Day 6


East Wallhouses to Newburn

Day 6 brought us into more populated areas. The path today mainly ran parallel to a major highway, so the remote feeling was gone. We’ve read and heard from hikers that the two days at the east end of the path (today and tomorrow for us) are by far the least interesting. There are almost no remaining wall ruins, and the setting is more urban. John and I agreed yesterday, however, that two days of “boring” sounds just fine to us after all we’ve seen these past five days.

The town of Heddon-on-the-Wall was charming. I feel like I could live there very happily. Local people along the way were unfailingly gracious in giving us directions, although the quality of the directions and estimates of distance were all over the place. Accents are thick up here near the Scottish border, and we often have to ask people to repeat what they’ve said.

One of my toenails fell off this morning, and I’m nursing a blister. Moleskin patches, bandaids, gauze, and a night of sleep do wonders, however. I’m looking forward to finishing strong tomorrow!

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