missing kitty tonight so putting up a photo taken earlier this year :-)
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
3-day trip to hadrian's wall: day 3
Note: This is the fourth post on the trip. So to start at the beginning, go to post titled "3-day trip to hadrian's wall: part one of day 1."
Important Note: Highly recommended that you click on the photos themselves to enlarge them. Some of the landscape and the colours look much more alive in a larger photo than in these small ones.
The third day was supposed to be a long one: 11-12 miles of walking. I was feeling somewhat tired from the previous day and more importantly, I was feeling a bit lazy (as usual). So I decided to keep an open mind, which basically meant that if after the first 2 miles of walking, I felt I didn't want to walk any further, I would call it a day and get on to the bus and head home. And if I decided I wanted to walk further, I'd go on - after the first 2 miles, there were no bus stops for the next 9 miles or so. So it was either 2 miles or 11 miles.
I started around 9:30 am, walking from Once-Brewed to the cliffs to join the Hadrian's Wall path again (photo below).
Soon I was climbing up and down the cliffs again...
The remains of one of the turrets along Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall climbing up the next hill (above photo) and looking at the hill I'd just walked down (below)
And then as I walked up the next cliff I found myself looking at a beautiful sight. A lake stretched out at the base of the cliff (below). Wildflowers grew through the cracks of stone along the cliff-sides. I loitered around here for 15-20 minutes, it was just so beautiful and serene.
Continuing on the path, down this hill and up another, I came across the remains of another turret, where I managed to put the camera on timer and take a photo of myself.
2 miles later, at 11:30 am, I reached Housesteads, the site of a Roman Fort (below).
I have to say that the most interesting part of the ruins of the fort were the latrines (potties) built for the soldiers (below) :-)
Now, if I walked further from here, I'd have to walk 9 miles before the next bus-stop. My toes were killing me and of course I was lazy, so I decided to give up. I went down to the bus-stop where there was a visitor's centre and cafe and I sat there drinking coffee for the next hour, waiting for the bus which was to come at 1:30 pm. But at 1 pm, I suddenly felt like walking again. Actually I was just indecisive. But I started walking back to the wall, wondering with every step whether I really wanted to walk. Then 15 minutes later, it seemed too late to go back to the bus-stop, so... I continued. Up one more cliff and the view of a beautiful lake (below) rejuvenated me.
At one point, I saw turmeric sheep in the distance. Not sure what the deal was - were they dyed turmeric for some reason? They couldn't be this colour naturally, could they? Zoomed in and took a photo (below).
And then finally, finally, the cliffs ended and then it was flat land. My toes were really killing me. I had to get to my destination by 6 pm so that I could catch the last bus back to Hexham railway station, so I really couldn't afford to rest much. Though I did rest at two spots, both times taking photos of myself, and once taking my shoes off and rubbing my toes.
I clicked some more photos of lonely trees before reaching Chesters.
And finally a photo of one of the Hadrian Wall signs.
I reached Chesters at 5 pm in my haste to not miss the last bus. Loitered around for the next hour, talking to my parents on the phone. Just as the bus was going to come, it started raining. I'd been so lucky on the entire trip with it raining only in the late evenings when I was not walking. A wonderful 3 days - well, 2.5 days. Anyone who comes to visit me is going to be taken to walk for at least a day on the Hadrian's Wall path.
Important Note: Highly recommended that you click on the photos themselves to enlarge them. Some of the landscape and the colours look much more alive in a larger photo than in these small ones.
The third day was supposed to be a long one: 11-12 miles of walking. I was feeling somewhat tired from the previous day and more importantly, I was feeling a bit lazy (as usual). So I decided to keep an open mind, which basically meant that if after the first 2 miles of walking, I felt I didn't want to walk any further, I would call it a day and get on to the bus and head home. And if I decided I wanted to walk further, I'd go on - after the first 2 miles, there were no bus stops for the next 9 miles or so. So it was either 2 miles or 11 miles.
I started around 9:30 am, walking from Once-Brewed to the cliffs to join the Hadrian's Wall path again (photo below).
Soon I was climbing up and down the cliffs again...
The remains of one of the turrets along Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall climbing up the next hill (above photo) and looking at the hill I'd just walked down (below)
And then as I walked up the next cliff I found myself looking at a beautiful sight. A lake stretched out at the base of the cliff (below). Wildflowers grew through the cracks of stone along the cliff-sides. I loitered around here for 15-20 minutes, it was just so beautiful and serene.
