Boog's Blog

Sharon planned to take another test/cold day. Unfortunately, she will miss the simple walk, but she doesn’t like caves anyway.

The walk includes an optional visit to the famous underground cave here.

this is the final day of walking of the Rhode Scholar trip

However, Sharon woke up and not breathing very well or barely at all. Took a taxi to the Airedale hospital.

Sharon was seen by the Senior doctor in the A&E department. She becomes attending in a few weeks and said that she cannot get a job. 20 years of this, three kids and she can’t get a job and her husband is a GP and also can’t get a job. fabulous bedside in her care of charge.

Oxygen, nebulizer, chest x-ray….

The senior A&E strongly recommended an overnight stay and found a ward bed for the night.

every department is paperwork, nothing digital. They’ve been planning digital for years same questions just increasing complexity as you go from one department to another people extremely nice.

very large Hospital complex multiple wings all one story and the building more wings and with evidence from the window by the construction

All creatures great and small is filmed in this area about a 30 minute taxi ride away -east of where we are. Some bagged the walk today and went to the town. Here are their pictures.

Plan is for me to pick up Sharon at 7:30 in the morning and bring her to the bus so we continue forward 

Sharon and I were to be on separate walks. But…. Bad cold changed her plan.

Much flatter terrain here. More rolling hills than mountains.

Weather for Saturday: Cold North wind. Temp 5c (40f) early, rising to 10c (50f). Blustery, scattered showers    

From the lecture:

Local Geological History from Ivan!

General: 300-million-year snapshot!

300m – 200m Limestone, plus mudstones compressing to shale

2m – 10,000: Glaciation, multiple ice ages

14,000 – 2,000: People, livestock, farming – bronze & iron ages

71 – 410: Roman Yorkshire, Celtic tribal culture

1086 – 1539: Domesday Book – recorded detailed population information for first time.

From 18th Century: Sheep & Wool leading to industrialisation, canals, railways

Hiking development to Pennine Way.

We were about 30 feet off the official path. She came out quite annoyed.

She came out and suggested we eat in the church. Help ourselves to the tea pot and restrooms.

Malham cove- was a very large waterfall in 18 th century

Stopped for tea and scones before the final few kms.

Lovely bitter to finish walk.

Newell house first, an hour and a half drive. Stopped for a couple of hours in Skipton before the half hour drive to Newfield Hall.

First stop in Skipton was at busy Lizzie, a popular fish and Chips joint. Made the mistake of ordering to go which you could only eat outside in the rain. We abandoned it and went around the corner to sit down in the restaurant. Someone got our order and a freebie.

Thinking of DEO missing these. Next time we’re in the area we will definitely come back. Fish (haddock), properly cooked chips and breading not least bit greasy.

Farming is not profitable except for the subsidies. Given for typical ag support and preventing rewilding of the land.

At dinner, I asked for olive oil to go with my salad. Nope, we have no olive oil in this restaurant. I spoke to the guy who said that’s typical. England does not have olive oil in the north except in fancy restaurants.

Trip to Buttermere area by bus.

Sharon and I were on separate walks today however, mine overlapped hers so duplicate area pics. Jeff’s walk also involved going up and down a hill.

Narrow, single track, not too muddy, but very, very windy.

Buttermere was the headquarters of the local group during the Norman conquest. The Normans never succeeded taking this village, too hilly and too many places to hide.

Demographics of the walkers.
Ages:. 70,76,77,80,80,81,81, 85
These are just the ones revealed.

We decided to skip the formal walks today as the rain would be continuous and the mud even more so especially on slippery cliffs. Sharon says “as much as we like them.”

High on the list is the pencil museum.

Walked into Keswick to find a proper tea house before explorations and museum.

Found really good vests in town at one of the many outdoor stores.

Sharon and I went on different walks today.

Jeff’s walk was outstanding.

Surfaces fine, no rain, mild temperature.

Group includes:

Pesticide biologist, civil servant

UK government stiles (the kind that allow crossing between fields), landscape rights of way administrator

Speech therapist – 85 years old, walks without poles,

Former Democratic party worker from the Carter admin days.

Lingholm was an estate favored by Beatrix Potter. Apparently the gardens and grounds provided inspiration for Peter Rabbit and her other books.

Met Sharon at Marina near the hotel for scones and tea post our walks.

Sharon’s shots

First, a clarification from yesterday: The spelling KEEPT is used for counting, in English we generally use kept. As an interesting sidenote I found out that they count the sheep using Cumbrian dialect numbers not English.

There are problems in the Lake District counting the sheep. The hills are very steep so they have to ask the sheep to stay imobile for a longer period of time.

