BB2024 : Farewell to Skippy

Wednesday 15th July 2020

Today was a sad day for me.  Very sad.  It was to be the last outing with my faithful companion of 15 years.  Much as Skippy would have preferred to be romping up rough tracks to the highest hills, today the weather confined us to a more gentle expedition though not one not without some hitherto unexplored features.

We (BOOTboys, not Skippy) were intending to explore Trowbarrow Quarry, now turned into a nature reserve and rock-climbing venue.  However first we had to negotiate road closures.  A tractor had caught fire.  Would you believe that it took five fire crews several hours to put it out?  Well, that’s what the Westmorland Gazette says so it must be true.

The quarry area is huge although muchly revegetated.  The eastern side presents a long, long quarry wall.  

However it was on the lower, western side that we saw a climber in action.  Rather him than me.

Emerging from the quarry, we passed a field full of Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs before reaching Haweswater (Lancashire one, not Westmorland).  

Here we turned east, across pleasant fields and along woodland tracks to emerge at Yealand Storrs.  We wondered about lunch but we were by the side of the road.  "How about having it at Round Top?" I suggested, advising that it would only be about 15 minutes.  Well, it might have been fifteen minutes had it been normal terrain but we had to fight our way through bramble and other obstacles only to find that Round Top was pretty much a jungled non-entity with nothing to commend it other than a path downwards.

Next on the agenda was a sort of inverted Round Top- Deepdale Pond.  Down and down we went, albeit on a decent trail this time, only to find that the Pond was totally over-grown and we now had to climb back out.

We did then find an open field where, provided you didn’t mind the smell of excessive sheep shpoo we would sit in the open to eat.  This was to the side of Yealand Manor where Stan and I had spent happy times when it was Provincial Insurance’s training centre.

Sat here, my thoughts kept returning to Skippy.  The more mistreatment I had hurled at Skippy, the more the loyal response.  Yes, Skippy would be sadly missed.

An option now was to continue on to Warton Crag but we decided that it would add little of value to the walk compared with heading due west towards Leighton Hall.

At the top of the rise is what is shown on the map as a Cairn but I am sure that it and the circle of large stone surrounding it at distance, is of some significance but what currently escapes me*.

Beyond the line of trees lies the descent to Leighton Hall which, to my surprise in these Corvidian days, is open to visitors.  But not today.  Tomorrow?

The way back took us alongside Leighton Moss.  The hides were closed but there were some viewing points.  

However as we didn’t know what we were looking at, we pressed on back to our start point and back to Skippy.

Unfortunately, as comes to all of us, age and in this case abuse by its master, had taken its toll and it is time to part.  On Sunday, I will be taking Skippy to the final resting place to say goodbye.

You didn’t think I was talking about a dog did you? Or a kangaroo?  No Skippy is my Subaru Forester, the flying skip that in fifteen years has never let me down despite my inflicting great wounds onto its outside and piling all sort of filthy loads into its inside.  But the time has come to part.

Farewell Skippy, thank you for everything; life will be very different without you.

Don, Wednesday 15th July 2020

* Afternote: In BB1044 I recorded that we had learned that a pagoda or summer house once stood there and that the open space had contained the village cricket pitch.  I had forgotten!

 

BOOTboys

Comments

Stephen:  Let me know if you need any separation anxiety concelling.  The lady we used for our dog is very good.

Martin:  The report of yesterday's walk brought back memories of a cairn and memorial which appeared on Whitbarrow a few years back.

Interestingly also 15 years of loyalty! Never did find out whose dog Skippy was.

Mike:  By "filthy loads" I take it you mean BOOTboys?

Don:  Not since Lockdown!

Do you have any comments or questions?

If so, please click on .  We look forward to hearing from you.  If you do NOT want your comments to appear on this website, please say so otherwise we will assume that we have your permission for publication in whatever responsible manner we consider appropriate.  Alternatively you can leave a comment on Facebook.

If you would like to become a BOOTboys Follower click on to let US know and you will receive automatic notification of new reports.

Comitibus

Stan, Martin, John, Don

Route:

Map OS 1:25k

STATISTICS

BB2024 : Farewell to Skippy

Date:

Wednesday 15th July 2023

Features:

Trowbarrow Quarry, Yealand, Leighton Hall & Moss

Comitibus:

Don, John, Martin, Stan

Distance in miles (Garmin):

7.8

Height climbed in feet (MM):

1,028

GPX track

BB2024.gpx

Down in the Zoombar  :

Martin

Don

Stan

Mike T

Mike B

John H

 

 Stephen

 

If you want to follow The BOOTboys let us know and you will receive automatic notification of new BOOTboys reports.   Click on to contact US.  BOOTboys are also on Facebook

For the index pages of our various earlier outings click on the relevant link below:

Home

BB04

BB05

BB06

 BB07

BB08

BB09

BB10

BB11

BB12

BB13

BB14

BB15

BB16

BB17

BB18

BB19

BB20

 

Archive

Photos have been gleaned from many sources although mostly from me and other BOOTboys. Likewise written comment.
I apologised if I have failed to acknowledge properly the source or infringed copyright.
Please let me know and I will do my best to put things right.
Unless stated otherwise, please feel free to download the material if you wish.
A reference back to this website would be appreciated.

BOOTboys 2020

E-mail addresses on this web Site are protected by Email Riddler

Spam Trawlers will be further frustrated by  Spam Blocker: help fight Spam e-mail!

 BOOTboys© is a Lakeland Enterprise production brought to you by

Comities Communications©