Day 5 1/07/04 Sedbergh to Burton Hill (15 miles)
I’m afraid I didn’t take any photos at all on this day, so don’t really have anything to jog my memory about the walk.
Restarting the walk at Millthrop near Sedbergh, we crossed the bridge and soon our path was running alongside the river Rawthey. We passed the point where the Dee, our companion for many miles yesterday, came in from the left to join the Rawthey. To our right were the Howgill Fells still, with Winder overlooking Sedbergh.
At some point we turned right, away from the Rawthey, and crossed fields to eventually reach the river Lune at Lincoln’s Inn Bridge. We didn’t cross here, but continued northwards beside the Lune. We passed under the tall arches of the Lune Viaduct, and continued along further field paths until we reached the Crook of Lune Bridge, an elegant structure that may be 500 years old. We went over the bridge and about a mile further on, we crossed the M6 on a farm bridge.
The rest of today’s walk was now over the undulating landscape south-east of the Lake District, a mixture of fields and rough pastures. I’m afraid I don’t remember too much about it. At one point we passed a stall where two enterprising youngsters from a farm or cottage were selling drinks to passing Dales Way walkers – a good idea, as the guide book points out there are no places for refreshment anywhere on this section of the route. I do remember passing the charming Black Moss Tarn, an unexpected pleasure when it suddenly came into view. We did go slightly wrong at one point, ending up walking two sides of a triangle, but during this slight diversion we saw a Roe Deer.
The walk ended at the A6 near Burton Hill, not far from Kendal. The minibus driver took us on a rather round-about route to avoid major traffic jams in the town.