Lady Anne's Way 2019 Day 2

Monday 14^th October 2019 Buckden

My feet were wet all day today from an excess of wet grass (and the boots I was wearing had not been waterproof for a long time).  This was a longer stage than when I previously walked the Way, last time having walked only from Grassington to Buckden, this time adding that extra section from Burnsall to Grassington at the beginning.  It was a misty morning when I started out.

I think I took almost this exact same photo when I was last here

Prior to Grassington, the last time I walked Lady Anne’s Way, I got a little disoriented.  I had been following the guidebook which gave some convoluted twists and turns.  Today, however, I was using the ViewRanger app on my phone, which showed the footpaths clearly, and found the path to be a straight line, which made me ponder how I had gone so wrong back in 2015.

In Grassington I was striding down the roads, wondering slightly at the busyness of it all, and noticing a couple of people in period dress but not really paying attention, when I blundered past a small group standing and waiting for something.  A woman stepped in front of me and asked me in a hushed tone if I could wait until they finished filming the scene.  At this point I glanced ahead and finally noticed the film crew, actors, and cameras all about the place.  Talk about being oblivious!  It was mere seconds before someone called “Cut” and everyone began moving and talking.  Apparently, they were filming for a new version of “All Creatures Great and Small” set back in the 40s or so and I would have looked completely out of place in my modern bright orange waterproof jacket striding through the middle of it.  I wandered on, into the Spar, struggling to purchase a range of snack items for my planned “dinner” in my room that night.

Later, I stopped in Kettlewell for a slightly expensive sandwich at one of the three pubs (and felt conspicuously underdressed for the occasion), although it was a special that included a bowl of soup.  As I did not have far to walk in the afternoon, I slowed down and reminisced over not only the route from my original outing along Lady Anne’s way, but also the overlapping sections from when I walked the Dales Way the year before.

I stayed at the WestWinds tearoom & BnB in Buckden, where I had stayed the first time around.  A lovely little place that offered tea and cake upon arrival and normally would also offer an early supper should you want it, but not on Mondays, and today was Monday.  I have just read online, that Lynn and Stephen have now sold WestWinds and new owners are taking over in about 10 days time.  I hope they do a grand job and live up to the expectations I now have of the place (I've just checked their website and notice that they have jacked the price for a single stay from the £30 I paid in 2015 and the £32 I paid in October of 2019 to £45 this year, an increase of over 40%!  I guess I'll have to think twice about staying there again).

I had heard reports that the local pub, the Buck, had become an upmarket affair offering only tapas at high prices, turning their nose up at the presence of any walker who made the mistake of entering the premises, so consequently I had purchased extra food when in Grassington that morning with the plan on eating that instead of going out for dinner.  However, my hosts assured me that the Buck's owners had realised the folly of their ways, and had since decided to embrace the old ways and returned the pub’s meals and prices to what they once were.  Sadly, I had not budgeted for a pub meal and with the extra grub in my pack, I stayed in my room and had many snacks instead.

Day 3