Kirkby Stephen is the second largest town encountered on this cross country route. The largest is Richmond, two days away. It is there that we will take a day off. A well deserved 36 hours of rest and relaxation for the walkers. Time to rest aching bones and muscles and gird their loins for another five days of walking, which will include the second longest daily distance of 19 miles on Day 14.
The day off in Richmond happens to coincide with England's next match against Germany. Good planning don't you think?
This section of the walk takes them over Nine Standards Rigg on top of which is the border into Yorkshire, the wrong side of the Pennines. The Pennines, for our American readers, and others who don't know, is a range of hills running down the length of England from the Scottish Borders to the North Midlands. Termed the "Backbone of England" it separates, for most of its length, the counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire. Whichever side of the Pennines you were born on, the other side is always the wrong one! There's much friendly rivalry between these two counties, particularly in sport, and it all stems from "The War of the Roses"....Lancashire the Red Rose County, Yorkshire the White Rose. If you want to know more, look it up on the internet!
This is the main street of Kirkby Stephen (the second K in Kirkby is silent). The Parish Church of Saint Stephen, after whom the town is named, can be seen at the end of the street behind the white building:-
It's always nice to see happy smiling faces! Gosh! I'm on this one! :-
The River Eden flows through Kirkby Stephen on its way to Carlisle and the Solway Firth just south of Gretna Green. This is Frank's Bridge. "Not another bridge!" did I hear you groan? There'll be more, you'll see! I don't know who Frank was but it may have been an old Toll Bridge judging by the building attached to it on the other side. :-
As soon as the Trio had set off, I too set off for Keld. As I got higher up the road I stopped to take this photo for two reasons, firstly to show that the landscape is changing again, the terrain getting higher, and secondly to show the weather heading for our walkers. Looks like there's rain in there somewhere. Not too heavy I hope! :-
Further down the road I came to the border post manned by a couple of sheep. After being searched for lamb sandwiches, and being forced to sign an agreement never to eat Lancashire Hotpot again, I crossed into Yorkshire with trepidation!
Meanwhile it was a straightforward walk for our Trio to the top of Nine Standards Rigg. It was tough going in parts with some steep sections. There wasn't much of interest to photograph (no bridges!) until the Nine Standards were reached. Here they are. :-
No-one knows their origin. They are shown on very early maps, so they've been around a long, long time. One theory is they were built to fool marauding Scots into thinking there was an English army camped on top of the hill. Another is that they were built by local lads who had nothing to do, so out of boredom they climbed the hill and started building! Can you imagine that? A gang of youths dressed in sheepskins and painted with woad hanging about the huts! "What shall we do lads? Go and build a few Standards on top of yonder hill?". Don't think so! The fake English Army camp is the better theory.
The different shapes are quite intriguing. :-
Nine Standards Rigg is the highest point they'll reach between here and Robin Hood's Bay. It also marks the watershed of the Pennines. Rivers on the west side flow west to the Irish Sea, and on the east our Trio will be following them on their way to the North Sea.
As they were going over the hill, I had driven on to Ravenseat, a hamlet on their route a few miles away. I parked there and set off to meet them on the way. Here's Ravenseat, nestling in a fold of the hills surrounded by fields of buttercups. :-
I found the walkers having their lunch by a small stream. They look a bit tired to me!
They carried on though with a spring in their step when I told them there's a farmhouse cream tea waiting not far away at Ravenseat Farm. Home baked scones, fresh clotted cream, raspberry jam, served with a big pot of strong tea. They almost ran down the track and you can see them here almost drooling in anticipation. :-
And who wouldn't when this turned up! :-
The first bite! Yum! :-
Here is Amanda, the lady who prepared it all. :-
There are quite few dogs at Ravenseat. All of them sheepdogs except this little fella. Grumpy little beggar he is. Barked at everything and everyone, and growls when you stroke him, if you dare. Didn't get to know his name. It wasn't Jack or Russell but could've been Joe.....or even Nev! :-
Having fortified themselves with the cream tea the group found it an easy walk into Keld, past a picturesque waterfall :-
and the inevitable stone bridge! :-
Finally Butt House was reached in the village of Keld. :-
HALF WAY THERE! FANTASTIC!
Keld is at the top end of Swaledale, said by many to be the fairest of all. No doubt the many who said that were Yorkshire folk. Personally there is nowhere in Great Britain fairer than Borrowdale in the Lake District, not even in the Scottish glens and the valleys of Wales. Borrowdale is where we stayed in Rosthwaite on our second night.
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