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Where do ( did ) you walk locally in 2024?

On Nidderdale way from Pateley Bridge to Lofthouse
Lovely grassy paths and pretty villages
At Wate village we visited the smallest Methodist church in England
We met the warden who told us the history of the church, an irregular pentagon built in 1859
The warden then was Joseph Kipling, grandfather of Rudyard Kipling
This stretch of the walk is also shared with the 6 Dales trail
The little Dales bus took us back to Pateley where afternoon tea was enjoyed
Note the table covering ..pattern of multiple shells …can’t get away from it!IMG_8677.jpegIMG_8686.jpegIMG_8682.jpegIMG_8687.jpegIMG_8689.jpegIMG_8692.jpegIMG_8694.jpegIMG_8697.jpegIMG_8699.jpeg
 
Private rooms, daily bag transfers, 24/7 support, & more. Save now during our sale!
On Nidderdale way from Pateley Bridge to Lofthouse
Lovely grassy paths and pretty villages
At Wate village we visited the smallest Methodist church in England
We met the warden who told us the history of the church, an irregular pentagon built in 1859
The warden then was Joseph Kipling, grandfather of Rudyard Kipling
This stretch of the walk is also shared with the 6 Dales trail
The little Dales bus took us back to Pateley where afternoon tea was enjoyed
Note the table covering ..pattern of multiple shells …can’t get away from it!View attachment 175054View attachment 175055View attachment 175056View attachment 175057View attachment 175058View attachment 175059View attachment 175060View attachment 175061View attachment 175062
Have you walked the Herriot Way, @Annette london? I walked it 3 years ago, and enjoyed it very much
 
...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
Sunday....
...in the fields on an overcast day - a dusty eight hours from meadow to village, through swamps and grain, then an hour or so at the end of the day along a roman road, passing through fields of waist high borage...

...to Wiggington, South Newington, Milcombe & Tadmarton then beyond. Oxfordshire in summer.

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Nice scenery, forests, ferns and rocks on this section of the Nidderdale way
Just off the path is Brinham rocks, hundreds of thousands in the making
The ice age and before that shaped the rocks, then more erosion with wind rain and frost
The shapes are amazing and the children and not so young children were enjoying the climbing there
I won’t be bringing my 4 grandsons however as I might just have a heart attack.

Then we got lost in the ferns which were higher than myself
Yes there was a path through them, just not the right path
It was a long walk! IMG_8738.jpegIMG_8751.jpegIMG_8756.jpegIMG_8759.jpegIMG_8761.jpegIMG_8767.jpegIMG_8769.jpegIMG_8775.jpegIMG_8778.jpegIMG_8782.png
 
23 July 2024. Penrhys Pilgrimage Path. Day 1

My wife decided at very short notice that she would like to walk the pilgrim route from Llandaff cathedral to Penrhys. By "short notice" I mean I was still in bed when she asked me to be on a bus to Swansea within the hour! :cool: So we made our way to Llandaff by bus and train and set off about 1pm for a short day. Ended at Groes-faen - a village north of Cardiff. A surprisingly green and rural walk considering the starting point. Preparations along the way to mark the upcoming National Eisteddfod. Back into Cardiff for the night - passing Nye Bevan on the way to the hotel. A warm bright day.

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The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
24 July 2024. Penrhys Pilgrimage Path. Day 2.

Bus this morning back to Groes-faen. A cooler and occasionally damp day. Mix of farmland , moorland and some quite sizeable hills. Passed through Llantrisant and saw the statue of Dr William Price. An extraordinary eccentric - look him up! Otherwise an pleasant but unremarkable small town sometimes uncharitably known as "the hole with the Mint". Past daffodil-coloured wind turbines and up into the Rhondda hills. A brief encounter with some Welsh bonsai ponies before a last climb to Penrhys with the final approach slightly surreally through a golf course. Penrhys itself looks an unlikely spot for a pilgrimage destination these days: one of the most deprived communities in an area with more than its share of problems. But it has a long interesting history. Like many Marian pilgrimage sites there is a spring once believed to have healing properties. A bit of a challenge to find even though I've been there before! :-)

