Whernside and Ingleborough
A walk amongst the limestone country to Whernside 2416' and Ingleborough 2376'

Saturday 10th May 2003 .

 

Weather :- Mainly sunny with occasional cloud cover, breezy at first and getting colder later.

Accompanied by :- John

Total Distance 14.28 Miles , total height ascended 3872 Feet, time taken 7.5 Hours.


With Sarah tied up with various family functions over the next few weeks, and with John and I chaffing at the bit, we had to get out and do some walking. I have actually managed to catch up with the web site diary and it is all up to date! After doing the Mosedale Horseshoe I decided that we would not do any more new "Wainwright peaks" without her, so a trip to somewhere different was in order. After recently visiting some relatives in Hawes my mind was once again drawn to Ingleborough and the surrounding area. I have made the trip over to the Yorkshire Dales many times in the past as it turns out that some of my mothers relatives lived over there (There I was, a stout Lancashire Lad, finding out I had a bit of Yorkshire in me. Mmm.. that explains a lot!) My Grandmother had a cousin who lived in a small village called Thwaite in Swaledale. We used to go over there for the summer holidays and help out on the farms during the "hay making" time , they were all farmers and seemed grateful for the help at this busy time, it was a great adventure for us as kids to drive around in tractors etc!. My parents got to know the next generation, I got to know the next generation - now my kids are getting to know the next generation! The only difference now is that the relatives have moved on and now live near Hawes in Wensleydale. I still have fond memories of the Tan Hill Inn, The Farmers Arms in Muker and other local hostelries in the area. I spent time walking along parts of the Pennine Way before I even knew what it was. Kisdon and Great Shunner Fell were all climbed and explored before I knew that they were hills, then they were just part of the scenery! And I must say that the hospitality that was, and still is shown is second to none.

I digress!

Passing by Ribblehead viaduct on my latest trip over there, I was again looking at Ingleborough. After seeing it from so many Lakeland fell tops, and now seeing it up close and personal again, I knew it would not be long before my boots were walking up it! So with Sarah unable to join us John and myself set off for a bit of the old limestone country!
With our usual parking spot underneath the M55 junction at Preston currently being used by motorway contractors I had to park somewhere else, not content with making the M6 a misery the Highways Agency have obviously taken offense at my previous comments and decided to wind me up even more with "essential work" on the M55, cheers! John was a bit late and we had to stop for petrol but at least he had had breakfast!
The trip to Ribblehead was spoiled by the sight of two police speed traps, one on the M6 and one near Caton. Now I do not condone speeding in any way , BUT, it seems that you can spend so much time checking your speedo to see that you are keeping to the limit that you tend not to do what is vitally more important, looking at where you are going, not safe! Come on Mr police person, get real and go and catch some REAL criminals (My father-in-law recently had to wait over 36 hours for a police person to attend after an incident!) and not just the easy targets that are motorists!
Miraculously arriving at Ribblehead without being arrested for having the wrong colour of car, or listening to music that could pervert the cause of justice, or talking in a manner liable to cause a breach of the peace (I'm not bitter and twisted at all, honest!) we set our thoughts to the walk (that is if we have permission from the thought police!) Having passed rather a lot of fell runners by the Hill Inn I remembered that the two hills that we had chosen to do formed part of the Yorkshire three peaks, It looked like it would be a busy day on the hills today!


