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| Drystone walls are a feature of the Pennines, bringing order to nature by dividing up the land. A variety of lichen covered their surfaces, usually in dull colours, so I particularly liked the more exuberant, orange types that brought colour to overcast days. |
After leaving Hawes and its satellite suburbs of stone built houses it was steady climb up to higher ground, eventually rejoining the snow. From then on it was a brisk walk along good trails, an old pack horse route then a Roman Road. Puddles were frozen over and any mud was hardened by the cold so my boots stayed dry. The cold south-easterly wind froze any exposed skin, but with my gloves, buff, woolly hat and jacket hood, I made myself cosily comfortable. For a long stretch a "U" shaped glacial valley was visible to my right, then after crossing the highest point the distinctive mountain of Pen-y-ghent was visible, snow covering its rocky ridge.
Coming down into the Ribble valley, the multiple arches of the lengthy Ribblehead railway viaduct was visible, an elegant piece of engineering from an earlier age. Other sights included a pothole, where a stream disappears into a deep hole in the limestone. A caver was lowering helmeted youngsters and a few not-so-young down into the darkness. One of the men standing by in a blue hard hat offered me a harness to go down, however I excused myself as I had arranged to meet my sister and my brother-in-law.
The meeting was achieved a little later, they waved at me from the top of a hill on the trail. Soon we were descending in Horton-in-Ribblesdale. The village no longer has an open cafe it appears, at least not in February, so we drove out to the Ribblehead railway station for a coffee and cake at the Station Inn which had plenty of people in outdoor gear. Our evening meal was in the Golden Lion Pub, its walls lined with football regalia.
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