Adopt-a-path walks in North Durham

Readers with really good memories may remember that I’ve done this walk a couple of times before. In fact, it’s two walks – one five or so miles starting at Blanchland and one of about ten miles starting at Edmundbyers. I do this twice a year and the purpose is to provide Durham County Council with a report on the state of a number of public footpaths and bridleways. I do the reporting on-line.

I don’t take superdawg because there are supercows on part of one of the walks and they once mugged me to try to get at the dog. They can be a bit lively sometimes as they’re suckler cattle with young and a bull. I don’t mess with them any more….

But worra smashing day for doing this kind of thing. There were blue skies all day and the thermometer in the Knipemobile on the way up there was minus one. There were ice patches on the road and some of the ice didn’t melt all day. This, together with the wind blowing off the arctic ice pack from somewhere oop North, meant that I had my cosy stuff on today. It could be described as “refreshing”

Walk number one was along by the river and through some woods to the small township of Townfield and then back over the moors to Blanchland with a small diversion for an off-route path. Everywhere was pretty much unchanged from the last time I did this in May. I took a trowel to try to drain some of the boggy bits in the wood. This was particularly unsuccessful. I’d need a proper spade for this. This is beyond my willingness….

At one point, whilst plodding up the road wondering whether or not I had angina, I was passed by a walker going very fast. He kept picking stuff up and putting it in a plastic bag. he was picking litter, bless ‘im. He marched off towards Stanhope with a growing bag of chuckaways.

I also met four walkers, two of whom weren’t where they thought they were and were having a slight whinge about the map. I pointed them in the right direction and we had a good chat.

Not much to report, really.

Walk two was along the lead mine trail from Edmundbyers, past Pedam’s Oak, where they’d locked up the youngsters in a barn If I was them, I would fear for my life, I think. Their mum’s were in the next field having a moo.

I returned by a higher path and met another five walkers and three cyclists. this is remarkable. I never meet anybody up here.
On the way back, I started noticing sweety papers and isotonic drinks bottles. I picked up quite a bit of litter on the way back and deposited in somebody’s wheelie bin in Edmundbyers. I’ve not come across litter before. The evidence was that whoever was responsible , did it very recently. Amongst my finds were some tinfoil containing half a ham and pease pudding butty. This is a North-Eastern food habit. The bread was fairly fresh (possibly frozen overnight)

I might have a rant about this. You’re expecting a rant, aren’t you? Be honest.  You’re expecting me to say that whoever leaves their chocolate wrappers, empty plastic bottles, yoghurt tubs (yoghurt tubs?) and ham and pease pudding butties is a slob and a slut and dirty sleazebag. Aren’t you?
Well, I’m not. I left the food for the local vermin to scoff but removed the packaging. rats need love too, y’know. And the owls eat ‘em.
15 Miles and 1700 feet of up. For some reason, this walk is a mile longer done anti-clockwise…  ?