Ingleborough from the A683 near Cantsfield Ribblehead Viaduct
As we parked up at the road junction John somehow noticed that there was a butty wagon there, I have noticed this for many a year  but never stopped here. Without wasting any time the order for two bacon and egg barm's and two cups of tea was delivered. I knew that this was a mistake for me but who can resist when it's offered on a plate! I noticed that the butty wagon was called "The Fourth Peak" and that there where some marshals of some sort nearby, sitting down at a table and well covered up against the chill wind that was blowing, they looked like they meant to be there for a while ! Perhaps it was going to be very busy on the hills today!  Once our second breakfast (just watched Lord Of The Rings on DVD!) was finished we quickly got our gear on and set off walking. Well we didn't set off straight away as I had to setup and calibrate (play with) my new navigational aid (Toy) That's right, after many months of scrimping and saving I had decided to invest in a state of the art, multifunctional, multi featured, multicolored, battery powered GPS receiver (Gizmo, Gadget or Gimmick ? ) , I'll let you know which later.
Whernside above Ribblehead Viaduct A sign about the heritage of Ribblehead
So at about 11am we set off walking, I was quite surprised by the lateness of the hour as it is really not all that far away, but then again John was a bit late, a stop for petrol and a second breakfast (I think I am starting to get this Lord Of The Rings stuff now!) and setting up a way point in the GPS did take some time. There is something about the viaduct at Ribblehead that seems different, all it needed was a steam train crossing the viaduct to make the scene complete. It is a throw back to the olden days (they don't build them like that any more!) I, like most kids, went through a train spotting stage, helped in my case by my Dad who used to work on the railways. I can remember getting a book from the library about the Settle-Carlisle Line, I can remember the fight that went on to keep this line open in the 80's. Thankfully all the pressure groups eventually succeeded, and the line remains open today. It does not bear thinking about what this viaduct would like today if it had been left to fall into disrepair.
  Looking back to the viaduct An old railwaymen's hut
Leaving the car and walking over to the viaduct we seemed to spend an age looking around at the base and the surrounding area. When we eventually left the viaduct and started to walk along the path it was not long before we came across an old railway hut that caught the attention of John. He jumped over the wall and went to investigate. All that is left is a roofless ruin, but it did help to give some idea of what life was like back in the days when steam was king.
Motor cross riders enjoying the path as well A sign in the rebuilt wall
Rejoining the path again we had to give way to some motocross riders who were coming down the path. I am not really sure about the legality of this, but I must admit that they did seem to take their time and try not to damage the path with needless wheel spins and jumping on the brakes, they too were out to enjoy the countryside, albeit with a slightly less tiresome mode of transport than shanks pony! (lucky devils!) The path along here had obviously been repaired or reconstructed along with the viaduct and surrounding area, there were signs in the wall about the reconstruction and how they did it. John took great interest in this as he seems to have a thing about dry stone walling, just as I have a thing about memorials!
Bridge No....oops I didn't note it! Is this the most modern stile you have ever seen ? Gate, stile, and mini gate.. Trendy or what!!!
It was still quite cold as we passed by a bridge and then a very unusual stile or gate thing, I am still not sure how to describe it !  Somebody has spent a lot of money around here to rebuild the walls and paths, the job on the path is excellent as it was a pleasure to walk along.
  Park Fell, Simon Fell and Ingleborough
The view forwards did not really reveal anything about where we were heading for, as yet Whernside was not in sight. Looking back however there was a fantastic view over the railway towards Ingleborough. I was beginning to wonder why we were going up Whernside at all with Ingleborough looking so inviting. I then remembered that I had sort of told John that we would do both today, I hoped that I would not let him down!
Are sheep allowed to use the paths as well ? The rebuilt signal box
Up until now we had just been ambling along looking at the area around the railway. Even for me it was slow so we started to pick up the pace and chase the sheep away from the path in our hurry.   Passing by the signal box we left the railway for the time being and started to walk into the rather bleak looking moorland. The path eventually returned to the railway and crossed over it at an aqueduct.
The aqueduct over the railway line   Bleamoor tunnel
This aqueduct is defiantly a work of art. When they built the railway not only did they have to make viaducts and tunnels, here they had to ensure that the stream was diverted as well.  This bridge over the railway carried not only the path, wide enough for horse and cart or tractor or whatever was used in them days, but the stream as well. I was so taken by the place that we stopped for a coffee break. On one side the railway entered Bleamoor tunnel and on the other it carried on to the viaduct with stunning views to Ingleborough.
Waterfalls in Force Gill The path up Slack Hill
As we had our coffee we noticed quite a few groups of walkers passing us. I was surprised by this as usually in the Lake District you might find groups of two or three, maybe four at the most. Here the groups numbered up to ten people at a time, all marching purposely on as if on a mission!  Leaving the aqueduct the nature of the walk changed. For the first time the path started to gain height as it made its way up past some waterfalls and onto Slack Hill. The path was still excellent, it turns out that this is part of the Craven Way, a sort of long distance path.
Whernside coming into view An RAF Hercules
For the first time Whernside came into view. To say that I was a bit disappointed by the appearance of Whernside is an understatement, it looks nothing more than a slight moorland ridge than a mountain . There is just no comparison between this and Ingleborough  (sorry!) John heard something that made him look back. Coming over Ribblehead and heading right by us were two RAF Hercules transport aircraft. It made a nice change to see these rather slow airplanes twist and turn along the valley at what seemed a really slow speed compared to the flash of a jet fighter whizzing past at the speed of light!
