Pheasants and Robins

by Miss Penny Black

Today I took a bus to Dubwath, which is on the west side of Bassenthwaite Lake, thinking I would do some walking around there. I’d seen the gently-rounded hills from the bus on my trip to Cockermouth.

The bus stop I alighted at was over the road from the train station cafe that I had booked for Luke, Pete, Lea, Sue, Mark and I in May. I’d seen it online and booked it but had no idea what it was like so it seemed like a good idea to go have a look and see if I’d made a terrible mistake.

I had coffee at the cafe, in one of their railway cars.

I used their bathroom, outside of which was a bookshelf and I think one of the books was about me!

I’ve been practicing my banter so much I think I’m definitely at an advanced level now.

Then I took a walk around the nature reserve over the road. It was a boardwalk over boggy ground. I took another photo to add to my collection of terrible quality photos of birds. I think it’s a wren but I’m happy to be corrected.

I know it was a bird, but this photo is so bad it could be a weird potato.

I had a look in the bird hide, where there was a whiteboard to record wildlife sightings.

Exciting stuff! I then had a chat to a man who told me about the African swallows (unladen) that had just started arriving and described their call to me and just as he did, one of them did their call. It was very fortuitous.

Then I took a walk up the nearest fell. It was a stunning day and the views were tremendous. The walk wasn’t super difficult but from the top I could see all the way to Scotland, the Isle of Man and I think I could see Northern Ireland too. I’m not going to post many photos because I think it would be an ideal walk to do with everyone before our tea at the train (weather permitting). Some of the walk was a corpse road, an ancient track along which people would carry bodies to the local church.

The amazing weather made it less creepy.

There were a few people around as the walk was very accessible. It’s the first walk I’ve been on where I’ve seen quite small children.

The way there and back from the bus stop passes the Pheasant Inn.

My favourite bird, as you may well know by now. I went in and had some lunch in their back garden area.

A very tame little robin joined me.

I can now start a collection of high quality photos of birds. Finally!

After a long rest and soak in the sun, I took a photo of the hedge then returned down the road to the bus shelter.

The bus shelter was of a much higher standard than most, and a nice place to wait out of the rain.

I felt like I’d had a medium-effort day but my watch said I’d climbed 59 storeys. There certainly were a lot of ups and downs and I could feel it in my calves.

I got back to the B&B to find all my washing done – my hosts had asked if there was anything they could do to make up for the lock incident. The only thing I really wanted was clean clothes, so that was easy!

All my clothes are pictured except for the set I was wearing. I have attained my badge in ultralight packing!

I’ve also done a book swap with one of the owners here, since I finished the Matt Haig novel last night and there’s no reason to hold onto it. It’s the first book I’ve finished on the trip. I think writing the blog and listening to podcasts has been my main entertainment. Luke asked me what I do in the evenings and, aside from washing my pair of socks and underwear from that day, that’s about it.

I’ve been having trouble replying to people’s messages on the blog but thank you to everyone who has left comments and kind words, I’ve really appreciated them! Deb asked what I think of walking poles. As I was on the bus home I tried to think of ten reasons why I recommend them.

1. Better balance (four legs are better than two!)

2. They help me hoist myself up higher more easily.

3. They help me let myself down easier from high steps – they are great for relieving pressure on joints.

4. I can prod damp patches to see if they are deep or shallow and get across wide puddles more easily.

5. They are good for lifting spiky plants away from my legs.

6. They give me peace of mind. Charmaine broke her ankle and couldn’t come, she said if she’d had her poles she probably would’ve been more stable and not fallen. I’m not taking any risks I can easily avoid!

7. Numerous times I’ve gone out without them and regretted it but never regretted taking them!

8. I’ve had a couple of people say to me over the years that they think poles are for elderly people, so I like to use them because I’m not, so I’m normalising them for middle-aged people;-).

9. They do take weight off your legs so you get more of a workout for your arms and can walk further in comfort.

10. This is one of the things I notice almost immediately if I don’t use them; my hands feel slightly swollen when I walk briskly with them hanging by my side so I have to hold my backpack straps to alleviate the sensation. With poles, my hands are elevated enough to avoid this sensation.

