Day 37 Malham to Hawes

19 April 2013: 49km. Started 06:00. Arrived 19:30

What a day this was! It began with fumbling in the dark at 05:00 as I got up and put all my possessions in the corridor outside the dormitory so I avoided disturbing the three people sleeping. They had kindly told me the evening before that they would take the sheet off my bed when they got up, so at least I didn’t need to crash around doing that. I ate most of the “packed lunch” from the hostel as breakfast. Eventually I was ready to leave and had gaiters and boots on by 06:00. I let myself out with care – I had to slam lock the door behind me so forgetting anything at that stage would have ruined all my plans to be early.

Dawn was just about breaking. It was a bit damp but by the time I reached the far end of Malham it was definitely raining, so on with the waterproofs. I spotted the campsite and saw Liz’s mother’s camper van – so that was where they were staying. I made a slight detour to get a good view of Malham Cove and then took the steep path up on to the limestone pavement. Unfortunately limestone plus rain is a recipe for slippery rocks so rather than admiring the impressive limestone pavement I was concentrating on avoiding any slips.

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I missed the path a couple of times but suspect it made little difference. Malham Tarn was scenic even in the rain. I realised after two hours that I had only covered 7km what with all the uphill and the unclear path over the slippery pavement. However, importantly, I was intact and had not fallen. I proceeded rather more rapidly round the tarn and on to a track. Passing a farm, there were many sheep as well as cows with calves on the hillside. I detoured up hill off the path to pass a cow that was uncomfortably close to the path. The friendly farmer appeared and told me just to go on up and not to worry about descending back to the path.

It was a steady ascent up Fountains Fell and I noted the old tin mine workings. I diverted to the viewpoint where there were two stone cairns. The descent turned out to be more difficult than expected with two points where there were bands of icy snow on the path. Fortunately the rain had stopped. The path descended to the road where there were good views before turning off on a track which also proved to be easy walking. The ascent to Pen-y-Ghent comprised some steep climbing and an exposed area with no clear path and precipitous drops. This led quickly on to a grassy summit. I had been following a group climbing the same way but didn’t catch them and they went off the summit by a different route.

At the top, I chatted briefly to a fell-runner – impressively someone who had completed the Bob Graham Round – 42 Lake District Summits in under 24 hours – around 70 miles of running with 26,900 feet of ascent. He is training now to pace a friend and was worried about recent missed sessions due to snow.

The temptation as I walked towards Horton in Ribblesdale would have been to continue to head west and miss the dog leg into the village. However I really wanted to be able to say I had walked the entire Pennine Way so I turned off down the easy gravel path. Arriving at the road in Horton, somehow I was confused and headed further south down the road the wrong way. Fortunately I was only a couple of hundred metres in the wrong direction before I realised my mistake.

I still found time to stop at the Pen-y-Ghent café to sign the visitor book (documentary proof of having been there) as well as downing a pint mug of coffee and a hearty piece of fruit cake. I had planned to leave Horton at 1pm but actually left at 1:30pm. Only half of my walk was done, although actually the most strenuous half.

The ascent out of Horton was relentless but not steep. The views were good back towards Horton and the rock formations near the path of interest. Initially it was warm and sunny but then some light rain. I passed an impressive waterfall, a special area of ancient woodland (undisturbed due to being on steep ground) and crossed a packhorse bridge. There were views of the Ribble viaduct in the distance.

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I reached the Cam High Road – this was easy to follow but was uphill for virtually three miles. Part of it was a surfaced road although in very poor condition and one 4WD arrived just as I was going through a gate, which I opened wide to let them through (with thanks). I had stopped several times for snacks. Near Ten End, there was an option to continue on the track and descend onto the road, reaching the youth hostel directly. However for the second time that day I opted for the “true and full” Pennine Way.

The last few miles were where I really began to fade. There were bits of bog which made the route more difficult. I was struggling even to climb over stiles. My pace became pitifully slow as I really hit “the wall”. It was difficult even to walk up the last bit of road to the youth hostel. I managed to remove my boots and gaiters and leave them in the drying room at the entrance. I was cold and shivery and had to sit on my rucksack while I was waiting at reception. The very kind warden let me book an evening meal even though it was late. She realised there was no way I could take the short walk to the village and find somewhere to eat. She even came up to the dormitory to check that I had remembered to come back down for dinner. However I staggered to the dining room and managed to eat my meal – slowly – as well as drink a lot of water.

I have walked further in a day but I never remember being this exhausted at the end of a walk. However even the first half is billed as a tough day. I suspect I was still recovering from the GI infection I had picked up and that didn’t help. Fortunately I had only really struggled over the final three miles or so where I had suffered with exhaustion / exposure and I had managed to get off the moor in one piece. Despite this, it had been a good walk and there was a real sense of achievement at the end of the day. Thankfully, I had the next day off and I felt that I had really earned my first rest day since the Lizard.