At the edge of the moors

Planes, taxis and trains...   Our flight to London went fine and we were met at the airport by Sarah's biggest fans, her children Amy & Ben.

They took excellent care of us  and we enjoyed a stroll around their London neighborhood, a celebratory family feast, and then a long sleep.

Grandchildren Roo and Olive kept us laughing and I was honored to be asked to read  "Owl Babies" for bedtime (librarians and parents- we all know this one). It's been a very long time since I read it, but every sentence was familiar,  even the last one I couldn't choke out.
Olive read it for me: "I love my mummy," said Bill.  
                                     Hurrah for bedtime books at the Lyons Library!

This morning, we leapt from the warmth of family and sped by train through London and into the green countryside. Kirkby Stephen is a little town of stone houses, maybe about the size of Lyons, in a river valley with hills rising on either side. No taxi there, either, so we started our trek with a mile or two walk through the fields from the train station to town, with all luggage in tow.  We'll be happy to have someone else lug the big bags for the rest of the week.

Tomorrow is our first day hiking, and one of the biggest days on the Coast to Coast trail. We'll leave from the center of town and hike up to the moors for the day, and then drop down into the next little town, a pattern we'll be repeating most days.
So: 2 miles down, 98 to go.   Sisters 2, Blisters 0!