I GOT UP early and packed my things then went down for breakfast. There was a poached egg which would have been good except the yolk ran all over my food. It wasn't great.

We paid and I stuck a pin in their map in Cochrane [my home town in Ontario, Canada] which had no pin yet. She had guests stick them in the world map if she'd never had any guests from there before.

The weather was gloomy but at least there was no rain. I put my bags into the car then cycled over to the train station. I asked about storing my bike, and for L1.50, I locked away my bike in the station, away from the elements, for a whole week! On my way out, Sharon and Ann met me so we hopped into the car and tried to leave York, but it was a bit hard as the streets weren't too well-marked. We finally escaped and headed north to Thirsk. On the side of the road near Thirsk was a huge limestone horse on the side of the mountain. It had been built by a teacher and his students in 1857. Also atop the mountain was Sutton Bank where we had a beautiful view of a lake and the surrounding fields for miles over to the Pennines. This was James Herriot country and the view I photographed was what he described as the most beautiful in the world. Thank God I hadn't attempted it on the bike as there were 10% and 25% slopes. A bit steep!

Back in Thirsk, we were hungry so we stopped for lunch. I ate a cornish pasty and raisin bread (no scones!!). We continued on our way to Ripon where we visited Fountain Abbey - a Cistercian ruins from the 1100s. A National Trust property (ie free for me), it was one of the largest ruins in the country. It was huge, in ruins and a beautiful stream passed beneath. The monks drew water from one end, dumped sewage in the other. I'd taken one photo in the clouds but had to take another when the clouds opened to reveal the sun. The green was stunning - glistened me to death.

We left the Abbey to head to the Yorkshire Dales. I had never seen such desolation. There is a lot of brown heather, rocks, rock fences, rolling hills, zillions of sheep, rock huts, and when the sun is covered and rain is falling, nothing could be more depressing! After driving through for several hours, I really grew to feel as if a huge weight was being lowered onto me. The valleys weren't too bad as there'd be a few trees, a bit of grass and a stream, but soon you were back up into the drabness. Wuthering Heights came into mind, I could see how someone from the area would want to return. But, even though we have snow, our summer jungle in Cochrane is much better. I was relieved when we were free of the dales.

We went through the dales then north, then back east but by now were back to greenery, trees and beauty. Incredible beauty. We stopped in Durham to see the Cathedral but it was closed. On the way out of town we stopped at an accident we'd just missed since Ann is a nurse. A cyclist had been hit by a car. The shoes were across the road, the bike was in a mess and the girl was screaming - Ann thought she'd broken a leg. Someone else was in control so we left. We decided to head to Hexham where we followed my route according to my notes. Just before turning onto the A695 we thought we'd made a wrong turn. There were no lines on the road, no cars and the road itself was very narrow. Trees were hanging over the road and as we descended to a stream, the bridge was a moss-covered gem. It was the country I came to see. It was too late to get a photo, though, so I'll have to return some day!

We strayed a bit from my notes into Hexham and aimlessly drove around looking for a B&B. We finally stopped at police headquarters and with their gendarme, my CTC B&B book, and asking people, we finally found #1 Osborne Avenue with Mrs. Pott for L8. It is a beautiful private home, nice woman, and very clean. As soon as I got in I had a bath and washed clothes. I hung them to dry on the rad then went into Sharon and Ann's room to write this, trace the route on the map and send a postcard home while they did the same.

Tomorrow we explore Hexham, Hadrian's Wall, then some mansions in southern Scotland before heading up to Edinburgh. Then I believe I'll take the train to the Lake District before getting Bike next week. I miss him.