On Sunday, we walked from Ennerdale Bridge to Seatoller. This was expected to be one of our hardest days—and it lived up to expectations. But slow and steady is the way to go with lots of rest stops. And it was just amazingly beautiful.

Miles today: 14.16. Total miles completed: 30.14. Miles remaining: 159.86

We started off the morning walking along the beautiful Ennerdale Water. Here you can see the lake, trail, Janet, and the beautiful skies ahead as we head into the mountains, or fells, of the Lakes District. We are now officially in the Lakes District National Park. The trail was pretty rocky and slow going in places, and we took a couple rest stops just getting around the lake.

We have already seen many dry stone walls and will see innumerable more as we continue. They run up and down the hillsides and it is hard to imagine how anyone could have made them. Here is an example that starts by the lakeside and runs straight up the hill to almost the top.

While much of the trail is exposed, there are occasional shady spots with a few trees where we might enjoy a cool rest.

We finally made it around the lake and took a good rest in the meadow. Here is a great picture looking back at whence we have come. After a good rest, we start a long trek up the valley with stunning views.

We are now about 9 miles into our day and are approaching the famous (to Coast to Coast walkers) Black Sail Youth Hostel. It is one of the most remote hostels that exists and a welcome resting spot for all who walk this path. This first shot shows the valley end with the hostel nestled against the hillside. The second picture shows all the hikers enjoying a break (and a toilet).

We proceed a little ways on towards the end of the valley and then we turn left and go  straight up the side, along a creek called Loft Beck. Oh, it’s a climb. Many stops were required just to catch our breath and let our heart rate get back down to levels where we couldn’t hear it our ears. But we made it and the second picture shows us at the top looking back down. Whew!

Oh my gosh, the views from this mountain top are amazing. This picture shows Ennerdale Water on the left. That’s where we started the morning. It is hard to imagine we could possibly have walked that far. The lake on the right is called Buttermere. The second picture shows us celebrating our climb.

Here’s another view of Buttermere and another lake we don’t know the name of.

And finally, after a long, hard day of hiking, we arrive at our wonderful accommodations for the evening at the Glaramara  Center in Seatoller. The rooms were really nice. Large, spacious, really comfy beds, and the dinner was ohhhh, so good. Three of us had baked cod on a seafood, Parmesan risotto. Not a deep-fried thing in sight. Delicious and so well enjoyed after a long day on our feet.

We have been a little surprised by meeting the same people over and over on the trail. We thought they would all be going faster than us. But we start earlier than many and end up seeing them frequently. We made good friends with a couple from Toronto and walked with them a lot. There are four men between about 30 and 60 hiking together and we see them often. The older man has done this walk EIGHT times! We are always surprised that they aren’t way ahead of us. But they stop frequently and pull out their backpacking stove and make coffee and all have a cigarette or two and then starting hiking again. We have also chatted a number of times with Angie and Bob and their dog Cocoa from Northern Ireland. Their dog just loves the water and is wading into every stream we pass and they struggle to get the dog out and get back on the trail. They are so friendly. And yesterday we met a glamorous English couple who were just out for a long day hike. They live in the Lakes District and are in really good condition. I would say they were in their 60’s and must have been doing at least 10 miles if we understood their description. I mentioned glamorous. They had the best hiking clothing and the woman had her diamond earrings in and lipstick on and when we stopped and chatted with them a second time in a day, she pulled lipstick and a compact out of her backpack to reapply her makeup before heading off across the top of the mountains. We compared stories with them about hiking in Washington and the gentleman asked if there were lots of trees. We gushed about our beautiful forests and he replied, “Nope, wouldn’t like it. Too many trees.” We all laughed and understood that there are many different tastes in hiking. Suffice it to say that the people we are meeting are so fun and very interesting. And, we have discovered, it gives us an excuse to stop walking and talk for a little bit.

Wow, what an experience. I am ready for bed.

God bless,

Coe