July 05, Llangollen

At about 5:50 a.m. I went outside hoping the taxi I had ordered for 6:00 to take me back to the Oswestry-path junction might be early.  It was not.  Shortly after 6:00, I called the taxi company and the lady told me the taxi had arrived Only the taxi had not arrived.  Apparently, the driver was in the parking lot for the hotel, which I did not know how to get to, and also apparently, he was not too good with the gps because he could not find Willow Street. FINALLY, he pulled up.  As he was getting into gear, he looked at the sign Sebastians and said, "That does not look like a hotel."  He got that right.   Sebastians was like an Air B and B without a kitchen is what it was, with almost non-functional wi-fi and nary a soul on site.  Two of the three windows were sealed shut, making the bathroom quite musty as the air flow was not flowing.  But I digress. I did not start out from the junction until almost 6:30, very late for me.  It put a crimp in my style.

The stage from the turn-off at Oswestry to Llangollen would not win any prizes, way too much road walking, for one thing. And the five foot tall ferns were no fun to bushwhack through.   Granted, it is possible that the last seven or so miles were gorgeous—I hope to find that out tomorrow when we excursion to the aqueduct. I, however, not wanting another seven or more miles,  switched to Google maps and took a five miles and change side-walked route along a busy road. It turned out that the views were stunning, the trek was a steady and not steep downhill, but boring as all get out.  And, because of the traffic noise,  podcasts were out.  A long slog on pavement, especially when shod with heavy Zamberlan hiking boots, is exhausting.

Tall ferns and sky:

So glad these were not cows taking a siesta at the gate:

This one, well, was way beyond siesta time:

Poor Wilbur!

Not blocking anything......today:

My favorite kind of gate:

At one point where a road had to be crossed:

Where was that when we needed it yesterday en route to the Ironworks Sculpture Museum, not because we do not know how to cross a busy road, but a little validation is nice sometimes.

As I was walking along the canal,  I saw this boat chug chugging along:

This nice pilot (captain) asked if I wanted a ride!  Do I want a ride?  YES!

Feeling like the Queen of the Nile,  I rode down the Llangollen Canal, waving at passersby!

At one point, the captain had to moor the boat so that he could raise the bridge:

How fast did the boat go?  V   E   R   Y      S    L    O    W    L    Y


This is the Rive Dee.  I can see it from the window of room, but this is a View From the Bridge: