Penrith to Kendal – 15th & 16th July

Monday 15th July was another great day aside from the fact that Captain Caveman had his breakfast without me and left me a toilet gift that kept on giving! After Captain Caveman made me beans on toast and a cup of Yorkshire tea for my breakfast, it was time to pack and check out of White Cottage. The Giffgaff SIM we both had didn’t work in Askham so we couldn’t phone a taxi. Captain Caveman attempted Uber, which is the UK’s equivalent of Grab, but there was no luck. We left White Cottage which had cost £520 for 3 nights (no wonder it had been nice!) having had a really nice stay in Askham. At the Askham Grocery shop, we called a taxi and got a hot beverage each while we waited for the car to come from nearby Penrith. There is a bus but it only goes once per week, not on Mondays.
The taxi was £20 so it didn’t break the bank and we got our train tickets at the station for £8.70 each. We were off to meet Watto and Chrissy for lunch in Oxenholme and they picked us up from Oxenholme train station. While we were waiting, we noticed the train station had a really good shop and cafe so we shared a sausage roll which was fantastic. It was great to see Watto and Chrissy, who we know from Phong Nha when Watto worked with Captain Caveman as an Oxalis cave expert and Chrissy was my fellow CWAG (Cavers Wives and Girlfriends). Phong Nha wasn’t the same without them making us laugh but it was good to see a retired Watto looking very well. They drove us to the Station Inn where we had decided to have lunch on a bit of a whim. We were the first in the pub and of course Chrissy and I didn’t need any persuading on having a bottle of white wine. We were so busy catching up that I didn’t take photos of the food but it was really good. I had the red pepper and tomato soup for starter and the scampi for main, both of which were really lovely and a good sized portion. We didn’t have room for a pudding but we did have a hot drink and the staff were really nice, friendly and accommodating. I remembered to get a group photo to commemorate the occasion but the lighting and angle weren’t the best.

Watto and Chrissy drove us to our next stop, which was to a house in Oxenholme. We were visiting another ex Oxalis cave expert as we were staying with Josh and Martha for a couple of nights. Martha opened the door and welcomed us but we had already decided we would drop our bags off and have a walk in to town. She works from home and would be busy and Josh was still at work so it gave us the time to have a wander.
We had a walk in to Kendal where Captain Caveman encouraged me to have 2 pints of Guinness and a bag of pork scratchings in the Clock Tower pub. It was a proper boozer and the drink prices were reasonable so we were quite happy there until Josh came to meet us after work. It was great to see Josh after 6 months, we last saw him and Martha in Turkey at Christmas. We had another pint, then we walked back to the house where Martha’s friend had popped over to lend us an inflatable bed, which was ace. Much hilarity ensued as we all got involved in pumping it up in the spare room. We were lucky to be in it as that room was earmarked for the cinema room as they were doing up their relatively new home. The house was so lovely and we definitely made ourselves at home. Josh cooked us a great vegan dinner of mushroom risotto, which we had with garlic bread. I had a glass of wine and we all chatted and took the micky out of Josh. It was really good to see Josh and Martha again and we could’ve stayed up all night but tomorrow Martha and I had work to do.

I had tea and a buttered crumpet for breakfast on Tuesday 16th July after a pretty good night’s sleep on an inflatable bed. Captain Caveman and Josh had the day free so they took themselves off for a walk and a visit to Kendal castle. Martha and I said we would meet them later as we both had work to do.
When I finished, I walked to meet the fellas who were in Cortillo restaurant having a beverage and waiting for us to join for lunch. I got a bit lost but turned out I was only about 50 metres away. My Giffgaff SIM still didn’t have any signal and was turning out to be a waste of money. I ordered a lemongrass and ginger tea and perused the rather extensive menu while we waited for Martha to finish a meeting. Josh, Captain Caveman and I all chose a version of a breakfast while Martha order 3 tapas of chicken wings, patatas bravas and garlic bread. The food was lovely, the decor quite unusual and we had a great lunch. Josh and Martha left us to find our own way home as Captain Caveman had decided he wanted to take me to Kendal castle where he had been this morning. I wasn’t too bothered, given that I was carrying my laptop in case I needed to reply to some emails and I’d just had a massive breakfast. I went to the toilet as I knew as soon as we set off walking, I would need to go. A mother and daughter were in a cubicle together, both using the toilet and I was shocked to see that when they came out, neither of them washed their hands – they just walked straight out!
Captain Caveman and I walked towards Kendal castle via the shops and I saw a Herdy shop. I love their stuff and I wanted to pop in and see if we could get a gift for Josh and Martha. While I was there, I saw a bag for myself and, as I had just been paid, I decided I wanted it. Captain Caveman said I didn’t need one but my existing bag had a tangled strap and wasn’t practical. We got talking to the shop assistant while we couldn’t agree what to buy but eventually I bought the Herdy bag for me and a set of Herdy coasters for Josh and Martha. I know Martha likes a brew so I thought it would be a nice reminder of us when she was enjoying a cuppa. We carried on walking towards the castle and it did look a bit overcast as we approached the bridge. By the time we were in the field and close to the Castle, I needed the loo as I had a bad stomach. I was really bad and could hardly move, I didn’t even look up at the castle as we hurried in search of a toilet. As my phone didn’t work I asked Captain Caveman to Google toilets closest to the castle and I was so desperate that I considered knocking on a door to see if I could use the loo of a local.
Captain Caveman didn’t look properly for a toilet and made me walk all the way back to Josh and Martha’s, almost bent double in pain. I ran in to the house and Martha could see on my face that I wasn’t well and put the radio on in her office, next to the bathroom. I can’t even whistle so I was grateful!

I worked until 4pm and then Captain Caveman, Josh and I decided to go to the local pub for a pint. When we got to the Factory Tap I realised it was within walking distance of the castle and a place we could have come to earlier when I was having a spasm, so I was a bit peeved with Captain Caveman. I managed a pint of Gluten free beer, crisps and pork scratchings as my belly was better. Martha joined us and I managed another Gluten Free beer and she had a gin and tonic. It was a really nice pub with a beer garden and the sun was out. Josh went back home a bit earlier than the rest of us, as he was doing us a veggie dinner at home and we finished our drinks. The veggie wraps and wedges were really tasty and I ate quite a bit, washed down with a glass of wine. We all got comfy in the living room and watched Below Deck, a first for Captain Caveman who really took to it. We’d had such a good time seeing Josh and Martha and were sad to be leaving tomorrow morning. Our next stop was my home town of Sheffield, Captain Caveman had just 2 days there before he had to go back to London, then Vietnam.