Whernside The remade path up to Knoutberry Hill
Turning off to the left we started to make our way up towards Knoutberry Hill. At first the path was as you would expect, quite worn but nice underfoot.  There were even large white bags of stone that had been dropped off in preparation for the path repairers to work with. Soon though as the path started to cross the boggy ground a path of large paving slabs lay before us. This was path repair taken to the extreme! Before us laid the paving slabs in a line straight up to the ridge, it was quite extraordinary really, each slab laid end on end gradually rising up. This meant that the pace we went at soon took us up to the ridge, I still don't know if I liked this method of making paths but these slabs are here to stay and won't wear out very quickley!
Looking back at the crowds A proper path!  
Reaching the ridge it was time for another coffee break as the last pull up to the ridge had been quite steep and I needed a bit of a breather!  John had some food whilst I enjoyed a nice long drink and a smoke. This also gave me chance to check out (play with! ) the GPS. I had sort of kept looking at it every now and again, it was giving me all sorts of information about average speeds, altitudes and times etc. Now I had the chance to see if the position it gave was correct. Passing John the map I read of the coordinates that the GPS thought that we were at, John soon found them on the map, ie at the point where the path met the wall that we were resting our backs against! So far so good, it seemed to work as advertised! Soon the number of people that we could clearly see coming up the paving slabs started to amaze me. Where had they all come from ? This was like Blackpool prom in the summer! It was fun to sit and watch people struggle up to the ridge. Some just kept going up the easier gradient along the ridge to the summit, whilst others like us sat down next to the wall along the ridge for a cuppa and a chance to catch their breath.
The Howgill Fells   The path nears the summit
Fully rested we once again set of along the ridge that led up to the summit. From a distance we had seen many people along this skyline and now it was our turn. The view to the north from here was so much better than to the south, the Howgills and the Lake District itself came into view, looking so much better than the dreary moorland that had seemed to be everywhere before this ridge! The path made its way up gradually and we seemed to pass groups of people with ease, one of a group of ladies in front of us  was offering some sweets around to the rest of her group "anyone want a sweet?" she asked. "Don't mind if I do!" said John as he passed her! So with something to chew on he passed by the ladies and carried on, I gracefully declined the offer made by the lady, but then again she had asked John if his friend wanted one as well and not asked me directly herself! Hey, I'm a person as well , not just John's sidekick!
John having fun along the summit path   Whernside Trig Point
Obviously happy by his sweet grabbing conquest of the fairer sex, John started to have fun along the path. The nearer the summit we got the better it got! The path followed the drop and this drop got steeper and steeper the further along we went, maybe there was something about Whernside after all! I was really impressed with this part, for the first time today there seemed to be a feeling of height, the path was great and the views really started to get better, especially to the north were the Howgill Fells and the Lake District could be seen very clearly.
360 degree panorama from Whernside
Well they say that all good things come to an end and this certainly did as we got to the summit! It was absolutely packed out with large numbers of people sheltering alongside the wall. Stopping well before the summit I took a 360 degree panoramic photo. John did not like the crowds at all and I could tell that he was itching to get away from here. As we reached the actual summit there was a small opening in the wall that led to the actual summit and trig point. We ventured through this gap and were quite surprised to find that this side was deserted. After taking a photo of the trig point John pointed out the amount of broken glass that littered this side, it really was a mess with smashed bottles everywhere!
  One of the Millennium shelters at Whernside summit Two happy walkers at Whernside summit 
Going back through the gap in the wall John remade his acquaintance with the lady with the sweets and persuaded her to take a photo of the two of us (he has such a way with the ladies!)  The summit area itself was quite nice, on either side of the wall were two shelters that have been built as part of the wall, funny how only one was being used today, one side very busy but the other side by the trig point was deserted! With the photo's taken we left the summit and headed down towards Ingleborough, only too glad to leave the crowded summit! I had to double back and play with the GPS to set a mark point for future reference at the trig point. So not only was John getting a bit fed up with me stopping to take photo's, he now had to contend with me playing with the GPS!, sorry mate, but it might come in handy someday!
Looking to Ingleborough The path from Whernside summit
Leaving the summit down the path, that according to John had been made by Mc Alpine's when they resurfaced the M6, Ingleborough was plain to see across the valley floor. It is about 4.5 miles away as the crow flies. For us this was to be a different sort of walk, normally we will choose a hill and find routes along ridges that link together to form a good high level route or just walk straight up and down a hill. Now we had climbed up one hill and started to make our way across a valley and climb a totally separate, isolated hill. For the next hour or so Ingleborough just did not seem to get any nearer at all!
The start of the steeper descent Path repairs underway
The path gradually lost height until we came to a rather steep section, after that the path we wanted turned off to the left and dropped quite steeply down towards the valley and Ingleborough.  This section was in the process of being repaired and it was roped off. It did take a while to get down to the valley floor down the grassy slopes to the side of the path. During this decent we got chatting with a bloke who looked a bit like I was starting to feel. The only difference was that he had already been up and down Pen-y-gent as well as Whernside after leaving Horton in Ribblesdale at 7am! It was one of those three peak days, that explained the growing number of people that were slowly catching us up.
