Coast to Coast UK - Reeth to Richmond

June 03, 2024

There was a spring in our step as we left the pretty village of Reeth this morning – the sun was shining (again!) and our route for the day was a manageable 10.75 miles, or 17kms, expected to take approximately 5 hours.

The fields were again filled with cheery, yellow buttercups waving in the breeze, and on the other side of the path, the River Swale was happily burbling along. We soon crossed a pretty bridge over Arckle Beck and stayed on the footpath until reaching the road to Marrick Priory, an enticing castle-like tower that we could see from the village green in Reeth.

The Priory, originally a Benedictine nunnery established between 1140 and 1160, was disappointing; now an outdoor education and residential centre for young people, the approach to the property was a tip! There were piles of old tyres scattered around, disused farm equipment and rubbish everywhere. I didn’t even stop to take a photo of the tower; it was so uninviting.

We turned away from the Priory and up a steep wooded path of natural stone steps. Here we chatted briefly with two female walkers, who we would see on and off throughout the day. I searched in vain for red squirrels as we passed through the dense woods, but I am resigned to not seeing any of these elusive British natives, despite all the signs we have seen saying they are in the area, as we have passed across the Dales.

The woodland path tipped us out on top of a hill with beautiful Dales views and we turned into the village of Marrick. We were so excited to see a seat here, that we sat and had our first snack for the morning – we had been walking for an hour and a half, after all. If we have learnt anything, if you see a seat, or even a suitable rock, take the opportunity to sit on it, because you just don’t know when you will find somewhere else to sit – you can walk for miles and not find an appropriate resting place.

After Marrick, we crossed a series of fields again, the only clue to the track being the single file line of flattened grass where other Coast to Coasters had passed before us. Each fence line contained either a sheep gate – a narrow opening through the dry-stone fence, barely wide enough for a person to pass through, especially with a pack on your back – or a normal farm gate, with some form of tricky catch designed to have me pulling and pushing and twisting and shoving for a few minutes, usually just long enough for Wallsy to catch up!

The crossing of multiple farmer’s fields, most containing sheep, one with cows, went without incident. We were caught up by two men and two dogs who stopped for a chat, commenting on Wallsy’s obvious limp and sympathising with him and offering advice, as he proceeded to share his foot woes. They moved on and we finally found ourselves on a road which led steeply down into the village of Marske.

Here, we found another seat which invited us to sit and eat our lunch. Up the road a little further, we again turned off and crossed some fields, then a footbridge before a steep hill-climb up to another area of woodland. The country on this side of the Dales is much more thickly wooded than the areas we have passed through over the last few days.

Finally we could see a glimpse of Richmond, the impressive castle keep, standing out among the treetops, luring us the final mile to our Guest House accommodation in the West End. We located the house and were welcomed by owner Emma, who thoughtfully provided us with some suitable places to eat and offered to do our load of washing for us, as the local laundry refuses to do walkers washing apparently. Perhaps our socks are too smelly for them.

After 11.6 miles (a little more than the book said), we had arrived at 3:15, making it a 6-hour day and allowing us a bit of down time before we needed to force our feet back into shoes and walk the kilometre back into to town to the Italian restaurant, Capri, which Emma had recommended, as a change from pub food. It was a lovely meal and we wandered slowly back through the Friary gardens and the quaint shopping area, to our home for two nights. A rest day tomorrow, will hopefully give Wallsy’s painful feet a chance to heal.