Continuing on the path, down this hill and up another, I came across the remains of another turret, where I managed to put the camera on timer and take a photo of myself.
2 miles later, at 11:30 am, I reached Housesteads, the site of a Roman Fort (below).
I have to say that the most interesting part of the ruins of the fort were the latrines (potties) built for the soldiers (below) :-)
Now, if I walked further from here, I'd have to walk 9 miles before the next bus-stop. My toes were killing me and of course I was lazy, so I decided to give up. I went down to the bus-stop where there was a visitor's centre and cafe and I sat there drinking coffee for the next hour, waiting for the bus which was to come at 1:30 pm. But at 1 pm, I suddenly felt like walking again. Actually I was just indecisive. But I started walking back to the wall, wondering with every step whether I really wanted to walk. Then 15 minutes later, it seemed too late to go back to the bus-stop, so... I continued. Up one more cliff and the view of a beautiful lake (below) rejuvenated me.
At one point, I saw turmeric sheep in the distance. Not sure what the deal was - were they dyed turmeric for some reason? They couldn't be this colour naturally, could they? Zoomed in and took a photo (below).
And then finally, finally, the cliffs ended and then it was flat land. My toes were really killing me. I had to get to my destination by 6 pm so that I could catch the last bus back to Hexham railway station, so I really couldn't afford to rest much. Though I did rest at two spots, both times taking photos of myself, and once taking my shoes off and rubbing my toes.
I clicked some more photos of lonely trees before reaching Chesters.
And finally a photo of one of the Hadrian Wall signs.
I reached Chesters at 5 pm in my haste to not miss the last bus. Loitered around for the next hour, talking to my parents on the phone. Just as the bus was going to come, it started raining. I'd been so lucky on the entire trip with it raining only in the late evenings when I was not walking. A wonderful 3 days - well, 2.5 days. Anyone who comes to visit me is going to be taken to walk for at least a day on the Hadrian's Wall path.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
3-day trip to hadrian's wall: day 2
Note: This is the third post on the trip. So to start at the beginning, go to post titled 3-day trip to hadrian's wall: part one of day 1.
Important Note: Highly recommended that you click on the photos themselves to enlarge them. Some of the landscape looks much more stunning in a larger photo than in these small ones.
Next morning, after breakfast at the Greenhead Hotel, I headed out to Hadrian's Wall again. The wall doesn't go exactly past Greenhead, so you have to walk about 15-20 minutes through farmland, etc, to get to it. This walk to the wall took me through someone's tiny backyard, where chickens and geese were roaming about (photo below). Walker's "right of way"! I love it!
Then walked through some farmland (photo below). I was still groggy but the fresh air and large expanses of the fields began to wake me up.
Along the way I took a slight detour to the Thirlwall Castle (the ruins seen behind the house in the photo below). No idea about its history. Something must've been written near the ruins but I guess I didn't pay attention. It seemed like it had been a simple structure and today its in such a ruined state that all you can see today are some high walls standing around.
Not far from here, I found the path along Hadrian's Wall going up a hill, the wall itself being nowhere in sight. But there was a deep ditch. Hmm. Anyhow, it was nice to steadily climb up the hill (photo below)...
and then climb over a stile (below). I have absolutely fallen in love with these kind of stiles.
So of course I had to try and take some photos of myself at the stile. The wind was strong at most places along the walk, so I had to use my scarf to keep my cap down and ears covered.
Soon after the stile, I reached the Roman Army Museum. I wasn't interested in the museum, so I followed directions and went along a path that took me to the foot of a pretty steep hill (cliff?). From here onwards, Hadrian's Wall kept me company as I walked up and down, up and down... along a series of hills/cliffs. These cliffs are called the Nine Nicks of Thirlwall, "nick" being an old English word for "cut" referring to gaps between the cliffs. My 'Walking in Britain" guide tells me that only six of these cliffs remain today, the rest gone from excessive quarrying. So when I finished climbing the sixth one, I was like phew! done! But apparently not. Another cliff appeared. So I don't know who did the counting. Still, it was good exercise to climb each of them, of course cursing at times and getting drenched in sweat which I could do nothing about because to take my jacket off would mean getting bitten by the wind and freezing too. (Is there anything like dressing perfectly for a hike and not have to deal with this mix of sweat and cold?)
