We have said good bye to the Lake District (Andrea was less polite btw) after a really good meal at the Crown and Mitre. We ambled along the river bank and apart from a few fields with cows we had an utterly uneventful relaxing walk to Shap. The cakes (you know I like cakes) were superb at the Abbey Tea Rooms - if you go through Shap stop there. We then walked out of Shap across the main west coast railway line and the M6 into the moorland. Weirdly on the OS map, the C2C route doesn't exist but there are really good signposts and the walk through the limestone moor land reminded us both of Derbyshire. We arrived in Orton to find another very nice cafe (Orton Scar) and a chocolate factory !! Bliss and the place is pretty. Another 13 miles ticked off, only 44,000 steps and a mere 40 floors climbed.
Longer version
The Crown and Mitre did superb local food - I would recommend the lamb shank - yes the church bell ringing every 15 minutes throughout the night was a bit annoying but we were so shattered that Andrea didn't notice and I only heard it twice. We set off across meadows and pastures along the banks of the River Lowther to the ruins of Shap Abbey with a back drop of the Lake District:
Sheep definitely out number people here and most of them have cute lambs with them. We were off the coast to coast route but regained it around Shap Abbey and unlike in the Lake District where there is very little signage, here they have made an effort (which does make you feel a bit more welcome). The number of people doing the coast to coast seems lots so its surprising to us the Lake District doesn't make more of an effort.
The Abbey Tea Rooms in Shap seem to be the hub of the community. Not only where the cakes all home made, they also had sausage rolls and quiche etc. I looked it up afterwards in Trip Advisor and it got 5 stars i.e. everyone thinks its excellent. After a refill we walked out of Shap (which is in a gap in the hills across the A6, west coast main line (railway) and the M6. To see a main road after 5 days was a bit of a shock (I know that sounds strange). Motorways make so much noise !!
I am not kidding, you could still hear the M6 when we were over 2 miles away. We were then walking in true limestone country. For those of you who do not know what I mean, limestone is a whitish stone that sticks out of the moor. In extreme cases it looks a bit like pavements with squares of the rock - btw that is Andrea walking amongst them
We think Wainwright made his own route because at this point the OS map did not say there was a path but we kept seeing some old signs such as this one that meant we were on the right path.: you can just make out C2C
The moorland is great at this time of year with lots of sheep and lambs, small flowers abound and just a sense of space and not a house or building in sight. You are literally on your own (well apart from Andrea of course) as you can see:
The moor gives way to a valley full of stone walls and sheep (with a few cows thrown in for good measure). The parish of Orton snuggles in the valley
Orion is a small village that boasts Kennedy's - a surprising family business selling chocolates - who can deliver via the internet. There is also a pub plus numerous B&B's primarily due to the Coast to Coast. Before I finish I have to mention the home made cakes of Orton Scar Cafe - the lemon poppy seed cake was delicious. A great place to stop particularly as there is a farmers market tomorrow ! After the hard work of the Lake District, the holiday has really begun from a food perspective :-)
No comments:
Post a Comment