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.
This single track was the hardest path and it was very easyLunch. I found a better but distant spotLingholm tea room.
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
Lake view with pier, although they seem to be called jetties here. Mallard time. Duck butt (taken for Judi). Art tree. Pheasant. Walled garden at Lingholm. Beatrix Potter info. Potter rodents.
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.
You are here refers to the Grasmere gingerbread shop
The car park was basically full on this beautiful day. This is extremely charming country.
The look of the shop says it all. Was once a schoolhouse.
Day starts with 75 minute drive to Grasmere, definitely famous for gingerbread store, outdoor clothing stores and especially Wordsworth cottage, which was closed today.
Tea shop stop. Fantastic scone (not shown)
Overall, we have done more than adequate Grasmere. Sharon says: adequate plus.
Looks a bit like Carmel. Small shops, cafes, etc..
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.
Distant pheasant.
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.
For locationStarting out; group leader Chris. From waterfallReady to conquer Yorkshire. Puddles, mud, etc. 30% grade but doesn’t show well in photo.
First part without handrails.
30% grade handrails helped Good explanatory signage. Very small village.
United Reform congregation church.
reformed from what you might ask 
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
Keld- there may be a collector among our readers Possible breakout star of next slasher flick. Looks sort of bagel-ish?One of our collector friends collects rocks, likely not this one
Small tea house in Keld. Had lemon cake, fruit slice and fine Yorkshire tea. Lots of local baked goods. Nice.
Swaledale sheep ( and breed)
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.
spray painted markings for security tracking of stone walls and livestock. Post muddy climbMore mud. Always.
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).
Overview of parks
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.
A mudding we will go…For rodent fans.
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
SedberghSome birds (jackdaws?)It is lambing season. Howgill hills in Yorkshire on one side of the Dent (?) fault. Rounded shape. MudMore mud. Mill history. A friendly native pulling the lonely and tragic puppy scam. It worked. Mill history. More mill history. Classic Yorkshire scene. Dinner
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.
Five more not pictured
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.
16th century Thorn Hall
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.
One laneSchlep your own luggage uphill. Our large, freezing roomCream Tea timeAnother view of ThornYes. Lambing timeThe townI just liked the wallNo mortar, very very oldLocal churchEmbroidered tapestry created by locals. Closeup of a section Shepherds pie
Arrived and surprised to find you can only see the library by a guided tour, for which you must book tickets in advance. Went online to find the tickets were all sold out, rather like the Cheese Shop.
View of the Corn Exchange building. A place not visitedYes, not street cleaning
Wandered back to Hotel via Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury. Picnic dinner in the hotel room.
Very small food shopping for Marks & Spencer in train station.
Statue is quite impressive, representing loss of sight by soldiers in the first world war.
obligatory stop at Nero’s
Sharon declared we did adequate Manchester.
We check out in the morning, and taxi to meeting point for the start of the walking tour.
The blog was published last night UK time, but for some reason, did not get distributed by email.
Jet lag: we slept until almost noon
Heat wave continues: Manchester at 70F.
Typical architecture likedWarbler?Naturally, we checked out the cathedral and then the department stores like Marks & Spencer and Selfridge’s Art shotCathedral. Could use a scrubbing. Organ is fairly new: 2017. Kind of an unusual window Ceramic wings (see next pic). Indoor son et lumière?by the cathedralFront of pub
If you walk through that archway now, you’ll find the intersection where the Ashton Canal meets the Rochdale Canal, a spot that was once one of the busiest “parking lots” for barges in the world. (SD personally believes it’s ancient Roman)
Tapas @ EvunaTapas were surprisingly good. Nice size Albariño with them. Closer. The level of drinking is amazing, almost nonstop bars in the northern District all full 
We start with a few days in Manchester, followed by a hiking trip in the areas pictured, London for a while, the Queen Mary 2 to NYC and onto RI.
Hotel locations marked
Easy flight.
I rarely watch movies but I wanted to see Marty. Why? I played table tennis against him in NYC. Lost, not close, but a good lesson. The movie: lost, not close.
Not the train we planned to go to Manchester on
Plan was as follows: taxi to Euston Station, travel on one of many trains to Manchester.
Euston station closed due to construction.
Eep.
Taxi from Euston to St. Pancras, train to Sheffield, then train to Manchester.
Took quite a few discussions to find a route with minimum changes.
Getting There: The Hope Valley Line is one of the most scenic train journeys in England, connecting Sheffield and Manchester. It makes the valley incredibly accessible for day-trippers.
While this was not our original plan, it was the only route we could take and we got lucky. The scenery was beautiful.
Train full with day hikers. Primarily school age as this is Easter school break.
At the Bay Horse Tavern
🏙️ via AI Manchester Manchester is a lively, modern city with deep industrial roots, known for its red-brick architecture, music history, and unmistakable energy. Once at the heart of the Industrial Revolution, it has reinvented itself as a cultural and creative hub, with galleries, restaurants, and a strong sense of local pride. Even in a short visit, you will feel the contrast with the quiet countryside — a bustling, urban landscape to start a journey among fells and stone walls.
Dakota Hotel is a nice place with good service. They sent us to the Bay Horse Tavern for dinner.
On the highlineArt: dumpster with LampArt with captions
We saw a rusted out gardening cart, but there was no signage so I don’t know whether it was art or an abandoned rusted out gardening cart
ClearlyThe original Hudson yardSJust a nice viewKB
Return visit to chelsea passage, this time to eat chow fun. However, they had only pulled noodles and Dan Dan noodles. Most dishes were marked spicy or very spicy. They must’ve been New York spicy.
And now the lighted version
Thursday
Breakfast with Sarah, walking, packing, final dinner out, and Don Giovanni
Salmagundi library
Not to do a decimal system. Look carefully and you can figure it out.
Staircase at the salmagundiThe only pieces I really likea keeper as an art shotFiorelloBest calamari we’ve had in a long timeFine salads
We are temporarily past noodles out
At the MetThe end of Don Giovanni
Terrible first act singers took a long time to warm up. Excellent Second act
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