The New Lyke Wake Club
Fashion Boots: The Miller Twins
I’d like to report the crossing my twin (Ruth Willson) and I (Hillary Guerandel) completed on Saturday (28th June 2025). I feel we may have been called Witches in the past but I guess it’s now official!!
Our Mum did the walk in Bally fashion boots (with a slight Cuban heel) back in 1972, we don’t know why but she did, not only was she the talk of the family she was so impressed by the boots she wrote to Bally to thank them (I thing she got some free slippers, I’m not sure she liked them). She had our Dad as support and completed a slightly longer walk with some other relatives (the good old days when it started and finished in the respective villages). But I digress! As such the LWW has always been something on our to do list and so earlier this year my sister and I decided to bite the bullet. Having grown up in Whitby we know the beautiful NY Moors and of course remember the Golf Balls.
We started at 06:14 after a small bicker about where the starting marker actually was (fairly obvious once we spotted it but we can be forgiven our confusion given the anti-social hour) and set off in what turned out to be a slightly overcast and windy day. Two things we will be eternally grateful for given the heatwave that followed on Sunday.
Having never walked the Cleveland Way it was a great start to the day overlooking sights that were part of our childhood, such as Roseberry Topping and the Cleveland and Yorkshire Coastline. We had a slight rude shock with the scrambly bouldery bit but with a strong wind behind us we took it in our stride. Accompanied by the odd comment of “mum did this in fashion boots”.
Checkpoint 2 (Clay Bank) was a highlight as we were greeted by hot bacon sandwiches and tea, made by our brother (Andrew) and my husband (Alex) – the support team. Two very friendly faces who were at every road crossing with water, snacks and words of encouragement (plus a sprinkle of sarcasm and banter).
We made good time to Checkpoint 3 where Andrew joined us for a 5 mile stretch of the walk, whilst Alex, had his “supporters’ pint” in the Lion Inn. Turns out the distance between Checkpoint 3 and 4 is actually longer than 5 miles. I cheerfully told my brother when he’d done 5 miles! As he looked around seeing only the bog, he exclaimed in words I couldn’t share in full here, something along the lines of “well where’s Alex then?”. With Ruth and I only just past the half way mark you can imagine our sympathy at our brother having to walk 6 miles instead of 5! (“Just think Andrew – Mum did it in fashion boots”).
From Checkpoint 4 (Hammer Bank) we started to feel the pain, despite the Compeed (other blister plasters are available) I was developing one on my heel where I’d just got rid of the last one from training and another on my sole. But fresh socks, hikers wool and a large portion of pasta helped us on the way.
From Fylingdales onwards we felt we were on our home turf and the end was definitely in sight but again the stretch to Checkpoint 5 near the Flask Inn was longer than the book promised. There was also a particularly rude valley we had to traverse which we most certainly weren’t anticipating. (Ok ok if I’d done a little more research it was clearly there and should have come as no surprise). It was around here that Dad retraced his 1972 supporters steps and walked out to meet us, sensibly waiting at the top of what I now call “surprise valley”!
Onto Checkpoint 6 with the mast looming and we were not going to stop apart from a quick high five to Mum, who was waiting at the car with the others, and an exclamation of “you did it in fashion boots!!”.
It was now the final, short stretch, the sun was setting over our home town of Whitby and the Mast was actually getting bigger albeit at a glacial pace. On the horizon we spotted our support party and holding hands my twin and we made it to the stone marker at 21:07 for the first, and undoubtedly last, time. (Unless of course the next generation picks up the gauntlet we were handed and we go to meet them.)
The walk was over, the support vehicles were there to transport us and more importantly the bar was still open so we popped into Ravenscar for a swifty that didn’t touch the sides.
Thanks to the supporters past and present, thanks to my sister for the company but mostly thanks to Mum for the inspiration.
The Miller Twins