DId we do it or did we not?

Before I answer that question, I'll just share that that night the choral presentation turned out to be an evensong service (Tara's first), led by a visiting minister, a choir master and a newly formed group of young wanna be choir singers.  They were very sweet albeit timid and quiet.  It brought back many memories of growing up in the Episcopal church.  We followed that up with dinner at the Patterdale Hotel pub:

Mushroom soup with a wide variety of local mushrooms and feta, watermelon and spinach salad with pepper.  All lovely and very satisfying.

OK, now for what you have all been waiting for.  Did we honor ourselves or did we forge ahead?  We actually let the steamers decide.  The gale force winds had begun about 5 am and the rain joined in during breakfast.  Remember the view out our window the day before?  This is what is looked like this morning:

The horizontal rain did not show up in this photo.  Maybe you can enlarge it and see it.  Otherwise, take my word for it.  Promptly at 9 am, we phoned the steamer shop and were informed that indeed the boats would not be sailing.  We immediately phoned the Sherpa Van and made our arrangements, fearing that everyone else would also be chickening out and hitching a ride.  We lucked out though and the van arrived almost immediately, not allowing Tara time to exchange her new jacket for a larger size :(.  Probably after this trip she won't need it!  HeHeHe. Our C2C friends from Bellingham, Barry and Jonathon, were aboard as well and we all enjoyed the outrageous humor of our driver - very sharp and quick and at times sarcastic.  Lots of bluster inside and outside!  We were all very pleased with our decision to ride.

We arrived in Shap early in the pouring rain and were greeted sweetly at Brookfield by Margaret.

  Tara described her perfectly as a Jewish mother disguised as an English inkeeper.  I can see why women here are called hens!  She is quite a mother hen. Her husband Les drove us to the local pub for lunch, where we learned that there is no choice for Sunday lunch.  It's a roast dinner, either beef or chicken with all the trimmings.  When they saw our faces turn ashen, they quickly ran back into the kitchen and came back cheerfully announcing that they had a nutloaf substitute.  Hooray.  It was spicy and delicious.  Then we took off for Shap Abbey but got foiled by the pelting rain and turned back. Later, after tea, with freshly baked scones and chocolate cake (which we did not sample, the cake that is.  The scones were divine), we all went separate walking ways. Speaking of hens (remember?), Tara actually made it to Shap Abbey later and this was what greeted her.  Having technical difficulties transferring her photos. I'll post them when I can.

This is what I saw on my walk:

too windy to catch any other wildflowers, but they are everywhere.

The local quarry and limestone kilm

I met a local gentleman who said there was no water in this creek at 10 am that morning!  That'll give you an idea of how much rain there was.

Dinner of another wonderful tomato soup and roll at The Greyhound Hotel nearby and lots of fun conversation with Jonathon and Barry about our various travels.  Now we're up to date for yesterday.  Whew!