The Dales Way...81 miles of Early Retirement Adventures
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- Опубліковано 17 лип 2024
- We all need adventures in our lives, and the Dales Way was mine for 2024. An 81 mile, multi-day solo trek across the beautiful Yorkshire Dales and Lake District National Parks of the UK. Starting in Ilkley in West Yorkshire and finishing in Bowness-on-Windermere in Cumbria, I planned to complete the walk in 5 days. Having never done anything like this before, my early retirement seemed an ideal opportunity to complete this bucket list trek that I had been thinking about for years. With bits and bobs of old camping gear and everything I needed on my back for the 5 days, with some trepidation I set off.
Join me as I review the journey, with all the highs and lows and some incredible scenery from this beautiful part of the world.
We are Richard and Jackie and we live in the UK. We retired from teaching at the age of 51 in the summer of 2022. Our plans for early requirement include relocating to the Yorkshire Dales, developing our forever home and travelling the UK, Europe and eventually the world in our VW campervan Nelson.
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Many thanks,
Richard & Jackie
Timeline:
00:00 My Dales Way solo adventure
00:49 The Dales Way
02:32 Day 1 Ilkley to Grassington
05:35 Day 2 Grassington to Oughtershaw
10:30 Day 3 Oughtershaw to Dent
14:27 Day 4 Dent to Burnside
16:37 Day 5 Burnside to Bowness
18:15 Final thoughts on the Dales Way
Great video, great achievement! Well done Richard! 🙂👍
Thank you - it was tough but a very rewarding experience 🥾😊
Congratulations, beautiful scenery and love the fact your videos are 'real' and not just the sunny/easy days. I started my early retirement with a thru hike (the Pacific Crest Trail in the US) and for me was the perfect mental shift from work to retirement. If you're thinking of another multiday hike next year check out the Skye Trail - beautiful and easily accessible if Jackie wanted to join you for sections (good bus system). I left my van in Portree and had a night in the van half way through the hike. Agree with you on a sleeping bag being very constricting - might want to check out switching to a quilt. Hope the feet have time to recover before some European hiking.
Wow- the PCT as a project- that is a hardcore entry into early retirement! Congratulations on such an amazing feat. Jackie is keen to do a multi-day hike next year but wants to make sure the comfort level is appropriate.
I love the idea of a quilt, but ATM I am not doing enough camping to justify the expense and they are sooooo expensive! I am happy to just plod along with my basic (and cheap) kit, but look to take less of it next time to reduce my pack weight. There is so much stuff I would leave behind!
Thanks for the comment. R
Great scenery, really enjoyed this episode. The pint of beer you had looked well deserved, plus I thought ‘ohh I could go that’.
Good to tick this one off your bucket list.
Thanks Jason- the pint was just amazing- TBH I could have done with a few more of them around the route😂
As an experience, I loved it...I'm even starting to forget the blisters😉
Have a good one. 👍 R
Well done 🥾 👍🏼 multi day hikes can test you for sure, and as I have found you learn so many lessons about yourself and how to do it better next time. I am sure you’ll be out there again and you’ll want to go further. 👍🏼
Thanks Graham...very true. It was such a steep learning curve...both in the physical and emotional sense. Already thinking about what is next. 👍 R
Did this walk 2 years ago throughly enjoyed it stunning scenery
Thanks Timothy- it really is great isn’t it? I found loads of places I didn’t even know existed and I consider that I know the Dales😂
Thanks for the comment 👍R
More content like this please. Amazing well done 👍
Many thanks...we will try😉 R
Well done Richard. Great achievement. It looked like hard work though lol. The Dales are spectacular so thanks for sharing. Take care. Irvine & Karen.
I’ve just about recovered after 4 weeks in Europe - back hiking in the Dolomites this week which are spectacular ⛰️🥾
@@earlyretirementwanderlust Yeah we’ve been following on Instagram. Your trip looks amazing.
