Love Your TPT – A Journey of Kindness on the Trail

For our last #LoveYourTPT blog of February,  we’re shining a light on an inspiring long‑distance pilgrimage taken by James and Eleanor of Walking Hearts. Their journey – undertaken without money, smartphones, or the usual comforts – reminds us what makes the Trans Pennine Trail such a powerful place of connection, community, and hope.

Across four blog instalments, Walking Hearts shared encounters with remarkable landscapes, generous strangers, and deeply personal moments. Here’s a warm‑hearted summary of their journey from Southport to Hornsea, and finally onward to Robin Hood’s Bay.

Setting Out in Faith – Southport to Haughton Dale, Greater Manchester
Their pilgrimage began in Autumn 2025, setting off on a 215‑mile walk with nothing but basic supplies and trust in goodwill. Their goal: to demonstrate that “what we need so much more than money and an internet connection is love and trust.”

Along the way they met an array of open‑hearted people, including, for example, staff at a Howdens hardware store on an urban stretch of the Trail. The couple popped in to ask for just a squeeze of super glue to fix their deflating camping mats but left the store having been donated not only an entire tube of super glue, but a courtesy bottle of white wine, a box of chocolates, and two porridge oats for their breakfast the next morning, after staff there learned about their TPT mission!

Haughton Dale to Sykehouse took them along the Woodhead Line and through beautiful woods around Haughton Vale. Struggling with injury and exhaustion, they found rest, warmth, and encouragement at just the right times – including paracetamol, ibuprofen gel, café refreshments, and conversations that lifted their spirits.

A pivotal encounter came when they met Pete Brocklehurst, one of the Trans Pennine Trail volunteers in Tameside, who celebrated their pilgrimage and even took their flyers to share with the wider TPT network. This moment reminded them how challenges often create unexpected opportunities.

Fruit trees, late blackberries, and the generosity of strangers –  including a Tesco manager and customer who bought them food – sustained them as they prepared for the remote Pennine stretch ahead.

Sykehouse to Hornsea led them across country lanes and past locations steeped in history – including Burn Airfield, a former RAF base used during WWII.

Against stormy weather, they found shelter under the overhang of a wooden cabin and were warmed by kindness the next morning when a café owner made them coffees and bacon sandwiches to take with them.

As they continued, small delights appeared when they needed them most: apples from a roadside tree, a perfectly timed replacement water bottle found half‑buried in the grass, and a pub that offered an enormous pot of hot tea just as the rain poured.

Their conversations with locals – including a retired sailor and friendly holidaymakers – added richness and humanity to their miles. Offers of food, stories shared, and compassionate interest in their mission reminded them that community is found in the simplest of exchanges.

An Epilogue of Grace – Hornsea to Robin Hood’s Bay
Reaching Hornsea should have marked the end of their 215‑mile pilgrimage, yet the suggestion to continue to Robin Hood’s Bay felt like a meaningful epilogue they weren’t ready to refuse. Eleanor wrote about the strange mix of completion and displacement that comes at the end of such a long journey – and how this final extension offered a new sense of purpose.

Practical challenges meant they used some donated funds for bus connections, but serendipity stepped in too: a saxophonist named Jimmy gave them a lift to Beverley and bought them a drink while sharing his life story with heartfelt openness.

As they approached Robin Hood’s Bay, they were met with family support and a sense of closure – one shaped not by the miles walked, but by the people, stories, and faith that carried them.

Walking Hearts’ pilgrimage highlights everything that makes the Trans Pennine Trail special:

• Community Spirit – from café owners and hardware store staff to passers‑by and fellow walkers, their story is full of kindness that transcends geography.
• Nature’s Provision – apples, blackberries, sheltering cabins, and river‑side beauty became characters in their story.
• Heritage & History – RAF bases, old railway lines, and coastal villages enriched their journey with culture and meaning.
• The Trail as a Teacher – the TPT taught resilience, gratitude, interdependence, and the power of slowing down.

Their walk wasn’t just a physical crossing of England – it’s a love letter to the Trail and to the people who make it a living network of generosity and connection.

We’re grateful to James and Eleanor for allowing us to share a glimpse of their pilgrimage. Read their full account across all four blogs, at: https://walking-hearts.weebly.com/blog/autumn-2025-trans-pennine-trail-pilgrimage

Robert | TPT Technical Assistant
Date: 27th February, 2026

         
Mandy Loach                Hannah Beaumont     Robert Drummond