A view of the castle at Lancaster, taken from the Skerton Bridge which was the official half way point of the walk.
The view of Morecambe Bay from Bolton Le Sands - the sea is just visible in the distance.
The RSPB reserve at Leighton Moss where we had a quick pit stop for lunch.Warning - do not believe anything that you read on this blog. On day 2 I said that I would not see the sea again until I reached Scotland. However I had overlooked how close I would get to the coast near to Morecambe Bay. I was therefore a little surprised today when I saw the sea when walking along the Lancaster Canal through Bolton le Sands.
The weather today was still lovely for sunbathing but luckily it was not as hot as yesterday. This made walking the 18 miles to about 5 miles south of Kendal, Cumbria. This has only made my count of number of counties even more complicated. Having groped my way to ignoring the new fangled counties I now learn that Cumbria is itself a fairly new creation - being formed by the merger of Cumberland and Westmorland in the 1970's. As a consequence, and in view of the potential problems that I anticipate in Scotland, I have decided to accept what the bureaucrats say the current counties are. This therefore makes a new total of 14 - subject to me changing my mind again!
With the sun shining again today it made me pleased that I had decided to do the walk from south to north. This means that the sun is always behind me when walking. I therefore do not need quite so much sun cream, and it is easier to see when the sun is behind.
The number of bird species seen on the jaunt is now 85 helped by a very quick visit to the RSPB reserve at Leighton Moss where I saw marsh harrier and wigeon. My very unscientific walking survey of the birds of England has proved to be interesting (at least to me) - there are several fairly common species that I have not yet seen despite being in the countryside, walking along rivers and canals etc for many hours - I am disappointed not to have seen birds such as kingfisher, tree sparrow, tree creeper and spotted flycatcher.I have however seen more goldfinch and bullfinch than I would have anticipated.
Tomorrow is a rest day. I will try to post a blog showing some of the photos that I have not yet been able to include - especially the one with the nurses!
Today's KBW's are to Sue and Bob Barnes who are hosting us for two nights at their lovely house in the Cumbrian fells 5 miles out of Kendal.
"Everywhere is within walking distance - you just need the time." - Tee shirt seen today at Leighton Moss
Cheers
Keith