Wow, Richard, congratulations on such an amazing achievement, thank goodness for Compeed, when you mentioned your blisters I shouted out the word, "compeed", and you then mentioned you were using it, hurrah. Fantastic scenery and wonderful camping along the way, I bet those fish and chips tasted good. I had no idea you were both on Escape to the Country, I will have to try and find the episode on I Player. Just started catching up on your current tour of Europe, wonderful 👍❤️😍🚐🥖🏔️ xxxx
Thanks Janet- I don't think that I will ever hike without compeed ever again. I have not suffered from blisters for years, but this was a rude awakening as to how horrible they can really be. Gutted that my trusty La Sportiva's let me down...it is going to take some time to regain trust in them!
Thanks as always for the supportive comments. 👍 R
Thanks for sharing your walk,we did this route 11 or 12 years ago it’s such a beautiful walk.
It really is a stunning walk and I am appreciating that more and more now there is some distance from the pain in my feet 🥾
@@earlyretirementwanderlust That’s the beauty of looking back on achievements, you tend to skip over the low moments and pain😂. You now have more great memories of your adventures.
Congrats!
~18+ miles a day carrying full kit and overnighting in a tent at age 50+ is not a "walk in the park".
Well put together video too....
I need to set myself some similar challenges....the 🚐 is too comfortable.
Thank you - it was certainly tough but very rewarding. I had not hiked with a heavy pack for years which was hard on top of covering 18+ miles each day. I will leave it a while before I think about what the next challenge could be. For now I am just enjoying the comfortable van 🚐 🤣
Great effort on this self imposed challenge. My younger brother and father both passed away (within weeks of each other) in 2022 and to mark the 1st anniversary of there passing I did a challenge in the highlands. Kayak camped a stretch of Loch Ness, cycled the Caledonian canal and then climbed north face of the Ben. I placed some ashes in a secret location on the summit. I found it a very worthwhile challenge BUT I was amazed how physically degrading it was to live out of a tiny mountain tent - I’m sure I used to be able to sleep under a tarp in wet clothing and be up like a spring hare. As I rapidly approach 50 this is defo no longer the case. Anyway fantastic effort 🫡
That's a great challenge Anthony .We are really sorry for your loss- life can be so cruel at times.
Looking back, I don't think it would have worked with Jackie coming along as the 2 man tent would have been far too small for both of us and kit. Defo think that I wouldn't have coped in a one man tent- particularly when the weather turned.
Don't you be concerned with the 50 mark...just crack on as normal. I am loving my 50's😂
Thanks for the comment and take care. R
Well done Richard that was such an achievement. Thanks for showing us some beautiful countryside.
Thanks Jane. You are quite welcome. I love what we do. R
Fantastic Vlog.Well done
Many thanks Mark.👍 R
Sounds like a tough old walk! I often plan much shorter distances the first few days so that I can ease my body into it. Like you I have trouble with hot spots and blisters on the feet, it's just a result of the heavy pack and constant friction. It's hard to prepare for it without doing the very same type of walk for training. I often stumble into the last stop of the day barely able to walk, and it's always a surprise that I can get up the next day and still keep going. For your next distance walk: a companion will help ease some of the emotional rollercoasters. And chocolate bars! I always find chocolate to be vital to revive my spirits on the trail. And maybe pull back on the distance especially for the first few days! Well done for keeping going when it was tough. I hope you don't give up and plan something for next year, it really is a great mental and physical challenge to figure out how to tackle these types of adventures.
Thanks for these words of wisdom James...so true. I really did learn so much from the experience. I defiantly underestimated the effect of walking with weight...live and learn!
Ohhh chocolate! I'm normally a savoury fan on day hikes but I just craved the sweet stuff on this one. How odd!
Already thinking about what to do next year...I absolutely loved it, both physically and mentally!
R
Congratulations Richard on completing it! I’ve done a few multi day hikes like this and recognise the highs and lows you faced. They get a bit easier as you lighten/minimise your gear and learn from prior mistakes. Dales High Way next?
