North of England Way Day 6 Friday 27 June

Stoops Moss to Hawes
Miles walked 11
Miles left 117
Walking from 6am to 11am
I was woken at 2.15am by the sound of the gate shutting into/out of North Yorkshire only a few feet away. It wasn't that dark but surely no-one could be out walking at that time. There was no other sound so I went back to sleep.

Off early again, the path over Gayle Moor was generally good but could be boggy in parts if wet. Shortly before High Gayle, there is a fork where the main and obvious track (which is a vehicle track at this point) continues ahead with a grassy path (with a new footpath signpost to Gearstones) to the right. That is the way to go. It passes above High Gayle Farm and gradually descends to Winshaw and then to the B6255. Turning left for two hundred yards, the Dales Way starts a long 1.5 mile ascent to High Cam, meeting with the Pennine Way which joins it from the right. There are currently forest operations going on in Cam Woodlands so the track has been upgraded for lorry use. I saw one go up it from a distance and, when I was on it, a 4x4 went by and threw up a lot of dust.

After a couple of miles further, the Dales Way continued off to the right, signposted Oughtershaw, and  I carried on along the Pennine Way.

It was level walking on a rough vehicle track for maybe four miles before branching off on a grassy path and eventually starting a long descent into Gayle and then Hawes, which was busy with tourists and bunting out for the Tour de France cyclists passing through the weekend after next. I'm taking a day off tomorrow so normal service will hopefully resume on Sunday. I say "hopefully" as this nausea and tummy unsettledness isn't going away. We shall see. This is supposed to be a holiday, after all and I cannot afford to take time off work when I get home.