Author: bp-admin

Walk date – 11th April 2024

Distance – 11.5 miles

Weather – dull with occasional drizzle, low cloud base, strong and gusty west wind, mild

A disappointing day considering what the forecast had led us to expect, it was supposed to be dry (it wasn’t), the eastern side of the park would have the best of any sunny spells (it didn’t), and the strong prevailing westerly winds were supposed to ease off during the day (they didn’t). We reversed the walk we had intended doing on our last walk through Swindale on 19th February this year which we cut short as the long distance views were poor. On that occasion at least we could see the fells around us, today, thanks to the low cloud base, there was absolutely nothing to see. We would have been better off sticking to our plan on 19th February as things turned out. The low light conditions resulted in a poor day for photography and the strong, blustery and incessant wind made walking a constant struggle.

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Route

Swindale Foot – Swindale Head – Mosedale – Mosedale Cottage – Selside Brow – Branstree – Artle Crag – High Howes – Selside Pike – Old Corpse Road – Swindale Head – Swindale Foot

Being a weekday meant that there were no parking problems at Swindale Foot and so we set off, in watery sunlight, along Swindale Lane in good spirits.

Although only a few weeks have passed since the last time we walked along the lane subtle changes have taken place during the intervening weeks. Primroses were covering the grassy banks, the wild garlic leaves have sprung up beneath the hedgerows, the grass is looking greener and the fields are beginning to fill with new born lambs. The lamb in the shot has its hind legs splayed out to steady itself so it must only be a couple of days old and hasn’t quite got its ‘sea legs’ yet. Mum kept a wary eye on us as we passed.

Approaching Truss Gap’s stepping stones over which Swindale Beck was flowing at pace. Wet boots awaited anyone using them today. Mind you, walking along the lane was just as wet, it was running with water and there were deep puddles all the way along. As you can see the weather has been very grim and very wet since we were last out walking. We still have a little watery sunlight but …..

….. that vanished by the time we had reached Swindale Head. The gate over to the right takes us behind the buildings and …..

….. the signpost which offers two choices of route. We’ll be coming back down the Old Corpse Road at the end of our walk so we keep straight on and head for Mosedale.

Past the farm buildings now and onto the track leading into Swindale Head. The paths from this point on until we started climbing Selside Brow up to Branstree were very, very wet. Here beginneth the start of soaking wet boots.

We splashed our way down to the footbridge crossing one of the becks emanating from …..

….. the marshy area known as Dodd Bottom (no sniggering at the back) into which the waters of Hobgrumble Gill are tumbling into.

We thread our way through the drumlins from which we have a view of …..

….. Swindale Beck and, in the distance, the white waters of Forces Falls.

The path we used climbs high above the falls so it doesn’t really give a good idea of the volume of water pouring over the falls today although the whiteness of the water indicates that there was a substantial amount.

A look back at the drumlins as we reach the top of the path leading into Mosedale. It will need a zoom in to see them but over to the lower left of the shot there are two walkers, the one in dark clothing is more easily seen as that one is standing on a lighter patch of grass. A short distance ahead of that walker is one wearing a red jacket. We thought they must just be going over to the falls for the view but we were to see them again as we began climbing up Selside Brow.

The crags of Nabs Moor as we climb the last squelchy section of the path leading into Mosedale.

We are now properly into Mosedale with its similarly named beck meandering through it. Its well known for its soggy nature resulting from rainwater draining into it from the fells surrounding it. There is a path along Mosedale and after a few weeks of drought some of its sogginess dries out. As we’ve had quite the opposite since Christmas we can only leave you to imagine what it was like today.

We passed a couple of dilapidated sheepfolds along the way, this was the first one we came to, the second one was much larger and difficult to get into shot so I didn’t bother. On the skyline opposite are a couple of the Shap Fells, Fewling Stones and High Wether Howe.

Its been a good few years since we walked across that bridge and I can’t even remember where we were going, where we’d been or what we’d climbed. The cloud is down on the top right of the shot and we have no clue as to what it is covering. Mosedale looks especially bleak today.

Beyond the beck and low enough to be clear of cloud is what we think is  Brunt Tongue at the northeastern end of Tarn Crag.

A large flooded section of the path forced us into making a diversion in order to avoid it, as a result we are well off the path at this point. However, knowing that the path went straight to the bothy at Mosedale Cottage we had to cross a couple of very wet fields just to get back on to it. Great Grain Gill, on its way to join Mosedale Beck, had flooded straight across the path just as we reached the bothy which gave us a few minutes of head scratching until we eventually found a way around it. We decided to have a break for something to eat in the bothy and, although it isn’t a very homely spot, at least there were some chairs to sit on and some shelter from the ever present wind.

After our break we squelched our way around the cottage and back onto the path leading us over to Selside Brow and the climb up to Branstree. I took a look back along Mosedale and its bothy from the path, that’s the soggy area over on the lower left of the shot. So far the path all along Mosedale has been exactly like the one in the shot, dealing with those conditions while walking into a strong and gusty wind does not make for comfortable walking.

When we reached the gate in the fence line we left the main path and began the steep climb up Selside Brow where the wind was now coming at us from our left. So we’ve swapped the flooded path and full frontal wind treatment for drier grass up a steep hill while being blown sideways! All that aside, as we paused to get our breath back I took a look back towards the gate. Making their way towards the gate were the two walkers we had seen making their way towards Forces Falls, the one in a red jacket about to cross the beck and one wearing dark coloured clothing having already done so. We wondered if they had just descended from Tarn Crag and also whether they were about to follow us up to Branstree. After a few minutes pause at the gate we saw them heading back along Mosedale, wonder if they stopped for a break at the bothy.

Alongside the wall and fence we continued on our way up to the summit with the wind doing its best to blow us sideways. Nothing for it on those frequent occasions but to dig our walking poles into the soft earth and wait for the gusts to pass. Eventually the gradient eased and …..

….. just visible in the fog we could see the familiar circular trig point so we made straight for it. J is battling to stay upright as the wind gave us yet another battering, at least it is now at our backs which should blow us over to Artle Crag in next to no time.

Beyond the tarn is the grey shape of one of the cairns on Artle Crag and beyond that there’s nothing to be seen.

We are blown over to Artle Crag’s first cairn …..

….. and then we are blown over to Artle Crag’s second cairn. No views from either cairn …..

….. although as we were crossing over to the survey pillar we did get a brief glimpse of part of Haweswater but nothing else beyond it.

