevent them from doin’ ony mischief,” a risky strategy in a court of law …

But these pleadings worked in Tam Purdie’s favour, and he escaped the charges, though on the condition that he work for Scott. He began as a shepherd, and, given more and more responsibility, eventually became Scott’s personal assistant, an eclectic mix of gamekeeper, forester and librarian when Scott eventually moved to Abbotsford. Indeed, in 1812, Scott invited Purdie and his family to come to stay in his household.

For the rest of his days, Purdie and Scott became almost inseparable. Scott was deeply affected by the death of his trusted companion in 1829 when Purdie was sixty-two years old. A stone sculpture of Tam Purdie stands at the entrance to the Abbotsford Gardens overlooking the river Tweed, and he has the honour of being laid to rest in Melrose Abbey."

Even though I had purchased a ticket on line, I still had to get "processed" at the Visitors' Centre before gaining entry to the house. It took the woman at the ticket counter about twenty minutes to do this.  

If you are interested in Abbotsford or in Walter Scott, click on that link and you will get a good tour and see excellent photos.  

Here are a few  of my takeaways from me:

Impressive library:

Many many many books.

Some beautiful windows:

In fact, it was surprising to see so many large windows and so much light.  Most were not stained glass, but there were two beauties.

Trivia:  Abbotsford was the first home in Scotland to have gas lighting (so they say).  

There was an armoury containing many arms. This cabinet was of interest because of the crucifix among the weapons:

Cardinal John Newman (now a Saint, apparently) a great lover of Sir Walter Scott's work, gifted some vestments to Scott's great granddaughter 

Do not confuse Cardinal Newman with Isidore Newman of New Orleans (as I did until enlightened) who founded the school where Alex Allain and Michal Kern met and became life-long friends!  And if you are interested in Cardinal Newman you might want to take a look at Seven Facts you never Knew aoubt him  And if you are interested in Isidore Newman you can read about him here.

A tiny picture in a huge frame:

There were gardens.  Some not too impressive

                                        

Some with a whole bunch of different varieties of flowers but all in large rectangular beds so the garden feeling, if you know what I mean, was absent.

Sightseeing over, I stopped in at the cafe where for $5.34 I bought a dixie-cup size ice cream which was so freezer burned that it met its fate in the garbage.

The walk back was one of those put-the-rain-gear-on-take-the-rain-gear-off sort of affairs, rather tedious, but when I arrived vack in Melrose, I could check in at the hotel into a huge room, so I doffed the boots, put on my sneakers and headed for the Co-op to buy supplies for dinner.  I have a whole new approach!  Instead of "This is what I want," I focus on "This is what they have," and make it work!  Usually it works!

Melrose is an upscale Scottish Boarder town.  Quite pleasant.

July 25, Eyemouth but not to Berrick

I was really looking forward to  walking the Berwickshire Coast Path from from Eyemouth to "Berrick" today.  But it was not to be!  When I started out it was windy and the wind got worse; in fact it got very very bad.  I could barely move against it.  "This is crazy," I thought.  I checked the wind velocity for Eyemouth and it was 39 mph, only I was up on cliffs, so it might have been higher than that (see safety tip #1 below).  Do instruct yourself on Google's take of walking in high winds: see just below.  I couldn't say it better!

Walking in a 40 mph wind is arduous, affects your balance, and can make steady movement very difficult. Gusts at this speed can easily push you off course or off your feet, making it a hazardous situation. 

What It Feels Like

• High resistance: You must lean forward or into the wind just to move forward.
• Unsteady steps: Your feet may not land where you intend, and walking straight requires a lot of extra effort.
• Debris hazard: Small twigs, dust, and grit blown by the wind can sting your face and eyes.

Safety Tips

• Avoid open spaces: Stay away from exposed hill ridges, cliffs, and tall buildings where gusts are stronger.
• Watch out for trees: High winds break branches easily, so avoid walking under large trees.
• Lower your center of gravity: Take shorter steps, use walking poles for support, and crouch down slightly if a heavy gust hits.

Before proceeding with the wind factor, we have to look at another weather issue:  the clouds.

Sun and clouds were in competition:

If you get my drift:

There was a golf course to traverse:

I just love that warning because I would love to know how one can actually beware of a golf ball that would knock them unconscious if it hit them in the head. I thought that was one thing I did NOT have to worry about because no one is going to be on the 14th tee at 6:00 a.m. And besides, who would be crazy enough to play in this horrendous wind? 

There was a wide red line painted around the periphery of the course. 

