Saturday 4 May 2019
Portgate to Heddon-on-the-Wall: "Freeze/Thaw Cycles"
Distance: 10 miles
Start: 10:00am
Finish: 3:30pm
Weather: Partly cloudy, windy, and cold
If I ever do Hadrian's Wall again, I will NOT be staying in Corbridge. The OS map in the Cicerone guidebook makes it look quite close to Portgate, but it is in fact a hair-raising two-and-a-half mile walk away along the A68. Never again. I sat at a picnic table at the Errington Arms cafe to gather my frayed nerves and give my left shoulder a brief respite, since it's begun to protest a bit, particularly when going uphill. Then I struck out eastward, just before 10am.
Much like yesterday, the trail ran parallel to the B6318 for most of the day. Unlike yesterday, the path was actually below road-level for long stretches. Cars were passing at my eye-level. I suspect the trail is actually in the Roman vallum for some stretches here. Blue sky was visible all day and the sun came out periodically, but a vicious northerly wind blew for most of the day and I was COLD. I took a leisurely 75-minute break at the Robin Hood Inn to eat lunch and warm up.
The wind continued to howl as I crossed Whittledene Reservoir and passed through Harlow Hill. Once in a while the wind would drop, the sun would come out, and it would actually get warm for a few minutes...but then the wind would inevitably whip up again. And so the freeze/thaw cycles continued all the way to Heddon-on-the-Wall.
I must be near Newcastle Airport, because I spent the afternoon watching airplanes on approach above me.
Song of the day: "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush
***
Sunday 5 May 2019
Heddon-on-the-Wall to Newcastle: "My kingdom for a boat!"
Distance: 10 miles
Start: 8:45am
Finish: 1:00pm
Weather: Overcast, but warmer than yesterday
It was downhill all the way to the Tyne valley floor first thing this morning. A very short stretch through the woods near a golf course marked the end of any soft conditions underfoot: it was pavement-pounding the rest of the way. I stopped briefly in Newburn to eat a muffin and admire the view of the River Tyne. Several people were out rowing. I thought how nice it would be to commandeer a boat and just let the current carry me the rest of the way Wallsend...I resumed walking, through Newcastle's western suburbs and to the quayside, where I called it a day.
I'm spending the next two nights at Albatross Hostel in Newcastle and I already hate it. I booked a room to myself, but there is a stag party down the hall who've been drinking, hooting, and hollering since lunchtime. But I was able to use the hostel's laundry facilities this afternoon, so at least I've got clean clothes now. Still, the first thing I'm going to do when I have a reliable internet connection again is cancel my hostel in Inverness and book something more highbrow. I am too old for this shit.
Just the last few miles to Wallsend tomorrow!
Song of the day: "One night as I lay on my bed" - English traditional
***
Monday 6 May 2019
Newcastle to Wallsend: "Coda"
Distance: 4 miles
Start: 6:15am
Finish: 8:00am
Weather: Drizzle turning to rain
The stag party got in at about 4:30 this morning. After about 45 minutes I gave up all hope of getting back to sleep and got up. After doing some internet work in the hostel's lounge, I headed for the quayside and was back where I left off yesterday by 6:15.
Newcastle Quayside at dawn on a bank holiday weekend is a grim place indeed. I understand the reasoning behind doing this walk westbound now. While there are a couple of attractive stretches running alongside the Tyne, these last few miles mostly go through unattractive industrial estates before finishing right behind the museum at Segedunum. It's honestly a bit of a letdown. Passing through the (in my opinion) much more attractive city of Carlisle before finishing in Bowness would make for a better ending. Furthermore, the museum at Segedunum wasn't even open yet when I got there, so my arrival at the finish was solitary and unheralded.
I took the metro back to Newcastle and made my way back to the hostel, stopping off at Starbucks and Yo! Sushi for some celebratory coffee and food. AND to warm up. I foolishly walked in my jeans this morning and they were soaked and cold. By the time I got back to the hostel the stag party was thankfully gone, and the only noise I had to contend with as I napped was the housekeeping staff yelling at each other in Somali.
After my nap, I took the metro back out to Wallsend, determined to have my "Woo!" moment with the museum staff. That accomplished, I had some Vietnamese food for dinner and am now back at the hostel, contemplating my belongings. Tomorrow it's on to Glasgow.
Hadrian's Wall is a lot of fun and I enjoyed it immensely, but if I ever do it again I will do it westbound and in fewer days - probably 7 rather than 9. It's also been an amazing demonstration of what my new body is capable of!
Song of the day: "Mercy Street" by Peter Gabriel
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