Thanks Rob. It’s strange how one walk fires up ideas for the next. It’s quite infectious! Already planning what kit to ditch next time😂
The Dales highway is really appealing for a number of reasons as it passes through where I grew up as a child and also passes through where we are now. I toyed with the idea of just getting the train north to Appleby and then just walking home- Forrest Gump style😂😂😂
Well done Richard. You showed real determination there to get that done. Realistically I could not have done that in 5 days. 10 miles is about as far as I like to walk these days but the Dales are absolutely beautiful and watching your video brought back great memories of past walking holidays in the area.
Thanks Cliff- really appreciate the comment. I really did stretch myself on the daily milage, but enjoyed the challenge. If I was to do it again, I would look to lighten the weight of my pack and avoid the mega-long milage days.
Glad it brought back some memories...I am hoping that the walk will stick with me for years to come. R
Congratulations on completing your first multi-day backpack. Enjoyed watching you pass through places I visited often in my youth. The route didn’t appear too busy but maybe you just didn’t film when it was. I’m sure you learnt a lot along the way that will help in future similar adventures - there are many to choose from in the UK and abroad. Enjoy your travels in Europe - you have some great places in your plans.
Thanks Graham- I absolutely loved the experience and will be planning another one for next year😉
The route was genuinely dead. I only bumped into a couple of groups that were doing the full route on the first day. I was really surprised at how quiet the stretch from Grassington to Dent was considering it was a sunny weekend and going through some of the honey pot destinations of the Dales.
Thanks for the encouragement. R
Congratulations on that wonderful achievement. When we are out there by ourselves, then we often come face to face with ourselves. There are real moments of clarity.
Such true words! That for me was the best part of the trip. I didn’t really realise how much I needed it until I was mid hike. Definitely a reason to do another one in the future.👍R
Super. Oh saw you today on escape to the country. House looks fabby.
Thanks for this Jason…we didn’t realise that they were doing a re-run of Escape. It was a really fun day filming that. R
Stunning vlog. What an impressive achievement!
Thanks Louise👍
Well done Richard. You should get yourself a jetboil stove - a real game changer for lightweight wild camping. Great video.
As this was my first hike I just used the kit I had but definitely a consideration for the future - thanks 🥾
What an achievement - congratulations. The scenery was beautiful
Thanks Alison- even though much of the walk was in our "own back yard", the beauty of some of the places on route took my breath away.
Have a good one. R
Just caught you guys on Escape to the Country ❤😂
We didn’t realise that they were re-running it😂 We had a really fun day filming it.👍
Thanks for sharing your wonderful video. I’m viewing from the states and would love to do some walks in the UK. The countryside looks so beautiful and pastoral. One question I have is about the distance you walked each day. Some of the days seemed quite long and I wonder if you were having some trouble with blisters why you didn’t choose to shorten some of the days as you had said at one point that you weren’t really on a schedule. Thanks again for taking the time to create and share your videos. We are also a bit early retired and always looking for new adventures. We’ll have to add the Dales Way to our bucket list.
Thanks for this Tom, it's always nice to hear nice things! We love your country too- and cannot wait to get back to the States- you really do live in such a beautiful country. We have fallen in love with your National Parks❤️
Yep- I think that some of the longer days really did for me in terms of blisters- that combined with the heavier load. On my day hikes I can go long and enjoy doing so and have not suffered from blisters for years...so I am thinking that I need to lighten my load. Even on the long trekking days, my legs felt fine- it was just my feet that were falling to bits😂
Experienced multi-day trekkers say that it takes a few goes to see what works for you, so I am already looking at ideas for my next solo effort...keeping a careful eye on foot maintenance😉
Thanks for the comment. Have a good weekend👍R
Well done Richard, great effort and great video. Always enjoy your videos, keep them coming. I'm just trying to work out how to retire myself, 56 next month!
Thanks Craig. It was a great experience. Glad that you enjoy what we are doing. Good luck with the retirement planning- we absolutely love it (if you hadn't already realised😂)
Have a good one. R
That face at 16:44 made me laugh out loud! Not out of meanness but remembering myself being marched across Dartmoor in similar conditions in Navy issue orange waterproofs AND before the invention of blister plasters. That was our exact expressions! Well done Richard! I hope you are having a well earned rest at the lakeside.