I will stay on the INSIDE of that line whether I am trespassing or not lest I be blown into the North Sea:

To be fair, the path, so far, was safe from the edge of the cliff, but I said to myself, "If I get to a place where it is scary, I will turn around.  Of course, I did get to a place that was scary (way too steep and too narrow) and I looked up to see a large, dark grey, low-hanging cloud.  This is definitely a message from God!!  Since I was utterly exhausted after only about two hours, and could barely stand against the wind, I decided to head back.  It was disappointing, but I knew I could not manage the distance and the hazards of cliff walking. under those conditions.

The excursion, short as it was....maybe three and a half hours left me utterly exhausted, more than any other challenge so far.  So I went to the famous gelato shop in Eyemouth and had a cone.  I was only sorry I did not order two scoops; it was that delicious.

Then I decided to drag myself on a different walk, which, for the most part was poorly designed, but it did pass through the harbour, where I had wanted to walk, anyway.  

You are posing so nicely!

Fishing traps:

There was a museum in town, so I went.  It had good displays and explanations of some ordinary items that people used to use in farm communities, such as the forging of horse shoes, and what is involved in making a wagon wheel, and barrels, and millstones, fishing nets and lines, and other implements.  I hd no idea a bellows for  a forge was so BIG:

Maybe the item that impressed me most was the wagon wheel.  It was huge, made of several kinds of wood, and had a metal exterior rim.  It makes you realize what a big deal it was when an axel or some other component broke.  

It turned out that this is a big day in Eyemouth.  There was a queen to be crowned.  I asked a woman down near the beach, "What sort of queen is being crowned today?"  "The Herring Queen."  "Herring Queen?  What are the qualifications for that?"  "You have to e under 18, a good student, and be a scout."  At 2:30, boats, ferrying the queen and her entourage, make their way from St. Abbs to Eyemouth:

Pipers piped:

And drummers drummed:

And at 4:30, the queen was crowned.  I was too done in from the morning's exertions to wait for the big moment, so I went to the Co-Op, bought a Sprite Zero, and came back to the B and B.  No doubt it was a splendid ceremony.  

July 24, Eyemouth

 Let's see, today's itinerary had a lot pieces.  First, at 5:45, Harry's Taxi drove me from Reeth to Darlington, about 50 minutes.  The lady driver drove fast and the road was curvy and she didn't have a Lexus, if you know what I mean.  I did tell her that I suffer from motion sickness and could she possibly go a bit slower. She obliged for about five minutes.  At the train station, an employee helped me retrieve my ticket, which was supposed to be available from the app only it wasn't.  Pleasant  90 minute train ride from Darlington to Berwick-UponTweed, (known as Berrick, to the locals) during which I read the Daf, did Connections and the Spelling Bee.  Woods Taxis picked me up and brought me to Eyemouth where I dropped off my suitcase at the B and B, and then took off along the Berwickshire Coast Path heading north.  

The coast looks like this:

Anyone who has done coastal walking would know what the ups and downs are like.  First you go way way way down, to the beach,  followed almost immediately by a way way way up to the top of the cliff.  The cycle is repeated several times. Fortunately, it was not a scary path, as in I never felt that I might end up in the North Sea.

At one point, however, I thought the directional sign was pointing to the little gap among those ferns.  "No!  The route cannot go through there and up that monster hill!"  It didn't.

The harbour at St. Abbs.

The walk continued around "St. Abbs Head" but that would have added several miles and since I did not start out until 9:00 a.m., that would have made too long a day, so I headed back.

People were frolicking and cavorting in the water (I know they were frolicking and cavorting because I could hear them laughing)....this is the North Sea.  Can you imagine how cold the water must be?

Some impressive cliffage:

There are a number of places where you can divert and go down to the beach, although the beaches are, for the most part or for the whole part, not very nice.  And besides, those are hellish descents.

I do not have to be told twice:

Hydrangeas:

This guy, Willie Spears, with the fish who looks as if he is saying, "Go West, young man," only because of the fish, that does not quite work.  Anyway, he is a local hero: he fought the Church for twenty years because they wanted to tax the fish being caught.

Twenty years of fighting with the church is persistence.

I returned to the fairly pleasant B and B, which has one super amenity:  A FRIG!  The one grocery store in town rates about a C minus, but I am learning how to make do!  

The town: I have never seen more bird shit in my life and bird feathers, too, blowing around.  Legionnaires Disease you could get even without an air conditioner, I swear!  The town has two main churches that look alike, one with a red door and one with a blue door.  Tomorrow, I shall explore the harbour after getting back from walking  to "Berrick."