But the climbs were worth it. Both for feeling good about myself (the "I'm getting healthy" feeling) and for the views which are superb. I never got tired of seeing different shades of green as far as the eye could see. The landscape stretched out below me on the north side of the cliffs, and when I looked east or west, I could see Hadrian's Wall climbing the edge of the cliffs in the distance (photos below).
You could choose to not climb the cliffs at all and instead walk along their back, their south side (like I did for awhile; see photo below). But if you're not going to go up and down, then... well, its not the same. You'll miss the views from the top of the cliffs. And there is a good feeling in feeling tired, though I can't say I enjoyed getting wobbly legs. Probably a sign that my legs desperately need some strenuous exercise.
At some point, Hadrian's Wall disappeared. But the walls dividing different fields/farms were also beautiful, especially when they stretched out into the far distance (photo below).
When I'd had absolutely enough of the cliffs, they came to an end and the path took me through a series of farms, each to be crossed by climbing over a stile (oh! to climb a stile!!). I must've walked for an hour through flat farmland. And all along this, there were many sheep sightings. I have fallen in love with English sheep. And when you look at them carefully, you realize each has its own personality. For a moment I even thought I might want to be a sheep in my next life.
Oh, by the way, did I mention, I've fallen in love with English sheep.
The flat farmland walk ended at a sweet little lake: actually a quarry that has come to be filled with water as it has fallen out of use. Had my lunch of bread made from quinoa and amaranth (very high protein grains), an apple and fruit bars.
And then back to walking. And again some cliffs appeared, and again it was up and down... and wobbly legs and nice views.
I could see the cliffs continuing into the distance. One of the ones I climbed, I know not which, was the Winshields Crags, which at 375 m is the highest point along the wall. Not so high, I know. But you're not supposed to compare this to the Himalayas.
At one point I passed by a small, lonely, sturdy tree, battling the wind constantly it seemed to me (photo below), as I myself was being pushed around by the wind. The only thing that prevented me from being blown away was the backpack which put some more weight on me and kept me grounded.
Finally, after 5 hours of walking (about 8 miles or 12 kilometers), I reached Once-Brewed. This is a settlement of 4 buildings, one being the youth hostel and one a visitors centre. It has this charming name because of another settlement some 500 yards from it which is called Twice Brewed. Twice Brewed is the older settlement of the two - in fact, on Once Brewed's east side is East Twice Brewed and on its west side is West Twice Brewed. Don't ask me how they got their name - I wish I knew. After a hot shower, I spent the rest of the evening in the hostel's lounge with a special ale from Once Brewed and my book. The lounge was occupied by a family playing games and because I was there reading, the father was constantly trying to quieten the kids down (who, as kids are apt to do, would screech every now and then in excitement). I told him it was actually nice to see that his kids were having so much fun (I was too tired and happy to mind the noise). To which he replied: "yes, nice to see it, but hear it?" Oh well, I tried.
Dinner, I should add, was a disaster. For some reason, the youth hostel had prepared chicken curry (or vegetable curry, if one was so inclined) and poppadums. Why poppadums? Have poppadums become part of English cuisine? Whatever the reason was, the chicken curry was at least somewhat edible if one was hungry (which I was). But I had to give up on the poppadums after eating half of the first one. How bad can a poppadum be, you want to ask me? I don't know, but these were terrible!
Nonetheless, a very nice day! And the youth hostel at Once-Brewed (17 bucks a night in the dorm) was very nice - it was full of people, it had nice common spaces and it was very very clean.
Important Note: Highly recommended that you click on the photos themselves to enlarge them. Some of the landscape looks much more stunning in a larger photo than in these small ones.
Next morning, after breakfast at the Greenhead Hotel, I headed out to Hadrian's Wall again. The wall doesn't go exactly past Greenhead, so you have to walk about 15-20 minutes through farmland, etc, to get to it. This walk to the wall took me through someone's tiny backyard, where chickens and geese were roaming about (photo below). Walker's "right of way"! I love it!
Then walked through some farmland (photo below). I was still groggy but the fresh air and large expanses of the fields began to wake me up.
Along the way I took a slight detour to the Thirlwall Castle (the ruins seen behind the house in the photo below). No idea about its history. Something must've been written near the ruins but I guess I didn't pay attention. It seemed like it had been a simple structure and today its in such a ruined state that all you can see today are some high walls standing around.