J huddles beside the old survey pillar for a quick shot and then …..

….. we made our way over to the two tarns below the unnamed hill at 673m. We just call it High Howes because it is higher than the hill named Howes just below it. This is one of the tarns and …..

….. this is the other. The path runs between the two.

From the tarns we made our way over to a foggy Selside Pike.

A few moments later the fog/cloud cleared and for a few seconds we had a better view of it. Sometimes it was visible but mostly it wasn’t.

Surprisingly the notorious Captain Whelter bog was easily crossed and wasn’t as wet and claggy as we had anticipated. Its nice to have a win now and then.

The shelter on Selside Pike and, apart from the fence, that’s the only thing we can see.

Descending Selside Pike towards High Blake Dodd with Swindale below, on the right. Given the strength and direction of the wind we didn’t go over to take a shot from the top of it, we weren’t in that much of a hurry to get back down into Swindale!

From the descent a look over towards Brown Howe on the Mardale side of the Old Corpse Road. Low cloud hanging over High Street and its neighbouring fells so it couldn’t have been too pleasant over there either.

We had hoped that when we reached the Old Corpse Road and descended even further that we might have gained some shelter from the wind but not a bit of it, it continued as strongly as ever. At this point we made the decision to drop down back to Swindale Head instead of continuing back to Swindale Foot via the hills above Swindale Lane, which we had considered taking when we had planned our route, By now we had both had enough of being blown across rough and squelchy grassland and were definitely in the mood for some solid terra firma beneath our feet.

However, we still had a little more rough walking to do, firstly crossing this little beck which narrows just enough to enable us to stride across …..

….. then it widens out again and carries on tumbling down the hillside into Swindale …..

….. having crossed the beck we then have a narrow, stony path running with water to descend, from where I took this shot looking over Swindale Head and its assorted features …..

….. towards the bottom of that path we have to cross yet another beck beyond which is the path back down to the buildings at Swindale Head. Once we reached the road we had a brief pause for drinks before setting off back along the lane to the parking area.

I didn’t take any further shots until we reached Gouther Crag, much favoured by rock climbers. Dangling from ropes on sheer rock faces never held any attraction for either or us but they are interesting to look at nevertheless. Strangely enough for such a dull day there was much more detail to be seen on them than we’ve noticed on previous occasions.

Back at Truss Gap now and having to do the usual avoiding the big puddle which seems to have taken up permanent residence just at this spot.

Finally we are back at the parking area which is just out of shot over on the left. J has just checked our mileage before switching the satnav thingy off and told me that we’ve walked 11.5 miles so sitting down on a comfortable car seat will be more than welcome right now, particularly after the battering we’ve had from the wind. Fighting against the wind makes any walk much harder than it otherwise would be. At least we don’t have a long drive home so it won’t be long before wet boots can come off and the kettle can go on.

 

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Walk date – 31st March 2024

Distance – 8.4 miles

Weather – sunny and dry, fair weather cloud, gusty east wind

 

A good weather day on Easter Sunday usually means a very busy day on the Lake District fells with all the attendant parking difficulties so we opted for a walk over some of the Howgill fells today. The Howgill fells don’t attract the huge numbers of visitors on a holiday weekend that the Lake District does which makes it an ideal place to walk in relative solitude and simply enjoy the peace and quiet. A short drive takes us from the Eden Valley down the A6 to Shap and from there through Orton and on to Tebay where we began today’s walk. Not many folk around in Tebay this morning, probably the result of the clocks going forward an hour, so we parked up easily, gathered up our stuff and started out for a very enjoyable day in The Howgills.

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Route

Tebay – Waskew Head – Weather Hill – Knott – Hare Shaw – Archer Moss – Uldale Head – Blease Fell – Powson Knott – Tebay

From our parking spot at the bottom of the hill we begin by walking up the tarmac access lane while keeping a lookout for the path which will take us over to the farm at Waskew Head. All is quiet back there in Tebay, is everyone having a lie-in this morning?

On the access track to Waskew Head farm now and we have reached the old bridge crossing Tebaygill Beck. The track, which begins with tarmac but eventually turns rough, stony and deeply rutted, leads eventually up to …..

….. Waskew Head farm. Whether it is a working farm or not we don’t know but the whole place is in a bit of a state. If you zoom in and look on the left side of the shot, next to the tree is a building minus its roof and with only the one gable end wall still standing. We couldn’t get a close look at the farmhouse but the assorted nearby buildings looked very ramshackle and run down and the open land around them was full of old vehicles and vehicle parts. The access path we were using passes by the gate to the farm and on the gate was a large notice letting passers-by know that it was private property and asking them to keep out. Its a very odd place indeed. We’ve just left the main path, which continues on into Eller Gill between Hare Shaw and Rispa Pike, and begin making our way up Weather Hill. There were several quad bike tracks leading from the path but it doesn’t really matter which one is chosen as it eventually becomes clear which one leads over to Knott as the next photo shows.

Walking over Weather Hill with Knott and Hare Shaw in the distance.

The view back along Weather Hill as we head towards Knott. The walk across reminded me very much of the walk across The Pen up to Loadpot Hill. It has the same sort of open terrain, quad bike tracks over rough grassland, with plenty of boggy bits, which rises steadily up to its eventual high point.

From Knott a look ahead towards the next high point which is Hare Shaw.

Looking westward from Knott. Across the middle foreground are the lower slopes of Blease Fell which will be our return route today. Between us and them is Tebay Gill and on the skyline are, from L to R, Whinfell Beacon, Old High and the tree covered slopes of Mabbin Crag.

From Knott we carry on up to Hare Shaw. We are gradually becoming more windblown as we gain height and lose the protection of the higher fells to the east of us.

Still following the quad bike trail up to Hare Shaw with the lower slopes of the fells below Fell Head beginning to put in an appearance.

Looking back towards Knott as we reach the summit plateau of Hare Shaw.

The view westward from the summit cairn on Hare Shaw. With the sun backlighting the fells to the west there was no point in trying for any shots in that direction. It was also very windy up here so we didn’t linger.

A look over towards Blease Fell as we leave the summit area of Hare Shaw and keep a lookout for any hint of a path down over Archer Moss.

A look back at Hare Shaw while J studies  …..

….. the lay of the land between us and Uldale Head. We can clearly see the quad bike trail over to Uldale Head but there’s no clear track that we can see over on this side.