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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
A lovely fresh morning heading south east on Dublin Bay. Long years ago, this area, in the video, saw multitudes of working class Scots have their seaside holidays in Boarding Houses. Long before airbnb. The lady of the house might cook, or the visitors might have brought the food from across the sea! They were simpler times.
The flowers were placed on a bench, which I imagine, was a favourite spot of the person whose memory is remembered on the inscription of the bench.
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A lovely fresh morning heading south east on Dublin Bay. Long years ago, this area, in the video, saw multitudes of working class Scots have their seaside holidays in Boarding Houses. Long before airbnb. The lady of the house might cook, or the visitors might have brought the food from across the sea! They were simpler times.
The flowers were placed on a bench, which I imagine, was a favourite spot of the person whose memory is remembered on the inscription of the bench.
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Memorial flowers on a seaside bench is something I saw along the english coast also -from Ramsgate to Eastbourne. There was even one with a yellow on blue camino symbol attached. I've forgotten where, though...
 
Long years ago, this area, in the video, saw multitudes of working class Scots have their seaside holidays in Boarding Houses. Long before airbnb.

Nice morning for a whirlwind tour!
Was it the chicken or the egg that came first though, I wonder? In any case, it's apt then, that the stretch in your video from the East Pier across to the Forty Foot is called Scotsman's Bay. 'Bug Rock' was what us kids called it, I have no idea why, I must look into it.

The flowers.. there have been innumerable tragedies along there through the ages, they could equally be to mark a recent as a long remembered event. Doesn't every bit of coastline have its ghosts and memories?
 
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
Keep the Camino momentum going once you return home with After the Camino
This weekend I visited my brother who lives in Manhattan and went jogging with him him in Central Park. (I only intended to walk, as I never run, but he pushed me and I did it). I had an underlying motive of course -- getting him to commit to doing a Camino with me, which I'm still working on.

I mention this because my brother suffered a series of bilateral strokes a few years ago and as a result has paralysis of various degrees on both sides of his body (and is non-verbal), but twice a week he runs with a group called Achilles International, which matches volunteer guides with disabled walkers and runners for organized walks/runs, usually weekly (although in NY, they have walks/runs twice a week). There are chapters all over the US and countries around the world. So consider this a pitch, if you would enjoy walking a local route more regularly and with a purpose, look into becoming a volunteer for the organization. https://www.achillesinternational.org/find-a-chapter

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Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
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I can only see a still. I know your habit of posting little videos with the sound of the wind...I will imagine! Thank you!
 
...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
I can only see a still. I know your habit of posting little videos with the sound of the wind...I will imagine! Thank you!
I can see a moving tractor. I don't know anything about phone videos or computer glitches. Have you been able to see other videos which I jave posted here?
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
Border hopping between Belgium and the Netherlands with Albert Canal in between.
An old abandoned border marker.
Bunker from WWII. The region was badly hit during those years.
Now there is a museum.
Walk of fourteen kilometers.




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We finally have had a walk up the hill near us. Wet winter weather and ongoing either damp or heat has kept us on other walks. However we took the path uphill yesterday and along the top road to the path downhill. From the road at the top the photo looks back down to the town. It gives some idea of how steep the hill is and the distant hills are Dartmoor.

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Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
Yesterday. And a link.

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Today. A foggy start, including foghorn blasts down at the port.
Sun soon shone through.
The fourth photo shows a new pedestrian/cycle path in the making. As in, maybe four years in the making! 🤣
I chanced my arm and found a spot to exit without having to retrace my steps...although it took a bit of acrobatic manoeuvres...
Who responded to a wave of recognition? The few lorry drivers. The car drivers were maybe too anxious about departure time!

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Help keep the Camino clean. Join us in 2025 for the Camino Cleanup Program & Retreat
A walk from Lofthouse by the river Nidd which was completely dry even after a lot of rain
Public paths went through a few farms and onto the ridge to Scar house dam completed in 1936
Then on the highest part of the Nidderdale way to Middlesmoor, one of Yorkshires highest settlements
In 1843, 128 people lived here and everything apart from the pub was now long gone
Too early for coffee so it was onto How Stean Gorge through the fields to their cafe
We passed on the Via Ferrata IMG_8616.jpegIMG_8620.jpegIMG_8624.jpegIMG_8626.jpegIMG_8630.jpegIMG_8640.jpegIMG_8644.jpegIMG_8651.jpegIMG_8653.jpegIMG_8654.jpeg
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Hi Kirkie
Yes that’s the name alright.
The gorge is deep and we were more than happy just to look down on it
No high jinks for us, we value our old bones too much!
 