July 22, Hawes to Keld

This is the stage I was worried about.  It is reputed to be the most difficult stage of the Herriot Way; it is also a stage of The Pennine Way. .  (It really was not THAT hard.)  Have a look at its elevation profile:

At the tippy top is the summit of The Great Shunner Fell!  The first ascent is 1693 feet, 207 descent, The second ascent is 732 ft. 561 descent.  Maybe that does not sound like so much, but it was a day's exercise. 

From my B and B in Hawes (a very nice B and B) the walk was a bit over 13 miles.  First the good things:  the weather was fine!  Had it been rainy or very hot, it would have been terrible, most especially on that shorter, but more difficult climb near the end.  And maybe along the the long, flat, completely exposed stretch of the first part.  In fact, for all of it1  However, rarely does one have to worry about navigation.  There were a lot of paving stones over the boggy areas, and a lot of the stage was on a wide track.  It was not nineteen miles!!  And I was mentally prepared!

I got an early start...5:05 a.m. out the door, bade Winnie farewell: 

and was off.  This walk deserves some adjectives:  bleak, barren, and vast are the best ones I can come up with at the moment, but more would be fun!

Picture of bleak, barren, and vast:

Every time you see a cairn, your heart gives a little leap of joy!

Interpretation: No, I have not disappeared into the moors never to emerge again!

Now, this is one stately cairn:

While I was marching along—and I have to say, I felt as if I really hit my stride today—all of a sudden and out of the blue, the word "alfalfa" popped into my head.  What the heck!  Then I realized I needed it for yesterday's Spelling Bee!  It was so weird.  (But I still need one more word to get to Queen Bee.)  

Your heart gives another leap of joy when you don't have to navigate the bogs:

OK, this is the peak of the Great Shunner Fell and there is no trig point?  Really?!

There was not even a plaque to explain and elucidate and inform what grand structure used to stand in this spot, now reduced to not much more than a heap of rubble.  For shame!

A while after crossing over whatever this whole geological phenomenon is, the scenery changes.

But not too fast too soon:

Sooner:

Later:

Large segments of the walking surface were of the unpleasant variety, especially on the long downhill:

Finally, after gingerly making your way down the mountain you reach Thwaite a tiny little hamlet with a big reputation as it is the major landmark on the route, being located near the base of a major accomplishment and just before the second big climb.

But if you are hoping for some refreshment, you must come another day.

The short stage takes you to Keld 

The second segment is definitely prettier than all those dull miles of that first big chunk.  For starters, the person who lives in the house next to the gate that leads to the path, planted a stand of gladioli.  After seeing nothing but moorland for many hours, it was a most welcome and cheerful sight:

Whereas the majority of the walk was on a big, wide track of differing surfaces, the shorter, second,  very very steep climb was a narrow (very narrow), dirt path with big rocks and was a little bit scary in places, not too too scary, but a little bit.  Then there was divine relief along a ridge of packed grass, the way I imagine Wimbledon!  

View from the top of that fierce little hill, which honestly, was not so little!!!

After seven hours and fifteen minutes, I arrived in Keld.  The guy who runs the Keld Lodge and who was outside doing some weeding,  informed me that check in was not until 2:00.  "OK," I said, "But could I use the wi-fi?"  "Yes."  "And I think my suitcase arrived.  Would it be possible to have access to it so that I could change my shoes?"  He just gave me the key to the room!  Then he suggested I go to the coffee shop about two doors down if I wanted something to eat.

That did not work out too well.   Anyway, I repaid the owner's kindness by setting off the fire alarm when I took a shower!  It seems that the filter or the sensor or whatever it is does not work too well. The guy came running up to the room and there I am wrapped in a towel not quite knowing what to do.  "Open the windows," he said.  I did and the alarm stopped.  Then, when I was washing my socks, the water in the sink overflowed because the drain thing does not work either!  However, since this room is for two and I am only one, there were extra towels with which to mop up the mess.  Dinner was sickening.  There are signs on the windows that warn you not to open them at night because the midges, being attracted to light, might come in.  And a sign in the room telling you, in a most stern manner,  not to wash your dirty boots or muddy dog in the shower.  But the only really annoying thing is that guests are allowed to bring dogs into their rooms and guess what?  They bark.  A lot.  The headphones will come out tonight.

P.S.  I did get the final word in the Spelling Bee yesterday, but it took a while.  (It was flyby.)