Stage 11 Bowes to High Force

This was a hard day nearly 17 miles but not hard ascents. I expected by now to have settled into a nice routine, but my heels are holding me back and I’m getting more concerned. The geography has changed again and we started off, after the initial roads, through boggy fields and scraggy pastures. Lots of styles to climb today. Still lots of dead rabbits around. Eventually we open up to lovely colourful pastures, haymaking is late here due to the weather so the flowers have a chance to bloom. After walking the tops you drop down to walk the side of the Tees and get good views of Low Force. I’d love to spend longer climbing the rocks. At last the hotel was reached.

Ancient Unicorn, Bowes. An old coaching Inn still with cobbled courtyard. We were housed in the stables, which had been turned into nice rooms. Food ok, main thing was trying to get the owner or waitress to talk, I failed.