A quick walk before work this morning, down by the harbour for a dip. I'd almost forgtten about these tiles, they've been laying around the shed for ages. As the Bray Coastal Route, one of our recently established 'Celtic Caminos' passes right by Coliemore Harbour, I thought: sure, where else would I put them? Less than an hour later, with the grinder and bolster chisel, I set them right into the wall so they won't be going anywhere. These will mark roughly 10km from Bray, 20km from St James's Church, a third of the way. Look out for them if you happen to be passing!

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When I picked these up some years ago, I thought they might look nice in the garden or somewhere. I'm pleased they've ended up with a real purpose, on an official camino and point in the right direction, the shell especially, as they seem to do consistently, only in Asturias..
 
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...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
Hi Lovingkindness,
Your post from Banbury Cross reminded me of the nursery rhyme we used to sing to the children
“Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross
To meet a fine lady upon a white horse
With rings on her fingers
And bells on her toes
She would have music wherever she goes”

The horse being a pretend hobby horseIMG_8851.png
 
Hi Lovingkindness,
Your post from Banbury Cross reminded me of the nursery rhyme we used to sing to the children
“Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross
To meet a fine lady upon a white horse
With rings on her fingers
And bells on her toes
She would have music wherever she goes”

The horse being a pretend hobby horseView attachment 176121
Hello @Annette london

I love the pictures in old childrens books. Thanks for posting your's.

Here's a photo of the info board beside the bronze horse at Banbury Cross.

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3rd Edition. More content, training & pack guides avoid common mistakes, bed bugs etc
Sunday 18th I am walking the Downslink from home to Guildford, mostly an old railway route, now for cyclists and loony day walkers like me. Mid 30's miles and coming back the same way Monday

Photos to follow
Does the link coincide with the St Swithun's way from Winchester cathedral to Guildford ? - a nice walk. I set of in snow one winter. The North Downs were magnificent in the cold.
 
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Does the link coincide with the St Swithun's way from Whinchester cathedral to Guildford ? - a nice walk. I set of in snow one winter. The North Downs were magnificent in the cold.
not sure will investigate. From me it would be the South Downs Way to Winchester and the Downs link does cross the South Downs way nearer my end. Yes both Downs look wonderful in the frost


St Swithuns way goes from Winchester to Farnham. Might have to look into that 1 more as it's not too far for me
 
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3rd Edition. More content, training & pack guides avoid common mistakes, bed bugs etc
not sure will investigate. From me it would be the South Downs Way to Winchester and the Downs link does cross the South Downs way nearer my end. Yes both Downs look wonderful in the frost


St Swithuns way goes from Winchester to Farnham. Might have to look into that 1 more as it's not too far for me
The trail passes by a house where Jane Austen lived for a while. It is now a museum... i think there is a memorial to her as well, in Winchester Cathedral.
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
There are many good walking tracks around Wellington, and I've been spending quite a bit of time on the Southern Walkway as I see about getting into Camino trim. (I'll move on to some of the others if/when I get bored and/or fitter.) This is how some of it looked a few days ago.

A glimpse of the harbour, not far from the northern end of the track. Bit breezy down there on the water today:
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Nice dappled light as we go up:
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Boring paved bit as we get close to crossing a road. I prefer dirt!
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Over the road and into the trees again, getting up tothe summit of Mount Victoria. Gnarly narrow bit here - walking poles are good to help with stability:
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Danger - here be hobbits!
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I didn't go down to the actual location this time, but as many of you will remember from the films it looks like this:
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Nearly to the end of today's walk we get a look at Cook Strait in the distance, over the Hataitai Velodrome:
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Tibetan bridge from Sellano to Montesanto, then hiking the San Giuseppe Trail to Cascade della Rota, and tail from Montesanto to Lake Vigi and back up to Sellano. Near where I live in Umbria, Italy.
 

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The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
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Whichford, Oxfordshire.

an eight hour amble from Aston Magna -just over the border in Gloucestershire, through cropping fields and pastural scenes, via Todenham, the Wolfords and Long Compton....
.....making a beeline for pudding and coffee at the Whichford pub... then another hour or so over Iron Age tracks to paradise.