  The path Looking back to Whernside
  As we got past the wall that marked the start of the low level pastures  the path leveled out and started to make its way towards civilization again. It made its way across rough grass and eventually into more cultivated fields as we reached the farm tracks. The lambs were out in force today, playing about in the warm sun that had now come out. It was turning into a really nice day with only the odd cloud or two casting shadows across the valley.
Ingleborough only slightly nearer A tree growing out of the limestone
Eventually the farm track reached some farm buildings and a small road.   After suffering from indigestion for most of the walk so far due to the stop at the butty wagon immediately before setting off walking (knew it was a bad idea for me) I at last felt like eating, so we stopped for lunch (Johns second lunch!) Again as we ate the crowds passed us by, we had a bad moment when some people with a dog tried to get it to jump over a rather large stile, it took the dog a few attempts and we were both a bit surprised that it did not break it's back as it fell backwards a few times before eventually succeeding, I don't think John was impressed at all with the owners, it did look a bit dangerous for the dog.
Ingleborough, a bit nearer Philpin snack bar
Setting off once more we started to walk along the road towards Philpins Farm, we knew that was the name as we kept coming across signs that said "snack bar" etc  A strange place for a snack bar! When we reached it after passing innumerable signs I could tell that John was tempted by the sign that said "ice cold milk", after some "shall I/shan't I" sort of thinking John decided that he did want some, so I got him some. The snack bar consisted of a wagon inside a barn, good idea if it was raining! According to the literature after some funding from The England Rural Development Programme they have installed a toilet for 2003. This seemed to get John a bit wound up as he started to go on about subsidies and money grabbing farmers. I have a different perspective on this after seeing how hard these farmers actually work, but that's a conversation for another time and place!
Ingleborough from above the Hill Inn Limestone pavement above Highwood Pasture
  Following the small road we came out near the Hill Inn on the main road that we had driven along hours before.  Here seemed to be a planned pit stop for many of the three peakers, they met support people in cars and took the opportunity to eat and drink (isn't that cheating not carrying your own supplies ?) I am sure that some people even changed items of clothing here as well as take on water and sustenance! For the last hour or so the walk had been rather a long boring slog along farm tracks and minor roads. Once over the main road the character of the walk changed for the better. After walking through a few pastures we found ourselves walking just below a range of limestone pavements, this was Sotherscales Scars.
Gentian ( a small purple flower)  Looking back to Whernside
  This path eventually turned up onto the top of this limestone pavement  and we were confronted with a view of this pavement stretching out in all directions. There was the odd spot of colour of small purple flowers appearing between the limestone, I am reliably informed that these little purple things are called Gentian.
The path through the limestone pavement Trees growing up through the limestone
The track that we now walked along had obviously been  made by removing rather a lot of limestone, I wonder where it went? Anyway, by now I was feeling pretty worn out. Ingleborough was now directly in front of us but it had seemed like it had taken hours to get to it from Whernside, and my feet had really taken a beating along the road section of the walk. As we turned the corner and neared a rather large hole in the ground called Braithwaite Wife Hole I had to call a halt and stop for a coffee break. Whilst I had a breather and tried to make my feet a bit more comfortable John took the opportunity to get up onto the limestone pavement and explore a bit, I think he was quite impressed by the surroundings, it did make a change from the Lake District! I was impressed as well (but my feet were killing me!) the pain sort of distracted me from enjoying it too much.
Braithwaite Wife Hole   Another shake hole
After leaving Braithwaite Wife Hole (what sort of name is that?) the path made its way up to a wall and then entered Ingleborough Nature Reserve.  From here the path was once again of a repaired nature. It was easy to walk on, much preferable to walking along the boggy ground that lay beneath, but somehow it just did not seem right.
The path across Humphrey Bottom The boardwalk across Humphrey Bottom 
  To relieve the boredom of walking along these paving slabs there was a point where the path was made up of boards.  The pictures can be more descriptive than any words, but the path went on and on and on, along the way towards Ingleborough! The only interesting thing about this walk was the question of where did this path lead? Ever since leaving Whernside we had been able to make this path out, once on it we could not really see where it lead to, as in front of us was the vertical looking escarpment of Ingleborough. I knew that the map said there was a path to the summit, there was defiantly a path underfoot (not even I and my dodgy map reading could miss it!) and loads of people were walking upon it! Still the question of where this path went remained!
Looking back to Whernside   Where is this path leading us ?
Along the path there was the occasional slab that had been laid crossways. These gave the only opportunity for people to pass along the way, this I did frequently as ever increasing numbers of people started to catch up with me. This was beginning to infuriate John, all the stopping and starting that is. For my part I was glad of the chance to rest as my feet were really starting to give me some grief now. During one of these occasions John commented on not liking people passing him, I couldn't resist and said to John " Let's face it, you are just not as fit as these people passing us!" Well that was like waving a red flag at a bull! John set of on a mission . People were literally knocked aside as he went on his way like a man possessed up the path. I expected him to wait for me at the top of the next raise. But no, when I reached the raise all I could see was John disappear into the distance !
So there is a way up after all And it got better!