I don’t use them on city streets or anything, but out in the countryside, particularly going places I haven’t been before, they make it possible for me to go further, faster and more confidently. So I say grab yourself a pair!

22Apr2023

Locked Out!

by Miss Penny Black

Well, today started as expected, rain outside the window and a delicious breakfast inside. The West View has one communal table in their breakfast room, which I find quite charming – something I haven’t seen before.

The hosts here (Heather and Craig) are very friendly and welcoming, they took over the business from Heather’s parents, who are currently visiting here too.

I met a couple over breakfast who were from Nottingham and had planned to hike up Skiddaw today but the wife wasn’t too sure. I told them about my plans to go to the Marmalade Festival and Dalemain and they recommended looking for marmalades made of fruit other than oranges.

I went back up to my room to get my raincoat and disaster had struck! Well, maybe not disaster, closer to a minor inconvenience, but the door wouldn’t open. Craig tried, Heather tried, Heather’s dad tried, but no.

A locksmith was called and everyone was very apologetic but I didn’t mind at all. I sat in the lounge and updated the blog and enjoyed the rainy view.

They had planned to call a friend of theirs, Kerry, a retired locksmith with several famous spaniels. Apparently during lockdown Kerry had suffered from depression, so he had bought his original spaniel, Max, and started a Facebook page where he shared videos of their walks around Keswick.

The page became extremely popular and the dogs became famous, being on tv and meeting William and Kate.

I did all this reading (and writing) while waiting for the locksmith, who did not end up being Kerry and his famous dogs (to be honest, he probably wouldn’t have brought them with him anyway), but the new locksmith, who was nice and had to change the entire lock mechanism and carve a bigger hole in the door. I left while work was underway!

I had a festival to get to! I donned my coat and headed to the bus stop, where everyone was waiting in an orderly queue in the rain.

And now I’m on the bus! With the broken down bus yesterday and the locked door today, I’m wondering if I should be superstitious and look out for inconvenience number three?

22Apr2023

Cockermouth

by Miss Penny Black

Despite the bus breakdown, the ride to Cockermouth was stunning, with mountain, lake and forest views along the way.

I did find a big mural with the history of the place. The town has been around for over 1000 years, which is pretty incredible!

Cockermouth is an ancient town, the first written record of it is almost 1000 years ago so it’s probably been around even longer. Apart from the castle it doesn’t look very old though and unfortunately the castle is a private home.

I walked around the Main Street and saw a new history mural.

There was an historical walking route so I decided to follow that around the town.

I noticed one of those historical plaques above a doorway.

If you notice this notice you’ll notice this notice is not worth noticing.

Somehow I crossed the wrong bridge and ended up on the other side of the river.

Cockermouth is most famous (to me, anyway) for being the home of William Wordsworth. I thought it was peak daffodil season because there were white daffodils everywhere, which felt like an odd choice, considering the famous poem is about a host of yellow daffodils. A lady I met on my detour told me that I’d missed the yellow ones by a couple of weeks.

We talked about how many times her house has flooded since she moved here from the south (twice) as she lives by the river. We also talked about how small towns like this are being affected by things like Airbnb, online shopping and younger people moving away. It’s the same story everywhere, really. The towns that are thriving are too expensive for locals and the smaller quiet places feel dead because the houses are empty except on weekends.

We also talked about the largest building on the river, the brewery, which was now for sale. The locals want a museum but it all depends on who buys it.

I returned to the trail, which took me through the main courtyard of the brewery.

A man saw me taking photos and jokingly asked if I’d like to buy it and I said I was just seeing how much I had on me. He said if I had three quarters of a million pounds it could be mine! Well, I said I’d have to ask my husband but why not?

Next was around the castle wall to have a peek through the bars, then down some back lanes. I quite like the name of this pub.

Next was the churchyard.

It’s always worth pushing on a church door, just in case you can get in and have a look. The stained glass looked like it might be worth a view from the correct side.

