Too Old Codgers

We woke to see rain out of the window and the forecast was for rain all day. Graham, who had been doing all of the navigation, decided that he would keep the guidebook and maps dry in the pack and made brief notes on key navigational points on the route for the day and tried to memorise the key points. That done we headed off to the dining room for breakfast – either we had had an excess of full English breakfasts or the superb breakfast at Lovesome Hill had raised our expectations, but the Lion Inn version continued the recent run of average breakfasts.

We set off at 10am in rain and mist and walked beside wet roads to the Fat Betty Cross (an intriguing name for a stone boundary marker). Graham struggled to take a photograph without getting the camera too wet, and then decided the camera would stay in the bag with the maps as long as the rain continued. A busload of bored, bedraggled school students in uniform were marched over to see Fat Betty then dashed back onto the bus – the outing on that miserable day was probably enough to curb any interest any of them may have had in the moors.

'Off again into the rain and mist'

'Wet Fat Betty'

Based on notes from the guidebook, we looked for a T junction marked by a large carved stone about a mile after Fat Betty. We walked for an hour without seeing a T junction or a large carved stone so stopped under the shelter of a roadside tree to examine the map. We had walked off the edge of the map and were beginning the descent into Rosedale. We retraced our steps to find the Fryup road branching off to the right and a carved stone appearing and disappearing as the mist rolled by. We had walked an extra 4 soggy miles, and it seemed to have been uphill both ways. The guidebook and maps were used for the rest of the day, leaving the guidebook wet and tattered. The advantage of a waterproof map case had become obvious.

Back on the C2C we crossed Glaisdale Moor on a boggy, muddy track then joined a better path over Glaisdale Rigg with occasional glimpses down into Glaisdale through the rain and mist. When we reached Glaisdale village at around 3pm the rain eased for long enough to take some photographs through rain drops on the camera lens. The village straggles down the slope to the railway station and the River Esk, crossed by the very elegant stone Beggar's Bridge.

'Glaisdale village in the rain'

'Beggar's Bridge in the rain'

The C2C then follows the Esk through (another) Arncliffe Wood on what would have been a delightful path on a sunny day. A road then took us down an avenue of grand old trees and stone buildings to Egton Bridge. We then followed an old toll road, complete with toll house and sign stating the toll charges, towards Grosmont. The toot of a steam train let us know we were getting close – Grosmont is home to the North York Moors railway.

At 5pm we arrived at the Station Tavern beside the railway station. We shed our wet gear all over the room onto sheets of newspaper provided by the Tavern, then went out to buy more papers to stuff into our shoes. A hot shower and dry clothes made a huge difference after the only day of our walk with constant rain.

'Station Tavern, Grosmont'

'Our drying room'

In the bar we met some of the C2C group we'd been travelling with, and a couple of Englishmen doing the walk east to west. Dinner, the usual steak and ale pie or fish and chips, was good so we followed up with treacle sponge and custard. It was an evening of great hilarity and fun, tinged with the sadness of knowing our C2C was nearly over.

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