Not far from here, I found the path along Hadrian's Wall going up a hill, the wall itself being nowhere in sight. But there was a deep ditch. Hmm. Anyhow, it was nice to steadily climb up the hill (photo below)...
and then climb over a stile (below). I have absolutely fallen in love with these kind of stiles.
So of course I had to try and take some photos of myself at the stile. The wind was strong at most places along the walk, so I had to use my scarf to keep my cap down and ears covered.Soon after the stile, I reached the Roman Army Museum. I wasn't interested in the museum, so I followed directions and went along a path that took me to the foot of a pretty steep hill (cliff?). From here onwards, Hadrian's Wall kept me company as I walked up and down, up and down... along a series of hills/cliffs. These cliffs are called the Nine Nicks of Thirlwall, "nick" being an old English word for "cut" referring to gaps between the cliffs. My 'Walking in Britain" guide tells me that only six of these cliffs remain today, the rest gone from excessive quarrying. So when I finished climbing the sixth one, I was like phew! done! But apparently not. Another cliff appeared. So I don't know who did the counting. Still, it was good exercise to climb each of them, of course cursing at times and getting drenched in sweat which I could do nothing about because to take my jacket off would mean getting bitten by the wind and freezing too. (Is there anything like dressing perfectly for a hike and not have to deal with this mix of sweat and cold?)
But the climbs were worth it. Both for feeling good about myself (the "I'm getting healthy" feeling) and for the views which are superb. I never got tired of seeing different shades of green as far as the eye could see. The landscape stretched out below me on the north side of the cliffs, and when I looked east or west, I could see Hadrian's Wall climbing the edge of the cliffs in the distance (photos below).
You could choose to not climb the cliffs at all and instead walk along their back, their south side (like I did for awhile; see photo below). But if you're not going to go up and down, then... well, its not the same. You'll miss the views from the top of the cliffs. And there is a good feeling in feeling tired, though I can't say I enjoyed getting wobbly legs. Probably a sign that my legs desperately need some strenuous exercise.
At some point, Hadrian's Wall disappeared. But the walls dividing different fields/farms were also beautiful, especially when they stretched out into the far distance (photo below).
When I'd had absolutely enough of the cliffs, they came to an end and the path took me through a series of farms, each to be crossed by climbing over a stile (oh! to climb a stile!!). I must've walked for an hour through flat farmland. And all along this, there were many sheep sightings. I have fallen in love with English sheep. And when you look at them carefully, you realize each has its own personality. For a moment I even thought I might want to be a sheep in my next life.
Oh, by the way, did I mention, I've fallen in love with English sheep.The flat farmland walk ended at a sweet little lake: actually a quarry that has come to be filled with water as it has fallen out of use. Had my lunch of bread made from quinoa and amaranth (very high protein grains), an apple and fruit bars.
And then back to walking. And again some cliffs appeared, and again it was up and down... and wobbly legs and nice views.
I could see the cliffs continuing into the distance. One of the ones I climbed, I know not which, was the Winshields Crags, which at 375 m is the highest point along the wall. Not so high, I know. But you're not supposed to compare this to the Himalayas.
At one point I passed by a small, lonely, sturdy tree, battling the wind constantly it seemed to me (photo below), as I myself was being pushed around by the wind. The only thing that prevented me from being blown away was the backpack which put some more weight on me and kept me grounded.
Finally, after 5 hours of walking (about 8 miles or 12 kilometers), I reached Once-Brewed. This is a settlement of 4 buildings, one being the youth hostel and one a visitors centre. It has this charming name because of another settlement some 500 yards from it which is called Twice Brewed. Twice Brewed is the older settlement of the two - in fact, on Once Brewed's east side is East Twice Brewed and on its west side is West Twice Brewed. Don't ask me how they got their name - I wish I knew. After a hot shower, I spent the rest of the evening in the hostel's lounge with a special ale from Once Brewed and my book. The lounge was occupied by a family playing games and because I was there reading, the father was constantly trying to quieten the kids down (who, as kids are apt to do, would screech every now and then in excitement). I told him it was actually nice to see that his kids were having so much fun (I was too tired and happy to mind the noise). To which he replied: "yes, nice to see it, but hear it?" Oh well, I tried.
