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| 20/05/2009 The waymarking was particularly poor although local signs to Malham Cove were clear enough. After the steep stepped climb to the top of the cove I had to navigate by map and compass until picking up a Pennine Way sign after twenty minutes of crossing fields. From that point there was a long level walk round two sides of Malham Tarn before heading on to the second severe climb of the day up Fountains Fell. Missing waymarks would have made this even more difficult if I hadn't just been overtaken by another walker using GPS. It's much easier to work out where to go when you can see someone else ahead on the same route! On this climb my left ankle once again gave up in protest. I made it to the top and back down the other side but on reaching the Stainforth Road I decided that any attempt on the next climb over Pen-y-ghent would be unwise, if not impossible. I limped the three miles into Stainforth before a kind driver gave me a lift to Horton in Ribblesdale. It started to rain just after I arrived. On closer inspection my ankle was not just swollen and painful but one of the tendons had developed a distinct lump. Yet again my walk is over. It is pretty evident that I am only going to injure myself further if I continue with this challenge. It is no part of my plan to run up costs for the NHS. I now admit defeat and bring the endeavour to an end. Many thanks to everyone who has supported me and helped raise over £3,600 for MSF - against my original target of £1,000. Your generosity has helped some of the most desperately in need across the world. Andy |
19/05/2009  There was a welcome shot return to canalside walking as the Pennine Way joined the Leeds Liverpool Canal - today's photo is of the bridge over the bridge on this section. Your guess as to the history of this will be as good as mine. The day finished with the pointless steep climb so beloved of walk planners everywhere. Tomorrow is a relatively short distance at 15 miles but involves three steep climbs. Here's hoping my theory that walking gets easier after three days holds good! |
| 18/05/2009 I passed the ruins of Withins Hight the location of which is said to be the inspiration for Wuthering Heights. It's certaily remote and bleak enough. Unfortunately the weather was intent on adding its own atmosphere to the scene, so photography was impossible. 
To say the route was much quieter today would be an understatement. I saw only one person to speak to all day -
and all he said was hello before hurrying back to his house. Plenty of time for me to have my own thoughts though.
Today's picture is the Packhorse Inn tacken across Heptonstall Moor.
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17/05/2009 
After a pleasant and not particularly challenging day the weather suddenly deteriorated into
strong winds and heavy, cold rain just as I was approaching Stoodley Pike with its massive pinnacle built
to commemorate the Napoleonic war. The memorial was placed there for its visibility meaning it is
exposed to the elements. After hastily assembling my foul weather gear I was pleased to find it
coped with conditions admirably - the wind chill was just not getting through the layers at all.
After the monument I started the long decent into the Calder Valley and got my only bootful of
muddy water of the day - in places the path simply degenerated into swamp punctuated with
the occasional stile. Once past this and on metalled roads the weather relented and the
stroll down into the valley was quite pleasant. What I hadn't realised was that my B&B was on
the top of the other side of the valley - requiring one of the steepest climbs of the whole
way - a tough end to the day but possibly better than starting with a crippling climb! The photo is of Castleshaw Moor early in the day when the weather was at its best. |
| 17/01/2009 Following yet another setback I will return to the Pennine Way at Standedge in mid-May 2009 to take up where I left off. I am back in training and hope to complete the Pennine Way section without further mishap. If I can do this I should be able to reach Fort William using weekends and bank holidays and possibly even complete the whole challenge this year. I still intend to climb Ben Nevis on the way past if sponsorship reaches £4,000 before I reach Fort William. |
| 30/07/2008
The Duke of Edinburgh groups were still around and about and I had some concerns over their navigation as they kept appearing in random places and directions. I was reassured by one of their helpers at one of the checkpoints that they were on a series of different circular routes today so shouldn't all be going in the same direction. In spite of the better weather there was still a fairly strong wind so I took a detour at the head of Wessenden Reservoir. On returning to the Way I set off down the track down the side of the reservoir. Half way down I slipped and twisted my left ankle with all my weight coming down on it. My already weak ankle came up like a balloon. It took me three hours to cover the remaining five miles to Standedge, taking my weight on my good leg and my two sticks. Two days into the fifteen day walk my attempt was over. It is hard to express quite how frustrating this was but I will return! Sorry no photo - I hadn't taken one in the morning and I just wasn't in the mood after the accident. |
29/07/2008
 As the afternoon progressed the weather and visibility improved. By the time I was heading down off the moors there was a clear
view over Torside Reservoir to Crowden. Even so it was a relief to reach Crowden Campsite,
where the DoEer's eventually (all) trailed in.
