Day 14 York (Shipton) to Thirsk (Day 15 - Rest Day - hooray!)

Back online and so to Thirsk (2 days late but never mind)..

I was worried by two major problems this morning - firstly, my feet (this is an ongoing, boring subject but you become quite obsessed with your feet when you know that you've got to rely on them to get you another two hundred and something miles up north!) and the other main issue was the thick fog that had descended over the Yorkshire moors overnight.  Visibility was now nil and the prospect of the A19 (which was bad enough in bright sunlight) and heavy traffic was very scary.  Even with my delightful, glam (not) high vis, bright yellow waistcoat, there was no way i could risk marching up the main road.  So I navigated myself east of the A19 and across beautiful yorkshire countryside instead.  I felt like i was walking through a novel and that, at any moment, Heathcliff would appear on the hillside through the mist.  I walked up and over the moors and through pretty little villages.  The fog gradually became thicker and showed no signs of letting up so I kept well into the side of the road.  Suddenly, as i turned a corner, the mist cleared and I got such a fright as the magnificent, brooding ruins of Byland Abbey jumped out in front of me - the spooky remains of the ruined building rose up into the sky and towered over me.  I kept on walking north and met up with my friend Charlotte who gamely agreed to walk the rest of the afternoon with me and brave the main road into Thirsk.  Not easy as the verges were pretty rough so we plodded along, trying not to waddle into the ditch or, even worse, into the path of a passing lorry.  Eventually, with Thirsk in our sights, I ground to an ungraceful halt - my right foot was playing up again. We found a bench (these pop up JUST when I need them -it's uncanny - doesn't matter where I am or how remote) and sat munching chocolate bars until I picked myself up and hauled up my rucksack (i'm convinced it's getting heavier) and limped to the nearest tea shop in the Thirsk Market place.  Food is another favourite subject and the great highlight of the day.  You finish one lot of supplies and you then spend the next hour or so planning your next munching spot.  In fact, i play a mind game with myself and stagger the hours by allowing myself a flapjack after 4 miles, a mars bar after the next 2 corners and so on.  Works brilliantly. 

On my knees in relief and really chuffed that London was that far away!!

Huge thanks to Jane Scrope and her daughter Emily for looking after me so wonderfully for 2 nights- it was hard to leave and a major shock to the system getting going again after my luxurious rest day!