I haven�t mentioned that Tom, who is in the movie business, is making a video of this adventure. We stop periodically so Tom can get our reactions, to what we are experiencing, on camera. I take a lot of pictures also.
I start to weaken towards the end of the day�s hike. Both my knee and my tendon start hurting. I struggle over the last mile or so. I am also very happy I have a walking stick. I recommend acquiring one if you plan to do any cross-country hiking. We also discover that reaching the end of the day�s hike is not the end of the day�s hiking. We are at least a kilometer from our digs for the evening, The Hadrian Hotel. This situation repeats itself almost every day: that is a long walk from the trail to the B & B or hotel. It doesn�t affect me as much as my partners since I�m limiting my hiking but it is discouraging for my friends to realize that a planned 10 mile walk can actually be up to 11 or 12 miles long.
Thinking about this brings up the tour company we used, Contours Walking Holidays. We chose them because they had by far the most professional looking web site. I really have nothing to compare them with but it seemed that unless things went absolutely according to plan, Contours had a difficult time responding. They also seemed to have little or no flexibility on arrangements. I personally found they didn�t respond to e-mails only to phone calls. It appears they do not personally check out the places they put people in. Other companies, most notably Walking Hadrian's Wall re-evaluate their booking recommendations every spring. I can�t speak for my partners but I felt the Contours people were not really familiar with the trail and the situations we ran up against. Perhaps this is because they are booking walking tours all over England so it is impossible for them to be intimately familiar with them all. In retrospect we are glad we used a tour. I doubt if we could have done it all ourselves. I think now, though, were we to hike another British National Trail, we could book the whole trip ourselves by using an official trail guide and the Internet.
As I savor the best tasting scone I've ever eaten, I look around at the rest of the guests. I feel like I've dropped into the middle of a movie set. Everyone looks so stereotypically �British.� I visit the garden, take pictures, and browse through the adjoining art gallery - all in all a most delightful interlude.
I head for the B & B we are supposed to be staying at but am diverted by a beautiful little church, St. Andrew's, the Corbridge Parish church. I must go in. It does not disappoint. The church tower was built in AD674. The church itself is charming and unpretentious. The outside graveyard is fascinating.
I walk through town trying to locate someone who can direct me to our B & B, Fellscroft. I�m almost ready to give up and just wander until I find it when someone is able to send me in, at least, the right direction. I cross the Tyne River on a bridge that provides some great views of the river. You can see the photos I shot of the tea room, the church and the river on the Corbridge Fort and Town photo site.
I locate Fellscroft B & B and, after ringing the bell a few times, am greeted by the mistress of the house who is right out of central casting as the motherly Bed and Breakfast owner. After telling me her name is Tovi, she goes to great lengths to make me feel comfortable. Her husband has gone to pick up my companions so I shouldn�t have long to wait. I tell her my sad story of painful tendons and she insists that I must promise to take care of myself the rest of the week. Her genuine concern touches me. She and I gossip about Hadrian�s Wall tour companies and she refuses to say anything bad about any of them, though it�s obvious she values one company in particular: not the one we chose, by the way. I�ll have more to say about tour companies later.
My friends arrive and we have to sort out who is going to stay where since we will be split between Fellscroft and a place down the street called Dyvel�s Hotel. Larry and I end up at Dyvel�s because the luggage transporter left our bags there. I am disappointed. I wanted to stay at Tovi�s and wallow in her sympathy. Dyvel�s is a one star hotel with a bar and restaurant on the ground floor and rooms on the upper floors. Charming, it is not. After a short nap, Larry and I stop at Fellscroft and pick up Tom and Dave to walk to our pub of the night, The Black Bull.
We have another fine meal accompanied by pints of fine beer followed by another fine dessert. We have decided to try the desserts every night. This makes sense for my friends who are doing some tough walking everyday but I�m not so sure that I won�t balloon out eating as they do. Since tomorrow�s schedule calls for a five-mile hike. I figure I can handle that and then I won�t have to feel guilty eating dessert. I must also admit I�m envious as I listen to stories of the day�s walk.
We have a nice stroll back to our place and decide to have a nightcap beer at Dyvel�s to wash down the dessert. After this last pint of the day, sleep comes easily even with Larry's static machine going full blast.
Monday, July 12, 2004 - Port Gate, Wall, Chollerford, Hexham and Anick
Our Dyvel�s breakfast is O.K. but I�m imagining that Tovi�s would be better. We meet at Fellscroft so I can collect a few more strokes from Tovi and coincidentally pick up our ride to Eddington Pub near Port Gate. This is where today�s tramp will begin.
The hike itself is pleasurable for the first 3 or 4 miles. We hike through beautiful wooded copses, up and down gently sloping hills and climb over a lot of walls and through a lot of fences. The vistas are incredible. The trail is very well set up. We have a map, of course, and we have Dave who heads out and explores in front saving the rest of us the embarrassment of going in the wrong direction. There are strategically placed signs although not always where one might expect or want them.
After settling our sleeping arrangements, Larry, Tom and I decide to visit Chesters Roman Fort and Museum near Chollerford. Dave decides to visit Hexham. This may be the only chance my friends have to visit a fort because the walks are all at least 9 miles long from here on. The museum is not as well done as others along the Hadrian�s Wall route but the ruins themselves are among the best: well laid out and labeled. You can see pictures in the Chesters Roman Fort Album. I realize how much more enjoyable it is to visit these types of sites with friends. Discussing what we are seeing fixes things in my mind.
After having had a great lunch, we are disappointed with our dinner at the Hadrian. We are very excited, though, because we�ve discovered a quiz night at a nearby pub, The Rat Inn, in Anick, near Hexham. We get there late so they put us in a back room. The only other customers back here are a group of middle-aged women having dinner. We name our team, �The Ugly Americans,� the same name we�ve used for quiz nights in Hong Kong.
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