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29/04/08
 A late start due to the B&B not serving breakfast until 8.30 but
I was under way by 9. The route was mostly along cart tracks and minor roads, so no real navigation problems. The day started sunny but clouds built up as the day went on but the rain held off until just after I arrived at Edale station. I chatted with several other walkers over the day - it has been obvious for the last couple of days that I am now in walking country. Not only are there more people on the paths but the paths are more worn and easier to follow - even if more muddy. On entering Edale I again heard what sounded like a woodpecker drumming but too loud and hollow-sounding. Just as I reached the station I finally spotted the source of the noise. It was indeed a lesser spotted woodpecker drumming but not on a tree - instead it was working on the connection box on a telegraph pole! Presumably it really liked the volume of noise it was getting but I couldn't help wondering whose phone it was cutting off! The picture is of Edale from Hollins Cross on the top of the ridge separating Edale from Castleton. |
28/04/08
 A mix of rain and sunshine today - although more rain than sun.The Limestone Way tends to be waymarked at road crossings but in between you need to work out which of the clearly marked but numerous public footpaths is the right one. This needs regular map and compass work to keep you on track, but not a problem as long as you don't rely on your sense of direction unless it's considerably better than mine. The weather gave few opportunities for decent photos - the view is of the River Bradford at Bradford. |
| 27/04/08
The day started much more camly with a walk in hazy conditions with light showers. The Staffordshire Way continued to be well marked to the end at Rochester. Although the Ordinance Survey maps show the Limestone Way starting at Rochester there are no waymarks until a few miles south of Thorpe. This called for a lot of mapreading and some improvisation to make progress. On reaching Tissington I picked the wrong footpath - after being assured that it was the right one by a local walking her dog. This wasted almost an hour before I returned to Tissington and to save further loss of time I took the road route for the rest of the way - which is when I ended up wondering whether I should suck out my fillings to avoid a lightning strike. No photo today - the rain messed up the camera's autofocus. Maybe tomorrow will go better! |
26/04/08
short walk today - just over 12 miles. With an early start and a well marked route I reached Uttoxeter around 12:30.This was a pleasant walk through gently rolling countryside - mostly open fields with the occasional wood for variety. The birdsong was constant with woodpecker drumming for variety. On the advice of my hosts last night I made a slight detour from the Staffordshire Way to walk along the top of the dam at Blithfield Reservoir rather than skirting the foot. Well worth doing for the views over the reservoir - the views in the other direction are rather marred by the water treatment works. The picture is of the village pond in Stockwell Heath. |
25/04/08
After the worst B&B breakfast I have ever had the day improved markedly. Early on I heard my first cuckoo of the year a real sign the winter is really over. Today there were no problems with way-marking and the walk through Cannock Chase woods was really pleasant - hilly enough to allow views to open up without making the going too hard. The photo does not do credit to the view across the valley I was trying to show. I was enjoying the woods enough to re-plan the route to stay in them longer - and incidentally shortened the walk by a few miles, giving me an early finish in a very comfortable and beautiful hotel in Colton. |
24/04/08
The way-marking on the Heart of England Way remained variable. In particular there were two points worth noting if you try this section -
when leaving Kingsbury don't bother to try finding the unmarked section just after crossing the M 42 it is not particularly worth seeing
and it's difficult to pick out on the ground. Instead stay on the road which crosses the motorway until you reach the canal and take the
towpath north. You will rejoin the Heart of England Way after around half a mile.Even more important - when leaving Lichfield don't follow the way-mark after you cross the A51 it will take you on a long detour south and then leave you to guess which of the unmarked paths through the woods will take you north again. Instead just walk north a few tens of yards and take the road left to Burntwood. The Heart of England Way will join this road shortly. Given the poor weather there were few opportunities for photos - today's is my recognition of St George's Day yesterday - some green and pleasant land to the west of Tamworth. |
| 23/04/08
Way-marking was pretty minimal on the Coventry Way, and in a few places critical points were missed altogether. In particular there is nothing to indicate the left turn just after crossing the Coventry Canal - you need to go down an unpromising looking side road to a bridge with a gate across it before you find the stile with its way-mark to take you under the railway.  The Heart of England Way also proved problematic with one stile simply not there and at another point the way-mark points you through a field of waist-high rape. When I skirted the edge of the field there was no way-mark to indicate the next section. So more road walking than planned today, but as this was along quiet back-roads there isn't that much to complain about. A good day for wildlife - pheasants, yellowhammers and a fox as the highlight. The picture is of some woods on the Heart of England Way south of Church End. It's the first time this year I've seen bluebells forming a carpet like this. The wild garlic in the foreground was also looking good although smelling strongly too! |
22/04/08
 I caught the first train from Glasgow this morning and reached Rugby at around 11:30,
and rejoined the Coventry Canal where I left it at about 12:00. As the canal leaves Rugby the towpath deteriorates dramatically much of it
is submerged in mud and in places entirely washed into the canal. If this isn't attended to soon the path will become impassable.
