First of all guys, sorry about the TR formatting. I am useless at this sort of stuff and seem to have loaded all my blogs onto both this report and the Dales Way TR loaded today too. The C2C layout is not as I intended and the DW pics seem not to have loaded. So it is back to the Drawing Board. I fine this aspect of my walking really frustrating
. If the blog is ok with you let me know.
Anyway, Chiropractic seems to work for me Dave. He tells me I am getting an arthritic (right) hip. This has presented as an ache in the lower back that progresses to a sciatic type pain in the front of my thigh which hurts when I stretch forwards or upwards. It started last winter. This is probably why I have been getting compensatory pains in my right knee for the last couple of years. He basically loosens me up once a month now (after an intense initial treatment period) and this includes quite a sore massaging of my thigh muscle. The solution it seems is just to keep using it as long as it works; no real benefit in not walking.
Re the walk itself. Having done it 4 times previously I was looking for a bit of variety; hence some of the variations (Swainby was because my hip was playing up and walked along the railway out of St Bees because I was late). I liked the Wythburn route although if you are doing it for the first time Jon, I guess the standard route has interest although there is some tarmac around Grasmere. Wythburn is a couple of miles shorter and I fancied a couple of beers in Patterdale on a Friday evening! I would definitely recommend the High Raise - Measand Beck variation. You keep high and the views are superb. The standard route by contrast is a bit hemmed in alongside Haweswater.
My "short" day to Keld was well worth it for the place I stayed that night. Keld to Richmond makes a decent days walk out of two short ones and the Swale is very pretty on a sunny day.
I would not follow the standard route along the roads to Danby Wiske; I would keep to the farm tracks from Ellerton Hill; much easier on the feet.
You do save a bit of climbing out of Ingleby Cross as Dave says by going through Swainby; but I would normally follow the former if your legs are working as you can get to Blakey Ridge easily enough by teatime (stopping at Clay Bank seems a bit pointless too).
I do like to finish from the Lion in one day and enjoyed a bit of the cross country stuff. With an early start you can complete the "official " route including the Hawsker loop by early evening.
I think I tried a bit of your 9 standards route in 2013 Ninthace when I stayed at a B&B on the Nateby Road; managed to get lost near a farmstead en-route to the Fell Path whilst trying to locate a stile over a wall!
I enjoyed the walk and the company along the way. Familiarity does make it seem easier but like an old shoe it is every comfortable and I may well do it again. That said the call of the PW is beginning to make itself heard again.
John