Very nice! But I think my favourite part was where it looked like they had the local primary school kids do a project on the church then put the beet one on display.

The buildings in Cockermouth are quite brightly coloured, which is interesting (well, to me!).

It was a nice day for a wander about. The little blister on my toe is getting better but I’d like it to be gone by the time I get to Spain so I’m having a couple of easy days. Plus it’s supposed to rain tomorrow.

The last thing I did before I caught the bus back was have a chocolate eclair from a very nice bakery. I sat in the sun at the bus stop with an older lady and got chatting about chocolate eclairs and the weather and the buses and she said ‘You look very familiar,’ and I replied that there was no chance of her seeing me before as I’d never been to Cockermouth. Then we worked out that she had been on the bus that had picked me up from the broken down bus earlier that day.

When the bus arrived I once again got the front seat at the top (woo hoo!) and, since it was a different numbered bus it went back along the other side of the lake and I got to see the train cafe where Luke and his family and I have booked for an afternoon tea when we come back to the area in late May.

Before returning to the campsite I went back to Mrs F’s Cafe for some lunch. Pea and mint soup.

I asked what soup would be on tomorrow – curries butternut squash. I can’t wait!

Back to the campsite to enjoy the sun. The wind that had been predicted wasn’t affecting my little spot but, with two days of rain predicted, I decided to pack up and book a bed and breakfast.

Enjoying the view for the last time (this trip).

These people take their dogs EVERYWHERE!

As I was rolling up my gear another camper arrived, Chris, who was doing the Cumbria Way so we had quite a long talk. I had some time to fill before the 4pm check in at the B&B and it was nice standing in the sun.

The bed and breakfast was only about 600 metres from the entrance to the campsite – Keswick isn’t very big, but I haven’t stayed in this area before, close to the lake park near the theatre (for anyone who knows the place). Also about 100 steps from The Wainwright, one of the best pubs in town.

I had a lovely dinner of steak and ale pie and read my book. A lady at another table asked me what I was reading so we talked about that.

She was there with her mum and the two of them looked like they were having a whale of a time, like a two person hen’s party, laughing at everything.

I returned to hop into bed reasonably early and it’s amazing how even just one night of camping can make getting into a real bed seem like one of life’s great pleasures!

Someone’s sticker collection in a shop window.

20Apr2023

Threlkeld to Keswick

by Miss Penny Black

With the opening of the Threlkeld to Keswick railway footpath, today was definitely going to be my easiest day of walking yet.

The pub Id stayed at in Threlkeld was even more dog-friendly than all the other places I’ve been; treats, water and towels to wipe the dogs down.

I had a perfect Cumbrian breakfast at the Horse and Farrier and would love to return there on my next trip. The service was so good and the food was excellent! I’d highly recommend it to anyone coming to the area. Also it was the first place I’ve stayed to have USB points in the room, which was very handy. On the way out of town I took photos of some of the classic Lakeland buildings.

Some cute yarn-bombing at the local cafe.

The rail trail is 5km long and very flat but winds through some gorgeous scenery. It wasn’t open last time I was here due to storm damage, so I’m glad it was part of the trip this time.

Near the start I walked past two older gentlemen who stood gazing at the view. I stopped for a moment and said ‘It’s perfect,’ and one of them turned around and solemnly nodded and said in a very northern accent ‘Aye, it is,’ and I felt like we understood each other perfectly. Japan has popularised the concept of ‘tree bathing’ – going out in forests and soaking in nature. There’s definitely a similar feeling here. Just people staring at the scenery and soaking it up like they’re a battery being recharged.

I was definitely heading against the flow as the number of people walking towards me increased towards Keswick, the tourism hub of the northern lakes. For the first time I got a bit over saying ‘Good morning’ to everyone I passed. Well, except to one older fellow and his elderly dog. Somehow we managed to be walking in the same direction and first I passed him while he was giving his dog a break, then he passed me while I was fixing my socks, then I passed him while he was having a rest, then again he passed me and then finally I passed him at the end of the walk and said ‘Fancy seeing you here!’ And we both laughed. Possibly you had to be there, but it was just a ‘laughing with strangers’ kind of day.

