Christian Aid at 80 Part 8 - The Walk Day 3 part 1

My third walking day was the one I was most concerned about! The Northern Celebration for 80 years of Christian Aid was due to start in Haltwhistle with a tea at 4pm then a talk and display of posters.
The group who were walking East to West would be there as well as cyclists who were making their way from Carlisle.
I was worried that, as well as 15 miles of wall to negotiate, I had a further 2 miles to travel into Haltwhistle. Would I make it in time for tea?
With that in mind I was up early and left my luggage, clearly marked with my name and the address of the accommodation in Haltwhistle. I was ready to go.
Strava says I started walking at 6.55am and I was surprised to feel refreshed and calm in the cool of the early morning.
The early miles were pleasant. Through the village, past the lovely green where I had enjoyed my wrap the previous evening and on through farmland to Walton. 
I now felt I was truly “Walking the Wall”.
I paused briefly at the Hayton Gate honesty box, 4 miles into the journey. A second breakfast of something sweet and chocolatey seemed in order. A sign said “Public Toilet” I didn’t expect to find a Portaloo hidden in the trees. I have to admit it was not a pleasant place to dwell. I never thought anything positive would come out of the pandemic but it gave us hand sanitiser and that day I really needed it!
Strava shows that I accidentally deviated from the route near Lanercost Priory but a friendly local man tending his ponies assured me that I didn’t need to turn around, just take the next left and the lane would lead me back up the hill to the path.
I turned left a few yards on as instructed and came across a young lady sitting on a bench. She seemed very alone so I asked if she was ok. It turned out she was the camper with the sprained ankle who was, again waiting for a lift to the next campsite.
Passing through the village of Banks I paused on a convenient bench to take my cardigan off. After about 2 hours of walking and 5 miles in it was getting warm.
The lane out of the village was a steady incline but I soon came across the first significant stretch of Hadrian’s magnificent wall. Although I had already realised my enthusiasm was much more for the walk than it was for the wall I had to admit I was well impressed.
As I came to the end of this stretch I thought it was time to consult the map. Not one of my better moments when I realised I couldn’t find it anywhere. After searching all my pockets and through my backpack there was only one conclusion, I had laid it on the bench where I stopped in Banks. And so it was half a mile back, down the hill and half a mile back up again.  Happily it was still there waiting for my return and fortunately I wasn’t miles away when I realised it was missing. I really needed that map!
I continued without any further mishaps, aiming for an early lunch break at Birdoswald.
Strava shows that I arrived at 3 hours and 58 minutes since my early departure.
Outside I paused at the now familiar little wooden box to add the third stamp to my passport.
Heat was becoming almost unbearable and as I made my way into the yard it was like entering an oven. The glass doors of the cafe were right in full sun and I felt sorry for the staff working hard behind the counter near the entrance. With a coffee in hand I made my way up a short flight of stairs into a building which resembled a granary.  It was blissfully cool and restful.
The arrival of a group of men from Newcastle, walking East to West filled the space with gentle banter, when one of them asked who recognised school chairs. My second thought on entering that room, after thinking how cool the room was, had been the sight of chairs from my schooldays in the early 60’s.
I also chatted with two ladies visiting from Australia who had paused on their drive up into Scotland.
As I pulled my backpack on, ready to leave, “school chairs” man leaned towards me and said “The thing is, we should have been doing this kind of thing years ago!” I was inclined to agree with him, but I left that place smiling and slightly more upbeat than when I arrived!
Strava says 10.72 miles walked 24,986 steps and only just over halfway to Haltwhistle.