Day 15: Glaisdale to Robin Hood's Bay

6 sets of tired feet set out from the bottom of Glaisdale to complete the final stage of the Coast to Coast to Robin Hood's Bay.

The overnight rain had not quite passed as we set off in full waterproof gear, past the famous 'Beggar's Bridge' but by the time we were passing through the beautiful village of Egton Bridge, it had dried up and the sun was cheering our spirits.

Stepping stones at Egton Bridge

Passing between Egton Bridge and Grosmont, we could hear the nostalgic sound of a steam train hooting. Having read about the use of the local steam locomotive for a famous film (probably more than one, actually), and knowing we had to pass by the railway station, we speeded up in an attempt to see it, only to discover we'd missed it by 10 minutes.  Alas, what we could hear was it disappearing into the distance!

Then we discovered the timetable. Who doesn't love an old steam train anyway? We paused (far to early during the walk, and for far too long) in Grosmont to see the Hogwarts Express engine couple to the carriages and then depart for Platform 9 3/4 (or for you sticklers for facts, the North York Moors Railway's steam train depart for Pickering).

Here's where Wainwright's 'updated' version of the walk began to let us down.  For 170 miles or so, John had followed AW's maps and written descriptions of the walk, word for word with the occasional confirmation from the Coast to Coast Path by Henry Stedman.

On leaving Grosmont, AW's instructions were vague at best.  John does have a rather stubborn fondness for AW despite the fact that his original words were written over 40 years ago, and his updater appears to have not actually updated very much.  For that reason we did not follow Stedman's words, and got slightly off track. It was quickly noticed and put right.  Phew.

Once we found our way, a 1:3 climb up Sleights Moor brought views of the sea - hooray!

'Yes, yes, there it is, between the land and the sky'. 

Day 15 was very undulating, passing across moors and through woods.

Falling Foss

We passed a 20 foot waterfall called Falling Foss (and quickly passed Falling Foss Tea Garden - no time to stop, we have to get to Robin Hood's Bay before nightfall!)  - it was beautiful. I particularly enjoyed Little Beck Wood, which reminded me of some of the glens in the Isle of Man.

Lone tree - our last real clue from Wainwright that we were on the right path

It went a bit pear-shaped once we were heading into the last stretch: Graystone Hills are not really hills, they are moors with indistinct paths across.  Wainwrights instructions were vague, Stedmans' also 'keep Northeast then North'  - how long Northeast, and then how long north?' We looked for waymarkers and couldn't find any, the signposts and gates did not appear. We found our way (trespassed, I suspect) out through a farmer's gate, managed to find ourselves on the A171 (not fun) and followed it in Northeast until we found a B road.

Hallelujah

Here we abandoned all of the options in the book, followed my GPS on my phone on roads all the way into Robin Hood's Bay.  Forgoing the 'clifftop' entry we expected, and having missed the chance to cut 5 miles from the final day, we limped in having completed 19.5 miles.

Leeside B&B is on the top road. Obviously the official finish is down at the sea.  On the way down into Robin Hood's Bay we were all in agreement; we'll save the final 'foot in the sea' moment for Saturday morning.  It won't matter, it's quite late now and dinner is at 8:00 at the Wayfarer's Bistro up this hill, near the B&B.

Our final descent!

Once we arrived, Doobs looked a bit forlorn at the thought of not getting closure on the same day. He's a poetic sort, and was going to go on his own. I agreed with him, so we dumped rucksacks, changed shoes and hobbled down to the sea - only to find the tide was in, and the slipway was dangerous.  Couldn't even get close enough to touch it.

Extreme danger...

Ah well, there's a sign we can sit in front of to get our photo taken - covered in scaffolding and wretched people sitting in front of it.

without scaffolding...

...and with!

OK then, you're meant to get a pint of Wainwright's beer in Wainwright's Bar at The Bay pub. 'Changing the barrel. Sorry, mate - Wainwright's off.'  (Yes, he often is, but you didn't mean that did you?)

more scaffolding - it ruins pictures! 

We did that.

For Stacey

Bugger.

Still, we did it.

In 15 days of walking, here's what we did:

Not bad, eh?

Wayfarer's Bistro served us the most magnificent meal - we had monkfish medallions and king prawns in chilli, lime and coconut,  Sea Trout with parma ham wrapped asparagus, there was a perfectly cooked steak and a cod steak with chorizo. Highly recommended.

Leeside B& B is a delightful place to finish: comfortable with spacious rooms, Clare could not be a more helpful host and we are looking forward to spending the day in Robin Hood's Bay before our lift back to our car.