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For some reason, I was particularly eager to get away from the Lion Inn and back on the trail for Day 15. I must be beginning to crave the solitude or maybe it’s just knowing that there isn’t far left to go.

I had the strange sensation today of never being all that far from the real world, yet somehow being completely hidden from view. Like being in my own parallel universe. Perhaps it’s no bad thing that I will be brought back to earth with a bump very soon!

I walked non-stop for the first three-hours over Glaisdale Moor and then Glaisdale Rigg, taking a fancy en route to Trough House, a solitary and now boarded-up building which apparently used to be a shooting lodge. You may yet see me on Grand Designs: “Philippa, a previously well-paid corporate communications professional from London, had heard that her 40th birthday was as good a time as any to panic, so packed it all in, spending her hard-earned money opening a yoga retreat in a crumbling building in the middle of nowhere on the North Yorkshire Moors. Let’s take a look at how she’s getting on...”

Having reached the village of Glaisdale itself, I pushed on slightly past it to take my first stop at the Arncliffe Arms at Carr End, stopping only to speak to an elderly lady tending a wonderful country garden, which she claimed had been neglected this year. 

Buoyed by a coffee and chocolate bar, I carried on, crossing Glaisdale Beck and entering the shade of East Arncliffe Wood, pressing onward to Egton Bridge.

A quiet half an hour spent in the attractive Catholic Church of St. Hedda there set me up well for the final mile-and-a-half into Grosmont.

My B&B here is lovely and sits above the art gallery of Chris Geall who I had the pleasure of watching paint for a short time during the afternoon. He was putting the finishing touches to an oil of the Moors and had got the proportions just right: about seven eighths of the canvas was sky.

I spent the remainder of the day trainspotting. Grosmont is famous for being home to the steam and diesel locomotives of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. I had a surprisingly fun time exploring the engine sheds and sitting on the station platform drinking coffee and inhaling some rather less clean air than that to which I’ve become accustomed!

So, today is my last day. Barring some kind of disaster (and believe me, I’ve heard about a few!), I will be waking up tomorrow morning in Robin Hood’s Bay with the satisfaction of knowing that I’ve walked Coast to Coast. Just 16 miles stand in my way - wish me luck!

Day 15:
Walked: 31,866 steps (13 miles)
Stayed: The Gallery B&B 

Ate: The Station Tavern

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