Glad it made you smile Denise- I had a good chuckle when I was editing it...it really did paint a 1000 words😂 It really didn't feel that "pain is temporary" at the time, but like all things...it did come to an end.
I did have a good rest at Bowness and Jackie treated me to Fish and Chips which were just great!
Thanks for the comment. R
Hi Richard, enjoyed the video and can identify with the "pain" section! When I trained for the Nijmegen 4-day forced march event (120 km), I bought an excellent book called "Fixing your Feet" by John Vonhof. It was worth every penny in terms of preventing catastrophe; I didn't have a single issue with blisters, hot spots, or any of the more gruesome things that can happen to your feet during those types of events!
Lots of interesting information in the book that I hadn't realised - like the fact that "toughening up" your feet is the last thing you should do. It's aimed at military and ultra runners, but is also perfectly suited for long-distance multi-day walks.
Thanks for this David- the book is going straight on my read list. What a fascinating topic…particularly after the few days of suffering to focus the mind. Would love to get through the next one with no foot issues as my legs coped with the work fine. Good to know the advice worked for you. I am intrigued 👍
Thanks again. R
Enjoyed every moment of your journey. How proud you must be of yourself. I felt your pain, a shame you had a limited time to complete your trek, hope you’re feet are healing well.
Thanks Michelle...I feel quietly proud of getting it done. Feet are doing well and I am back in shoes😂
Thanks for the comment. 👍R
Congratulations Richard, a great achievement! It’s tough to push through the pain barrier, especially when you’re alone. Well done for pushing on and achieving the end goal!
Thanks Jonathan- I certainly learned a lot about myself and I am better as a result of that. In many ways, that was one of the main reasons why I wanted to do it solo.
Thanks for the comment. R
Chapeau Richard. Very many congratulations.
Many thanks Alan. I really enjoyed the whole thing- both physically and mentally. Already thinking of what’s next…
Thanks for the comment. Have a good one👍R
Very inspiring Richard, well done! Interesting to hear your thoughts on dealing with negativity. I almost panic when the negativity starts because I know it will lead to more negative things happening, like a doom magnet! 🤣 I'm not sure how I would cope with all my kit getting wet and having to camp regardless! I was wondering if doing a lot less miles each day over more days would be better for me, but the downside would be having to take a lot more supplies! I guess it's finding a happy medium. Would it feel like cheating to have your pack transferred each day so you didn't have to carry it? Do you think the point of the trek is being entirely self sufficient and only having yourself to rely on? Again, well done you 🏆🏅
Thanks for this- I really enjoyed the mixed emotions of the walk and found it really interesting how my thoughts shifted so rapidly and so regularly. Dealing with wet kit was an issue and if it had rained solidly it would have been a much tougher challenge on the personal admin. I found it hard enough making sure I could wash and dry my socks regularly!
It would defiantly have been easier doing less miles each day, but that would have meant more wild camping as campsites were only at set points on the route. I wanted to get the route done in that time as I only had a limited window to complete it before we set off on our summer adventures.
I only did the route camping and self sufficient as I am a tight Yorkshire man who doesn't want to spend too much money on accommodation or baggage transfers😂
I think that any way you want to do the challenge is right for you. 81 miles is a long way any which way you do it,...solo, camping, group, pubs, baggage transfers, etc...all great options.
Thanks for the comment. R
1. A curry in nature sounds good
2. I made a considerable investment in hiking poles but have never found how to use the properly ..are they worth?
3. Gorgeous scenery and well filmed - thank you
Thanks for this- the curry was an absolute revelation...even though I accept that hunger is a powerful sauce and may just have made a very average dehydrated meal delicious😂
The hiking poles were brilliant for coping with the heavy load and big milage. I rarely use them on day hikes unless conditions are really sketchy in the middle of winter, but I could not believe the difference they made. I just need to now deal with Jackie calling me an old man all the time😂 There are loads of good tutorials you can find on UA-cam how to use them most effectively. That's what I did!