Fortunately the recent dry weather meant that much of was dry enough to walk on, so I was able to make good time.I picked up the Coventry Walk at Ansty (it crosses the canal by the first footbridge as you reach Ansty). From here it is a short walk to Barnacle hall - a beautiful 16th century house with 18th century extensions which is my B&B for the night. The picture is of Newbold Tunnel - the first one on this route that you walk through rather than over. I was particularly impressed by the coloured floodlighting! |
20/04/08
  Thanks to everyone who has supported me so far. While I had to call a halt to the walk after 230 miles following an ankle injury when I reached Rugby I am now ready to complete the next section - from Rugby to Edale. I will set out on 22 April and aim to reach Edale by the 29th. I plan to walk the Pennine way over the summer, from Kirk Yethom to Fort William over the Autumn and Winter and the final section - The Cape Wrath Trail in May 2009. I will maintain this blog until the walk is complete. Andy |
| 05/04/08
I will keep trying to get back to the walk but it is now clear that there is no prospect of meeting my original deadline for completion. I will keep the blog open and will add reports as and when I complete further sections of the walk. It will now have to be done in sections as weather, leave and my ankle allow. Many thanks for everyone who has supported my planned walk and has contributed to MSF. The money will of course still be put to good use. Watch this space for further updates. |
| 01/04/08
Thanks everyone who has supported me so far. Andy |
| 31/03/08
As he's not in a position to write an e-mail tonight, with no access to power to re-charge batteries, he asked me to write this for him. He wants to acknowledge the people along the way today who gave him sponsorship, a banana and good info about the state of the paths ahead! He's hoping that tomorrow will see him back on schedule, largely as he's due to meet up with a friend who will be walking along part of the way with him. As he'll be in a B+B tomorrow night, normal reporting services with photos might well be resumed! |
30/03/08
As the first train from Hemel Hempstead to Bletchley was not until after nine it was 10.15 before I got back
to the canal and started walking. Even on the walk from the station I had realised that my bag was far too heavy.
Particularly in the warm sunshine I was struggling to make any speed at all. I rapidly revised my target for the
day from Blisworth to the campsite at Cosgrove - 12 miles rather than 20.On the long trek round Milton Keynes several people stopped for a chat and one donation was made through a hedge! Unfortunately Cosgrove Campsite is now caravans only but fortunately the hotel next door was able to offer B&B at a reasonable rate. I have thouroughly reviewed the contents of my bag and I should be in a better position to make up ground tomorrow. The picture is of the canal to the north of Milton Keynes - the weather really was this good all day. |
29/3/08
Today I had the company of my good friend Chris for the Hemel to Tring section - and no bag to carry for once!
The weather was excellent until about 10 minutes after Chris left me for Tring station, at which point it started
to pour. From then on the rain was off and on for the rest of the day. A pleasant enough walk but not a lot to
report on. The footpath that had been poor since Watford improved markedly from Leighton Buzzard. The picture is of
Chris at one of the many picturesque lock houses along this section.
This is the last of the easy walking as from tomorrow I'll be carrying full camping gear.
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28/03/08
The weather forecast was for constant rain so it was a pleasant surprise that it stayed dry until 11.30.
I made an early start at around 7 and followed the Thames Path through a final couple of industrial
estates before picking up the Grand Union Canal. Navigation from this point was predictably easy -
all the branches of the canal were well labelled and - until Watford at least - the tow-path was
well maintained. Plenty of wildfowl to watch particularly on the stretch through the series of
lakes to the west of London. The canal was fairly quiet so I didn't meet as many people today
but I must say thanks to Dave who stopped working on his narrow boat for a chat and gave me
a key for the British Waterways water hydrants - this will make my journey up the rest of
the canal much easier. I had assumed I would have to buy bottled water for this part of the walk.
The picture is of a canoe slalom that has been hung over a water inflow into the canal. |
27/03/08
Up for a 6.30 breakfast and a taxi to Dartford Station for the train to
Woolwich. This caused my only real injury to date as I forgot that I was
wearing the rucksack as I was getting into the taxi, it caught on the top
of the door frame and as I lost my balance I caught my shin! Lots of blood
but no real damage.
