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I'm attempting to climb all 140 Donalds and Donald Tops in aid of charity. 'Donalds for Donald' is a personal challenge in memory of my late father, Donald, and in aid of Mesothelioma UK. After the walk in this report, my total is currently 48/140, and I aim to complete them by 15th November (his birthday). I'd better get walking...I'd earmarked a day off to tackle another of the more isolated Donalds, and things did not get off to a great start because of poor weather, flooding near Carlisle, and so train cancellations galore. I left Newcastle at about 7:30am and had hoped to be walking by about 11am, taking in Cauldcleuch Head but also climbing some of the intriguingly named little hills nearby (Lightning Hill, anyone?). As it turned out, I only just made it to Carlisle by about 11:30 and given the flooding, I didn't hold out much hope of even making it into the Scottish Borders. However! This long and boring story ended when I just thought "to hell with it" and decided that if worst came to worst I'd end up sleeping out somewhere in Teviotdale. I'm glad I saw the little plan through, because just an hour from Carlisle, I enjoyed one of the sunniest and clearest walks in a long time. Cold, but absolutely glorious. From hell to heaven, in just one journey on the X95 bus.
Time now dictated I would just do a straightforward in/out walk by the same route, and I hopped off the bus at Linhope. Just a farm and a cottage, but sadly deserted and the cottage at least is currently for sale. I took the opportunity to walk straight through the farm yard, not a soul in sight, and walked the track that passes several sheepfolds and sheds as it follows Linhope Burn.
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Before the track rounded the bottom of Jenny's Tongue, I headed straight up the hillside to pt.425, then after dropping down a little way, plodded up the much steeper hillside past Millstone Edge, until I came to the fence line. The tussocky ground gave way, as expected, to wetter ground but it was a good, dry day and apart from some general boggy sections, it was a very easy walk following the fence all the way over Langtae Hill, along Footman Hass. From here the (surprisingly?) impressive Cauldcleuch Head displayed itself, with gullies running down its sides into the valley, and a lovely clear sky overhead.
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
The summit was a short hop from Footman Hass, and wasn't nearly as boggy as I had anticipated. I took a little while to enjoy some of the clearest views I've had from any Donald so far, and then returned the way I had come (though deep down I was cursing the fact I was only here for a short walk - I could have easily continued to Greatmoor Hill, perhaps camped near the Maiden Paps and walked into Hawick the next day, or at the very least climbed the impressive Tudhope Hill for more views of Teviotdale. Bloody bus timetables
). I took a token detour around the base of Jenny's Tongue to enjoy views looking back up Tudhope Hill, and soon regained the track back to Linhope where I caught the bus back to Carlisle soon after.
A glorious few hours in a glorious part of the world, and one more Donald ticked-off. It took an awfully long time to get back to Newcastle, and the weather at Carlisle was so bad I wondered if this afternoon had actually happened, or perhaps it had been a dream...
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
Walking in Teviotdale. by
Christopher Watson, on Flickr
