Coast to Coast: Trip Blog

Below, you will find the archived blog entries from my Coast-to-Coast hike across England with my father.

2015.07.31 – Farewell to Wainwright

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As we left our wonderful B&B this morning, I knew our journey was drawing to a close. Yet even though our goal of Robin Hoods Bay lay only miles to our east, Wainwright had an eleven mile journey planned for … Read More

2015.07.29-30 – The Hogwart’s Express

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Our last few days on the trail have been quick and gorgeous. Days with late breakfasts and early arrivals and still I neglected to write anything about yesterday’s adventures. They were noteworthy, but finally sinking my teeth into George R. … Read More

The Clothing of the Coast to Coast

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I was planning on saving this post until the trip was over and could more meticulously photograph the gear that I’ve been using, but we’ve got killer wifi tonight and some time to spare so I figured I would do … Read More

2015.07.28 – The Lion Inn

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Our accommodations in Great Broughton were quite different than what we had grown accustomed to thus far. In place of the small, cozy B&B experience of Kirkby Stephens or St. Bees, we were met with a very familiar, seemingly corporate … Read More

2015.07.27 – Shrouds of Mist

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Today, we hiked in a cloud. We rose out of Osmotherley, where we enjoyed our best trail dinner thus far, and rejoined the Coast to Coast as it entered into the North Yorkshire Moors. From then on out, fog surrounded … Read More

2015.07.26 – A Reminder of True Dedication

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There are sections of road in Nebraska or Oklahoma where the uniformity of your surroundings lend themselves to the mindset that you aren’t really even moving at all, even when you are speeding along at 70+ mph. This section of … Read More

2015.07.25 – Pavement Pounding

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Every guidebook warns of the section from Richmond to Danby Wiske. On it, you will face roads, flatness, and more roads for the better part of 15 miles. It is clear that the rights of way that Wainwright uses so … Read More

2015.07.24 – Big City Life

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So far on this trip, we have had two rest days: one in Grasmere and one in Keld. On both, we have managed to clock in 13-15 miles. Rest days indeed… Richmond was our last shot at a true rest … Read More

2015.07.23 – The Road to Richmond

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On Thursday, we awoke to a somewhat awkward communal breakfast at our B&B. We huddled at one end of the table, while a rather nosy and talkative Coast to Coaster kept attempting to fill the silence from the far end … Read More

2015.07.22 – In the Valley of the Swale

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When you spend more than one night at a B&B, you build quite a relationship with the staff, or in our case, the owner. At the Keld Lodge, we received some of the best advice and treatment of our trip … Read More

2015.07.20-21 – Skeletons of the Past

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After a brief foray into the bandwidth-free lands of the North Yorkshire Dales, we are back on the grid in Reeth. My last post left us at Kirkby Stephen, a wonderful town dedicated to the English culture of long distance … Read More

2015.07.19 – A Captive Audience

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Surprisingly, we awoke to overcast skies, spitting rain, and chilly temperatures… What’s new. Happily, by the time we had finished breakfast, the rains had largely subsided and the sun was beginning to poke holes through the clouds. It was the … Read More

2015.07.18 – Orton Hears a Hoo

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Last night, we made it to Orton: the town without internet. Yesterday was a surprisingly full and exciting day, considering we moorland is often discredited as boring and unexciting. We awoke in Bampton Grange to the standard English forecast: overcast, … Read More

2015.07.17 – Leaving Lakeland

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Yesterday, my Dad and I made a bet about today’s weather forecast. On Wednesday, the forecast had been calling for 40-50 mph winds and rain with temperatures near freezing in elevated areas of the Lake District. I was sure that … Read More

Footage from Striding Edge

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As soon as we got to our B&B last night, I began editing together some of my GoPro footage from Striding Edge and our ascent of Helvellyn. Assembled on an iPad, this is no cinematic masterpiece, but it gets the … Read More

2015.07.16 – Striding Edge

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Striding Edge: I had heard my Dad read Wainwright’s descriptions of it ever since we arrived in England, but now I actually got to experience it. This section of the Coast to Coast, from Grasmere to Patterdale, has two different … Read More