2012 10 12 Friday

Walney to Whitby Day 4

Potto to Whitby

The Dog and Gun at Potto was a great find but it was wasted on me, well, sort of. We didn’t have time to appreciate it. I wish I'd had my best friend staying. Chrissie would have loved the room and that would have pleased me. The decor was very chic in a contemporary way. Dark oak modern furniture against a light coloured background was very appealing and the Italian marble tiled bathroom complemented it very well, and it was clean. If I thought I had a dilemma, Brian's was even greater. He’d drawn the short straw and was in the bridal suite on his own!

The grub wasn't bad. Last night we had slightly picture on a plate food and enjoyed it, for example, miniature ham and eggs for a starter with wispy crisps. Sitting in good company over good food and drink discussing the day's events is a hugely significant part of our rides. For me a good beer is a big part too and Captain Cook Brewery beers from Stokesley were on tap and went down very well.

We never finish at table very late. Must be something to do with the very high average age and that's all down to Dave, our only septegenerian! Sorry Dave, only joking, seriously! In spite of this I end up blogging into the early hours, up to 03:00 or later. It's very enjoyable but such slow work on the smartphone/s yet over only 5 days isn't a problemo. Today, Friday it's now midnight so here I go again. Wake me if I start rambling! No unkind remarks please!

After three dry days rain was forecast during Thursday night, and so it came to pass. I could hear it on the roof of the Dog and Gun but was tucked up warm and dry so was beyond caring. The day broke to patches of blue sky giving our last stage a huge hint of positivity. A ride of four totally dry days would be a first.

Dinner service had been in the safe hands of Egyption Manager Bilal. Breakfast was presided over by Kim, a former publican with a friendly disposition. We had our fill of the best breakfast of the trip. I loved the particularly tasty herby sausage and was raring to go by 09:00. We were late but weren't chastised because Michael wasn't himself. Got a great group photo to tweet and followed the rest once I'd remembered to switch on my Strava to record the day's trip.

The small hotel was on Station Lane. In the way of things I should have twigged that was the clue for finding out about another disused railway line. Also, Potto is significant for one or two of us who, for years have passed Prestons of Potto lorries on the roads and wondered where Potto was. When we looked up Prestons to find them the satellite maps showed their garage on the site of the former Potto station. Two local interest stories rolled into one. That was good news because, for the obligatory photo I would be passing the garage on my way out of Potto.

En route today roadkill started 1:0 to a dead rat.

The landscape here is very arable over gently rolling farms. Ploughed fields abound and are being disc harrowed ready for winter sewing. As I cycled on the back lanes the distinctive hills of the North Yorks Moors loomed with dark forboding to my south beyond this autumnal farm landscape. Researching the local railway has told me about the ironstone production all over the area and whinstone from over Roseberry Topping way, the distinctively pointy hill in the east of that hillscape. 

With the benefit of a stiff tail breeze I met up quickly with the lads half way to Great Ayton. In spite of a collection of ailments, sore head, painful joints, etc we continued to make good progress and we'd soon done the five miles to coffee.

But, just before we got there: roadkill dead rats 2:0.

Many of these northern villages we pass through are really pretty. Stone and white rendered houses under red clay pantile roofs much of the time facing the village green. Here in Great Ayton they have the added beauty and interest from a stream, the river Leven burbling its way through. Today the stream is very brown and in full spate due to the heavy rainfall last night. 

With a recommendation and directions from a village elder we found Stamps Coffee Shop and Petch's Pork Pie Shop and topped up supplies. Captain Cook's youthful statute on the green advertised his schoolboy connection with the village. In fact, it was his home from this village that was moved stone by stone to Australia.

Suitably refreshed we returned to the bikes and pedalled our way from the edge of urban Teesside over Kildale Moor into the Eskdale Valley. The last time I was here I travelled by train to Whitby from Newcastle on the beautiful single track railway weaving it's way down the verdant and sylvan valley, a line we crossed a number of times as we cycled. This time the trip down the valley required a deal more effort, mostly up Crag Bank, the biggest hill of the ride, aided by a following wind, a very welcome contribution! 

Today's stage included a few off road sections, mostly gravel lanes/bridleways. The first was from Commondale to Castleton, a stretch reminiscent of miners’ tracks half way up the hillside and with views to match. We stopped a while in Castleton for lunch. Michael and I had our Petsch pies on a bench, enjoying the sublimely pleasant weather. Take-out tea came from the Castleton Tea Room across the road where the others went after the Castleton Pensioners Friday luncheon club had done!

Michael and I were finished first so continued on our way to Danby, then the Dales Park Centre to the next severe hill. They keep coming! This time though we ended higher up the valley hillside and were rewarded with a following wind and stunning panoramic valley and moor top views of much of Eskdale

After several miles Michael dropped behind. When he caught me up again on the top between Leaholme and Stonegate I learned he'd had to sit down because of a funny turn. This incident had the advantage of allowing the others to catch up and thankfully Michael seemed ok to me.

Brian was struggling though so he took the shorter ridge top main road route arranging to meet us at Ruswarp for the final push. However, within a mile of Brian’s departure Michael was off his bike again and lying on the grass verge feeling faint. Panic over when he ate something and seemed fine again.

Our task now was to nurse Michael home as he felt fearful of fainting on his bike. Initially progress was slow. The fear of blacking out and falling off the bike was all too real over to the windswept village of Egton. With warmer clothes on and some food in him Michael gained confidence and made good progress as we contoured (with yet more ups and downs of a hilly sort to keep us working) over to Aislaby. A long stony bridleway descent of 450 feet then added some interest and a little excitement down to the road bridge at Sleights and got us into the valley bottom.

Nearly there! At Ruswarp we met up with Brian again and proceeded on the south bank of the Esk squeezing past a bridge collapse road closure then up and up yet again to the 120 feet high former Larpool railway viaduct onto the so-called Cinder Path over the river Esk. From the viaduct we could look south up the valley and down at the swollen river or northwards beyond the viaduct's long shadow across to Whitby's Abbey and the sea in the late afternoon sunshine. Beautiful! It's good to be alive!

From the Cinder Track we rode into Whitby town, past the fish dock and along the pier into the sunshine for a celebratory photo. Apart from finding the official finishing place that was it, all over, and I could quite easily have carried on. Warm handshakes all round concluded our latest adventure, the W2W.

Michael was back on track craving food so we needed to find the girls and get to Trenchers Fish and Chip Emporium for the usual. A phone call resolved the missing wives conundrum. They were waiting at the cliff top Captain Cook Memorial near the whale bone arch expecting us there but there was no W2W sign there either. We literally found no sign anywhere indicating the official end. That all done the cars were repositioned by the station opposite the restaurant and we enjoyed a banquet in the opulence of this award winning caff. THE END.

Final day’s cycling 40 miles and 2515 feet of climb. Is that all?!