After a minor pub crawl in Hebden Bridge, I continued on at a slow pace, despite knowing that I had 50 miles to cover over two days in order to reach the next hostel that I had booked.
Thursday 1st September 2016
A slow day over moorland and past reservoirs and main roads.
Slow due to the hangover. Usually during the walk I limited myself to a couple of pints – which gave me the extra calories I needed. Occasionally I’d stretch to three pints. My evening in Hebden Bridge was the only time on the entire walk when I drank more.
I didn’t write much about the day’s walking, but I remember a couple of things. Firstly, up the hill from Hebden Bridge there was a snack hut. The snack hut had ice creams, drinks, cakes with payment to be placed in an honesty box. Honesty boxes are fairly common along popular walking routes, but this is the only place I have encountered an entire hut of snacks offered on this basis!
I also remember chatting to a couple of farmers (father & son perhaps?) who were working on a wall. They congratulated me on my journey, and they were particularly pleased that I had chosen to walk in the UK rather than go off travelling around the world. The older farmer proudly stated that he had only been abroad once in his life! That approach may seem rather insular, but I tend to agree with it: when many young people have never even seen a cow, I think people should get to know their own country before going off around the world.
Veggie burger and chips in the evening at Marsden, then into the peak district. I found an ideal camping spot by river, with evidence of previous occupiers: a cheap 3 person tent, with beer cans strewn all around.
Distance: 18 miles [view on map]
Spending: £15
I shared the story of the abandoned tent with The Guardian when they were doing a series on wild camping – Leave no trace: a counterexample.