Dinner, I should add, was a disaster. For some reason, the youth hostel had prepared chicken curry (or vegetable curry, if one was so inclined) and poppadums. Why poppadums? Have poppadums become part of English cuisine? Whatever the reason was, the chicken curry was at least somewhat edible if one was hungry (which I was). But I had to give up on the poppadums after eating half of the first one. How bad can a poppadum be, you want to ask me? I don't know, but these were terrible!
Nonetheless, a very nice day! And the youth hostel at Once-Brewed (17 bucks a night in the dorm) was very nice - it was full of people, it had nice common spaces and it was very very clean.
3-day trip to hadrian's wall: part two of day 1
Note: This is the second post of the trip, so to start at the beginning, go to post titled 3-day trip to hadrian's wall: part one of day 1
Got into the 4 pm bus and modified my plans again (since I'd missed the 2 pm bus). Decided to get down from the bus at a place from where I'd have to walk only 4 miles to Greenhead. No sooner had I decided this that it started pouring! A guy sitting behind me suddenly tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around to find a good-looking guy asking me whether I knew when the bus would stop at Haltwhistle. I couldn't for the life of me catch the word Haltwhistle - his accent was so strong. I have no idea which part of England he was from (I think he told me but I don't remember now) but he was working in a city not far from Durham. Anyhow, he turned out to be very irritating. Anyone who asks me for my email within 5 minutes of having met me can be nothing but irritating. And he just wouldn't stop talking, presuming that I could understand his accent (just because I was in his country?). For a moment I wished to hell I had a non-understandable accent while talking in English. I tried to ignore him, but he forced his email and phone number on me. I politely gave him my email but told him I don't remember my phone number (which is true). He kept asking me where I was going, that I should email him how the trip was, etc.
Then I willfully tried to ignore him and started a conversation with the woman sitting ahead of me. It turned out that she was from the bus company and was observing whether it ran properly, on time, etc. So I narrated to her how I'd missed the bus at Hexham. She was very sympathetic, went up to the driver to talk to him and then came back and told me that I'd not really missed the bus. The bus apparently passes by the railway station twice in close succession and it is only the second time around that it actually stops to pick up passengers. Great, I thought! "Its a real shame, its a real shame," she told me and then we discussed how the signage at the railway station's bus stop needs to be more user-friendly.
It was really pouring and I decided I should call it a day - just get down at Greenhead and start walking tomorrow. But then the rain suddenly stopped and the glorious sunshine came out! So I let the bus pass by Greenhead and got down at Birdoswald. Here, I found that Hadrian's Wall was 3 minutes from the bus-stop. Thus started my walk along Hadrian's Wall. I hoped that I wouldn't be walking so near the road all throughout - that would not be nice! But now, and for the rest of my trip, luck stayed on my side. The wall went straight east, away from the curving road, and I soon found myself among grassy fields.
Hadrian's Wall seen to the left of the path: Yeah, the wall by itself doesn't look so very special at many places, especially given that walls of similar stone serve as fences for much of the farmland along the way. At other places the wall looks more interesting.
This first stretch of my walk, 4 miles from Birdoswald to Greenhead, was nice and easy (but not as spectacular as the next 2 days). Gently sloping now and then, the path went over the river Irthing and then across fields with sheep and cows grazing in them. Unlike what you see in the photo above, the path is usually not closed off by the wall on one side and a fence on the other and you can in fact wander off the path if you like, go pet some sheep or cows (though I wouldn't recommend that).
This cow was uninterested in me, but on my 3rd day I had somewhat of a scary encounter with cows (no, I did not try to pet one). Walking among the sheep and cows is fun unless you find yourself somewhat cornered by cows giving you deadly angry looks
Hadrian's Wall was built around 120 AD, from stone east of the River Irthing and from turf west of this river. Where it was built of stone, it was designed as a 5-6 metre high and 3 metre wide wall, though ultimately it was built to a 2 metre width. At regular intervals there were turrets and milecastle fortlets. It must have been quite a sight at the time, exuding power. Today, almost 2000 years later, the wall is much lower and often narrower too, though you do see the 2 metre width at places; at other places the wall disappears altogether. I think I read somewhere that the stone had been taken from the wall and used to build other things in the surrounding areas. Along the walk, you also pass by the never-more-than-a-few-feet-high-remnants of its turrets and milecastles. Although this is a national trail today, most of the land along the wall is not owned by the state. Rather, it is mostly private land (as is the case with most walking paths in Britain, I believe) where walkers have "right of way," that is, they can pass through (respectfully). This arrangement is something I find quite fascinating. So often there is no path except trails of trampled grass that you are supposed to follow through the fields. At many places, you will therefore also come across signs asking you not to walk on the trampled paths, but walk just alongside so that the grass can grow back where it has been trampled.
