LEJOG
Distance walked – 16.5km (10.3miles)
Total Distance – 791.9km (494.9miles)
How can you just leave me standing
Alone in a world that’s so cold
This is what it sounds like
When doves cry
Prince – When Doves Cry
We woke, and finding our diaries still clear, we set off again to walk to John o’Groats.
We stayed in the excellent Station House B and B last night in Thorpe. The affable owners, Steve and Sarah, were amazing, getting us fish and chips last night when we arrived late, and entertaining us this morning with walking stories as we ate the generous breakfast they supplied.
Approaching Dovedale
They wished us well on our journey, and we left, heading back up the road into Thorpe, and then across the fields, down into Dovedale.
Dovedale is a deep valley carved by the Dove River over millions of years. Its wooded ravines and iconic limestone formations are the setting for a spectacular 5km riverside walk, up to the village of Milldale, at its northern end.
This walk is one of the best walks in Britain and we were excited to be able to include it as part of our LEJOG, having completed it many times in the past. It was one of the first proper walks that Louisa and I did together, after I arrived in the UK in 1995, and as such, it holds a special place in our memories.
Some of the best fun occurs near the start of the walk, as you cross the river via a set of stepping stones. We both crossed safely, luckily the water level wasn’t too high today. On previous occasions when we have visited, the water has been over the top of the stones, making the crossing a little more adventurous.
We were favoured with glorious weather, as the sun shone brightly, and the dale glistened like a diamond. The path took us upstream following the river. At some points the valley became a very narrow ravine, with the path suspended over the water, before widening out again, revealing another spectacular vista. At another juncture, the path climbed steeply up the side of the ravine to a lookout, before descending to the river again.
We passed numerous limestone formations and caves along the way including Dovedale Castle, Ilam Rock, Raven Tor, Tissington Spires, and the Dove Holes.
Ilam Rock
Dove Holes
Eventually we reached the village of Milldale, which is reached by crossing an ancient packhorse bridge. There was a small kiosk here, so we stopped to refuel with coffee and cake, which we ate sitting in the morning sun beside the babbling river.
Milldale
As we sat there, Louisa spied Chris, our fellow LEJOGger sat on a bench across from us. We rushed over to talk to him, as we had not seen him since leaving Knighton five days ago. He was doing well, having dropped behind us for a few days, but now caught up after a long walk the previous day. We compared notes, he had also found the previous day a chore with the endless fields and stiles, but was now enjoying the walking paradise of Derbyshire.
Milldale
As we discussed our routes, it became clear that this was probably the last time we will see Chris, as we are taking three days off after today, while he will continue to head north. We swapped contact details and look forward to hearing from him on his anticipated completion in late June. We bade him a fond farewell, as we set off along the road, following the Dove River into its upper valleys.
Upper Dove Valley
Here the valley was wider, yet no less dramatic. The crowds had dwindled, most people completing a circular walk back to Dovedale, so we only passed only occasional other walkers, and for long spells had the path to ourselves. We were heading for the village of Biggin, where we have hired a cottage for the next three days. Knowing that the pub in Biggin stopped serving food at 2pm, we decided to increase the pace to make the cut-off.
Wolfscote Dale
Louisa set off at a stiff pace that I struggled to keep up with. The final dale we passed through, Biggin Dale had long sections of stony path which were tricky to negotiate, but Louisa took no prisoners and before long the dale slowly opened up, and we arrived at the road into the village.
Biggin Dale
A short walk later, we arrived at the Waterloo Inn in Biggin. We had been here once before, many years previously, when we had found the place to be pretty basic and a bit run down.
Things have not changed much in the intervening time.
We unfortunately made it in time for food – a pretty poor quality sandwich and inedible wilted salad, while Louisa was nearly bitten by a rabid dog, another dog trapped in a caravan yapped incessantly, and a man mowed the lawn for the entire time we were sat outside. To cap it off, the sun decided that it had done its bit, disappearing behind heavy clouds as the temperature plummeted.
Serenity, we laughed.
We then headed off to our cottage, which is the same place we stayed in on our honeymoon, over 24 years ago. We will be spending three rest days here and will be having some time with Louisa’s parents, Brian and Margaret, who are staying in an adjacent cottage.
After our rest days, it is two days north to join the famous Pennine Way, which will take us all the way into Scotland and closer to our journey’s end at John o’Groats.
For those of you who are following the blog as it is posted, you may have realised that I have been several days behind. That was due to a combination of some very long days and no internet at some of the places we stayed. I have now caught up during our rest days. Thanks to everyone who is reading and for the comments which we really appreciate.
One Response
Well done to you both and enjoy your rest days – so lovely in same spot as your honeymoon.