Lyke Wake Walk

On the morning of 30 March 2024, I strode out from Osmotherley with two friends, Rachel and Nigel, to attempt the 40 (ish) mile Lyke Wake Walk (LWW), with the aim of purifying my soul.  We were all hoping to overcome a mighty challenge, but the weather was not cooperating.  The sky was bright blue and cloudless and there wasn’t any hint of wind.  How unfortunate we were to be cursed by such a beautiful day.

Rachel and Nigel at the LWW starting stone

We left the starting stone at the head of Cod Beck Reservoir just after 6.30am.  The first challenge was to cross Carlton Bank and then the three sister hills of Kirby, Broughton and Hasty Bank.  I’ve often thought that the hills should be renamed the four sisters, but I guess it doesn’t have the same ring to it, and the three sisters does make me think of the three weird sisters from Macbeth, which makes it fitting that they should be part of such a mournful journey across the Moors.

Trig point on Carlton Bank

Nigel and I were actually in the presence of a Witch, as Rachel had previously completed the LWW in August 2020.  As such we both very much left the navigation to Rachel.  I had travelled the first 18 miles previously, but not necessarily as part of the same walk/run, and it was nice to be revisiting this part of the Moors once more.

Once the four hills were behind us we had one final significant climb remaining up to Round Hill and on to Bloworth Crossing.  The going had been reasonably slow going up to this point.  Partly because of the hills and also because we made frequent stops to admire the view.

Bloworth Crossing is renowned for being very windy at all times of the year, its name literally meaning ‘place where the wind blows for all its worth’ (I possibly just made this up!), but for us it was spookily still and calm.  Were we being cursed or blessed?  The next 6 or 7km follows a disused railway line all the way to the Lion Inn at Blakey Howe.  We were able to run this section and make up some good time.  We had travelled the 18 miles to the Inn in just over 4.5 hours.  But the toughest part of the journey lay ahead.

The very runnable disused railway line leading to the Lion Inn

We filled our water bottles at the pub and then set out across the Moors to Ravenscar, some 22 miles away and where we’d next see signs of civilisation.  We almost immediately encountered bog and marsh.  Rachel disappeared into one bog up to her knee.  Not long afterwards Nigel did the same.  Once he’d freed his leg from the sucking bog it was a luminous, unearthly brown colour.  Hallelujah! This was the sort of challenging conditions we were hoping for.  Except I somehow managed to avoid sinking into the ground, making me wonder if I was already a spirit forever doomed to float over the Moors.

Crossing the marshes

Rachel and then Nigel go knee deep in the bog

The aim of the LWW is to stick to the watershed and aim for a series of standing stones and cairns on hill summits, such as Fat Betty, Blue Man-i’-th’-Moss and Lilla Cross.  The RAF early warning system at Fylingdales Moor is also highly prominent on the horizon for many miles and never seems to get any closer.

Fat Betty

Fylindales EWS visible on the horizon for many, many miles

Over the latter part of the route there are couple of becks that need to be crossed.  These both entail a steep descent followed by a steep climb.  At the picturesque Wheeldale Beck we stopped for a brief sit down to have something to eat before crossing the stepping stones.  The stones prevented us from getting wet feet in the beck, but the grassy bank the other side of the stream was a very deceptive marsh.  The grass looked lush and firm, but as soon as we stepped off the last stepping stone we were up to our ankles in water.  So much for me thinking I was a spirit floating over the land.

Stepping Stones at Wheeldale Beck

Once past the early warning system I was expecting to have a sense that we were nearly at the end of the journey.  The next significant landmark is a radio mast on a hilltop above Ravenscar.  This, too, had the knack of never seeming to get any closer.

Photo at the final trig point

The final climb of the day took us to the base of the radio mast.  It was a long, gentle and very runnable ascent.  Some people say the trig point next to the mast is the end point of the LWW, some say it is the bar at the Ravens Hall Hotel.  We took a quick photo at the trig point and then ran down the road into Ravenscar and headed straight to the hotel.  My wife, Ruth, was there to meet us.  The run/walk had taken us 11 hours and 46 minutes.

A Witch and two Dirges at the Raven Hall Hotel

We had a quick celebratory drink in the hotel bar before setting off for home.  It had been an amazing day.  The weather had been unbelievably kind, making both navigation and the general journey a relative breeze.  I also had fantastic company, which also helped make the hours fly by and for the trot across the Moors to be an absolute pleasure, apart from the constant soaking of feet in the second half.

Nigel and I can now both call ourselves Dirges.  Rachel now needs to make a crossing in reverse so she can become a Mistress of Misery.  I’m now contemplating a double crossing so I can also become a Master of Misery.  Surely, the weather won’t be so kind next time!