HW6
Hadrians Wall - Day 6
THURSDAY 21ST JULY 2016:
My last day and today I go home. I have a plane to catch mid afternoon but I am going to use the morning to back track to Heddon and walk to Quayside, so trying to complete as much of the formal trail as possible. I am up early, check out the hotel and store my bag then walk along to the bus station for the first bus of the day to Heddon at 07:25.
I arrive in Heddon (really Heddon-on-the-Wall) a bit before 8:00 and step off the bus that leaves me standing alone in peace. I am in a village environment, the sun is shining…this feels better! I am on the path but not sure which direction to go, I need to go East. I reason that I should go in the direction the bus came from and set off….wrong!. I realise this is not right and reverse, back to the start point and continue on. There is no one around until down the road I see a group of 4, clearly hikers, looking at signposts for directions. As I approach I recognise them, it is the family I saw at the car park coffee stop a couple of days ago. We chat for a bit and then set off walking together.
In the end I walk for a very pleasant hour or so with Shaun and his teenage family. We swap stories of our trek. They are camping and have had a few adventures on the way, including the classic mid-night cow invasion!. I am glad I am doing it the ‘easy’ way staying at B&B’s and having my bag transferred. We walk through country paths and it is nice to be back in a rural setting. Eventually I move on as they take a break, they are running very low on provisions, hungry and thirsty and hoping to come across somewhere to have breakfast or stock up. I have my pack of treats in my pack (shortbread biscuits) with 4 left and I hand them over as a parting gift to keep them going. As it happens there is a pub about a mile down the road, when I pass it is closed – last nights pint glasses still on the tables – but a sign promises opening at 9:30 which is imminent.
After a while I link up with the river Tyne and am set to follow this all the way into Quayside, firstly on nearby paths, or drifting off to nearby roads, later directly alongside the river bank. As with yesterday, much of this is also a cycle path for route 72. Signs of urban environment grow and it is clear I am heading into the city, before long I catch sight of the Quayside bridges and in short order cross the imaginary finishing line. Walk complete!
It is quite a good place to finish (as opposed to Segedunum) as it is a buzzing area and just feels more appropriate. There are lots of people milling around and getting close to noon many are sitting outside at cafes and the like, enjoying the sunshine and eating & drinking. Seems like a good idea to me so I select the Wetherspoon pub and sit outside in the shaded courtyard and have a late breakfast and a bottle of cider to celebrate. I sit and reflect on my experience with a good degree of satisfaction, it really has been a marvellous walk. Completed today on Endomondo at final 11 miles, bringing a total of well over 80 miles
I realise I have to make a move, so gather my bits, and start my next trek, that long journey home. A walk to the metro, via hotel to pick up my bag, and then train up to airport. A flight from Newcastle to Southampton and then another flight a few hours later home. It is good to be home and lovely to see the fam
REFLECTIONS ON THE DAY:
That’s a bit more like it. A simple walk but enjoyable, set up with a good chat with a fellow walker and concluding with the satisfaction of completing the walk