When I eventually caught up with John he was waiting at the foot of the steep section. He had a smug smile on his face that sort of said " I enjoyed that!"  The section in front of us was what had been puzzling us for some time now, up close we could actually see how the path made its way up via a few zig zags, it still looked very hard work so I took the time to put my feet up and have a long drink! I took the chance to see how the GPS was doing, it was still keeping track of distance walked, time taken, altitude and where we where, so far so good! Anyway as we set of for this steep section, the only real steep place we had come across all day John soon left me standing, like I said by now about 9 miles into the walk I was really struggling with my feet.
Looking back over Humphrey Bottom John waiting for me at the top
As I climbed up I overheard a couple in front of wondering about how high they where and how far they had walked. Always a helpful sort of chap I looked at the GPS and pressed a few buttons to try and answer there questions.  Disaster struck. In my haste I somehow managed to reset all the trip data! I was gutted! All that I can remember is 9 miles (I must really think about things before I start pressing buttons in future!) Feeling very p**sed off with myself I eventually joined John at the top.
Looking back to Whernside Looking back down the last steep section before the summit plateau
Turning to the right we made our way up towards the summit. At last, this was more like it, a bit of rock underfoot, something more like what we are used to!  On the way up I came across a lady towing a dog that had been swapping places with me for quite a while on the path over Humphrey Bottom. The dog had given up, I thing he was waiting for the lady's bloke, who by this time was a long way in front. The dog was not going anywhere without it's master! John was trying to call it from above, next to the lady without much success. I took the time to have a chat with the dog (another sneaky breather!) and eventually I talked it into walking up some more! (at last, someone who listens to me on the hills!) The lady seemed grateful and soon joined her bloke who got a bit of a telling off and was handed the lead!
  The summit plateau   The wind shelter on Ingleborough's summit
After my good samaritan deed we soon reached the summit plateau. The last few yards up were the best bit of the day for me. Once on the summit plateau we made our way across to the wind shelter and trig point. The wind shelter was quite crowded so we made our way over to the highest point on the summit.
  The rather large summit cairn A wind shelter overlooking Ingleton
Over looking Ingleton was another shelter. This appeared to be the highest point  so we spent some time here. I must admit that I was slightly disappointed with the view. It had become overcast and the visibility was not as good as when we were on Whernside.
360 degree panorama from the summit of Ingleborough
Taking lots of photo's around the summit I commented to John about me not minding spending some time here. John did not seem to like this, the wind had picked up and it started to get a bit cooler, so we soon left the summit to head back to Ribblehead.
Trig Point on Ingleborough summit   John still raring to go! I'm just happy to be there!
We skirted the top of the northern edge of the summit as we made our way back, the views over to Whernside made me realize just how far we had come.
Whernside and Ribblehead A wind shelter on the west side of Ingleborough
  Most people that were descending headed off towards Horton, no doubt to finish the three peaks that they had set out to do much earlier today.  We carried straight on back to the point that we had come up from Humphrey Bottom and soon found ourselves alone for the first time in ages.
The path leaves Ingleborough summit   Looking towards Simon Fell
From the point where we had come up a path started that followed the steep drop along the side of Simon Fell. This path was a delight to walk on after so many miles of paving slabs.  It made its way around the side of the fell keeping just above the steep drop down to the left.
The path along Simon Fell Looking back to Ingleborough
To my way of thinking this was a proper path, made by generations of feet, level and easy to walk along.  It just kept going along the side of the fell keeping at the same height. With the wind behind us we made good time and started to talk about the differences between what we had seen of the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District. We liked what we had seen, had doubts about the remade paths and looked forward to getting back to the lakes.
The moon above the limestone   Looking back to Ingleborough
Once we reached and passed a wall we stopped for the last coffee break of the day. John was still hungry so I loaned him one of my buttys! I just don't feel hungry when I walk anymore, probably all these first and second breakfasts that I have! I just had a drink and gave my feet a rest now that we were out of the wind, it had started to get a bit chilly.
Heading for Park Fell   Looking down to Ribblehead
After the wall the path was totally different from before. It was very indistinct from the wall and I had to check the map to ensure that we were still on track. We did not go near the summit and soon began to lose height as we neared Park Fell. There was a depression and then we had to regain height as we neared the summit of Park Fell. I thought it would be a good idea to see if the GPS could guide us back to the car so I set it up to navigate back to the way point that I set when we left the car. It pointed us towards Ribblehead - Good, and said we still had over 2.5 miles to go - Bad!
Descending to Colt Park   The locals look on
As we started what seemed to me as a steep descent my feet really started to tell me something!   John of course took it all in his stride but I was reduced to a limp as we made our way down. I really think it is time that I invest in some new boots. My toes felt like they were on fire, the tops of my feet felt quite sore, but apart from that I was OK !, just bloody knackered after 13 miles of walking along mostly stone paving slabs and roads or repaired paths !
Reaching Colt Park   The road from Colt Park
Eventually we reached level ground near some very old buildings. From here on it would all be road back to the car, at last there would be no more descents!  It was quite strange to walk along this road. The Limestone had all been removed to make the road level, it was nice to walk along though, as by now we had cloudless sky's to follow us back to the car. Soon we passed over the railway and past the old railway buildings. John stopped and explored an old kiln that was set back from the road and built into the hillside just before the railway bridge. We wondered what it had been used for?
The old railway houses Whernside in the distance

