Lyke Wake Walk - Whitby Online

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The Lyke Wake Walk

The infamous Lyke Wake Walk.

The Lyke Wake Walk is a 42 mile slog across the North Yorkshire Moors. It begins in Osmotherly and ends, finally, at the Ravenscar mast near the small coastal village of Ravenscar.

The old official walk web site is here. But the club is closing down now:

http://www.lykewakewalk.co.uk

The 'New Lyke Wake Club' site is here:

http://www.lykewakewalk.co.uk

Here's an account of my (webmaster) recent (23/12/2003) crossing:

"A couple of mates and I parked up in Osmotherly at 4PM on Saturday and set out on the 42 mile 'Lyke Wake Walk' which crosses the highest points of the North Yorkshire Moors, finally terminating on the coast at Ravenscar, near Robin Hoods Bay.

I developed bad blisters after mile 2... then a blizzard set in. One guy dropped out after 19 miles as one of his legs wouldn't bend any more. Then the snow turned to torrential rain, then hail, then rain, then the wind picked up too. I had pools of water in my boots and mitts and when we stopped for more than a couple of minutes I started to shake with cold... so we didn't stop too often.

We were fortunate enough to reach a pub which was still open at one of the highest points on the moors (The Lion Inn, Blakey Ridge). It gave me a chance to swap my blood soaked socks with dry ones, and tape up my feet.

By 3 or 4 AM the rain and melting snow resulted in all the tracks being rivers, literally. We waded and slipped our way over hill and dale, stopping only to verify our position.

The whole event was surreal. With it being dark for all but about an hour at each end, my whole world was just a small torchlit area near my feet.

At 8.15AM we hobbled to the finish line and collapsed into the back of an awaiting car.

Thank heavens for GPS, Goretex and walking poles! (EDIT: And parents, who cooked us breakfast)

I'm sat here now, some 26 hours since I finished walking, and everything hurts. Stairs are a nightmare. Walking on the flat, I can manage about half a mile an hour.

How many Ibuprofen can I safely eat I wonder."

COMMENTS

26th July 2021 by Anon

Anyone who attempts the LWW in winter is either insane or owns a massive pair of cohoyhnes!! Massive respect but really you need to do it in April to Sept start at 5:am and you will have a more comfortable and pleasant experience believe me.

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