June 23, Ribblehead to Sedbergh

 I just want to say that Apple has to beef up its metrics.  (I am not sure that is the right word for things on the watch that are measured such as steps, mileage, heart rate et., but it sounds good.)  According to Outdoor Active, which measures the route, I walked 15.5  miles today.  My watch read 14.8.  (But just so you know, That was OFFICIAL miles; add trips to the grocery store and all and you get another 3/4 of a mile.)

I was quite concerned about the first part of the route because yesterday I met these two women, one of whom was named Vashti, would you believe, who were walking the Dales Way in the other direction, and told me that the first hour or so was V E R Y boggy and was a huge hill and then down into a ravine and up again, and that a woman had fallen and was muddy all over, but maybe she didn't have poles.  In other words, I was warned.  It turns out it was not so bad and it was only 40 minutes of bog.  But a great part of today's walking was on asphalt.  I do not like asphalt.  

When you start a walk at 5:00 a.m, and you don't need long sleeves, you know you are in for a hot day.  The cloud cover did not stay:

Famous viaduct but since there are a few in these parts, not sure which one it is:

If there were a comma, it would make all the difference:

Cattle rustlers?

Because, when you think about it, what is there to steal?  And yet there does seem to be a large number of security companies in the area.

Most of the scenery was ho hum, but there were, "Oh yes, that is why I am here," segments:

They were getting the best bits!

Guess what Farmer Jones is doing here?  Making hay!  That is what he is doing!  So what does that mean? 

It means you do not wee in that field!

After walking about 4 1/2 hours, I came to a town that had a little cafe; it sold Magnums!  You know that an Original Magnum is the PERFECT hiking food.  The ice cream hit the spot and compensated for the breakfast the B&B owner had left for me.  Picture this:  terrible bread (who knew bread could be terrible) with that packaged, tasteless, sort of powdery, shredded  cheese, 1/4 of a cherry tomato,  and a wee bit of something green.  

This brings me to dinner last night.  There are only two rooms the the cottage where I am staying—a very nice little cottage— and the closest place you can get something to eat is 1 1/2 miles away, so you can choose to eat at the inn, for a fee of course.  The couple staying in the other room, Karen and Rich, they were, were the most dour, sour, dull dinner companions you could imagine.  The dinner itself was as tasteless as the Sunday Roast Special at the George the day before.  The lasagna was nicely presented, however.  Just as a point of comparison, today I bought a kebab from the pizza-kebab concern next door; it was delicious!  So you see I do not complain all the time!

The Brits do know how to do flowers!

I don't remember what the narrative for this photo was supposed to be, but this has to have been one of the prettiest moments of the day:

After walking miles and miles on asphalt, punctuated by stretches of stony track, it was a m'chaiah to walk through a field:

In fact, it was actually exciting!

The stones on top were wobbly making the traverse just a wee bit nerve wracking, more than just a wee bit, to tell the truth:

This was such a feel-good sign!  Not hot OR cold water, but hot AND cold water! And for free, yet!  What more could anyone want?

Thinking of the possibilities boggles the imagination!  Did Lenny really leap?  Was it a ballet move or something more sinister?  Who was Lenny?

Moss and flowers between two walls:

Water under the bridge:

In England there are many Black Bulls and many Red Lions. The Black Bull at which I am overnighting is quite nice...at least my room is.  I paid way too much for early check-in; it was worth every pence!  Even though the route was fairly flat today, it was demanding in other respects,  for example, length and the heat!  It was so nice to sit down and relax in a pleasant space.