Roaming Sundays
 
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Downslink trip was hard going, flat miles but with little in my pack and ok weather. 35 to and 40 back

Old Railway path linking the South downs and and North Downs ( Pilgrim Way also) follows the route from Shoreham By Sea West Sussex (home) and Guildford in Surrey

West Grinstead station is currently fenced off as unstable so have attached older photo

Map of Pilgrims way which you cross nearer the end, IIRC goes from Winchester to Canterbury
 

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A 15 minute ride on the bus and into the wildlife sanctuary
Walked mostly through meadows and river Roding and lake
Picked blackberries and came across the cricket club house where we had a coffee and chatted with some interesting locals
I’ll never understand the game of Cricket!
Part of the walk is on the London LoopIMG_8884.jpegIMG_8879.jpegIMG_8881.jpegIMG_8877.jpegIMG_8873.jpegIMG_8868.jpegIMG_8869.jpegIMG_8889.pngIMG_8871.jpeg
 
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
Making the most of the last days before school starts again
Bus to the local park to feed the ducks and squirrels
Through the walled garden and onto the “Magic carpet” and some moves on the roads
Nothing wrong with their knees

Back to high street for lunch and a 10 minute ride to the forest for blackberry picking
A long walk through the forest and more rope high jinks hidden amongst the trees
Then onto the visitors centre for some painting and the animal farm, then home to make the pie (of sorts)
Surprised at walking 15,000 steps, and that was just the adultsIMG_8818.jpegIMG_8821.jpegIMG_8831.jpegIMG_8833.jpegIMG_8843.pngIMG_8902.jpegIMG_8912.jpegIMG_8914.jpegIMG_8924.jpegIMG_8927.jpeg
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Making the most of the last days before school starts again
Bus to the local park to feed the ducks and squirrels
Through the walled garden and onto the “Magic carpet” and some moves on the roads
Nothing wrong with their knees

Back to high street for lunch and a 10 minute ride to the forest for blackberry picking.... View attachment 176821.....

"Snap"

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Crumble pudding. Yes!
Hi there @Annette london
 
After nine years we are back in the Peak District in Derbyshire, one of the Uk national parks
Yesterday, it was Thorpe cloud fell ridge and today along the beautiful Dovedale via the famous Stepping stones.
Looking at the information on the yellow arrow, it seems this way could be a pilgrim path

Some wonderful rock formations above us and then a steep climb up some steps through the woods
All was well until t wasn’t and the path came to an end…..apparently the signs had disappeared
A family with 3 children were in the same boat but they were quite IMG_8959.pngIMG_8963.jpegIMG_8966.jpegIMG_8968.jpegIMG_8974.jpegIMG_8982.jpegIMG_8984.jpegIMG_8985.jpegIMG_8991.jpegIMG_8994.pngskilled at jumping over gates with us lagging behind
We’re not sure where they went
Eventually we got down to Ilam and back home
22 km and seven hours but we’re ready for tomorrow
 
...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
10 km loop. Organised walk with a stop in a shed , courtesy to a friendly farmer who opened it.
Longest walk was 45 km🙈. Shortest loop of 5 is always accessible for wheelchairs.

A roadside chapel from end 18th century.
Modder translates into mud. A project to prevent flooding.
Last of the pearharvest.

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€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
A misty morning as we set off from Hartington and along Beresford Dale in the upper part of the Dove river
Still on the pilgrim path

Over a narrow bridge and a steep climb up to Alstonfield where Franks cafe made a strong coffee for us
Then down to the bridge again and back to Hartington via narrow Biggin Dale with steep sides, almost like a gorge
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Wonderful scenic walk through Lathkill Dale, Bradford Dale and Cales Dale
There seems to be more Dales in this neck of the woods than the Yorkshire dales
The first Dale saw a rockfall at some stage and the path was slow going over wet rocks from the rain last night

Then the river suddenly appeared and was wide and fast flowing in the Bradford Dale
Coffee at Hendon
Little waterfalls and weirs along the way
Going down and then up Cales Dale was hard enough

Then it was back by the well marked Limestone way where we passed an ice cream parlour like we’ve never seen before in the farmers yard
There was a fair amount of money in the “honesty tray”

