25.11 miles in 10 hours 51 minutes…
I finally arrived at the Van House in Osmotherly! The room is a twin share with a small bathroom, but it’s clean and inviting. Of course I can’t remember the name of the young woman that checked me in. I think that my brain is shutting down. I entered by room, took my socks off and supinated myself on the floor.
Today was very odd. I didn’t run into another “walker” the entire day. I wandered through overgrown trails, fields with waist high crops, farms with horses, sheep and cattle and deserted roads with swamps on the side. I was hearing the banjos from Deliverance and waiting for a zombie to emerge from the fields.
What I did encounter were cows. I came across 6 young cows who would not let me pass. I wasn’t brave enough to just walk through them, so I ended up trudging through the next field over and hopping two fences. They are just such huge animals. I am not comfortable around them and I feel so small and vulnerable. When there is a fence between us, I am brave. I did encounter two young cows who let me scratch their heads and they licked my hand, but there was a fence between us.
Today was a death march of solitude. A lot of pavement, a lot of overgrown trails, minimal human contact, scary curious cows and a lot of mileage.
I had dinner at the 3 Tun in Osmotherly. I had a lovely spinach and goat cheese tart and a Rhubarb dessert platter. Oh yeah, and my token 1/2 pint of cider.