I got to Greenhead around 6:30-7 pm. The walk had been too short. In retrospect I should be thankful it was short, because at the end of the next 2 days of walking, my feet felt so sore I was on the verge of limping. And it would have been a pity to miss any part of those 2 days (I almost did as I will explain later).
Anyhow, to come back to Greenhead, I'd booked a spot in the youth hostel dorms (15 bucks a night). When I got to the hostel, the doors to the hostel were open but there was no one about. A sign said to go check-in at the nearby Greenhead Hotel. This was also the only restaurant and pub in Greenhead (I think). So I checked in, got myself the key to a dorm room - there were no others in the room that night. The hostel wasn't as clean as I'd have liked it to be but it was fine for a night. I went back to the hotel to have dinner and a beer. The place was very busy and quite loud. There was a 200-person wedding party going on in a room at the back. I have no idea where 200 people had come from. It seemed like a tiny settlement - some dozen or two dozen houses. Still, the vegetable lasagne was okay and the beer was good. At one point, Mamma Mia came floating out from the back room and I found myself tapping my foot. I ate and then retired to my room. It was a bit eerie being all alone in a room of 4 bunkbeds and never having seen who else was staying the night in the youth hostel. I woke up once in the night from a dream - someone had entered the room and was shining a torchlight at me. I apparently had the presence of mind (in the dream) to sneak out my little torch and shine it back at him. He quickly turned, opened the door to the room and fled. I jumped down from my top bunk and started to run after him. I shouted for help as I opened the door of the room, but only a creaky voice came from the throat. I think thats when I woke up. Not nice. But the rest of the night was uneventful and I slept well.
Got into the 4 pm bus and modified my plans again (since I'd missed the 2 pm bus). Decided to get down from the bus at a place from where I'd have to walk only 4 miles to Greenhead. No sooner had I decided this that it started pouring! A guy sitting behind me suddenly tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around to find a good-looking guy asking me whether I knew when the bus would stop at Haltwhistle. I couldn't for the life of me catch the word Haltwhistle - his accent was so strong. I have no idea which part of England he was from (I think he told me but I don't remember now) but he was working in a city not far from Durham. Anyhow, he turned out to be very irritating. Anyone who asks me for my email within 5 minutes of having met me can be nothing but irritating. And he just wouldn't stop talking, presuming that I could understand his accent (just because I was in his country?). For a moment I wished to hell I had a non-understandable accent while talking in English. I tried to ignore him, but he forced his email and phone number on me. I politely gave him my email but told him I don't remember my phone number (which is true). He kept asking me where I was going, that I should email him how the trip was, etc.
Then I willfully tried to ignore him and started a conversation with the woman sitting ahead of me. It turned out that she was from the bus company and was observing whether it ran properly, on time, etc. So I narrated to her how I'd missed the bus at Hexham. She was very sympathetic, went up to the driver to talk to him and then came back and told me that I'd not really missed the bus. The bus apparently passes by the railway station twice in close succession and it is only the second time around that it actually stops to pick up passengers. Great, I thought! "Its a real shame, its a real shame," she told me and then we discussed how the signage at the railway station's bus stop needs to be more user-friendly.
It was really pouring and I decided I should call it a day - just get down at Greenhead and start walking tomorrow. But then the rain suddenly stopped and the glorious sunshine came out! So I let the bus pass by Greenhead and got down at Birdoswald. Here, I found that Hadrian's Wall was 3 minutes from the bus-stop. Thus started my walk along Hadrian's Wall. I hoped that I wouldn't be walking so near the road all throughout - that would not be nice! But now, and for the rest of my trip, luck stayed on my side. The wall went straight east, away from the curving road, and I soon found myself among grassy fields.
Hadrian's Wall seen to the left of the path: Yeah, the wall by itself doesn't look so very special at many places, especially given that walls of similar stone serve as fences for much of the farmland along the way. At other places the wall looks more interesting.This first stretch of my walk, 4 miles from Birdoswald to Greenhead, was nice and easy (but not as spectacular as the next 2 days). Gently sloping now and then, the path went over the river Irthing and then across fields with sheep and cows grazing in them. Unlike what you see in the photo above, the path is usually not closed off by the wall on one side and a fence on the other and you can in fact wander off the path if you like, go pet some sheep or cows (though I wouldn't recommend that).