The car park was basically full on this beautiful day. This is extremely charming country.

Day starts with 75 minute drive to Grasmere, definitely famous for gingerbread store, outdoor clothing stores and especially Wordsworth cottage, which was closed today.

Overall, we have done more than adequate Grasmere. Sharon says: adequate plus.

Keswick. via AI
Keswick is a lively town, sitting right in the heart of the Lake District. It has outdoor shops, cafés, pubs, and a steady flow of walkers and visitors, all set against a backdrop of dramatic fells. The town wraps around Derwentwater and serves as a gateway to some of the region’s most famous scenery. It feels energetic but still manageable, and it’s a good place to get a sense of the Lake District.

Accomodation:

Derwent Bank, sited on the edge of Derwentwater in the Lake District. This house has a more open feel, with large windows looking out toward the lake and surrounding hills. Less comfortable room as we did not get assigned premium, boot room. The setting is the highlight here: with water, mountains, and a lakeside landscape right outside our very high walk up room.

Dinner conversation with an odd polymath your who studies 9 languages simultaneously using Duolingo and sings in a chorus called Encore creativity for older adults.

Similar windy, cold, and wet forecast. Only two occurred.

Coach to start and the three levels of hike split off.

Very windy as we climbed 25 to 30% grades with Rocky ground. Two poles walking for me, one for Sharon. Hills are much higher in this section.

First part without handrails.

United Reform congregation church.

The Historical “Reformation” (The “Reformed” part)

The term “Reformed” refers to the church’s identity within the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. Specifically, they follow the tradition of reformers like John Calvin and John Knox.

They are “reformed” from the Roman Catholic Church of that era in several key ways:

• Authority: They believe the Bible is the primary authority, rather than church tradition or the Pope.

• Leadership: They don’t have a hierarchy of Bishops or Archbishops. Instead, they are led by a “Church Meeting” of the local members and elected elders.

• Simplicity: Their worship and buildings (like the one in Keld) traditionally avoid the heavy ornamentation or “rituals” found in Catholic or High Anglican traditions

Small tea house in Keld. Had lemon cake, fruit slice and fine Yorkshire tea. Lots of local baked goods. Nice.

On national sheep counting day all the sheep need to be keept in place for about 30 minutes -they can then be counted. They use a grid system. Last year‘s count showed 30.4 million sheep in the UK and 13.4 in England. NSCD, (National Sheep Counting Day) is an important part of their farming, agriculture, and commercial business and has a long tradition tied, of course, to taxation.

Half pint of Best Bitter

Woke to rain and cold and lots of rain. 39°.

Reasonable start time at 9:45 and 10 AM. Three levels of hikes offered. Jeff did middle level. Sharon did alleged 4 mile (5.5 on watch).

During dinner found out that the guides belong to HF Holidays, a cooperative that has been around since 1913. Hike leaders are volunteers but get room, board and a travel allowance. All the hotels are called houses, they own many, possibly hundreds , but they don’t advertise and they have about 45,000 members who pay 100 pounds a year.

Interestingly, one of the guides will be a client on the next hike that we are on.

We did two separate walks, when we compared notes, they seem very similar: roots and rocks, mud slippery mud, more slippery mud, rain, Sharon even got some hail. Sharon sang the Mud Song very quietly. The timing of Jeff’s walk was a little better. The rain started when we stopped to look at the mill and by the time we left the mill rain had stopped

after dinner, a presentation on the national parks

Taxi ride to meeting. Driver, Nigerian, says war only impacts gas prices. His family in Nigeria not much affected as everything there is a total mess: no electricity or water. Corruption. House has ground well and diesel generator.

Road Scholar bus ride.

Assembled with lots and lots of instruction, filling out forms, food choices for picnics and dinners, on and on. Leader working hard but unnecessary complications.

All Americans on this trip. Next venue we will join up with HF Holiday (local company) Brits.

🏘️ – Via AI
Sedbergh
Sedbergh is a small, quiet market town tucked at the edge of the Howgill Fells, known as England’s official “Book Town.” It has a handful of independent bookshops, stone cottages, and a calm, unhurried pace. The River Rawthey runs alongside town, and within minutes you’re out on footpaths that lead into open countryside. It’s not a tourist hub, which gives it a genuine, everyday English feel — a gentle and fitting place to begin a walking journey.

Thorn Hall
We begin our walk at Thorn Hall, a rambling 16th-century country house set above the small town of Sedbergh in the Yorkshire Dales. With its creaky staircases, wood-paneled rooms, and views out toward the surrounding fells: more like a manor than a hotel. Designed for walkers coming in with muddy boots. Meals on long tables, comfortable English countryside.