The rail trail ends at one of the highest points in town and walking down into the town feels a bit like coming home. I must have looked like I knew where I was going because a lady watched several people pass before she jumped out of her car and asked me for directions. I think my giant backpack makes people think I know where everything is. I mean, I do know where most things are, and she wanted to walk up Latrigg so I confidently pointed out where to go and told her about the car park behind the hill.

Market day! I somehow managed to capture an image with hardly any people but I actually had to dodge and weave my way down the footpaths.

I walked straight to the campsite on the lake and put up my tent. There were only two other little tents in the large space next to the water, however the line of caravans waiting to get in stretched out of sight. I was later told that caravans need to book at least six months, if not 18 months in advance, and here I was just walking in.

The reception was closed when I arrived but when I went back to pay later on they still had my details in their system and I found that very satisfying for no reason at all.

I walked to Booths, which is a fancy supermarket around the corner, and gazed wistfully at all the posh food before buying some hand cream. Being blasted by the wind all day is starting to take its toll.

Then I walked to one of my favourite cafes, Mrs F’s.

I had an amazing zucchini soup there last time (there is such a thing!) and, despite the whole town being rammed with people, there was no one in the cafe except the son of the owner, who told me his mum would be back in a minute. I was in no hurry so I sat down. The owner came back and I had some tea and a intimidatingly large slice of coffee and walnut cake. I wouldn’t have chosen that flavour usually, but I’ve been reading Stephanie Plum novels and the characters are always talking about coffee cake.

The cafe is a delightfully eclectic mix of old furniture, Knick knacks and mismatched stuff. The owner is from London, although she had been to Australia. She had bought a car with some friends and driven from Melbourne to Perth and loved it. Today was her daughter’s 16th birthday and she was expected imminently, school having just finished for the day. Sadly I left before the daughter and her friends appeared – my impression from the discussion between mother and son was that her arrival was going to be quite dramatic and possibly full of teenage attitude, but I finished my cake and tea too quickly and decided to move on.

Afterwards I bought a couple of postcards, a book, and went to have a drink and sit in the Dog and Gun, a place Luke and I enjoyed on our last trip.

A couple came in with two very calm Siberian huskies and sat next to me. We had a little chat about their beautiful dogs and then everyone else who walked past also stopped to chat about their dogs and compliment them. People even pulled dog treats out of their pockets to give them. Initially I thought ‘how nice’ and then I thought ‘what a pain in the bum’ – it must be annoying to only have people want to talk to you about one topic (that being said, most people only want to talk to me about their relations in Perth). I said this to them but they graciously said they didn’t mind.

Not my photo but this is pretty much what they looked like.

I guess it’s to be expected in this dog-obsessed country, and if you’re going to walk around with two canine supermodels you can’t be surprised when the paparazzi follow you everywhere.

Next was back to the campsite to have a shower before the cold set in. Apart from going to bed clean, the other benefit of an afternoon shower is that the block has just been cleaned. Also there was no one else using it, which was nice!

There’s a really lovely garden around the shower building and it has a pair of pheasants living in it!

After I was dressed and dry I wandered down to the water and got talking to a couple from Liverpool (Caroline and Dave) with a cute little fluffy dog (Milo). We talked about travel – they had bought a camper van recently and we’re testing it out before taking a month long trip to Scotland in May. We chatted for ages but then the wind picked up and I walked back into town for a dinner of Thai, during which I was happy to have my noise canceling AirPods to hand in order to drown out the extremely loud table of tourists that sat down very close to me (and they ordered CHIPS. In a Thai restaurant!). The other couple nearby looked like they wished they’d brought their AirPods too.

That’s them, behind my delicious fish cakes.

Back at the campsite the sun was slowly going down. I spent a while watching the colours change before getting into my sleeping bag (where I am writing this) to discover that someone in one of the neighbouring tents is snoring so loudly I think the people in the caravans must be able to hear him. Thank god for noise canceling earbuds… again!