This cow was uninterested in me, but on my 3rd day I had somewhat of a scary encounter with cows (no, I did not try to pet one). Walking among the sheep and cows is fun unless you find yourself somewhat cornered by cows giving you deadly angry looksHadrian's Wall was built around 120 AD, from stone east of the River Irthing and from turf west of this river. Where it was built of stone, it was designed as a 5-6 metre high and 3 metre wide wall, though ultimately it was built to a 2 metre width. At regular intervals there were turrets and milecastle fortlets. It must have been quite a sight at the time, exuding power. Today, almost 2000 years later, the wall is much lower and often narrower too, though you do see the 2 metre width at places; at other places the wall disappears altogether. I think I read somewhere that the stone had been taken from the wall and used to build other things in the surrounding areas. Along the walk, you also pass by the never-more-than-a-few-feet-high-remnants of its turrets and milecastles. Although this is a national trail today, most of the land along the wall is not owned by the state. Rather, it is mostly private land (as is the case with most walking paths in Britain, I believe) where walkers have "right of way," that is, they can pass through (respectfully). This arrangement is something I find quite fascinating. So often there is no path except trails of trampled grass that you are supposed to follow through the fields. At many places, you will therefore also come across signs asking you not to walk on the trampled paths, but walk just alongside so that the grass can grow back where it has been trampled.
I got to Greenhead around 6:30-7 pm. The walk had been too short. In retrospect I should be thankful it was short, because at the end of the next 2 days of walking, my feet felt so sore I was on the verge of limping. And it would have been a pity to miss any part of those 2 days (I almost did as I will explain later).
Anyhow, to come back to Greenhead, I'd booked a spot in the youth hostel dorms (15 bucks a night). When I got to the hostel, the doors to the hostel were open but there was no one about. A sign said to go check-in at the nearby Greenhead Hotel. This was also the only restaurant and pub in Greenhead (I think). So I checked in, got myself the key to a dorm room - there were no others in the room that night. The hostel wasn't as clean as I'd have liked it to be but it was fine for a night. I went back to the hotel to have dinner and a beer. The place was very busy and quite loud. There was a 200-person wedding party going on in a room at the back. I have no idea where 200 people had come from. It seemed like a tiny settlement - some dozen or two dozen houses. Still, the vegetable lasagne was okay and the beer was good. At one point, Mamma Mia came floating out from the back room and I found myself tapping my foot. I ate and then retired to my room. It was a bit eerie being all alone in a room of 4 bunkbeds and never having seen who else was staying the night in the youth hostel. I woke up once in the night from a dream - someone had entered the room and was shining a torchlight at me. I apparently had the presence of mind (in the dream) to sneak out my little torch and shine it back at him. He quickly turned, opened the door to the room and fled. I jumped down from my top bunk and started to run after him. I shouted for help as I opened the door of the room, but only a creaky voice came from the throat. I think thats when I woke up. Not nice. But the rest of the night was uneventful and I slept well.
3-day trip to hadrian's wall: part one of day 1
I had been itching to go away for a 2-3 day hiking trip ever since I'd reached Durham. In fact I'd bought a Lonely Planet guide called "Walking in Britain" in Mumbai soon after I got the post-doc in Durham. Pouring over it, I finally planned a walk along Hadrian's Wall for 3 days. Hadrian's Wall marked the northern border of the Roman Empire. It stretched for some 80 miles east-west and my "Walking in Britain" guide recommended doing a 7-day walk along its entire length - starting from Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the east to a small village called Bowness-on-Solway in the west. The route is one of Britain's national trails. A bus service goes somewhat parallel to the route a number of times during the day, stopping off at some important places so that people can just go visit these spots. After reading and re-reading the route, and pouring over the train and bus timetables, I planned a walk over the 3 middle days, which cover the central and most picturesque part of the wall. I decided I'd take the bus to the western-most point of those 3 days, a village called Walton, and then walk back east, staying along the way at youth hostels in Greenhead and Once-Brewed (yes, there is a tiny settlement by that name :-)). I decided to leave home at 6:30 am on Saturday morning so that I could get to Walton by 10 am.
