Windswept Walk

The wind has been extremely strong lately. The morning news reported three overturned lorries in our area. Yesterday, a motorway in Cumbria was closed for 24 hours due to an accident caused by an overturned lorry. And it was into winds such as this that I hiked with my hiking group today. We hiked on the Fountains Abbey estate. Through the course of the hike I couldn't get over the roaring of the wind. It was like some angry beast. There was a raw stark beauty to the day and even though the wind raged on it wasn't that cold. Powdery clouds raced over gorgeous blue skies. Visibility was phenomenal. At one point we were able to see Ripon Cathedral, some four miles away, clear as crystal. We walked down into an area known as the Valley of the Seven Bridges where we were protected from the wind. The humble little bridges, made of stone, were all built by the monks who founded the abbey in the 12th century. We walked through the little village of Studley Royal on the outskirts of the Fountains Abbey estate. At the end of the walk we had to climb up from the valley. Going uphill directly into the wind on a slippery grassy slope was one of the hardest tasks I've ever encountered while hiking in England. On Boxing Day there will be a guided walk from Ripon Cathedral to Fountains Abbey. The walk is a reenactment of the route taken by the thirteen monks who founded the abbey. I'm told there could be about a thousand people on the walk. I think I'll pass on that one. After lunch a friend and I went to base to run some errands. We couldn't get any of our errands done. The electricity was out on the base. Probably taken out by the wind.