There being no clear route that we could spot we used a mix of sheep trods and drier grassy areas to make our way down. I took this shot of Rispa Pike as we were descending.

After crossing the very wet area between Blease Fell and the lower slopes of Uldale Head we are back on the quad bike trail and making our way up to Uldale Head. These lower slopes are blocking the gusty east wind and the climb up in the warm sunshine soon has us unzipping our jackets. Here’s a look back at Blease Fell, with Greyrigg just behind it. The M6 passes between the two fells but its not visible in the photo.

Blease Fell (L) and Hare Shaw (R) are way behind us now as we continue the climb up to Uldale Head. In strong sun and still protected from the wind we grow steadily hotter until …..

….. we reach the airy summit of Uldale Head where the east wind makes its presence felt again and where I’m having trouble keeping my balance as I take a few shots from the summit.

A cloud shadow moving rapidly across Rispa Pike as the strong wind pushes the clouds along …..

….. a close up of one of the deep gills the Howgills are noted for. On the left of the gill is Docker Knott with Simon’s Seat right behind it. Docker Knott continues on to Over Sale, Simon’s Seat continues on to Weathercalf Moss, and both trails eventually lead up to Breaks Head. The fell in the distance, behind the col, is Hazelgill Knott. On the extreme right of the skyline is Yarlside …..

….. the view over to Hand Lake with shaded Middleton just behind it. West Fell forms the bulk of the skyline …..

….. Yarlside is now over on the left and the rest of the skyline is taken up by the ridge line leading to Bush Howe and Fell Head. That’s where the two routes from Docker Knott and Simon’s Seat lead to, which I mentioned previously, …..

….. Bush Howe and Fell Head and between the two are more of the Howgills characteristic deep gullies. The path below us leads down to Blakethwaite Bottom and then up to Docker Knott …..

….. Fell Head and more deep gullies followed by …..

….. more deep gullies on Fell Head’s lower slopes …..

….. and finally, the view west across Greyrigg and Blease Fell from Uldale Head’s summit cairn. Having had a good look around we are now thoroughly wind blown so we dropped down back along the path to a little sheltered shelf of land we had noticed on the way up to have a break and something to eat. As we were downing our packs and getting settled a solo walker and his dog also came along and we exchanged greetings. He carried on his way, we settled down with sandwiches and coffee and spent the next twenty minutes or so doing nothing but eating sarnies, drinking coffee and …..

….. admiring the view below, although this shot was taken after our break when we were much lower down. The hazy fells on the distant skyline are, to the left of the v shaped notch, the Coniston fells, while to the right of the notch is the group of fells which includes Scafell Pike, Bowfell and Great End. AW detailed all of those in his Book 4 and placed them in his Southern Group. A zoom in will show Great Gable appearing over to the right of the southern group.

Blease Fell and Hare Shaw are back in view as we descend the lower slopes and make our way over to …..

….. the very wettest part of Archer Moss. Liquid water rather than just squelchy or boggy vegetation, so finding the best way across is a matter of deciding how much wet you can tolerate. We walked some distance over to the right before we found a spot to cross, even then we ended up with wet boots.

Climbing the slopes of Blease Fell now so I took a look over towards Uldale Head, on the left, with Fell Head right behind it.

The summit cairn on Blease Fell and the great view along the Lune gorge through which pass, in chronological order, the river Lune, the railway line and the M6. We’re back in the gusty east wind again.

Greyrigg and the M6 from Blease Fell top.

The fabulous view below us.

Looking back to Fell Head from Blease Fell top.

The M6 below us, the telecomms mast on Greyrigg over on the left, the tree covered Mabbin Crag to the right of centre and just above that is the top of Great Gable with Ill Bell’s top prominent to the right of it.

Leaving Blease Fell summit with a sunlit Hare Shaw alongside us.

Looking back to Uldale Head from the fenced off area although why its fenced off I have no idea.

This is always an enjoyable section, a good tramp down towards Powson Knott in the sunshine.

A look back up at our route down Blease Fell where we met a couple of walkers on their way up. A zoom in will show them heading up the path.

A look along the other Borrowdale as we’re passing by.

Still tramping down and now heading towards a sunny Powson Knott.

Beyond Powson Knott now and heading towards Roger Howe. Before the path forks across Roger Howe, over to the left and with a zoom in, it might be possible to spot a tiny dark speck in the distance.

It is a small and well constructed cairn which has a numbered, metal plate on top …..

….. on which the number is marked. What its original purpose was we don’t know for sure but one possible explanation could be that it was used as a surveying point when the route of railway, or the M6, was being planned. We don’t have an explanation other than that. The cairn itself is certainly quite old and built in a traditional style and is situated on the western side of the fell.

Looking back at the fell ponies grazing the slopes of Powson Knott.

A longer view of Powson Knott and the fell ponies as we cross Roger Howe.

The view to the north as we walk down the tarmac lane back to Tebay. The M6 winds its way past what we call Hill 401, that’s the heather clad fell over towards the left, with the green slopes of Crosby Ravensworth Fell just in front of it. The car is parked towards the bottom of the hill so that’s the end of today’s walk and what a lovely day of weather we’ve had to do it in. We were in two minds whether to do this walk on Sunday or wait until Monday, so we’re relieved that we opted for Easter Sunday because today, Easter Monday, despite the forecast for the good weather to continue, the overcast skies and rain showers have returned and the rest of the coming week isn’t looking very promising either. Ah well, its been a good day and its a lovely drive back home along quiet country lanes where a cuppa is always on the menu.

 

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Walk date – 22nd March 2024

Distance – 5 miles

Weather – sunny spells, abundant broken cloud, very strong and gusty  wind

 

Based on today’s forecast for a sunny morning and high winds plus the possibility of rain/sleet showers during the afternoon we opted for a morning walk over Walla Crag, which we haven’t set foot on since 2018. The visibility was supposed to be good but we didn’t find that to be the case as the surrounding fells appeared to be wrapped in haze and lacking in definition. The sunny spells came and went with the high cloud being blown along rapidly by the gusty west wind, so gusty that both of us were blown off balance several times. Definitely not the best day to be out on the high fells in such a strong wind, an opinion shared it seemed by the many other walkers we met during today’s walk.

