Haweswater Hike
Today was the kind of day that I really hoped to be enjoying during retirement, one of those rare days when my body is working, the weather is fine and I have the time to hike, retirement makes two of these variables more likely and it’s working out that way. This hike is one of my all time favourites, the scenery of breath-taking, the paths easy to follow, the parking’s free and plentiful and it has the perfect mix of ease and challenge.
I woke weary again after a supposedly good nights sleep. I’m still somewhat mystified by being tired when I wake up even though I have had 7+ hours of uninterrupted sleep and a nap the previous day, some experimentation with sleeping longer is probably required in the future, but that would mean changing my precious Caffe Nero routine. I did go to Caffe Nero this morning, but only for 30 minutes, just long enough for the Red Bull to wake me up a bit and then I had a smooth 90 minute run up to Haweswater. It was sunny when I arrived and I was smiling from ear to ear as the sun peaked over the eastern valley side to illuminate the west, providing me with the most glorious view. I walked along the road, which is completely free of traffic, which makes for a very easy start to the walk and then back along the much hillier, challenging and wet underfoot, western shore path. I was chasing a group of well equipped walkers who started 30 minutes before me and I think I finished the walk about an hour ahead of them, I like a quick pace when I’m on my own. The path was pretty wet and I had a few streams to walk through, but my waterproof socks worked perfectly and I was comfortable and warm the whole way.
Anna rang me up as I was walking through the red squirrel woods and as I stopped to talk to her I was watching a couple playing in the tree in front of me, quite a treat. Anna rang, brimming with excitement, because she’d been given guest tickets to a show in Manchester by the performer who she contacted via Facebook, it just goes to show that being ‘cheeky’ sometimes pays off!
I finished the walk in about three hours and was feeling strong all the way, I had taken a good stack of food and drink with me, which helped. I got changed at the car into dry gear, expecting to eat lunch at the hotel, but unfortunately it was closed today, which was a shame. In the end though I was pleased to be heading straight home as I still had plenty to do. I had another very smooth run and arrived and unpacked just after four.
As I drove home though I could feel the weariness setting in and my throat started to hurt again, it’s been playing up for a few days now and I’m not sure what’s wrong with it, I can see some small spots that hurt a little, but not too much. By the time I arrived home I was really feeling tired, so I wasn’t too keen to confront the fact that I had a car full of wet gear to unpack and wash, another load of clothes washing to clean, dry and put away, notes and photo’s to get ready for my appointment with the dermatologist first thing tomorrow, the bins to put out, the washing up to do, pack ups to make and dinner for Tess, Anna, Jennie and Deb to prepare, the litter tray to empty (twice), the bedrooms to air, the floor to sweep, the washing up to do again and fruit salads to make for supper – phew! Next time I go out hiking for the day I need to be better prepared, it makes me appreciate better how hard it must have been for Debbie to take responsibility for the meals and hold down a full time job!
All’s good now though, everything is sorted and I’m relaxing nicely and ready for some TV time, I’m especially happy because Jennie popped in tonight on her way to Jon’s to tell us that she’d felt her baby move for the first time! I spent quite a bit of today’s walk day dreaming about looking after little kids again, quite exciting, I will need a few more hard walks like today to build up my stamina!