Passing by the old railway buildings we reached the road. The GPS started to count down the distance to go now as we neared the end of our journey. Walking along the road our pace (well my pace really as John could still have done the third peak if I had let him!)   dropped off. I was in serious trouble with my feet, every step hurt now! The GPS slowly counted down the distance, under half a mile it turned into feet to go. When John's car came into view the direction indicator on the GPS pointed directly at the car (Impressed!) When we actually reached John's car the GPS said that I still had 8 feet still to go! (Very Impressed!) 8 feet accuracy after 14.28ish miles and seven and a half hours of walking (Dogs dangly bits !!) Even I could see that this GPS could be a very useful tool on the fells in bad weather and given my track record of navigational skills would be very helpful.

So that was that. Two of the Yorkshire three peaks done, very tired and sore feet, but the feeling of having done a good walk in different surroundings, great!

As a sort of footnote when I got back home two things happened. 1, I was in agony and vowed to get some new boots soon and 2, I connected the GPS up to the PC and opened up the Anquet mapping software. Although I don't have (yet) the 1:50000 map of the Yorkshire area, when I uploaded the GPS track log the software opened up the 1:250000 GB map. There were the three way points that I had marked during the day. John's car at Ribblehead, Whernside summit and Ingleborough's summit. It also showed the route between the points that we had taken! To say that I was impressed is an understatement! I can't wait for the next Lake District walk so I can see what this can do with the 1:25000 Harvey's map data that I have (I know it's a toy or a gimmick but I find it really useful!) .

As far as the boot situation goes, my mother had decided to treat me to a new pair of boots for my forthcoming birthday! The next weekend I persuaded mum and dad to come up to Skipton and visit George Fisher to see what they could do for me. I had read about there boot fitting service and guarantee. I thought that with the state of my feet over the last few walks it would be worth the extra (possible extra) rather than use my local shop or the Decathlon store in Stockport that my mother wanted to go to. She loves that shop after being introduced to it in France where it dominates the outdoor equipment supplies area!

It took nearly an hour and a half to get myself sorted, I had my feet measured for the first time in years and the staff were really expert and patient in their service. It turns out that I have three quarter's size difference between my feet! There I was trying to stuff a nine and three quarter foot into a size 9! (now that explains a lot!) We left the shop with a pair of Saloman Adventure Trek 7's and then enjoyed the market. I now look forward to the next walk with the prospect of pain free feet! Well let's wait and see!

 

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