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Route

Ashness Bridge car park – High Strutta – Brown Knotts – Falcon Crag – Low Moss – Walla Crag – Rakefoot – Brockle Beck – Great Wood – Ashness Bridge car park

Opposite the car park at Ashness Bridge is this mountain hut alongside which is the High Strutta path. Following the path all the way up eventually leads walkers more or less alongside Ashness Gill over to a minor peak known simply as Dodd. From Dodd the path leads over to High Seat. Further details in AW’s Book 3, The Central Fells.

However we are only on the High Strutta path for a short distance before we turn off to our left and take the path over to this footbridge across Barrow Beck to begin making our way over Brown Knotts on the lower slopes of Bleaberry Fell.

Once across the bridge the path begins to rise gradually and the views around Derwentwater soon begin to appear. Here’s a view across Strutta Wood towards Maiden Moor which we walked over on 26th February this year. What the conditions were like up there today we could only imagine as the wind was already beginning to make its presence felt even at this lowly height. Zooming in reveals the presence of cars in the woodland parking area.

Sunshine on Catbells across Derwentwater with the prominent and shaded peak of Causey Pike immediately behind it. Keep an eye on the surface of the water in the following photos for an indication of the gusty nature of the wind.

Further along the still rising path we have a longer view of Derwentwater where Keswick’s various amenities are clustered along its shores. You can just about see Bass Lake in the distance.

Over to the right Robinson is beginning to appear behind Maiden Moor. Below us, in the green fields, are the buildings of Barrow House which closed as an independent hostel on 3rd March this year. It was originally a private dwelling, then a hotel, and later owned by the YHA who put it up for sale in 2011. It was bought by a local business man who set up a charitable organisation to keep the house running as an independent hostel. However the buildings now need some significant improvements which the charity could not afford to make and thus it has ceased operating as a hostel. The house itself will probably put up for sale this year or next according to the trustees of the charity.

A brief patch of sunlight lands on Catbells, but the wind is still roughing up Derwentwater and the north western fells are plunged into deep shadow as the billowing cloud scuds across them.

A distant Great Gable appears behind the Maiden Moor/High Spy ridge. Castle Crag, set amongst the green fields at the entrance to Borrowdale, looks miniscule in comparison.

We’ve reached Falcon Crag so we made the short diversion to take a look at the views from there. Above is Keswick and the Skiddaw group of fells …..

….. and here’s another look along Derwentwater towards Bass Lake and its accompanying fells …..

….. followed by a look over Cat Gill for a view of Walla Crag. J’s stabilisation routine was needed for all three photos from Falcon Crag.

From Falcon Crag we made our way back to the path and carried on towards Walla Crag. The wind carried across the voices of the walkers who were carefully descending Cat Gill via the path between the trees over on the right of the shot. We’ll be crossing the footbridge at the bottom of Cat Gill on our return leg as we emerge from the path through Great Wood.

Walla Crag from the path above the Cat Gill area, parts of the path were exceedingly wet and muddy.

A sunny view of Falcon Crag and the surrounding fells as we carried on over towards Walla Crag. Derwentwater is still being roughed up.

A lovely view from the section of path between Falcon Crag and Walla Crag. As you can imagine all exposed spots such as this one were given the full in the face treatment by the wind

The view towards Walla Crag as we walked across the very wet section of Low Moss …..

….. with its numerous narrow becks whose waters tumbled down towards Derwentwater along a series of mini waterfalls. At the end of the wide green path on the other side of the beck is a cairn marking the junction of this path and the one leading over to Bleaberry Fell.

A burst of sunlight lands on the path leading over to Bleaberry Fell on the left. I almost gave up trying to take the shot as each time I had it lined up bits of cloud came scudding over plunging the whole view into little more than a dark silhouette but I got lucky eventually. The cairn marking the junction is right behind me …..

….. and so is J, waiting patiently for me to join him so we can carry on up to Walla Crag.

A lovely sunlit panorama of the fells forming the Coledale Horseshoe. Starting on the right with Grisedale Pike, then Hopegill Head, across the col from there leads up to Crag Hill, then down to Sail, across to Scar Crags and finally Causey Pike with its distinctive knuckled summit.

The view of Maiden Moor, Robinson and Catbells as we squelch our way over to the Walla Crag wall …..

….. plus another look back towards Brown Knotts and the path to Bleaberry Fell.

Blencathra in the background from the soggy approach to the stile in the wall. The stile was surrounded by a deep puddle so we kept to the grassy left hand side and climbed over the little piece of fencing instead.

Now on the Walla Crag side of the stile with a view of Clough Head and Great Dodd. Not much chance of any shelter from the wind up there today. Behind me should be the pathway over to the top of Walla Crag but it was nothing more than an ankle deep muddy morass today. A detour using the ragged heathery areas ensued.

From the top of Walla Crag the view of Keswick and the Skiddaw group …..

….. the north western fells again …..

….. together with a shot of some of Derwentwater’s little islands. Very, very strong wind up here so we didn’t hang around any longer.

Another view of Clough Head and the Dodds beyond Low Moss as we made our way back to the stile.

Looking back towards the stile area as we began our descent towards Rakefoot using the diagonal path coming over from the wall to avoid the wet soggy depression towards the bottom of the shot.

A dappled view of Blencathra from the much drier path down to Rakefoot. We’ve just exchanged greetings with a solo walker who was wearing a long (long as in down to the ankles) and flowing skirt, a long loose top and carrying a variety of bags, one of which was a large, round and flattish shape, a bit like a large tambour type drum. Not the sort of walking gear you usually see on the fells, so it was rather unusual. I wouldn’t be able to walk very far in a long flowing skirt before it started to annoy me, especially on such a windy day, but she seemed quite comfortable in it. To each his own I suppose.

I managed to poke the camera through the wire fencing atop the wall for another more or less sunny view of Keswick and the Skiddaw group …..

….. followed by a look to the left of Skiddaw towards Bass Lake and its neighbouring fells.

The farm buildings at Rakefoot are coming into view on the left, on the right is the northern end of Bleaberry Fell which is known simply as Pike.

On the way down J takes to the grass rather than deal with the rough loose path.

When we crossed the bridge over Brockle Beck we turned left and walked down the lane for a short distance …..

….. until we reached the signpost indicating the route to Great Wood and Ashness Bridge. It also had a notice about tea, coffee etc being available a little further down the lane but in the opposite direction to where we were going so we passed on the invitation to call in.

The path leads down to this bridge so we re-crossed Brockle Beck and walked the narrow path above the beck.