However, Friday night I got lazy. Well, it was past midnight before I could go to bed - at the last minute before sleeping I decided that I wasn't excited about carrying a rucksack (weak shoulders that I have) and deciding that I didn't need a sleeping bag, I repacked everything I could into a smaller backpack - I traded a pair of tights for night pajamas to save space. I also gave up taking an extra sweater and decided the jacket would have to be enough. And I reluctantly gave up taking a bottle of peanut butter and 2 bananas. So by the time I got into bed, the idea of waking up at 6:30 am to start 3 days of walking didn't excite me one bit.
So again, at 12:30 am, I poured over bus and train timetables and decided that the only possible thing was to do a shorter walk on Saturday - get down from the bus as Lannercost Priory (2 miles before Walton) at 3:30 pm and walk the 6 miles to Greenhead by evening (hopefully it would not rain and slow me down). Happy with the new plan, I went to sleep and leisurely woke up at 10 am. Took the train to Newcastle at noon. From Newcastle, I took a train to Hexham which I was to reach at 1:55 pm and from where I was to catch the 2:03 pm bus to Lannercost Priory. You see how close I was timing myself! So of course, I missed the bus!! It passed by the Hexham railway station just as I got out from the station. I was so mad! The bus had been early by a few minutes! The next bus was at 4 pm! I cursed myself for being lazy and not getting up at 6:30 am and keeping to the original plan. I stood there feeling like an idiot for some time. Then decided to walk about Hexham and kill time.
It turned out that Hexham has a nice town centre with an amazing church that was built in the 11th century. Some of the stained glass detail was just beautiful. Its interior was grand but also made intimate through its details. A young studious-looking bespectacled guy was playing the church organ and my time smoothly passed by, listening to the organ and taking photos, and later having my two peanut-butter sandwiches in the sun (still feeling a little foolish since the sandwiches were meant to have been eaten after 2-3 hours of walking and not after sauntering around in a church). There was a nearby fish and chips take-away and everyone sitting in the sun seemed to be eating chips and I caved in to the temptation. They were the worst chips I'd ever eaten - soft and greasy!
PS: Click on the photos below if you want to see them larger, though it seems some of these are slightly out-of-focus and these smaller sizes hide the blurriness :-)
However, Friday night I got lazy. Well, it was past midnight before I could go to bed - at the last minute before sleeping I decided that I wasn't excited about carrying a rucksack (weak shoulders that I have) and deciding that I didn't need a sleeping bag, I repacked everything I could into a smaller backpack - I traded a pair of tights for night pajamas to save space. I also gave up taking an extra sweater and decided the jacket would have to be enough. And I reluctantly gave up taking a bottle of peanut butter and 2 bananas. So by the time I got into bed, the idea of waking up at 6:30 am to start 3 days of walking didn't excite me one bit.
So again, at 12:30 am, I poured over bus and train timetables and decided that the only possible thing was to do a shorter walk on Saturday - get down from the bus as Lannercost Priory (2 miles before Walton) at 3:30 pm and walk the 6 miles to Greenhead by evening (hopefully it would not rain and slow me down). Happy with the new plan, I went to sleep and leisurely woke up at 10 am. Took the train to Newcastle at noon. From Newcastle, I took a train to Hexham which I was to reach at 1:55 pm and from where I was to catch the 2:03 pm bus to Lannercost Priory. You see how close I was timing myself! So of course, I missed the bus!! It passed by the Hexham railway station just as I got out from the station. I was so mad! The bus had been early by a few minutes! The next bus was at 4 pm! I cursed myself for being lazy and not getting up at 6:30 am and keeping to the original plan. I stood there feeling like an idiot for some time. Then decided to walk about Hexham and kill time.
It turned out that Hexham has a nice town centre with an amazing church that was built in the 11th century. Some of the stained glass detail was just beautiful. Its interior was grand but also made intimate through its details. A young studious-looking bespectacled guy was playing the church organ and my time smoothly passed by, listening to the organ and taking photos, and later having my two peanut-butter sandwiches in the sun (still feeling a little foolish since the sandwiches were meant to have been eaten after 2-3 hours of walking and not after sauntering around in a church). There was a nearby fish and chips take-away and everyone sitting in the sun seemed to be eating chips and I caved in to the temptation. They were the worst chips I'd ever eaten - soft and greasy!
PS: Click on the photos below if you want to see them larger, though it seems some of these are slightly out-of-focus and these smaller sizes hide the blurriness :-)
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