Thanks again for the comment. 👍 R
Brilliant pal, nice change for the channel too, mixing it up!
I feel you have you done Ironman??
Here’s a tip, get a jetboil! (Or like me, a cheaper eBay knockoff) 👍
Many thanks- it was something I wanted to do for a while and having never done anything like this in the past there was a bit of the great unknown.
Yep- I did an Ironman back in the day in my mid-20’s- first and last marathon I will ever run😂 It was a long old day out, but it will stay with me forever. Preferred the half distance TBH.
Love the jetboil idea- but happy with my ancient and clunky set up as it means I don’t need to spend any money😂 Definitely need to drop some kit weight if I do another trek next year.👍 R
Thank you so much for sharing, fantastic location.
You are quite welcome. It wasn't that hard to film when the locations were so stunning and the weather (on the whole) so good.
Thanks for the comment. R
Congratulations! Very inspiring feat (ha!) on your part and the scenery was lovely.
Thanks for the comment Tina...love it! R
Great great video Rich loved it. 🥾
Cheers Eddie- always appreciate your kind words.
Hope you and the team are all well? R
Excellent video thanks for sharing
You are quite welcome. It was a joy to document. R
Great video of the walk Richard - I (almost!) feel like I don't need to do it myself now 🙂. If/when I do it, I won't be camping so I won't have to carry everything that you did which should make it easier. As you say, even though we live here, there are still so many areas yet to explore - the Howgills especially are often overlooked, but there are some great walks there.
It was definitely a tough one Andrew and I needed to draw on all my reserves. Not having a huge heavy sack would definitely have made life more easy. The Howgills were stunning and Jackie and I will have to get up there hiking at some point. I think you will enjoy the Dales Way 🥾
I so appreciate you documenting your experience. I love the vistas you shared - I’m looking forward to taking all of that in! You offered so many good tips as we prepare for our walk in the fall (I want to avoid blisters as much as possible!). We won’t be camping (staying at B&Bs) and our hope is to complete in 7 days. Congratulations!
Thanks Sharon- I am glad it was of some use. I am sure you will be fine for a 7 day schedule. My only top-tip is to take all the time in the world. I got up and walking early each day and knew that I had loads of daylight hours to complete each days walk. When I was tired, I stopped and took a break. You really become attuned to what your body needs.
Good luck with your preparations. R
Ah , well done Richard 👏 Fantastic video, looked amazing, what a great goal to tick off . Hope your feet are enjoying the driving now 😂
Thanks Allison- it's fair to say I would much prefer a 10 hour drive to a 22 mile day on my feet😂
On a positive, the feet are healing well and I am now back into shoes and not just flip-flops😂
Have a good one. R
Brilliant. This was my first step into long distance paths. Was really nice too to start in Windermere and walk back home.
Hi Phil- if I were to do it again, I would definitely do it your way round. I found the bit to the west of the M6 pretty uninspiring, where as the Howgills and the Dales were stunning.
It's amazing how many people have this trek as their first long distance path. I loved the whole thing.
Thanks for the comment. R
You look like you are really suffering in some of that video 😮 congratulations on getting to the end especially seeing your feet were ruined. The scenery looked stunning and you were lucky with the weather the first four days. Looking forward to the European videos
Thanks Carol- the last day was a real tough one, and I wanted to show that in the video. It's no good just trying to make everything out to be unicorns and rainbows. In some ways I was really pleased as I wanted to really test myself and see what it was like when I really hit those low points.
Thanks for the comment. R
Duck tape works well on blisters, no joke and you can wrap it on on trekking poles and take a piece off when you need to tend to a blister. Inspirational !
Thanks Ed- I had heard of this, but in all honesty I probably got onto my hot spots far too late. Something I will defiantly learn for the future.
Compeed was really good, but once the blister was there, it just grew and grew under the compeed...which was less than ideal.