A sunny view of the beck as we began climbing away from it. The path continued on high above the beck for a short distance eventually leading us to a signposted junction. We had been trying to remember if we had seen any benches through Great Wood on previous walks as we were thinking of taking a coffee break when, at the junction, what did we see but a brand new memorial bench? The biker, remembered as ‘a bonny lad’ and to whom the bench had been dedicated, had died only this year and reading the inscription brought back memories of my brother, whose Geordie wife often called him ‘a bonny lad’ too. Odd isn’t it how such a little thing brings back so many memories?

We had a short coffee break at the bench and then made our way down the path and over to the section of the route leading us through Great Wood. On the way is this very open view of the fells across Derwentwater.

Walking through Great Wood where we had some much longed for respite from the wind.

Neither of us could remember seeing this on our last visit so it must have been the result of one of the many gales we’ve had during the past six years. The tree trunk has not only been split into several sections but the gales have also twisted it in different directions, so much so that it now resembles something more akin to a piece of modern sculpture than a broken tree trunk. How strong the gale must have been to have resulted in such a distortion.

We’ve just come down the path in the shot and at the junction we head off in the direction of Ashness Bridge.

On hearing the water rushing down Cat Gill some distance back along the path we knew that the footbridge was quite close, but even without that sound the number of walkers we met who had just come down the Cat Gill path would have indicated the very same thing.

Just after the footbridge we left Great Wood and walked the much more open path below Falcon Crag. Mounds of dead bracken and grey skies rarely result in a pretty picture but spring hasn’t really got going yet so everything still looks a little bleak. However we did notice that quite a number of trees back in Great Wood were sprouting the tiniest of green buds so we’ll just have to be patient a little longer.

The clouds are beginning to join forces but now and again a splash of sunlight gets through, in this case lighting up the trunks and branches of the silver birches below us.

In the bottom right corner of the shot a Keswick launch is making its way towards one of the landing stages dotted around the water. We had also seen another one earlier on and the pair of them could be seen chugging to and from the various landing stages whenever we had a view of Derwentwater.

A look back at Falcon Crags as we passed below them.

We’re almost back at Ashness Bridge now so a look back at the path we’ve been following alongside Derwentwater before the view is lost.

This signpost always makes me smile with its precise descriptions and timings, none of which take into consideration anyone’s individual abilities. Do you give yourself a pat on the back and a gold star if you complete one of the journeys in less time than indicated, or do you consider yourself a complete and utter failure if you take longer than suggested?

The path just across the road from the bridge is where today’s walk comes to an end and despite having plenty of photos of the bridge another one always finds its way onto the camera card somehow. There was the usual cluster of people around and vehicles slowly crossing the narrow bridge so I had to wait a few minutes until there was a gap. With the photo taken we turn around and walk the last few paces up to the car park. We finished off the coffee and sat for a couple of minutes watching the various comings and goings before setting off for the drive home. We stopped off at Booth’s supermarket in Keswick for a few bits and pieces and when we were clear of Keswick on the A66 we were back under blue skies and sunshine. At home in the Eden Valley it remained sunny for the rest of the afternoon so we were left wondering what had happened to the forecasted rain showers. They turned up overnight and this morning we woke up to raindrops on the windows, dull grey skies and even stronger winds.

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Walk date – 16th March 2024

Distance – 8 miles

Weather – very foggy start, a sunny spell on High Street, cloudy thereafter, gusty south wind at times

 

The forecast for today indicated the possibility of a decent weather day with no rain (the first dry day we’ve had this past week), not too windy and the possibility of sunshine during the morning after which the skies would turn cloudy with the likelihood of some rain later on in the day. Knowing that such a forecast was likely to be an attractive prospect for walkers, in which case parking space at Mardale Head would likely be at a premium, we set off early leaving the Eden Valley under blue skies and bathed in sunlight. When we arrived at Mardale Head there were only a handful of cars already parked and two chaps were just folding down their car’s rooftop sleeping quarters, presumably having spent the previous night there. We could see immediately that the surrounding fells were covered in fog and even down in the car park the sun had already been covered by large billowing clouds so we knew that the first leg of our walk today was likely to be foggy with little or no views and so it turned out. However once on Mardale Ill Bell things slowly began to improve and remained so until we began descending Kidsty Pike when the skies began to cloud over. As we reached The Rigg it began to rain and only started to ease off as we reached the footbridge across Mardale Beck leading back up to the car park. Our weary legs just about managed the final slope back up the hill from the beck.

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Route

Mardale Head – Small Water – Nan Bield Pass – Mardale Ill Bell – High Street – Short Stile – Twopenny Crag – Rampsgill Head – Kidsty Pike – Riggindale – Mardale Head

The view from the parking area at Mardale Head where the morning sun is just about managing to penetrate the cloud and illuminate Haweswater and the puddles in the road. We drove through some very large stretches of water spread at intervals along the road between here and Burnbanks.

Mardale Waters is the name for this area. Most of the water emanates from Blea Tarn and becomes Blea Water Beck. The path we’re following leads up to Small Water and the outflow from that tarn is Small Water Beck. The two becks eventually join forces  lower down to become Mardale Beck which in turn discharges into Haweswater. Every beck, stream and rivulet was full, hardly surprising given the amount of rain which has fallen during the past week, and any water that hadn’t managed to find its way into one of the above mentioned water courses had simply taken the easy way down and used the paths instead.

Approaching the gate on the path up to Small Water and looking up at the foggy conditions which we will soon be entering. Small Water Beck is over to the right of us.

From the same vantage point a look back at Haweswater and noting the fog drifting down from Harter Fell.

The path moves closer to the beck and where we are just about to enter the fog.

The outflow at Small Water tarn where there is absolutely no sign of any of the fellsides which encircle us. The crossing was a little tricky as some of the stones were below the water line and even those above it were wet through. Just to add to our general enjoyment we had a brief spell of rain. Should we call it a day and go back down? We decide to continue on up to the shelter at the top of Nan Bield Pass.

Passing by the ancient shelters alongside Small Water as the fog becomes denser so I call out to J not to get too far ahead of me in case we lost sight of each other.

