WE DID IT !!

Day 10: Grosmont/Whitby to Robin Hood's Bay

Erica:  this last day, we changed the usual route to the end of the trail to include a short bus ride to Whitby and then a 7 mile hike down the cliffs south to Robin Hood's Bay. It was a warm, sunny day and we pulled off all of the warm layers that had kept us through the previous week. The cliffs are circled by seabirds and topped with perfect, bright green fields manicured into perfect lawns by perfect cloud-like sheep.

The ruins of Whitby Abbey, overlooking the town . Evidently, this was the inspiration for Dracula

Yeah, this is a sheep shot

The trail dips and climbs over the headlands and suddenly turns a corner and there's Robin Hood's Bay. Besides being the end of the Coast to Coast Trail, the town is famous for smuggling and press gangs (thugs who kidnapped people to serve in the Navy). After 10 days on the trail, we were disreputable enough to feel right at home.

We put our boots into the sea

The custom is to dip your boots in the Irish Sea at the start of the trail at St. Bees, and then again in the North Sea at Robin Hood's Bay. I stood in the water at St, Bees five years ago and here we are today! Different trip, different companion, even different boots. But we've stitched the country together, step by step, from edge to edge.

I can't hold it all in my head at once, although every single day's memories are vivid. I can't hold all of the colors of fields, heather and sea and the textures of stone, grass and wood. Villages, roads, farms, churches are all distinct but then blur together again.  But everything is tied together with the steady rhythm of walking.

Now we start home, and should be in London by evening. I know it'll be a strange day. Part is going back into the city and home/work life. But most of it will be that we won't be shouldering our packs and walking out across the fields, We've looked forward to this trip for many months, walked it for many days, and now, very simply,  it's done.

Sarah: So this magical journey is coming to its natural end;  in the sheer physical sense  our work is done.  but my  memories are of our footsteps travelling across the  ridges and valley folds of a diverse and rich landscape that is eons old. It will take me some time to let it all assimilate, but for now there is a deep joy in having accomplished our goal. So many thanks to all our supporters far and wide - you were with us on this adventure all the way!

SISTERS 104 MILES   - BLISTERS  5  ( and every one worth it  )

If you'd like to celebrate our adventure with a donation to the Lyons Library, please check out our GoFundMe site: ‭https://gofundme.com/blister-sisters-hike-100

 

Sarah wringing out her sock having been forcibly pulled into
 the sea by Erica: a long established ritual  marking the end of the Coast 2 Coast

We are added to the record of fame in Wainwright's favorite pub