Leaving Hesket Newmarket I saw this morning view of l to r, Cross Fell, Little Dun Fell
and the radar station on Great Dun Fell 39km (24miles) away.

It was just below zero overnight but thankfully the tent was free of ice so packing up wasn’t as much of a problem as yesterday. However, today I need to catch a specific train in Kendal so have a long way to go to catch the 14:10 from Oxenholme. Taking a bike on a train means having to book it on and that’s the train I chose. This meant I had to be away fairly early so it was about 07:30am when I left and still dark. Cycling in the dark is a problem when there’s ice on the road. I set off on the long climb of Pasture Lane towards Calebreck and near the top it was coming light.

 A vehicle approached and stopped. The window rolled down and it was Steve’s wife who was on her way to work. She said I should call in to see Steve as I would pass the access road to their house on my way. I said I wouldn’t have time but thinking afterwards decided that if I missed my train it wasn’t the end of the world and could catch another. But I may not get the chance to see Steve for a long time. I decided to call in to see him. He was just getting his two sons ready for school and after the school bus picked them up from the gate we went in for a couple of brews and a chat.

The ford at Carrock Beck

I would have liked to stay longer but my watch was ticking towards the train departure time. I set off again and had to use the footbridge to cross the ford just along the road. I kept to the lanes on the ride to Penrith and they seemed to take ages due to long uphill sections. I was in a rush, not a good thing, but had to stop briefly in Greystoke to photograph the cross.

Greystoke Cross

Approaching Penrith I saw a stone pillar in a field on the right. There was no information board but I later found out it is the Greystoke Pillar and is a grade 2 monument and late 18th century for the 11th Duke of Norfolk and apparently a boundary marker dividing the manors of the Duke of Norfolk and those of the Earl of Lonsdale. I went though the centre of Penrith but was defeated by the one-way system and had to wheel my bike for quite a way. Riding out on the A6 I was heading towards Shap and a long climb.

Greystoke Pillar

I kept an eye out along the road for any milestone to give me an idea how far Kendal was. The only signs were for Shap.
Entering Clifton a sign said ‘Last Battlefield on English soil 1745’
This was the site of the Clifton Moor Skirmish which took place between forces of the British Hanoverian government and Jacobite rebels on 19 December 1745. I kept an eye out for milestones on the way to Shap but there weren’t any.

Clifton

The above memorial reads:

Riding over Shap
both water bottles were frozen

In Shap I’d assumed there’d be a sign telling me how far Kendal way. Out of the village was a sign saying which way it was but not how far it was. The climb up Shap wasn’t as hard as I’d expected and at the top I couldn’t resist stopping by the stone memorial to commemorate the vehicle drivers and crews in the times before the M6 when they had no choice but to come this way. I now had the same problem as yesterday as both by water bottles were frozen. The descent was interesting as there were still patches of ice on the road. On the final few miles I realised there was a good chance I could catch my train. I got through the town OK but had underestimated the distance I still had to go to Oxenholme and also the steep climb up to the station. I got there at 14:00 exactly and only had a short wait as the train arrived slightly late at 14:13 pm.

Oxenholme Railway Station