There was nothing to take photos of on the way up the Nan Bield Pass so this was the first shot I took after we climbed up. We had brought breakfast with us so we stopped here, made ourselves comfortable and tucked into it. While doing so we had company at intervals, the first person to arrive was a runner from the Harter Fell direction who paused briefly to check the route on his phone before setting off up the Mardale Ill Bell path which is the one in the shot. Next was an older chap, who also came down from Harter Fell and stopped for a brief chat before turning down onto the Nan Bield Pass and rapidly disappearing into the fog. Then two chaps carrying large packs came down the Mardale Ill Bell path, they paused for a natter about the weather and the prospects for some sunshine before carrying on up Harter Fell. I got the impression that they had been wild camping overnight and their packs were certainly large enough for that. Finally and also from the Mardale Ill Bell path came another runner who didn’t even pause but carried on straight past us and up onto Harter Fell.

Fortified by bacon and egg sandwiches and cups of hot coffee we packed our gear away and set off up the path to Mardale Ill Bell. Above is a look back towards the wind shelter area from the little col which separates the Mardale and the Kentmere valleys. Very windy along here with cloud being pushed up from the Kentmere side before dropping it down on the Mardale side. Once again we walked along in thick fog seeing nothing at all of the surrounding views so I took no more photos until we reached …..

….. the summit cairn on Mardale Ill Bell where a slight thinning of the fog came just as we reached it. There were no views at all so we didn’t linger.

Passing the tarn alongside the path just beyond the summit area as we make our way over to High Street. Plenty of ripples on its surface as the gusty wind tried to push us sideways as we walked along. You can normally see Thornthwaite Beacon from this path but today – zilch.

We met a couple of solo walkers making their way from High Street over to Mardale Ill Bell while we were walking across to join the path coming over from Thornthwaite Beacon. Here’s the junction of the two routes, the one on the left is the one we’ve just been walking and the one on the right is the path to Thornthwaite Crag and Beacon.

We joined the High Street path at the junction and continued on our viewless journey. I recognised the entrance to the old sheepfold so I stepped beyond the wall for a look at it. In the days when the wall wasn’t broken down the entrance in the wall on the right, at the far end, would have allowed sheep to have been herded into this fold for whatever purpose the shepherds had in mind. The walls of the fold would have been higher then of course to prevent the sheep jumping over them and escaping. Those days are long gone now and I can’t recall ever seeing any sheep up here but nevertheless its nice to have this reminder of how things used to be.

As we approached the trig column there was a sudden glimmer of light so I took a quick shot …..

….. by the time we reached it the glimmer of light had disappeared and we still don’t have any views although the fog doesn’t seem to be quite so thick up here.

We carried on from the trig column and suddenly saw that we had a partial view of the fells to the west. Cloud continued to drift along over the higher fells, blown along by the wind, but we caught a glimpse of Gray Crag on the left and Brock Crags on the right.

Brock Crags now on the left, behind them comes Angletarn Pikes merging into Beda Fell with the dark lump of Place Fell over on the right.

Suddenly the fog disappeared and we now have some very welcome sunshine and long distance views, even if they are only of those towards the east. Rampsgill Head and Kidsty Pike are just behind the point where High Street’s summit area begins to drop down and behind them the high point of the skyline is High Raise.

Towards the western side the cloud has cleared from Place Fell, the fell in shadow on the left, to the right of which is Gowbarrow Fell also partially in the shade. Below Place Fell is the long ridge of Beda Fell and below that is the climb up to a shadowy Rest Dodd. In full sun in front of Rest Dodd is The Knott. The paths leading to and from The Knott are crossing the lower slopes of Rampsgill Head from the Straits of Riggindale. Annoyingly there are blue skies over the distant Eden Valley where we live.

Below us is a better view of the description given above. Below us are the Straits of Riggindale, the section between Short Stile and the slopes of Rampsgill Head, leading over to The Knott. Nearest the camera on the right is Short Stile beyond which is Twopenny Crag at the head of Riggindale. Walkers making their way up High Street are spread out along the various paths and it doesn’t really matter which path is chosen all of them eventually lead to the summit area. Obviously getting to that point involves a fair amount of effort.

A closer look at Rampsgill Head, High Raise and Kidsty Pike from our descent as we made our way towards Short Stile.

Over towards the west the cloud is back only allowing us a view of Brock Crags and Angletarn Pikes. Place Fell behind them has gone dark again.

At the convenient gap in the wall we headed over towards Short Stile across the middle foreground.

Kidsty Pike dominating the northern side of Riggindale as we make our way across to Short Stile.

The cairn on Short Stile and the camera angle making Kidsty Pike look a bit less prominent.

The view along Riggindale from Short Stile. Water draining from both sides eventually finds its way down into Haweswater. In the sunshine beyond Haweswater is Brown Howe and across the V shape of Rowantreethwaite Beck to the right of it are the lower slopes of Branstree. The slight bump on the skyline beyond is Selside Pike.

From Short Stile the view across to Caspel Gate tarn with Rough Crag to its left and Long Stile rising to its right.

On the western side we now have a view of part of Hayeswater with part of Gray Crag on the left and Brock Crags on the right. The cloud has once again lifted to reveal a hazy view of some of the fells beyond.

Crossing the Straits of Riggindale now and when we reach the lighter coloured patch just a little way up the slope we’ll bear off to the right and make our way over to Twopenny Crag and beyond.

There’s an impressive view of Twopenny Crag from the Straits.

A longer view of the crag to include Kidsty Pike and a bit of blue sky!

A look back at High Street as we reach the point at which we left the path leading towards The Knott to begin making our way over Twopenny Crag. Lots of walkers were coming down towards us so it had to be a quick take it or leave it shot.

Crossing Twopenny Crag and looking towards Short Stile. Behind it is the Long Stile/Rough Crag ridge to and from High Street.

Kidsty Pike keeping watch above Haweswater. On the way over to Kidsty we made the short diversion over to …..

….. the summit cairn on Rampsgill Head. It was very windy up here so J did his usual stabilisation routine while I took the shot. I’m surprised it came out so clearly as we were both being battered by the strong wind. Naturally we didn’t linger and hot-footed it back to the somewhat calmer conditions on the path over to Kidsty Pike.

No shelter from the wind on the path across to Kidsty so jacket hoods remained pulled up tight. Cloud is building as forecasted from lunchtime onwards. Neither or us is hungry so we didn’t stop for a lunch break …..

….. not that there is anywhere which would provide any shelter from the wind along the route from Rampsgill Head over to Kidsty Pike.

On the way over and from the same spot as the previous shot I took this view of High Raise. Its a detour from Rampsgill Head but we didn’t bother with it in today’s windy conditions but it would be a pleasant enough walk over on a sunny summer’s day.

