Cowuss on the hill

Backblip 5

Sadly, our last full day in Swaledale. And another scorcher!

We needed put fuel in the van and had noticed in passing yesterday that the garage in Hawes was selling diesel at 1.68 per litre. Once upon a time not so long ago that would have seemed outrageously expensive, but these days it's a snip. So off to Hawes we went. First a very brief wander round the town to buy some fruit - deliciously juicy local Victoria plums - and for an ice cream. No cheap fuel for us though - not surprisingly there was a very long queue at the garage, and we didn't want to waste time sitting in it!

Back to the campsite for an early lunch before setting off on on the only proper walk of this trip - to Thwaite , and back over the hill. We passed lots of cow'uses on the way including this one, tucked in to the hillside. The extras, taken on the way back, are looking down to the campsite and to Muker. A lovely walk but very short, just over 5km, but there was no shade for most of that and it felt quite far enough in the heat.

Back just in time to buy some local sausages for our evening meal. MrM soon had them sizzling in a pan while I did some tent tidying and packing. Then a cooling shower, and a sit down with a glass of something before bed.

A bizarre encounter on the footpath near Thwaite! A very  inquisitive chap, accompanied by a foreign lady dressed in a floaty pink satin dress, engaged us in conversation. They were hoping to dip their toes in to the stream, but thought walking the short distance on the path through the fields might be a little too far. He asked numerous, rather strange questions about camping and the campsite, and about 'hiking'. Like speaking with someone from another planet! Maybe they were...