Still pressing on......

Walking week 7

On Sunday we spent some time with Shona's Aunty Ann, as is usual, when we visit, we were amply fed and watered. It was lovely to see her and cousin Derek popped in to say hello.

Our walking between Monday and Thursday was generally easy, mostly urban with pleasant weather. 

Friday on the other hand was wet, and the hills were steep. The photo on the right is Shona walking towards the Ribblehead Viaduct, in the distance the hills are shrouded in mist.

The Ribblehead Viaduct was built during the Victorian era just over the border from Cumbria into North Yorkshire and is undoubtedly the most impressive structure on the Settle-Carlisle Railway.

Sadly, hundreds of railway builders (“navvies”) lost their lives building the line, this was due to a combination of accidents, fights, and smallpox outbreaks. In particular, building the Ribblehead (then Batty Moss) viaduct, with its 24 massive stone arches 104 feet (32 metres) above the moor, caused such loss of life that the railway paid for an expansion of the local graveyard.

If time had permitted, we could have visited a number of memorials along the line that commemorate the lives of some of the men who died building the line.

Whilst writing our blog, as a retired railwayman, I reflected on colleagues lost due to accidents and illness during my career. Some were taken so young, reminding me of this verse: To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven, a time to be born and a time to die. 

One of the things that we both constantly remind ourselves, as we have attempted to walk from Land's End to John O'Groats, is that none of us know what will happen tomorrow, and we boast of it at our peril. We can only say "if the Lord wills".

Having left the Ribblehead Viaduct way behind we approached a place called Dentdale on our way to Garsdale. 

We turned a corner and were faced with a very large red sign that warned, there is a steep climb of 1750 feet ahead, (heavy vehicles were not to attempt it).

The climb was about 2 miles long. This photo was taken as Shona reached one of the many false summits.

Thankfully, we both pushed on and made it to the summit, on the way up I was reminded of the old hymn: 

I'm pressing on the upward way,
New heights I'm gaining every day;
Still praying as I onward bound,
"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground."

Lord, lift me up, and let me stand
By faith on Heaven's tableland;
A higher plane than I have found,
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

Shona and I press on each day, thankful for all your words of encouragement, prayers and support, we are really looking forward to seeing everyone soon as we pass through Falkirk on our way north.

For those interested in statistics, below is a screen shot of the latest weeks walking, the bold row at the bottom shows the overall mileage and steps we have taken so far.


Thank you again for reading our blog, and once again please feel free to visit and share the "Shona and Mike Take a Hike" fundraising page at:

https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/shonaandmike-giving-page-2298439   

You can also visit our page using the QR Code below:



Comments

  1. Anonymous15 June 2024 at 13:42

    You two are amazing. Xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shona and Mike Take a Hike16 June 2024 at 07:36

      Thank you so much, we really do appreciate your encouragement.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous15 June 2024 at 13:59

    Well done both of you. May you feel God’s presence with you both. And all the prayers. 🙏🏻🙏🏻xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shona and Mike Take a Hike16 June 2024 at 07:36

      Thank you, for your prayers and there is no doubt we have been aware of God's presence throught the last 7 weeks.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous16 June 2024 at 07:57

    I met you whilst out running near Harvington Hall (Kidderminster) a couple of weeks ago. I thought I'd lost your card. Finding it I checked on your progress...are you sure you're not running parts of it!
    Very impressive. Best of luck.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous16 June 2024 at 14:27

    I admire you borh and what you are doing. Upwards!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Shona and Mike Take a Hike17 June 2024 at 10:32

    Thank you so much, as Shona and I said to the folks at Church, the Miller Hall, when we spoke about attempting the challenge, we really are thankful to the Lord for the good health He has given us and we wanted to express our faith in this work. We also keep in mind the words of the Apostle Paul when he said: "Whether we eat or drink, or whatever we do, we do to the glory of God", we believe any success we might achieve must be to His praise and His glory.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous17 June 2024 at 12:21

    Brilliant progress, Shona and Mike! Have just looked at the long range forecast and hopefully the weather will be improving for you! Keep smiling, Fiona & Donald

    ReplyDelete

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