Kidsty Pike summit has no trig column or cairn its just a very rocky area with a steep drop into Riggindale beyond where I’m standing. Best not to get too close to the edge then in today’s windy conditions. High Street is the fell nearest the camera with Mardale Ill Bell right behind it. The cloud is getting heavier and darker.

Between the spiky rocks on Kidsty Pike a shot looking down to the little tarn below Short Stile. The area where the tarn is situated is marked as Sale Pot on the OS map, a flat basin collecting the water draining down from Riggindale Head which eventually flows into Riggindale Beck.

We only had a very dull view of Harter Fell from Kidsty Pike today but at least its better than the ‘no view of it at all’ that we had from Small Water up to Mardale Ill Bell at the start of our walk. Some view is better than no view even if its not quite as shiny as you’d like it to be.

Well on the way down from Kidsty Pike now and heading towards Kidsty Howes.

The approach to Kidsty Howes with a smidge of Haweswater thrown in for good measure.

The path over on the left leads around the rock pinnacles and goes through a series of gullies all of which were dripping wet today. They are becoming quite eroded and a series of bags of large stones scattered along the route indicated that some future work was planned. The descent route through the gullies slowed us down quite a bit, many of them were very awkward to deal with and all were rocky, very wet and slippery. Some had longish drops down from one part of the path to another, difficult for me, and my little legs, at the best of times as I can’t reach the lower level so I have to sit and sort of slither down to it. Sitting on pointy rocks running with water added an extra dimension today. It wasn’t at all pleasant and seemed to go on forever. We were both glad when it was all behind us.

The path veers off to the right over the grassy area so we didn’t have to deal with that last one. I finally had a place where I could stand and take a shot down into Riggindale too.

The view back up to Kidsty Howes where more people had emerged from the nightmare descent through the gullies and were making their way gingerly down into Riggindale across the very wet grass. We had noticed some flattish stones off to the side of the path to perch on so we went over to them, got the coffee out and had a short break while our legs returned to something approaching normal.

A moment of relief on reaching the flat ground of the valley bottom as we cross Bowderthwaite Bridge across Riggindale Beck. Rough Crag is opposite us and forms the skyline above Riggindale. High Street is just in shot over on the right.

A look back at some of the fells we walked today before we leave Riggindale and the views disappear.

We climb the short path leading up to The Rigg and take in the view of Speaking Crag jutting out into Haweswater below Birk Crags and Castle Crag. The surface of the water is slightly ruffled by nothing more than a light breeze. Now that we are back down in the valley the wind is nowhere nearly as strong as it was and if the cloud hadn’t joined forces and thickened it would be a really pleasant afternoon because its not at all cold.

We had just left The Rigg to begin the walk back to Mardale Head when it started to rain so hoods went back on and the camera put away …..

….. and I didn’t take another shot until it began to ease off just as we reached the footbridge over Mardale beck and the fine view of Harter Fell. This is the first clear view we’ve had of the fell today.

As we hauled ourselves up the final slope back to the car park I took this shot of Mardale Ill Bell, another of today’s fells that we haven’t had much of a view of today. When we reached the full car park we noted the long line of cars parked along the roadside, and in every little ‘tuck  yourself in’ spot that latecomers had been able to find and were thankful that we had made an early start. By now it was well past lunchtime so before driving home we each had a sandwich to keep body and soul together and, after a 35 minute drive back home, we’ll be able to have a cup of something hot to wash it down with.

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Walk date – 4th March 2024

Distance – 4.1 miles

Weather – dry and mostly sunny with a brisk and gusty easterly breeze

 

We had a walk around Buttermere today after another incorrect weather forecast resulted in us being fooled again. We had entertained vague thoughts of taking a little saunter somewhere for a couple of hours should the weather eventually turn favourable, but we had nothing definite in mind and we hadn’t even bothered to make up lunch boxes or get out our walking gear. Beats me how these forecasts can be so wrong. After a bit of ranting and grumbling about it we eventually settled on a drive over to Buttermere to take a leisurely stroll around the water, which is always a very pleasant way to spend a couple of hours. As we travelled from east to west we noticed that the snow which fell through the night of Friday/Saturday during this last weekend had covered, quite considerably, the North Pennines and most of the fells on the eastern side of the county, even the two Mell fells were covered from top to bottom. Clough Head, the Dodds and the Helvellyn range were similarly decked out but Blencathra and the rest of the northern fells seemed only to have the same amount of snow which had fallen previously and there was nothing much to the north of the A66. The same applied the further west we went so it seemed as if the snow clouds had dumped their entire contents over the east during the night with not much left for the western side.

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Route

Gatesgarth Farm – Buttermere circular path – Gatesgarth Farm

Gatesgarth farmhouse, which is situated at the bottom of the Honister Pass road, opposite the parking area. The first photo of the day turned out to be problematic with the camera stubbornly refusing to work and it gradually dawned on me to check that the SD card was properly in place. Not only was it not properly inserted it wasn’t even there! After our last walk I had forgotten to replace it but I did have spare cards with me so I inserted one of them and we were good to go. What I didn’t realise at the time was the amount of bother using that particular card was eventually to create. More on that later.

High Crag and High Stile as we began walking away from the farm towards the path around Buttermere. Having already noticed the difference in snowfall from east to west we weren’t at all surprised to see so little snow cover on them. I guess that is old snow up there which just hasn’t melted yet.

Haystacks and Seat across the farm fields, not much snow on them either.

Nothing at all on Mellbreak or Rannerdale Knotts either. The building in the shot is Char Cottage, now known as the Char Hut which was once used as a fishing hut although I don’t know if it is still in use for that purpose as I can’t find any mention of its present usage. The barbed wire in the foreground was unavoidable even with the camera lens on maximum zoom.

Crossing Peggy’s Bridge over Warnscale Beck, notice the lack of snow on Fleetwith Pike.

Sunny High Snockrigg across the water. A lot of people were out today and we’ve just passed a family group who had paused at the bridge to show their younger members the group of Highland cattle which always seems to congregate around here.

The Char Hut and Gatesgarth farm tucked in at the bottom of the Honister Pass below the snowy top of Littledale Edge.

The view up Comb Beck brought back memories of the first time we walked the Red Pike/High Stile/High Crag ridge as we were walking back towards Buttermere on a very hot afternoon. Our feet were aching by the time we reached the beck and the minute we set eyes on it our boots were off and our hot weary feet plunged into the cold water. It was sheer bliss and something we always remark on whenever we’re here. Not today though, especially as there’s a brisk and nippy breeze coming straight at our backs.

