Silence isn't Golden

Date: 25th November 2016

Route: Mickleton - Romaldkirk - Cotherstone - Lartington - Barnard Castle

Distance: - 8.2 miles

Weather: - Bright, sunny day

Who would have believed that at the end of November the sun would be out in a blue sky with an absence of wind, rain and clouds!

So this walk we decided to get the bus to Mickleton and walk back so I headed up to Bob's to catch the 10.55am bus from Barnard Castle to Mickleton. A short ride and we were walking by 11.15am, after a short walk up the road to join the railway track.

Dusting of snow on the tops

Fabulous views

Sunglasses in November!

The weather was glorious and we both commented on how lucky we are to have this scenery on our doorstep.

By 12..00pm we had covered 2 miles and hit Romaldkirk. As always we had the obligatory talk covering Hull FC's new kit, their squad numbers and the introduction of Toronto Wolfpack, a team from Canada playing in the lower leagues!!

Seat with a view

.... and what a view of Egglestone

Frosty in the shade

In between our conversations we both commented on how quiet it was, there was no noise, no sounds of wildlife, nothing. It was a bit surreal and initially I thought it was my hearing which was suffering from attending a Limehouse Lizzy concert the night before!!

At 12.30pm we found a bench and stopped for lunch, again straining to catch a sound of something, anything!

Tea up

At 1pm we set off along the railway track, noticing that even the sheep were quiet. We passed through Cotherstone, our only deviation off the railway track. I regained Bob with my tales of my visit to see Sunderland thrash Hull City at the Stadium of Light (ironically plunged into darkness due to a power cut!).

We hit Lartington next, crossing the road to rejoin the railway track to Barney. The only muddy bit of the walk, everywhere else being firm underfoot with frost.

View down from the viaduct

The viaduct

Back on the track

As we arrived at the edge of Barney we followed the river along up to the castle - I never tire of this view. There was even some colour still left in the trees and great reflections in the river.

Last Autumn colours

The Tees

The only noise we had heard all day was a solitary motorbike passing by and the river Tees itself.

The weather had been so nice we even forgot about our usual Victor Meldrew moan about the state of the country!

Almost home

What a view!

Barnard Castle

A great day out and beautiful 3 hours walking in fantastic weather with gorgeous scenery.

Back in the Groove!

Date: 3rd November 2016

Route: 11 Arches - Hunwick -  Willington - Brancepeth - Willington - Hunwick - 11 Arches

Distance: - ~13.2 miles

Weather: - Dry & overcast

Well with work commitments and various other excuses it's been a while since we did an "official walk" but here we are back on track again.

So as usual for this time of year we decided on a walk along the old railway track as it's always easy going underfoot after rain. Bob drove up to pick me and the Hell Hounds and we drove over to 11 Arches to park up. Strictly speaking we didn't actually park at 11 Arches as the car park now belongs to the Kynren event organisation (Google it, well worth a visit!) but a couple of hundred yards further up the road. Loaded up with our gear and the Hell Hounds in tow we set off at 9.45am for an 8 mile walk, taking things easy after such a long absence (if only we had known!!).

Autumn leaves

It was good walking weather, dry, overcast and not too cold and the Autumnal colours were still in evidence making for pleasant scenery. We very quickly reached Willington and decided we would keep walking until lunchtime before turning round and heading back. As usual our conversation started with a review of the latest rumours concerning Hull FC who had just had their greatest season in years finishing 3rd in the league and finally  winning the Challenge Cup at Wembley. It was also a busy period for us on the work front so as we headed to Brancepeth the we discussed lesson plans for our upcoming workshops (thus allowing me to claim the mileage as a business expense!!).

Bang on 12pm we stopped for lunch to realise we had already walked nearly 7 miles so our "take it easy, 8 mile walk" was out the window. Surprisingly for Bob he allowed me a good 30+ minutes for lunch (reckon his legs were feeling it!) which was fraught with the battle to keep the Hell Hounds away from our butties!

Bob the dog whisperer

Suitably refreshed and beginning to stiffen up we set off for the return leg back to the car. A short 20 minute shower did nothing to dampen our spirits as we put the world to rights, particularly on the political and religious front!

We arrived back at the car at 2.45pm suitably tired but feeling surprisingly fit considering the distance we had covered.  Commitments have now been made to ensure we keep our walking regime up and build back up to the 20 milers we used to do.