Legs and nettles

It was nippy, this morning, so I dusted off my long-sleeved top and running tights for my trip out. There's a route I love that includes a bridleway between Lupton and Badgergate but it's overrun with nettles making it impassable during the summer but I thought that they might have died back by now and, if not, the tights would protect me. 

So, I set off, out through Kearstwick and Old Town, left along the road past Kitridding to Lupton, and down to the A65, which I crossed and embarked down Nettle Alley. 

Well, my supposition that the nettles might have died back proved to be flawed. And when I say flawed, I mean completely wrong. Still, my legs were covered, I'd be fine, I thought. I guess I was only about twenty yards in when the first nettle got through: just a lucky angle, I thought. 

Not that lucky it turned out. By the time I reached the lane, my shins were tingling like crazy! Still, running up the hill to Hutton Roof proved to be a reasonable distraction and by the time I was heading back down towards Kirkby Lonsdale, the sensation was pretty much passed.

****
-11.7 kgs
Reading: 'In Aleppo Once' by Taqui Altounyan