Day 134 – Friday 20th July 2018
Finished off washing Nelly then got her ready to set off tomorrow.
In the evening we went to Wagamamma’s with Julie’s son Darren and his partner Lucy
I ordered a battered and fied tofu with a salad but the tofu had been fried so much it had vapourized and only the empty batter was left. Awful, I complained and they comped it. Everyone else enjoyed their meals though.
Day 135– Saturday 21st July 2018
To Walsall to see Julie’s Mum.
An uneventful trip, we stopped at Oxford services…
where the water is nearly as expensive as…
Urquell larger
Julie’s mum lives in a very nice care home…
Julie and her Mum
In the evening we went to the Royal Oak
an excellent curry house with a large car park
I love staying in curry house car parks.
Day 136 – Sunday 22nd July 2018
Still in Walsall, took Julie’s Mum to a Harvester
I was really impressed with the veggie options.
Had an aubergine and lentil tagine and it was lovely.
I wish Harvestereed would open some restaurants in Europe!
Later we sat in the shade in the garden of the rest home but the temperature was sky high and Nelly was parked in the sun with no aircon so spent most of the afternoon trying to stop Cfor baking in the van.
Day 137 – Monday 23rd July 2018
Julie’s Mum doesn’t like cats
Said goodbye to Julie’s Mum and then set off for Manchester to see my Dad.
Of course a crash closed the M6
Eating lunch while sat on closed British motorway is becoming a bit of a tradition.
Can’t arrive too early my Dad’s because it is a housing association estate and as one old codger kindly informed me vans aren’t allowed. Best to arrive after 5pm when the office is closed.
My Dad. He’s 85 in a few days and believe it or not he did have his teeth in for this photo.
Day 138 – Tuesday 24th July 2018
To Preston to have some work done on Nelly. While the rest of the country bakes it’s raining in Preston.
After a couple of weeks of baking temperatures without aircon I have to say it made a very pleasant change
Peter Hambilton is not cheap but when it comes to Hymers he knows what he’s doing.
After lunch we set off for the Old Post Office Campsite at Stanton Bridge in the Lake District. Once we got off the M6 it was a lovely drive; we can always rely on Doris to send us the tight, twisty and scenic route.
The Old Post Office campsite
At the site once we were hooked up we could relax. Great to have everything out of the way so we can concentrate on being retired
Our view
After dinner we took Zippy to Wast Water
© J. Riches
Day 139 – Wednesday 25th July 2018
A few years ago I bought a Three Peaks tee shirt and I promised myself I wouldn’t wear it until I’d done all three peaks.
Last year we came to the Lake District to tackle the smallest of those three peaks, Scafell Pike, but the weather was wet. This year the weather is much better.
As it’s been a while since I climbed any hill let alone the biggest in England I thought I’d have a trial run, do an hour of it and see how it went. If it was too tough I’d have another go on Friday.
Blue skies at the campsite this morning but this is the Lake District and the weather can change in a few minutes and I’d look, and feel, a right prick if I got piss-wet-through halfway up Scafell Pike while all my hill walking gear was all nice and dry in Nelly so even though I had a sweat on I packed my survival bag, my foil blanket, my waterproofs, my thermal gloves and hiking poles then set off on Zippy for Wasdale Head
At Wasdale Head I bought a packet of chocolate digestive biscuits for my lunch and after a precautionary energy gel I set off up the hill.
Doesn’t sound too far does it
Once off the floor of the valley the path was rocky and I had trouble keeping up with the people in front, after about 15 minutes my legs felt heavy but I was enjoying the views.
Wast Water from the trail
The walk didn’t get any easier
After an hour I sat on a rock for a break and I decided I’d do the rest because quite frankly I didn’t fancy doing that first hour again on Friday.
By the time I started on the scree my legs had stopped complaining and I was enjoying the walk.
The scree, it’s a bit of a bastard
Nearly there
When I reached the top I felt fresh as a daisy and I thought “I could do this again tomorrow!” It had only taken me 2¼ hours.
At the top
I had a sit down and ate a lot of chocolate biscuits.
Fabulous
The views weren’t bad either
Going down the scree was very tricky. A young lad in front of me came a right cropper and I was glad I had the hiking poles. After about only 5 minutes of going downhill my legs were really complaining; it’s a different muscle group from walking up hill.
My legs didn’t stop complaining all the way to the bottom. I had to have regular breaks and I started to get pain across the top of my left kneecap then my right foot started to ache. By the time I got to the bottom I was a little like Bambi. Thankfully I was okay once on the floor of the valley. It took me 15 minutes longer to walk down than it did to walk up!
I think when I do Snowden I’ll get the train down. If I ever make it up Ben Nevis god knows how I will get down, probably mountain rescue.
Day 140 – Thursday 26th July 2018
A blisteringly hot morning. My legs feel a little achy after yesterday so no long walks today; we set off on Zippy for Nether Wasdale
Nether Wasdale is a sleepy little village
Just a pub…
or two
After a stroll around Nether Wasdale we set off for Gosforth to buy some lunch then on to Seascale.
Not a tourist shop in sight, Windscale being down the road might have something to do with that