Today, we walked part of 3 “Ways”

The Hope pilgrim way from Ilam to Edale


The Peak Wesley way, a 6 day organised walk where pilgrims live as a community and stay each night in churches from Matlock to Edale

The Limestone Way running for 46 miles through the heart of the white Peak and very well marked

There are 17 “Ways and trails” running through the southern area of the White Peak,
Including the E2 European Long Distance path


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€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
Wonderful scenic walk through Lathkill Dale, Bradford Dale and Cales Dale
There seems to be more Dales in this neck of the woods than the Yorkshire dales
The first Dale saw a rockfall at some stage and the path was slow going over wet rocks from the rain last night

Then the river suddenly appeared and was wide and fast flowing in the Bradford Dale
Coffee at Hendon
Little waterfalls and weirs along the way
Going down and then up Cales Dale was hard enough

Then it was back by the well marked Limestone way where we passed an ice cream parlour like we’ve never seen before in the farmers yard
There was a fair amount of money in the “honesty tray”

Today, we walked part of 3 “Ways”

The Hope pilgrim way from Ilam to Edale


The Peak Wesley way, a 6 day organised walk where pilgrims live as a community and stay each night in churches from Matlock to Edale...
Hi there @Annette london
Re the Peak Wesley way....

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In April this year I stumbled upon the tree where John Wesley preached his last outdoor sermon on 7 Oct, 1790. It was outside the St Thomas church in Winchelsea (on the 1066 Country Walk1066 Country Walk from Eastbourne to Rye).
 
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Change of plans, not via the Mosel and Luxembourg to Spain. We will now stay 8 days at the Mosel, then one week at home and then a few more days to Bruges and surroundings. This is because I ended up in the hospital again last Saturday where after all kinds of tests a slight inflammation was found in my body again. That is why we did not think it was responsible to drive so far. I feel fine by the way.
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In Bernkastel-Kues
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Brauhaus Kloster Machern
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Hochmoselbrücke
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
As I may have mentioned before, since walking the Camino I’ve taken to participating in half-marathons (the ones that allow walkers) as the distance is roughly the same as a Camino stage, but without the rest breaks.

Yesterday, I walked in the Bird-In-Hand half-marathon. Bird-in-Hand is in Amish* country, with beautiful rolling hills and farmland as far as the eye can see. The half-marathon is considered one of the best in the country because of the scenery and the incredible participation of the community in the event - from a firepit s’mores party the evening before, to manning the water stations during the race, to a barbecue lunch after. And the finisher’s medals are made from horseshoes from the farms.

*For those from around the globe who may not be familiar with the Amish, they are a religious group, Germanic in origin, that eschews modernity, including electricity, telephones and cars, and generally believes in living separate from the "outside," or English, world. They wear plain, dark clothing and are well known as farmers, woodworkers, and quilters and often set up farmers' markets to sell their produce and goods.

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Help keep the Camino clean. Join us in 2025 for the Camino Cleanup Program & Retreat
What do you call the bun? Parkin? Eccles cake?
Well... normally on a long day's ramble, if there is a pub anywhere between the start and 8 hours ahead, I will indulge in a Sticky Toffee Pudding with lashings of thick cream and hot custard. Some days that is all I can think of for the first two to five hours crosscountry -a sugary zing in my veins. Walking through the British countryside without a pudding, or at least the hope of one, is depressing.

Yesterday I had to improvise:

The cafe had a selection of healthy cakes such as Lime & Courgette loaf drizzled with icing dusted in zest, Cherry Cake with two chewy bits per slice, boring Brownies and a nut laden flapjacky thing. Next to all those sat a tray of Chocolate Chip Cookies -thick cut, very round. So... as the grand S. t. P. was not on offer, I asked for two cookies to be zapped in the microwave and a scoop of banofee icecream added.

The gooey mess you see on my plate is that.

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Today's after-walk (not-8 hrs) fortification was chrunchy 100% peanut butter (too much oil) with thick swipes of salted butter on slices of hot organic toast drowned in runny honey, washed down with strong black plunger coffee.

Here's the empty cup + somebody elses 'family bible':

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Cheers!
 
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The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Guten Tag Pilger!!! How different the Mosel River looks at the end of summer. So very green.

