Today I start the Hadrian's Wall Path - heading towards Newcastle.
Through the hamlet of Port Carlisle.
Through Drumburgh with it's bastle - a fortified medieval farm house.
I stop for lunch in Burgh on Sands. King Edward I, died on the marshes near Burgh, whilst on his way to war against the Scots. His corpse lay at the village's 12th-century church before being taken for burial in Westminster Abbey. Another famous king with a slight more tenuous connection to Burgh on Sands is King Arthur. The village is said by some to be the location of the quasi-mythical Avalon, the place where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was forged. The Roman fort which once used to stand where the village is was called Aballava which derives from the latin word for apple. The famous Welsh cleric and historian, Geoffrey of Monmouth, described Avalon in his 'Historia Regum Brittaniae' as “a magical place, rich in apples”. Tenuous indeed.
Leaving Burgh on Sands I pick up a walking companion - Alan from Workington - and we walk together until the edge of Carlisle.
Alan striding ahead.
Arriving in Carlisle there is a sweet nutty smell on the wind which I soon realise is coming from the McVitie's factory.
