The support everyone gave
each other was wonderful
Canada and America, and of course the
occasional Brit. The support everyone
gave each other was wonderful and I
still keep in touch with some of the guys
I met in the wilds.
of the trip was that basically nothing
went wrong, which, when you are out
there for two weeks making numerous
decisions and reading many maps and
guides, is a great result.
My brother was looking after me,
making sure I hit the trail each morning
and always had Globo waiting at
the next campsite. He also walked
part of the way with me and without
him the project would not have been
possible. Another friend, Smithy, came
and walked with me for two days but
unlike the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path
Project, when more than 20 people
joined me at stages, the eight-hour
drive to reach the Coast to Coast trail
was too far to expect those numbers to
be with me this time.
Apparently, on my first day walking
a couple got lost in the Lake District,
which resulted in the search and rescue
helicopter finally locating them at 11.00pm
that evening! However, as with the
Pembrokeshire walk, I did get shin splints
on one of my legs two days from the end.
It was the case of my body saying enough
now but it was really a small price to pay.
They say that both the Pembrokeshire
Coastal Path and Coast to Coast trail
are each equivalent to climbing Mount
Everest as you apparently ascend some
29,000 feet during both trails and this is
what puts a huge strain on your legs.
As the weather was so good, we were
always on schedule and each day
achieved our objectives. One surprise
38
At the end, on Friday 12th September,
I walked the last couple of miles
with my brother and as we reached
the North Sea and walked along the
cliffs for a couple of hours, it was an
emotional time because the journey
was ending. As is the tradition, I threw
a pebble into the sea, which I had
carried over from the Irish Sea and
then signed the book in the pub at
Robin Hood’s Bay to commemorate
what had been achieved.
Alfred Wainwright, who had conceived
the walk, had another convert and it is a
time that will remain with me forever.
For those of you who are interested, the
two sites set up for the WWW project
are at:
facebook.com/wardeywalkswainwright
justgiving.com/wardeywalkswainwright
By Nick Warde