No Footprints Remain
A Journey Along St Cuthberts Way
By Jane Gorrie,
February to April 2023
St Cuthbert's Way: A Journey of Discovery
By Jane | 1 February – 5 April 2023
The Beginning — Melrose to St Boswells
1 February 2023
I didn't really think it through before I started. I just thought to myself, “I can do that…” and began walking quite late in the day on 1 February 2023.
My first photograph was taken at 13:18, after setting out from Melrose Abbey car park and finding my way to the path up to the Eildons.
It was a clear day, and the climb up to the saddle was steeper than I remembered, but the views back towards Melrose and onwards to the Border Hills were encouraging.
I only got as far as St Boswells that day. My husband picked me up from Mertoun Bridge as the light was fading.
But I had started!
Following the Tweed
7 February 2023
The next instalment began on 7 February, starting out a little earlier, around noon.
I soon left St Boswells behind, wandering along the banks of the Tweed before climbing up to Maxton and onwards, following a route parallel to the A68 through gorse-lined paths and woodland towards Lilliardsedge.
The information board along the path tells the story of a fierce female warrior from the Battle of Ancrum Moor. Perhaps a myth, perhaps not, but many lives have been lost fighting over the Borders throughout the generations.
The ridge affords lovely sweeping views back to the Eildons and onwards towards Teviotdale and Jedburgh.
The woodlands were carpeted with snowdrops as I made my way through the Harestanes estate towards the end of my second day's walking.
Into Unfamiliar Country
14 February 2023
Valentine's Day dawned misty and fine.
I took a couple of atmospheric photographs of the way ahead. This day felt like the real beginning of the adventure: walking through places I hadn't visited before and getting further away from home.
I crossed the Teviot, then followed it for a mile or so before turning uphill to join Dere Street, the old Roman road, climbing towards the ridge at the top of the valley.
The path crosses the Borders Abbeys Way here: left to Kelso, right to Jedburgh, and straight on towards Morebattle and the Cheviots.
This was one of the longer sections, and I was glad of the clear, open farm tracks and some road walking into Morebattle, where I picked up the car and drove home.
Over Wideopen Hill
4 March 2023
The next instalment was the one I had been dreading.
It was the shortest section, but involved the biggest climb, up and over Wideopen Hill to Yetholm.
The day began overcast but bright, with easy climbing for the first mile and a half. Then came the steep ascent and widening views back towards the Eildons as we rose above Morebattle.
I was glad to have company for this section. A friend and her dog helped keep morale up as the weather closed in during the climb.
By the time we reached the summit, the Border Hills had disappeared into the rain.
But the sun broke through the clouds as we began our descent towards Yetholm.
Across the Border
15 March 2023
I walked from Kirk Yetholm to Wooler on 15 March.
A long day, but one of my favourite sections.
This was almost entirely open moorland. It was freezing cold, but bright and dry, with lots of frozen puddles — one of which I shouldn't have trusted, as it gave way and I got a wet foot!
And, of course, there was the crossing of the border from Scotland into England.
On a clearer day, it is said that you can see the sea and Holy Island from the hilltops along this section.
There's definitely a feeling of there being more behind you than ahead.
The grouse and quail were very noisy amongst the heather and bracken, flying up as I approached.
I particularly loved the ground-level signpost. A deliberate ploy to avoid wind damage, perhaps?
There was a diversion just above Wooler, but I arrived safely at the visitor centre, where a taxi was procured for the return to the car and the journey home.
Planning the Final Stages
28 March 2023
I went back to Wooler on 28 March to pick up a guidebook — a bit late, I know! — and to look at the two options for the final sections: staying in Beal (West Mains) or Fenwick before crossing the sands.
No accommodation was available in Fenwick on the dates I planned to finish, so I ended up at the Lindisfarne Inn. Comfy and warm, with a great breakfast too.
I spent quite a while trying to find the path from Fenwick to the causeway, but there was a diversion in place while railway bridge repairs were being carried out.
I doubled back, counting the meanderings towards my final walking distance.
Locked gates are much more definitively closed in England. This was the first barring of the way I'd encountered throughout the whole route, topped off with barbed wire, just in case the message wasn't clear!
St Cuthbert's Cave and the First Glimpse of the Sea
4 April 2023
I returned to walk the final two days on 4 April, leaving the car in Wooler and climbing into the hills for the walk over Westwood Moor to St Cuthbert's Cave.
It was a beautiful, clear, sunny day, with some brilliant wooden sculptures along the way — and a very comfortable bench to sit on for lunch.
The cave was much more imposing than I expected, with one overhang seemingly supported by a slender upright.
There were vast views back towards the Cheviots from here.
The walk to Beal was pleasantly downhill from this point, with increasingly clear views of the sea and Holy Island in the distance.
The goal was in sight!
Across the Sands to Holy Island
5 April 2023 — Wednesday of Holy Week
The final morning of the walk dawned grey, misty and damp.
My tide window meant leaving the hotel at 8 am to allow enough time to walk across the sands, have a hot drink, and then catch the bus back to Wooler via Berwick to collect the car.
So, no hanging about then!
That final section is one that will remain etched on my soul.
As you walk down the road towards the causeway, there are more birds and coastal sounds. The skylarks of the clear air around St Cuthbert's Cave give way to curlews, gulls and terns, swirling around in the mist.
Once you reach the sands and remove your walking boots, the first thing that hits you is the cold water between your toes.
The way to the island is clearly marked by poles in the sand, and I find that I'm not alone.
There are other pilgrims ahead of me and behind me, and yet we're not together.
As I walked out towards the middle, I could hear seals and curlews calling through the mist.
The sand became softer as I sank into the mussel mud. Thank goodness for walking poles to test the depth before stepping down, sometimes sinking halfway up my calves!
I rinsed off in the pools along the remaining way.
You become aware of the timelessness of this part of the route.
So many souls have passed this way over the centuries, and yet no footprints remain.
The ruins of the Priory remain as a marker of St Cuthbert and St Aidan.
The island community has an atmosphere of peace and calm, amplified when the visitors leave as the tide separates the island from the mainland each day or night.
Reflections on the Journey
The walk was a brilliantly affirming experience for me.
I have found a deeper trust in myself and in my strength to walk alone, alongside an understanding of my small place in the history of pilgrimage.
It is something I now hope to carry forward, using the experience to grow in faith as I journey on.