View of Skiddaw on the way back to the campsite.

Stupid Canada geese on the lake. One of them attacked me on my last trip here. I mean, I don’t know if it was one of these specific geese but they all have that look about them.

So, my first night actually camping. Dave told me there’s supposed to be an hour of extremely high winds tomorrow during the day so we’ll see how that goes!

I nearly forgot: I saw a guy swimming today. Hopefully someone has alerted the nearest asylum to let them know one of the inmates has escaped.

19Apr2023

A Windy Walk Across Matterdale Common

by Miss Penny Black

After a late start I finally left the cosy confines of the Royal Hotel and set out uphill (as always) and on the way to Threlkeld.

Try saying ‘Threlkeld’ out loud five times quickly. On paper it looks like a perfectly normal name for a place but I feel like an idiot when I try to say it out loud. Ridiculous. I was afraid to meet anyone along the way in case they asked me where I was going, and considered changing my destination to avoid the awkwardness but the route I’d plotted looked so good I decided to stick to my plan.

OK, so it doesn’t look very exciting on paper and I seem to have added an extra pink line, but the point is, it goes through nowhere.

The skies darkened as I headed up hill and the wind picked up. Not good, but the meteorological wizards said it wasn’t supposed to rain and I chose, against all previous experience, to believe them.

Catkins, or pussy willow. Haven’t seen this since I was a kid!

Farmland gave way to Matterdale Common, which seemed very wide but there were a few cars in the car park right before the gate, so I thought I’d probably see a few people.

Over a little bridge and onto the common.

Up to this point I’d thought of commons as small green bits in the middle of villages, but this is the other kind.

Can you see the tiny path in the distance? It was about 6km away.

While walking across the common could’ve been dramatically improved by a severe reduction in gale-force, freezing cold winds, it was also magnificent to be out in such beautiful, open landscape alone.

I had bought a packed lunch from the Royal Hotel so I got to enjoy another uranium-enriched curry chicken sandwich and all the accompanying bits.

I did eat my lunch crouched over in a ditch to get out of the wind, but I still enjoyed it enormously.

I don’t know how something can look so bad but taste so good.

Walking is like meditation and it’s interesting to see where my mind wanders. I spend a lot of time re-writing song lyrics to suit my situation. I wish I could remember some of them now! I’ve never thought of myself as musical so I don’t know why this is where my brain goes.

All the grass is brown, and the sky was grey. I went for a walk on an April day. 🎶

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about why I like doing this so much (the walking, not the song lyrics). Being in this landscape is like walking through an art gallery all day, every day. Every flower is beautiful, every mountain spectacular, and I feel like it suits me and I fit in. No matter how the weather changes it just shows the landscape in a new light and damp and misty or bright and sunny, it’s as close to perfect as anywhere I’ve ever been.

I was talking to the family yesterday about Switzerland, as that is where their son lives. Switzerland is incredible. It’s the most dramatic scenery I’ve ever seen – but it’s inaccessible to me. I’ll never be fit enough or have the skills to climb those mountains. I don’t speak the language. Here it’s just right.

Eventually I made it across the common and met my first person of the day, another solo woman who was heading to Helvellyn YHA. We had a chat and moaned about the wind before parting ways.

The only other people I saw were some guys with dirt bikes.

Walking towards Blencathra felt like coming home, I’ve walked through the valley behind it several times.

After the common it was all downhill into Threlkeld and to the Horse and Farrier, a quite fancy pub that has been going since 1688, although probably not with nachos and waffles on the menu.

My feet were a bit sore from the rocky, uneven path and my knees had a few minor twinges so I spent the late afternoon off my feet on my room then had a delicious dinner downstairs, followed by zoom with Daniel to discuss the Spanish adventure in a bit over a week.

Tomorrow a walk to Keswick. Can I actually be bothered to camp? It’ll come down to the price of accommodation and the likelihood of rain. Either way, I’ll enjoy it!