Did you go anywhere near Schweich? This is what it looked like in January 2011. Dim, dark and grey.
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I followed the Mosel one winter in search of bird boxes painted with a yellow camino arrow. A Pilgerman named Carl had quaintly strung little refugios from tree to tree there, near Engelport Kloster -a guide for those on wing and foot.

Carl turned up one day at the Casa Paroquia in Fuenterobble de Salvaterre where I was hospitalera (2010). He came laden with bird boxes for Padre Blas. The albergues de pájaros are probably still out there somewhere...

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In the garden at Engelport Kloster
 
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I followed the Mosel one winter in search of bird boxes painted with a yellow camino arrow. A Pilgerman named Carl whose quaint idea it was, had strung little refugios there from tree to tree near Engelport Kloster -a guide for those on wing and foot.
Last year I reported here on a walk with miniature birdhouses marking trails.
 
As I may have mentioned before, since walking the Camino I’ve taken to participating in half-marathons (the ones that allow walkers) as the distance is roughly the same as a Camino stage, but without the rest breaks.

Yesterday, I walked in the Bird-In-Hand half-marathon. Bird-in-Hand is in Amish country, with beautiful rolling hills and farmland as far as the eye can see. The half-marathon is considered one of the best in the country because of the scenery and the incredible participation of the community in the event - from a firepit s’mores party the evening before, to manning the water stations during the race, to a barbecue lunch after. And the finisher’s medals are made from horseshoes from the farms.

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Hello @ShoshTrvls
... do you know of the Ptaškowa swajźba? Every year the ancient Sorbs of East Germany and Lower Poland have a 'Birds Wedding' festival. Having walked amongst the Bird-in-Hand folk how about a wedding!

There is a pilgrim trail which passes for a few days through Sorben towns and villages. here's a link- The Ecumenical Pilgrim Trail.

Cheers!
 
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3rd Edition. More content, training & pack guides avoid common mistakes, bed bugs etc
Hello @ShoshTrvls
... do you know of the Ptaškowa swajźba? Every year the ancient Sorbs of East Germany and Lower Poland have a 'Birds Wedding' festival. Having walked amongst the Bird-in-Hand folk how about a wedding!

There is a pilgrim trail which passes for a few days through Sorben towns and villages. here's a link- The Ecumenical Pilgrim Trail.

Cheers!
Never heard of it!

Bird-in-Hand gets its name from two surveyors who, in 1734, were surveying the route from Philadelphia to Lancaster. They were getting close to their destination but were tired, unsure whether to push on or not. They then came upon Inn, and decided to stay the night because, as the saying goes, "a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush." And hence the place where the Inn is became Bird-In-Hand.

A rather apt story for the Camino, in fact!
 
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Bird-in-Hand gets its name from two surveyors who, in 1734, were surveying the route from Philadelphia to Lancaster. They were getting close to their destination but were tired, unsure whether to push on or not. They then came upon Inn, and decided to stay the night because, as the saying goes, "a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush." And hence the place where the Inn is became Bird-In-Hand.

A rather apt story for the Camino, in fact!
In my childhood the saying "a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" always seemed to be spoken when an engagement was in 'the air' ie marry the one available, stop pining for the unatainable....

In a quirky way, some might say it's a little like that on the camino, too - I have met a number of pilgrims who seized 'the bird at hand' on the Camino. They left behind their pre Camino lives and other 'birds' in their aquaintance, setting up house almost immediately with a newfound Camino friend...carpe diem?
 
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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Cave diving in the Peaks is a very popular pastime and there are hundreds, perhaps thousands of caves there
Every day we’d come across a cave
Years ago we’d wanted to visit Thors Cave but never did find it and this time it was by chance that we did
A drizzly day, we walked the Manifold way and had coffee at Wetton mill where we visited the cave behind the cafe
We did go in but not too far!


