from Dublin to........Mirissa, Sri Lanka: Hiking in the Lake District

Well I cant say I did much hiking as the day I got there I caught yet another cold....not sure I'd recovered fully from the last one. Woke up feeling rather shite the first day. I'd planned two long and rather strenuous hikes through what I later discovered to be quite trecherous trails. The mountains (or large hills) were covered in clouds making traversing the peaks and ridge lines quite dangerous if the fog doesn't lift or winds pick up.

With barely any energy to do anything I decided I had to do something to work off the ciders and cumberland sausages from the night before at The Travellers Rest Hotel (two thumbs up) in Glenridding.

It was only a 1hr loop up to a nearby hill for a view over the lake. Still quite pleasant. The lady at the info desk suggested that I could manage without a map/route notes...like hell. It is so confusing. There are paths going everywhere. Very easy to take a wrong turn! You can lose a lot of time which can be costly if you are trying to beat some bad weather coming in. Finished the walk at the pub watching the tennis and chatting to some local lads who knew everything about Home and Away and Neighbours, as most English folk seem to. Disturbing.

Dinner at the hostel was always a risk but given they advertise themselves as a cafe throughout the day I thought I would give it a try. Big mistake. Worst meal so far. Why bother cooking rubbish. Its embarrassing. (Ann, will try to be more positive but honestly...)

Was hoping to wake up the following morning feeling considerably better (wasn't the case). Got some more drugs from the store 20mins walk away, hoping they would deal with my headache and congestion (which they did partially).

Caught the ferry (steamer) up the lake to Howtown (about 45mins) and intended to walk back around the lake to Patterdale where I was staying (undisclosed distance but around 3hrs). The Lake District is stunning. It's mood changes constantly as the clouds and rain roll through, broken up by patches of warm sunshine.

The walking notes I'd bought that morning in anticipation of getting lost were invaluable. Although after getting off the steamer I climbed to the top of the nearby hill taking any path that led up to the top, passing sheep that sat on the pathway threatening to ram my arse back down the hill, and a lamb's corpse which was in the vicinity of a large group of crows. Ominous. Really don't like crows. They are evil and always conjure up images from Steven King's movie the The Stand which freaked me out years ago.

At the top was a cracking view awaiting. Despite only a 15-20min climb I was already farked. Blaming the cold and poor nutritional value of those sausages last night. In the distance a line of yachts could be seen, waiting for the 11am horn to commence the race. There was barely a breathe of wind. At 11:15am they had hardly moved. A couple who'd been sat up there for 30mins left. They got fed up waiting for the start. Little did they know the race was actually underway!

Camped out up there for a bit but not too long as wanted to get back in time for the Gentlemen' final and the F1s. Made my way back down, unsure what side path I needed to take to get me back on to the lakeside trail. Evidently I missed it and went too far. And then crack, rolled the ankle. Scared the hell of out of me. The sound wasn't too good either. Braced myself for the pain...which didn't eventuate. Took a reluctant step. Didn't collapse. A good sign. Decided to gingerly proceed as hadn't really seen any of the area yet.

Around 45mins after rolling the ankle, the nose started to bleed profusely. Not a good look passing other walkers holding a tissue saturated in blood. No questions asked.

After some time I passed a couple I'd given some directions to at the start of the walk. They were guessing their way, successfully up until then. The path afforded some great views of the lake. Tried to rescue lamb that had been separated from its' mother. Geez they are stupid creatures. Can't recall how many times it tried to head butt its way through the wire fence, seeking the larger gap further along where the creek flowed through.

Finished the walk in time to see the second half of the F1 race at the Patterdale Hotel. Further discussion that night at the pub with the local lads about Aussie movies and TV series. They have far too much time on their hands and spend way too much time in the pub. There really isn't much else to do at night I guess. Many of them don't realise it but they are effectively alcoholics. I limped back to the hostel that night, the booze not really easing the pain.