Guess what? The guidebook was wrong. If I am boring you
with my boggy tales, spare a thought for me!
The guidebook said that today would be an easy stage across moorlands
with fine views but bog hopping skills required and then forests with no bogs
but no views either. Wrong, on a number of points. No views from the moors (weather
related), and the forests were a swamp, as I expected. There were also views of
tomorrow’s route from the forest road. At least today I managed to keep my feet
dry.
Today I was in Redesdale Forest. The guidebook lumps all
the forests together under the name of Kielder Forest but Wainwright, correctly
I think, lists 6 separate forests of which Keilder is one straddling the border
of England and Scotland. The forest plantations
began in response to a perceived timber shortage after the first world war and
planting went on into the 1950s and the Border Forest Park was created in 1955.
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| Path or bog? |
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| Fire fighting equipment. A bucket would be easier. |
Given that the planting to harvest time is supposed to be
40 years, I wonder if that has been borne out by economics. Is it more costly
to harvest than the timber is now worth?
Clearly some harvesting has been done because there are sections of
baron land visible, but only small patches. Some sections appear to have been
replanted too but huge expanses seem to be being left to age.
I did spot some felled trees by the side of the road but
these appear to have been felled for safety reasons as much as anything as
there was a farmhouse nearby. I counted the rings on one and it was 53, planted
in 1963 / 4 and well past its 40 year cycle.
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| Cut timber. 53, I reckon. |
We are now camped in Byrness, the last habitation on the
PW before Kirk Yetholm. Byrness was built to house forestry workers in the
1930s and has 47 dwellings, a hotel and a garage. Some of the people evacuated
from St Kilda in 1930 were also re-settled here. Given that there is not much around
here now by way of work, the forest having been planted, the reservoirs built
and not much harvesting going on, it’s a wonder it survives. Its survival helped
no doubt by the steady flow of people passing through on the PW.
Catherine cycled to Kielder Reservoir to see the dam and
have tea and cake at Falstone where there is also an art installation
commemorating / celebrating the villages that were “drowned” in the
construction of the reservoir. Victoria sandwich was on the menu, but it had “issues”
in that it contained butter cream; jam only please.
The final two stages are ahead. I had a good view of the
Cheviots from the forest road and the climb up from Byrness looks tough, as it
always does from a distance but hopefully not so in reality.
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| The Cheviots on the horizon. |
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I will be climbing and traversing that ridge on the
horizon tomorrow and Sunday. It is 29 miles from Byrness to Kirk Yetholm, too
far to do in one day. Too far for me anyway, others do it in one hit, I won’t
be. As a result I will be backpacking the last two days, carrying a small one
person tent, sleeping bag, stove, food etc and camping at Davidson’s Linn, a
waterfall about a mile off the route at Windy Gyle. Windy Gyle! Says it all,
some people camp on the ridge, I won’t be!
So, I will be offline for two days, assuming I can
publish this one which is a tall order and assuming I can get internet access
in Kirk Yetholm, also a tall order. Not far now.
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| Bring your own axe? |
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| Can't see the path? No, neither could I. |
AW
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