Gary's Coast to Coast Walk 2012: Day 6

Saturday 11 August 2012

Day 6

Gary started his sixth day at 08.15am with a spring in his step. Although he had 20 miles to cover today, (the furthest distance he will cover in a single day), he was expecting the going to be much easier than yesterday. The conditions were also more favourable than yesterday. It was sunny but not as warm as yesterday. The route was fairly exposed over lots of moorland and open farm land. Thankfully there was a gentle freeze all day which was initially gratefully received by this walker!

Scandal Beck Bridge

In fact the walking did prove easier today. For the first 14 miles Gary walked with his fellow Coast 2 Coaster, Stuart from Newcastle, (see yesterdays blog entry), who technically isn't, Gary discovered, Stuart from Newcastle but rather Stuart from Corbridge, ( a mere technicality!)

Smardale Gill viaduct in the distance

We've received lots of positive comments about the photos on the blog. All the photos have been taken by Gary on his camera phone, and he's taken some real crackers! Today saw Gary cross the M6 motorway, which according to Wikipedia is the "longest motorway in the United Kingdom and one of the busiest". It's also referred to as the Backbone of Britain due to it's central position, so it was a good psychological marker to get across.


Taken from the footbridge across the M6 looking north. Never seen it so quiet!

At some point today Gary passed Scar Side Farm which had a chalkboard sign outside the farm house stating, "Last stop for refreshments before Kirby Stephen". Gary stopped for a welcome break and had a glass of lemonade and a piece of homemade cappuccino cake, (farmers size portions!). Nice. Gary enjoyed his stop sitting in a marquee in the garden whilst the farmers kids played on a trampoline.


Looking east...the Pennines are getting closer.

Wainwright states in his guide book that the benefit of walking Coast to Coast from west to east, (as Gary is), is that the prevailing wind is behind you all the way. It wasn't today! It was in Gary's face, (shall we just blame global warming?!). An unexpected obstacle today was a herd of cows heading for milking which greeted Gary about a mile out of Kirby Stephen. He gingerly picked his way through avoiding their rear ends at all costs! Gary likened it to a game of Frogger, it slowed his pace right down!!
Having started the day all jolly, jolly thinking,"This is good fun", Gary literally hobbled into Kirby Stephen at 5.30pm.

This evening consisted of feet up & rest up, ready for the 14 mile walk tomorrow will bring. Gary & his Dad are back under canvas tonight.
Ukulele song for tonight "Everybody Hurts" by REM. 'Nuff said.
Thanks to everyone for all your messages of support. Please keep them coming. They are all very gratefully received by Gary :-)

1 comment:

Naomi20/12/2012, 19:42
Hi Gary. I enjoyed reading your blog. I've got a few questions and was wondering what the best way to contact you would be?
Naomi
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C2C20124MA

Thanks for taking the time to visit my website.

So why am I raising money for the Miscarriage Association?

Someone has to. They need a relatively small amount of money to keep going every year, and the work they do is really essential.

In 2009 and 2010, Helen and I lost 2 babies in the space of 5 months. The loss we felt was immense and still is.

So, in 2012 I will be completing Wainwrights Coast to Coast walk, from St Bee's Head on the Cumbrian coast, to Robin Hoods Bay on the North East coast, a walk of approximately 200 miles.

It should take about two weeks and I will be camping whenever possible to keep the costs down.

You can donate by jumping to my JustGiving page

Don't feel you have to give lots -

every penny really does help.

Send the website address to everyone you know - all I need is for 1000 people to give £1 each and I've made my target.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.

Thank you so much.

So Who's the Fat Bloke?

Hi. I am a 38 year old primary school teacher who lives in Cropston, just north west of Leicester with my wife, Helen and 5 year old son, Lachlan. I've been walking in Leicestershire, Yorkshire, the Lake District, Cornwall, Derbyshire and the Malvern Hills, and love being outdoors. I've been camping in most of these places and in Norfolk and Devon. I enjoy playing the Ukulele as often as I can, singing, darts, golf and growing my own veg.

I'm looking forward to completing the walk, blisters and all, and being able to say that even while enjoying a great outdoor experience, I can raise money to help others who have been through the same experience as Helen and I. And yes - I will be taking my Ukulele with me and I'm hoping someone might sponsor me for a song played at each stop along the way!

What is Wainwright's Coast to Coast?

The Wainwright Society says this about the Coast to Coast:

'A Coast to Coast Walk was devised by Wainwright himself, and set out in his 1973 guidebook to the route.

The route is a 192-mile (although according to a recent re-measuring the real distance is almost 220 miles) unofficial, long distance footpath in Northern England. It passes through three contrasting national parks: the Lake District National Park, the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and the North York Moors National Park.

Wainwright suggested a way of breaking the walk miles into stages, each of which to be completed in a day. With one or two rest days, this makes the route fit into a two-week holiday. However, Wainwright explicitly stated that he did not intend people to necessarily stick to these stages or even to his route: for example, by reducing day-lengths to 10 or 12 miles, the walk becomes a much easier three-week trip with time to 'stand and stare'.

In 2004 the walk was named as the second best walk in the world according to a survey of experts.'

I'll be breaking the walk into 14 stages, walking an average of 14 miles a day. However, this varies a lot - my shortest day is only 8 miles and my longest day will be 20 miles.

Whichever way you cut it this walk is one of the best long distance walks in the world and I'm very lucky (as well as a bit bonkers?) to be attempting it this August. Let's hope I enjoy walking it as much as I've enjoyed organising it!