Wall to Once Brewed

Day 3 Wall to Twice Brewed Inn

I fully expected to be immobile this morning, but sleep is a wonderful healer. The friendly man at the Inn was chatty. I asked him about the teacher strikes in G.B., because they were all over the front of the newspaper, and we chatted a while about such things. When he asked me later if we were walking coast to coast, I said yes, and asked him if he had ever done it. “No, I think you're MAD,” he said. “I've never done it, and never will. I love that you are doing it for our business, but I think you're MAD.” Add an accent. Love the accents here. So many flavors.

The weather report was for a bad day today, so we were prepared for rain and colder temps. But let me tell you today was PERFECT for hiking. Sunny, in the 60's, a lovely breeze- absolutely perfect! Yesterday I managed to get quite sunburned on my neck- but only on the left side. (We are walking East to West consistently every day, so will be all crispy fried- but only on one side. I pinned one of Rob's Japanese handkerchiefs to the bottom of my baseball cap and felt like Lawrence of Arabia. (Can you hear the theme from that movie? I can.) It did the trick. And sun screen helped too.

In the morning we passed blazing poppy fields, and trudged up through more sheep and cow fields. We climbed a lot today and took a lot of pictures of sweeping green vistas. From breathtaking heights we could see animals grazing far below and castles miles off in the distance. There were miles and miles of exposed ancient Wall today and it was great to finally hike along it. We caught up with Nathan in a forest for lunch around noon, and then, after lunch the spectacular part of the day began. It was lots and lots of steep climbs, and we could see the wall stretching off as it followed the contour of the hills (think Great Wall of China) Up and down we went from about 1:30 to 3:30. I found myself recovering quickly and feel really great this afternoon. I am happy to report that my ...ehem...love handles are noticeably less today than yesterday! (And no new blisters!) This exercise plan of working out for 7-8 hours a day is a good one. We passed by mile forts and castle ruins, and lookout turrets facing Scotland from the high cliff heights. Nathan and I imagined battles and Scots trying to attack the wall. One of my great pleasures of the last 3 days is watching Nathan blaze on ahead. He is like a mountain goat; all muscle, lightness, speed and coordination. He leaves everyone in the dust. He gets a few miles ahead of us then waits, usually from the top of a hill, or a large rock or a fence. I find myself playing “Where's Nathan?” as I look ahead in the great distance. I am proud of his good humor, good sense, his strength and agility. He is a delight to have along on this trip.


I wished today especially that Chris Howes was with us. He would have been thrilled by viewing and walking along the miles of visible wall. I imagined him telling us of the history- Robin says he knows quite a bit of Wall and Roman history. Today's pictures of Christian include lunching in the shade with us, and him taking a wee in the bushes (you can just see the top of his head). We've all been taking a wee here and there along our walk. Can't be helped. There are simply no facilities along the way.

Tonight we stay in a place called “Twice Brewed Inn.” It's located at the four corners of “Once Brewed.” Think of it being comparable to the bustling metropolis of Perry City. I am looking out my window at sheep on a hill. I can hear them bleating. Been hearing them talk to us all day, as a matter of fact. Tonight we will eat here and the boys will again enjoy the local brews. Nathan and Robin are certainly enjoying their ales.

Slightly shorter walk today, but much more physically challenging. Today's pedometer reading: 36,009 steps.