(N.B. Hover your mouse over the pictures for captions)
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According to the weather forecasters, today was likely to be the hottest day ever recorded in England. It also happened to be the day with the largest total ascent of the walk - even more than the Lake District days! So we set off early (for us) from Ingleby Cross to get as much walking done before the heat of the day. It's amazing how the flat plain we had walked across for the last two days suddenly erupts into a steep hill, so within a few minutes of leaving the pub we were climbing steeply. Luckily the first bit is largely in trees, and it was nice to be shaded from a sun that was already hot. |
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The climb is not too bad, but I must say I did start to suffer from the heat at this point, and made slow progress up to the top of Beacon Hill. |
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Beacon Hill is quite a good viewpoint, although the haze in the distance did prevent seeing very far. What was stunning, though, as we walked across Scarth Wood Moor, was the view over the hills ahead, the heather being in full bloom. |
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These were some of the best views of the whole walk. Up on the moor it was a little cooler, as there was a gentle breeze blowing. |
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We descended to the road at Scarth Nick, and then back into the trees for quite a while. Leaving the trees, the path heads into Scugdale, crosses the stream and then begins the climb again. There is a steep ascent through trees, and then a climb up onto Live Moor and Carlton Moor, past the gliding club. I really loved it up here, although the blistering heat made the climbs an effort. |
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From Carlton Moor, there is a steep and rough descent to Carlton Bank, |
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where we were very glad of the Lord Stones Cafe, particularly their free ice-cold spring water. Just beyond the car park there is a nice wooded area, heavily used by walkers as a lunch stop, and we followed likewise, sheltering from the sun. |
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After lunch, we climbed up to Cringle Moor, |
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down again and up to Cold Moor, |
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down and up again to the Wainstones, where we stopped for a short rest. |
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From here it was a stroll along Hasty Bank and then another steep descent to the road at Clay Bank Top. Our accommodation lay at Maltkin House in Urra, which was another mile or so's walk. We used a pleasant footpath to avoid walking along the main B road, and then walked up the road to Urra. This seemed quite a pull after so many up and down miles in the heat. When we got to Maltkin House, we found that Joe and Madeline were staying there with Dean, their guide, and we had a pleasant meal and then to bed. |
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