I have really learned the importance of looking after your body!
Thanks for the lovely comment. R
More info on this please, when do you dare to take the tape off 😬. And loved the video, must have walked many more miles to capture those walk away shots 👏
@@angelabates8752 from personal experience I only take it off at the end of the trip/run
And it hurts! but my run or trip hurt less at the time
Congratulations . You must feel a huge sense of achievement. How heavy was your loaded backpack? With those wet conditions and a heavy pack it’s no wonder you ended up with blisters! I did the West Highland Way-at the beginning of May. I used baggage transfer as I don’t have Gucci ultralight kit and took my dog and all of his food along so my backpack would have been about 20kg. The baggage transfer made all the difference and I completed it blister free and no midges at that time of year which was fantastic. Definitely one to consider for you in the future. Hope the current trip is going well. 🥰
Many thanks! I didn't weigh the pack, but it was heavy😳
I really think that it was the food weight that did for me, but there were many stretches where there was no options for food. I have never suffered from blisters before, so I definitely think you are right with the weight factor being the tipping point. I am on my 4th pair of La Sportiva's TX4's and have never had any problems with them- I am gutted that they caused me problems on this walk for the first time. I am already looking for alternatives for my next replacements.
Thanks for the comment. 👍 R
Fantastic vid, thanks. I really enjoyed it. Beautiful scenery and nature.
I walk a lot, but there's a big difference between my 15K steps - flat walking in trainers - and your trekking through mud and rain with a backpack. How much did it weigh and would you omit any of the contents next time? Enjoy Switzerland!
It was certainly a step up from our normal walks and hikes!! I was not loving life in the rain on the last day. We are at lake Orta in Italy at the moment and I am just about starting to feel like getting out walking again! Thanks for watching 😊
Wow Richard that looked tough. Well done for finishing it. I love the Yorkshire Dales they are stunning and I’m fortunate to live not too far away in the Calder Valley. It would be interesting to know if you would do it again (perhaps with Jackie) and if you did how differently you might approach it. Enjoy your Europe trip, I’m looking forward to the videos.
Thanks Jill- as I mentioned in the video- Jackie is way more experienced at these things than me. The main stumbling block was that Jackie didn't want to do such long days, but we only had a tiny window of time to do the challenge before setting off for the summer. She has just said that she would be open to something in the future, but definitely not this year as we don't have enough summer conditions left when we are back in the UK. I would not want to do something like this in tougher weather conditions.
I really enjoyed doing it on my own and definitely got something from that aspect. It really did quieten my mind and gave me time to clear my head.
Have a good one👍 R
This looks fabulous, what time of year did you walk?
Mid May with the hope of slightly warmer weather and longer days. It was a good time to do it 🥾
This looked great! I have a week in June set aside for a multi-day walk and will put this one on the list of options. My knackered old knee doesn’t like too much tarmac, how much of the route would you estimate is on roads? Thanks
It really was great Mike and I absolutely loved the whole experience.
The stretch on day 3 from the Ribblehead to Dent had far too much tarmac for me. That day was the longest day as well, but the tarmac did not help. I was quite surprised how much there was on that day.
All the other days were pretty much off road on footpaths. The best times where when the paths were through supper soft meadows....ooooh luxury😂
Good luck with your plans. R
Hiking poles - What poles do you have and would you recommend them when doing this sort of hiking?
Hi Bronwyn- they are LOMO Aluminium Poles. It will come as no surprise that I did loads of research before getting them and they are really affordable and well rated- I think they are a Scottish company? We have a link to them in our Amazon store.
I bought them to help me on the downhills when I was first getting into the mountains and they really helped. I always use them when hiking in winter for stability and safety.
I would ALWAYS use them on multi-day treks when load carrying. They became my best friends on the Dales way and used them every step.
Hope this is of use? Happy trekking👍 R
@earlyretirementwanderlust Thank you! I thoroughly enjoy all your episodes and following along with your retirement wanderlust! 🤩