Route
| Walk Leader | Michael |
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| Route | Greta Bridge – Crook’s House – Gillbeck Bridge – Scargill Castle – Brignall Banks – Greta Bridge |
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| Weather | Better than forecast, no gales, rain at times with occasional sunny periods. |
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| Walkers | Michelle, Michael, Ashley, Ron, and George B |
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| Excuses | Carol - still recovering from last month's walk Sandy - unwell Bernie - school work Evelyn - playing in a concert
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| Comments |
Everyone overestimated the journey time to the start so we started early. Posed for photos outside the Morritt Arms Hotel. Greta Bridge had an elegant stone balustrade. Met by a friendly Jack Russell puppy and its mum and two labradors. Riverside monument to Geoffrey Gilbertson (1918-1991). Monster pencils in farmyard. Water levels high, which meant that we were unable to cross Woodclose Gill at the confluence with Greta River as the stepping stones were submerged. Michelle spotted several canoeists. There was a scramble up a slippy muddy slope and some tricky navigation to rejoin the planned route at Gillbeck Bridge. Passed Scargill Castle. Late lunch spot in a hollow, followed by a signposted diversion to a sheer drop to nowhere. Retraced our steps to find an elusive bridge hidden in the trees. Pleasant self-catering cottages on the other bank. Followed the course of the river downstream along a wet, slippy path, which occasionally threatened to drop into the swollen river. Passed a cave in the river bank, but found no bears living there. Spotted a perfectly sized tree across the river waiting for unwary canoeists. Wrong tree for the surroundings – there was some speculation as to how it got there. Took a short break at St Mary’s Church at Brignall – probably not used since the mid-nineteenth century. Met a friendly collie. Saw the remains of a Roman camp at Greta Bridge. Unusual stile at the end of walk – several steps up to the bridge wall with a very short drop down to the pavement on the other side. Met by two Airedales on our return. Took afternoon refreshments at the Morritt Arms sitting next to a stuffed bear and surrounded by painted murals of nineteenth century rural life by J. Gilroy, the creator of the Johnnie Walker logo and the wartime “careless talk costs lives” poster. Very slow latte. Wildlife / Flora / Animals: Birds : Pheasants, pheasants, pheasants, blue pheasant, blue tits, long-tailed tits, wrens, wagtails, two flocks of fieldfares. Mammals: 2 grey squirrels, rabbits, calves, various dogs. |
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| Meal | ||||
Ravensworth Arms. To the accompaniment of an indifferent pianist – best avoided until he finds work elsewhere.
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| Photo Gallery |
Walking Group
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Ashley and George |
A Fun Guy |
Sleep Walking
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What stepping stones?
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The Elusive Bridge
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Little did we know... |
Then we knew...
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River Greta |
Canary |
Cave
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Convenient
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