Leaving Keld at the startWe spent New Year in Richmond again, so had some interesting options for what would be our last walk of 2008 on the penultimate day of the year. We mulled over this in the pub the night before, looking at the OS 1:25000 spread over the table (and trying to prevent it fulfilling the function of a giant beer-mat). I felt this near-primeval urge to visit the Tan Hill Inn, Britain's highest pub and less than 30 miles away. Nobody objected, so we were on. Keld looked close enough to our objective to be a useful start point, so the next morning we piled into the Yellow Peril and drove virtually the length of Swaledale (27 miles) to get there.
Jo, Ian & Danny on the bridge over the River SwaleKeld, whilst little more than a hamlet, is located at a pivotal point in the country's footpath structure. Not only is it fairly central on the 268-mile Pennine Way, Britain's first National Trail, but it is also the exact mid-point of Alfred Wainwright's 190-mile Coast To Coast Walk, which bisects the former here. Wainwright did not enjoy the Pennine Way, and devised his own route (with its varied landscape and many places of interest along the way) as a response to what he saw as the relentless, seemingly never-ending hard slog over high, bleak moorland.
Looking back at Keld Keld was a "Dry" village for more than 50 years. The only pub, the Cat Hole Inn, was bought and closed down by a Methodist preacher in 1954. In 2006 the Youth Hostel here closed, but fortunately the new owners turned it into a (very reasonably priced) hotel with a bar
- not only did Keld keep its overnight accomodation for trail walkers, but the long drought was finally over.
- not only did Keld keep its overnight accomodation for trail walkers, but the long drought was finally over.
A Swaledale - in Swaledale!Leaving Keld, the first bit of path encountered is the Pennine Way. For just 400 yards or so, crossing the River Swale, it shares a route with the Coast To Coast Walk before each path goes its own separate way. Our route would follow the Coast To Coast route to the west for a while, before taking an arc north in a 6-mile long crescent towards Tan Hill. Return would be a straight four-mile southbound yomp down the Pennine Way.
Image produced from the Ordnance Survey Get-a-map service. Image reproduced with kind permission of Ordnance Survey and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland.
The end of SwaledaleThe ground was frozen hard again, not surprising given the -6C temperature. Nobody was complaining though, as we just sailed on over the top of the mud rather than wading through it.
Fortunately the air was dry, so it didn't seem too cold...provided you kept moving.
Spooky-looking abandoned Land Rovers
Along this way last September came Julia Bradbury. Alas not today...Julia Bradbury was here filming the Coast To Coast Walk for the BBC last September, for a series to be shown this Spring on BBC4 (then subsequently on BBC2). This will please many businesses on the route as they can look forward to an enormous increase in trade as a result, particularly the hotels and B&Bs. It looks like the Keld Lodge may have opened at just the right time.
How Edge Scar
It's that-a-way...
Deadly ice-covered stile. Robert's Seat is in the backgroundVideo: Leaving Keld
Lone TV aerial on Robert's Seat
Frozen mossy bog - like walking on a trampoline!As we ascended it got noticeably colder (Shap, to the west and at a lower elevation recorded a daytime temperature of -10C that day). We were still enjoying the benefits though - a potentially very squelchy foot-wetting bog on Robert's Seat was frozen solid - well, not quite solid, it was springy, rather like walking across a trampoline. But still dry...
On Thomas Gill Hill
Stonesdale - The Pennine Way runs right to left two-thirds of the way up the hill on the other side of the valley. The Tan Hill Inn is on the horizon on the left-hand side of the picture.We were soon able to see all the way to Tan Hill. The Inn stood on the horizon, bathed in a pool of glorious sunshine, whilst all around was fairly grey. The bleakness of the landscape in this area is remarkable, with barely a dry stone wall or farm oubuilding in sight. A warm pub is doubly attractive to a weary walker in such an environment.
Image produced from the Ordnance Survey Get-a-map service. Image reproduced with kind permission of Ordnance Survey and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland.
Looking back into the murk from whence we came
Almost there...
The Tan Hill Inn - at 1,732 feet Britain's highest pub.In his Pennine Way Companion, written in 1969, Alfred Wainwright stated that "The glories of Tan Hill Inn belong to the past" and "Now the inn is quiet, left with its one remaining distinction as the highest in England". But what a distinction - and one which would eventually lead to its inclusion in a 1980 television advert for double glazing, and change the pub's fortunes dramatically...
Looking down the Keld road
Here ends the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and the county of North Yorkshire. Beyond is modern County Durham
A Hagglund BV206One of the most amazing sights as you reach the pub is the ex-Army Hagglund parked outside. A tracked vehicle for use in arctic conditions, the pub acquired it for £8,000 at a Government surplus sale. Now in the Tan Hill Inn's corporate livery, it must be very nice to know that it can be called upon, given the severity of the winters up here.
Video: Approaching The Tan Hill Inn
Let sleeping dogs lie...We really didn't have too long to spend at the pub as darkness would be falling from around 3.30pm (and it was already 2.30pm). Still, we decided to have a quick half. The resident dog was asleep by the fire, I took a photo and the noise of my zoom lens woke him up - after staring at me for a second he let fly barking!
Looking out of the pub through the famous Everest double-glazingThe Inn has a great character, with its old gramophones and other nick nacks plus the blues/jazz tracks playing in the background. Even mid-afternoon on a fairly nondescript day like this it was fairly busy.
Video: Inside The Tan Hill Inn
Preparing to set off, the Pennine Way snaking away into the distance.
On the Pennine WayAt 2.50pm, and with the sky already beginning to darken ominously, we set off down the Pennine Way back towards Keld. As the temperature dropped it began to get misty. A white frost covered the path and moorland vegetation.
Home in two hours
Into the mist...Video: Heading for home
Darkness closing in with still nearly an hour to goDescending a little all the frost disappeared, but with my knees still playing up from the Pateley Bridge trip it was impossible to go very fast and it was looking inevitable that we would arrive back at Keld in total darkness. And I hadn't brought my headtorch...
Nightfall over KeldFortunately in areas like this with no light pollution your eyes do adjust to the dark. It was a little difficult on occasion to see in which direction the path went after a gate or stile but we managed.
Final statistics.
Eventually we got back to the car at 5pm. 10.6 miles had taken us 5 hours, so not too bad. It's rather telling that we were only stopped for 31 minutes (it took two minutes to get a clear photo of the GPS) on the way - the cold began to bite if you weren't moving, so we kept going where possible. Job done!
Final statistics.Eventually we got back to the car at 5pm. 10.6 miles had taken us 5 hours, so not too bad. It's rather telling that we were only stopped for 31 minutes (it took two minutes to get a clear photo of the GPS) on the way - the cold began to bite if you weren't moving, so we kept going where possible. Job done!
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