Distance: 19.5 miles
Ascent: 362 metres
Duration: 6 hours 41 minutes
Until the sun sets
« Bowness on Solway | Workington »
For the first time, someone guessed right. "Are you walking round Britain or summat?" he asked.
That was just north of Silloth. The elderly man was a local, out for an afternoon stroll with a friend. He was keen to point out the sights: Criffel across the Solway Firth, and in the distance the flat-topped hill outside Lockerbie. ("You know Lockerbie, lad?")
Silloth itself is a lovely small town. Its perfect grid of wide cobbled streets grid are enchanting but somehow out of place. It's as if the present buildings are the heart of a once larger, bustling place. I can imagine film location scouts being thrilled on seeing this place.
I had planned to end my walk in Silloth but with the sun casting a golden colour on the sand dunes and an orange tint to the sky stopping wasn't an option. I walked until the sun touched the horizon.
By the time I caught the bus back to the car the sky was ablaze, burning away my memories of the morning's six mile squelch across Calvo Marsh.
All contents copyright © 1999-2013 Paul and Emma Bennett