Then someone mentioned Thors Cave a mile away so that sorted it
Seen from the road, it looked huge and after a long climb up the path
We did not go in as the slabs were too slippery
The view from the top was amazing
Back over the fields with stiles that were no good for old knees and hips and some paths were extremely overgrown IMG_9229.pngIMG_9232.pngIMG_9231.pngIMG_9237.pngIMG_9230.pngIMG_9236.pngIMG_9233.pngIMG_9234.pngIMG_9235.png

It was in 2018 that the first 2 cavers to reach the trapped football team in Thailand were British..Rick Stanton and John Volanthen
The international team was then led by 4 British divers, 2 Australians and an Irishman, all working their genius to save the boys and get them out just in time

I like looking at caves but not to happy exploring further
 
...and ship it to Santiago for storage. You pick it up once in Santiago. Service offered by Casa Ivar (we use DHL for transportation).
Cave diving in the Peaks is a very popular pastime and there are hundreds, perhaps thousands of caves there
Every day we’d come across a cave
Years ago we’d wanted to visit Thors Cave but never did find it and this time it was by chance that we did
A drizzly day, we walked the Manifold way and had coffee at Wetton mill where we visited the cave behind the cafe
We did go in but not too far!


Then someone mentioned Thors Cave a mile away so that sorted it
Seen from the road, it looked huge and after a long climb up the path
We did not go in as the slabs were too slippery
The view from the top was amazing
Back over the fields with stiles that were no good for old knees and hips and some paths were extremely overgrown View attachment 177691View attachment 177692View attachment 177693View attachment 177694View attachment 177695View attachment 177696View attachment 177697View attachment 177698View attachment 177699

It was in 2018 that the first 2 cavers to reach the trapped football team in Thailand were British..Rick Stanton and John Volanthen
The international team was then led by 4 British divers, 2 Australians and an Irishman, all working their genius to save the boys and get them out just in time

I like looking at caves but not to happy exploring further
...shoulder high stinging nettles (photo 2) ahhh. I feel your #PAIN#...
 
Keep the Camino momentum going once you return home with After the Camino
The last photo reminds me why I swapped out geography for history. Don't confuse my brain with facts! But, if you went from left to right... eek!
If you’re referring to the elevation gain, not all of that was on foot, sorry if I confused anyone. 🙏
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Cool bright morning, birding and walking the paths and causeways of Iona. Along the way, a concert from a Song Sparrow, a House Finch feasting on Mountain Ash berries, an American Goldfinch and far out on the grasslands, a hunting coyote.

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The name of the locality: evoking the origins of the people who named it... surely! Or, correct me...
 
Walking to Niagara Falls. The Falls are so stunning and awesome, that the tacky tourist city doesn't matter.

At a conference reception, another forum member and I took a selfie at the end of a 700m repurposed power tunnel. We discussed our shoes the whole way!
 

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Perfect memento/gift in a presentation box. Engraving available, 25 character max.
Besides the Camino Aragónes/Francés earlier this year, we just returned from hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, USA. Stunning!

Elevation in meters 😱



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Hello @Juspassinthru
Have you walked The Penine Way in England? You might enjoy this one too. The scenery is superb.... The Penine Way is a grand walk up the backbone of England into the Scottish Borders (no rock climbing. High hills & moorland) The landscape in the background of your third photo reminded me of the middle section and High Nick Cup ...

 
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Hello @Juspassinthru
Have you walked The Penine Way in England? You might enjoy this one too. The scenery is superb.... The Penine Way is a grand walk up the backbone of England into the Scottish Borders (no rock climbing. High hills & moorland) The landscape in the background of your third photo reminded me of the middle section and High Nick Cup ...

Hello @lovingkindness, I’ve not done that walk, I appreciate the recommendation. I’m planning a trip to England and Scotland to visit like minded friends, they’re probably familiar with it. Maybe we can work it in to our plans. Thanks!
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
The name of the locality: evoking the origins of the people who named it... surely! Or, correct me...
Iona was an island and was originally named xʷəyeyət by the people of the Musqueam First Nation and it was one of many Indigenous villages along the coast that were here thousands of years before European settlers arrived. I don't know the pronunciation - I'll ask a Musqueam friend.

Your question sent me on a search! I haven't yet found the origin of or when it was named Iona but I'm learning so much more than I knew about the history of this area. So... Thank you! :)
 
Iona was an island and was originally named xʷəyeyət by the people of the Musqueam First Nation and it was one of many Indigenous villages along the coast that were here thousands of years before European settlers arrived. I don't know the pronunciation - I'll ask a Musqueam friend.
Mentioned in the title of this story:
 
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