England Trek 2008 2009.
Kim and Martin’s amble from Gretna Green to Land’s End.No our England walk was not in December 2008 and January 2009 despite the title. We set off from Gretna Green with the intention of getting to Lands End on the 30
th
of September 2008.However we didn’t reach Lands End in 2008 we only got as far as the English Channel in thecounty of Dorset 30days later.The final leg to Lands End had to wait until 2009 so I now feel free to write the blog.The most southerly Scottish border town is Gretna Green which I suppose is why the elopingEnglish couples made it their preferred marriage spot. I never did really understand why people ranaway to Gretna Green so this was an opportunity to find out, here is the answer.In the 18th Century marriage laws were very relaxed. It was simply a matter of declaring your wishto be recognized as husband and wife, and you were married by law. Members of the Englisharistocracy were not happy with this haphazard arrangement and feared their daughters wouldmake unsuitable arrangements with men of whom they did not approve.Gretna's famous runaway marriages began in 1753 when an Act of Parliament,
Lord Hardwicke'sMarriage Act
, was passed in England, which stated that if both parties to a marriage were not atleast 21 years old, then consent to the marriage had to be given by the parents. This Act did notapply in Scotland, where it was possible for boys to get married at 14 and girls at 12 years old withor without parental consent. Since 1929 both parties have had to be at least 16 years old but thereis still no consent needed. In England and Wales the ages are now 16 with consent and 18 without.(Thank you Wikipedia)We set off from Gretna in the rain and headed for the only bridge over the river Esk, the A74 roadbridge. Unfortunatly there were major road imporvements taking place to turn the final section theold A74 into motorway. The work site was closed to all public accees so we pushed on until wefound a someone with an official looking yellow jacket. Our plight seemed to strike a cord and hearranged for the site transport vehicle to come and escort us over the bridge.So only one hour into our trek we were cheating by being driven 500metres over the Esk.Back on foot we trudged on to Carlisle where the rain eased, the castle is spectacular.That evening we made it to Dalston, about 24km not bad for day one.The next day we made it to Greystoke where I seem to remember Tarzan was born, too tired tofind out if this was the ‘real’ Greystoke.Greystoke was on the northern most edge of the Lake District and the next day we made it throughPooley Bridge over Askham Fell and on to Haweswater.
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