As I had been warned by several people - including the taxi driver - the Thames path spends too much time taking you through run-down industrial estates to make it a pleasant walk, so I worked out a route that was rather more direct while still seeing the major land-marks. I also took a short break for a photo session on Parliament Square for 'Pulse' the HMRC in-house magazine. Any colleagues reading this look out for the May edition! Wearing a kilt to walk through London is an interesting experience. By and large people tried to pretend that I wasn't there but several wanted to know what I was doing and again several people stopped me and made donations. I don't follow the psychology of this, but lorry drivers tend to beep and give a thumbs up while white van drivers hurl insults. Today's picture is a view across the Thames to the City. The weather was not all as good as the picture shows but still probably the best day yet. Now to rest my aching feet - hiking boots are not the best footwear for pounding over 20 miles of pavement! |
26/03/08
A short report after a long day's walking. For most of the day the weather was excellent,
and no problems with navigation. I want to say a big thanks to a group of walkers I met at
Shoreham who had an impromptu whip-round and presented me with 28.78 for MSF and a kiss!
The picture is of hop poles in the Darrent valley - the first time I've seen these in real life.
As I entered Dartford the heavens opened and I was soaked by the time I reached the hotel in Dartford
just before 4. Half an hour to dry off and change then off to make a start on the 36 miles between
Dartford and Kew-tomorrow's destination.
A long trudge along rain-drenched streets got me to Woolwich at around 8pm. Train and taxi back to the hotel and an early start tomorrw with 28 miles still to do. Four days and 92 miles down. Now for bath food and sleep! |
25/03/08
The first thing to remember is that Wrotham is pronounced rote-ham! An excellent
day's walking, cold enough at the start to keep the mud frozen and easy to walk
on and by the time things had defrosted it was mostly a more gritty soil so for
the first time I haven't had to walk with half a field attached to each boot.
The main difficulty was the habit of an active minority of the residents of the
Medway Vale of damaging, defacing, uprooting or removing every way-marker within
two minutes walk of car access. As a result much more map-reading was required
than on previous days. Even so I only made two minor detours, one down to a
missing marker and one to a marker that had been rotated through 180 degrees.
Even so I had arrived by 5.15 feeling fitter than either of the last two days.
The picture is of Kit's Cote House - Originally the entrance to a now long gone
barrow dating from 3,500 to 2,400 BC. If you are ever doing this walk with an
Ordnance Survey map of the same vintage as mine please remember that the footpath
is on the north side of the bridge - not the south as shown on my map.
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24/03/08
 A late start thanks to the B&B's bank holiday schedule but under way by 9:15.
Generally an easier days walking as most of the route was along the Pilgrims Way which is straight, relatively well paved and is mostly
between two hedges (see picture) which keeps the worst of the wind away. Occasional snow showers, but not enough for me to don the
lycra running trousers under the kilt - I have to confess I wimped out yesterday! A finishing stretch across the downs on wet clay an
a succession of climbs and descents made for an exhausting finish. Even so I arrived at the B&B by 6.00 - so three hours less walking
than yesterday. Tomorrow it's an earlier start for another 19 miles so in theory this should be a relatively easy day. Fingers crossed!
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23/03/08
 An early start as the B&B couldn't do breakfast.
I started walking at around 7.15. While it was cold enough for the puddles to be
frozen over in the absence of any wind there was excellent walking for the first
couple of hours to Folkstone. Even at that point the visibility was dropping - the
picture of Folkstone from the Dover cliffs is the last I took before the weather
closed in. The rest of the walk was under snow, sleet and rain with strong winds.
I must admit that I underestimated the difficulty of this section. The combination
of climbs, poor visibility and sticky clay made this slow going. I finally arrived
at 6.45 in fading light. Tomorrow will be a later start as this B&B doesn't
start breakfast until 8.30 on bank holidays. Fortunately it's only 19 miles tomorrow
so hopefully there will be time to get to Delting in daylight.
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22/03/08
Arrived in Dover to be greeted with sleet and strong winds.
Thanks to Tia who was throwing stones into Dover Harbour with her dad and signed the map on my rucksack cover to witness
that I'd reached my starting point. As further proof a picture of Dover Harbour is attached.
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16/03/2008
Thanks to everyone who has sponsored me so far. I've now reached my target of 3,000 pounds - three times what I expected when I started fundraising. Your generosity has been amazing!
As promised I will now do the whole 1,052 miles wearing a kilt. I managed to get an ex-hire one which looks well-made enough to last the distance. The picture was taken just after the 3000 mark was reached. I'm told that the tartan is 'Scottish Heritage'.
Thanks again to all my sponsors.
If you haven't already given please remember MSF will use every penny it gets to help fund its work saving lives around the world. Please keep giving. ( Just Giving ).
If you have any ideas for another challenge for me to complete along the way please let me know and I may set a new target. My only thought at the moment is to add in an ascent of Ben Nevis - what's that worth?
Contact me at andy@thousandplus.org.
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| 12/3/08
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| 09/03/2008
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