Even the best laid plans sometimes fall to outside influences and it seems that my plans to join Chris on his Cape Wrath Trail later this month have done just that.
Chris has had to postpone his walk until later in the year, which left me all dressed up with nowhere to go. Fortunately, we’ve managed to come up with an alternative, which Chris can fit into his truncated availability window and means that we still get to walk together for a few days.
Our fall-back walk isn’t quite as exciting, adventurous or as arduous as the Cape Wrath Trail, but it takes me back to the place I love to walk above all others, the Yorkshire Dales. We’ll be doing the Tributaries Walk, which is a 95-mile route, following the rivers, becks, gills and streams of the Dales; with a couple of hills thrown into the mix, as we move from one Dale to the next.
Eagle-eyed readers will notice that this is a walk I’ve done a guide book for, but I’ve never actually walked it all in one go before, and it met our length and location criteria perfectly. We’ll be backpacking the route and wild-camping wherever possible, but the route has many options for us to stop at bunk houses or B&Bs should we wish to.
I’ll be covering a lot of old ground, instead of walking somewhere new, but I still feel enthused and I’m looking forward to getting out there and starting. I’m getting really busy at work, so the break will be even more welcome and as I sit and look out of the window at the clear blue sky and warm sun, I begin to hope that summer is on the way and we may have some decent weather to accompany us.
We’ll be starting from Malham around lunch time on Friday 29th and walking clockwise around the path, taking it easy and probably finishing in seven days. Keep an eye on our Twitter feeds for position updates and if anyone wants to join us for a day or two, you’re more than welcome.
2 thoughts on “A Change of Plan”
I don’t cover the ground you do nor wild camp but have come to respect the importance of last minute plan changes recently…sometimes they can turn out to be better than the original.
Looks like a pleasant hike taking in some great countryside. Look forward to the updates, and pics!
Thanks, there’s never a downside to walking in the Dales for me, I’ll try and keep you updated 🙂