Yorkshire 3 Peaks

At the second attempt the Peaks were conquered. No wind, no rain (well at least not until Ingleborough) the ground had obviously had a soaking and the track from Pen-y-ghent to Whernside was most bog like in large swathes and took considerably longer to traverse than previously [not helped by one of the party taking an impromptu dive into a very cold stream... marks were 6.9 for artistic impression and 9.2 for scale of difficulty... overall, could do better!!] so after a complete outfit change and a bite to eat it was on to Whernside.

Whereas previously [see June 2008 entry] the weather had been horrendous and we had been lucky to see 20 feet ahead of us the view was breathtaking... out across Morecome Bay to the high peaks in the Lakes to the west and at least 60 miles in each direction... the view was worth the slog.

After that Ingleborough was a doddle and after a brief stay at the top to take in a similar view we headed back down to the Golden Lion at Horton-in-Ribblesdale and a hot cup of tea before heading home, the challenge to walk the 20 something miles [the distance varies from book to book ranging from 24-26 miles] in under 12 hours a success.

The challenge next time is to do it in under 10 hours I think...

I'd rather go grey than bald

This was an "either/or" statement and my desire was obvious.... it's no good to me that the ones that aren't falling out are going grey- particularly as there are at least 20x more falling out than are 'becoming distinguished`!!! Pah! But as "Male Pattern Baldness" is hereditary there is at least one of my traits which I can legitimately blame the male line in the "Cox" family for!!

Frozen Yogurt or a Frube....

Ah the dilemmas of a 2 year old...
when asked by Sarah "would you like a Frube?"(for those unknowing - that is a frozen yogurt)
Jemima's response was "I want a frozen yogurt"
S: "would you like a Frube?"

J: "no I want a frozen yogurt"the discussion went on... Jemima, I think, finally establishing that a frube and a frozen yogurt were the same, was asked about the flavour she would like...

S: "would you like a strawberry one or an orange one?"
J: "I want a frozen yogurt"
S: "yes, would you like a strawberry one or an orange one?"
J: "I want a frozen yogurt"
S: "Would you like a red one or an orange one?"
J: "I want a yellow one"..............................................................................................

The foibles of a 2 1/4 year old

Sitting down for lunch, just a snack, before heading out to Brodsworth Sarah made up a small plate for Jemima, the usual, some pepper, cherry tomato, cucumber, and cheese. Handing back the cheese Jemima said in her small voice "I didn't want my cheese cut into triangles mummy, I wanted squares...." I don't know, what is the world coming to??

Catching up

It's been a while, two birthdays, various visits to various museums... Alnwick Gardens, Weston Park, Alnwick Castle... :-)

Yorkshire 3 Peaks... well 2 as it turned out

Well the start at Horton-In-Ribblesdale was interesting... firstly parking in the wrong sports field car park... I parked in the field where Christians Against Poverty and the Brain Trust were based.... and then had to walk across the village to the car park for the Leukemia Research and Heart Trust Walkers Start... there was a large queue and I an even larger swarm of midges... Insect repellent a necessity next time. [Note "next time"]


After registration at 7.40 it was onto the first "peak" Pen-y-gent... a gentle incline and a short meander along The Penine Way and finally a scramble to the top.... Fantastic vViews, the sun was shining. albeit briefly... the snake-like procession made it's way down the slope towards Whernside... it looks pleasant, ambling over the moor alongside the viaduct... that is until you get the clouds of midges.... and the bog...

So in my wisdom I asked for some wind and rain to disperse them... Perhaps I should have been more specific as the heavens opened and a wind the likes of the Chinook came up the valley. Unfortunately from the moment you cross the railway until the moment you reach the foot of Whernside you are completely exposed. So I guess there's about an 8 mile walk there...

the path across the moor is narrow, if there weren't a procession of 600 or more people all trying to cross you could turn back if the weather was truly foul... as on Saturday...

I would expect a walk over the peak to be reasonably pleasant on a good day... but with winds gusting at 40-60mph it's not pleasant!! When combined with rain, which is being blown up from the valley and horizontally over the top. Biting into your face with each pace...

As the rain kept driving the ground underfoot became more treacherous, the mud becoming like slurry running down the hill.

Drenched to the skin at Hill Farm, 17.5 miles in 6 and a half hours, even the Hill Farm Hot Chocolate and Sausage Sandwich was unable to warm my core...

Walking to the next checkpoint I was advised that they were not letting people continue as the weather had closed in and it was not safe... so 2 peaks and 17.5 miles was as far as I got.

My pride would have made me want to continue but my head was telling me it wasn't safe... in the end I was glad I didn't have to make the call.

I waited for almost an hour for the minibus to take me back to Horton, there were some very cold wet and sick people to be taken back before me....

I intend to go back to complete the walk....

Walking.... again

On Saturday 21st I will be braving the Yorkshire 3 peaks in a sponsored walk... the charity is Heart Research UK, click the link for more information .... please sponsor me.

http://www.heartresearch.org.uk/three_peaks.htm

I am hoping to complete it in under 12 hours and qualify for the Yorks 3 Peaks Challenge...

The Year of the Barbie

Elspeth is now 5... many thanks to the many people who sent gifts... it appears that this is the year of the Barbie... 3 and a horse so far... After Sarah's best efforts Barbie came wrapped and gleefully accepted into the hose by Elspeth... One week on and one Barbie is unwrapped, 2 remain in their boxes... as well as many of the other gifts...

The DVD's have been repeated over and over... Jemima in particular loves Sleeping Beauty...

thank you once again for the generous gifts...