Shaded Grasmoor and sunny Whiteless Pike come into view as we walk further along the path. The lively breeze is creating waves on the water.

Across the water above the building at Dalegarth are the deep gullies of Goat Gills flanked on the left by Goat Crag, and on the right by Muddock Crags. The snow covered area behind Muddock Crags is the summit of Robinson.

Progress along the shoreline path alternated between exposure to the wind (jacket hoods up) and shelter from it (jacket hoods down). This was a hoods down section!

I turned for a look back towards Gatesgarth and noticed that the waves were now beginning to have white tops on them and the wind was beginning to pick up speed. Eyes began watering so after a swift about turn and a quick wipe of the eyes it was jacket hoods up again.

I was hoping that by now the sun would have landed on Grasmoor and I would be able to take a sparkly, snowy view of it but it was not to be. Even Whiteless Pike has lost its sparkle now.

Looking ahead towards Mellbreak as the waves build and bunch closer together.

A young woman came running by as I stopped to take this shot and gave us a quick greeting before disappearing into the tree lined path. The photos would make you believe that there was no-one else around but that was far from bring the case and it seemed like every few seconds we were saying Hi to the next walkers coming along the path.

Whiteless Pike now sunny again but still none on Grasmoor. I’m beginning to be obsessed by the lack of sunlight on it. A series of shadowy shots isn’t what I was wanting.

To compensate I turn my attention to a sunnier view of High Snockrigg and the snowy slopes of Robinson over to its right.

Still no luck, or sunlight, on Grasmoor so I’ll just have to be patient.

Running the risk of an eye-watering few seconds for a look back along Buttermere and the snowy tops of Robinson and Littledale Edge.

At least the sun is shining on the tops of Whiteless Pike, Wandope and the Ard Crags/Knott Rigg ridge.

It started ever so slowly. To begin with we noticed that a bright spot of sunlight had landed on Grasmoor’s lower slopes just behind Whiteless Pike. The bright spot slowly turned into a streak which very gradually crept up the mountain side as the cloud casting its shadow slowly moved away. We waited, and we waited, and then we waited some more until …..

….. Grasmoor was in bright sunlight at last and I had the view I had been wanting. Obsession over! We couldn’t miss the pile of sawn tree trunks over there on the grass but we’ve never seen stacks of logs placed there before. Ah well, I suppose it was the only available space at the time.

We reach our turn around point as we approach the bridge across Buttermere Dubs …..

….. where I looked back for this view of the water pouring down Sourmilk Gill amid the jumble of rocks and stones at the bottom.

Well, it may be a blue sky and sunshine day but as we make our way towards the foot of Buttermere we’ve turned full into the wind so its tissues at the ready.

The view of a snow free Mellbreak from the tree trunk stacks …..

….. and Grasmoor is still in full sun. It looks wonderful but we did wonder how strong the wind would be today up there on its flat and open summit, because its rough enough down here in the valley.

Plenty of waves and white tops today on the waters of Buttermere and …..

….. I thought that viewers might appreciate a closer look. The wind was strong enough for me to need some stabilisation so J obliged as he always does.

This piece of weatherbeaten tree trunk is what I call the ‘On your marks’ sculpture. It reminds me of the posture that athletes take up when they are positioning themselves on the starting blocks at the beginning of a race. Head down, arms forward and holding them steady, placing one foot forward and one foot backwards as they settle their feet into the blocks.

On the opposite side I see something completely different which I call the ‘Crawling out of the water’ sculpture. It makes me think of someone whose boat has overturned quite far out, who has had to swim all the way back and on reaching the shoreline, utterly exhausted, drag themselves out on their hands and knees with their waterlogged clothing dragging behind them. Strange isn’t it, how imagination works? When we reached the path on the opposite shoreline we found ourselves a sheltered sunny spot amongst the trees, got out the flask and treated ourselves to a short coffee break while watching other walkers battling the wind as they crossed the shingle beach.

Warmed by the hot coffee and fortified with a few things to eat we started out on our return leg back to Gatesgarth. This turned out to be less windy than one might imagine in today’s conditions but there is plenty of woodland along the route which did provide shelter from the worst of it. Haystacks is in the distance with High Crag closer to the camera.

Looking back towards Mellbreak as we reached a break in the trees which provided a more open view than we’d had so far.

Much further along now so I took a chance at getting a shot of Burtness Comb flanked by High Crag. The sun was directly opposite so I didn’t expect the best of shots, it didn’t turn out too badly, all things considered.

Crossing the bridge over Hassnesshow Beck with another look back at Mellbreak. We’ve been meeting many of the walkers who we said hello to when we met them on our outward path so we all said hello to each other all over again. Well you can’t just ignore people, can you?

Back out into the open again now as we cross the shingle beach beyond Hassness Crag Wood so J had to do the stabilising again. Some of the gusts were quite strong along here. The view of Fleetwith Pike, Green Crag and Haystacks at the head of Buttermere is spectacular but difficult to photograph as there is always some part of it in shadow.

The view from the shingle beach of Goat Crag, Goat Gills and Muddock Crags.

Another attempt at a shot of Burtness Comb and its beck, and that’s probably as good a shot as I can get under the circumstances.

Still struggling to keep the camera level in the very gusty wind as I took this shot of Haystacks from the shingle beach. Even with J’s stabilising I still took a lop-sided shot …..

….. although this one showing the rough water is marginally better.

Just as I was taking a shot of this view a dog came bounding along and jumped up straight in front of me. I took a look at the shot using the camera’s Preview facility and could see most of the dog’s back and part of its head so I deleted it and prepared to take another. Meanwhile the dog’s owners, a couple with a toddler, arrived and Mum spent a good few minutes at the water’s edge and looking around. She eventually re-joined Dad and toddler but I’d had to delay taking the shot until she did so. It took the best part of ten minutes just to take the above view showing Burtness Comb, High Stile, the very topmost part of Red Pike and, below that, the rounded hump of Dodd.

The Buttermere Pines and the silhouette of Seat across the choppy water.

Burtness Comb again, this time accompanied by High Stile.

The last of today’s shots, taken from Gatesgarth farm, showing High Crag, Burtness Comb and High Stile. Well, that’s us done for today and there’s just the drive home left to do, so let’s hope there isn’t a build up of traffic for some reason, to delay us and spoil the day. We always enjoy a walk around Buttermere and today was no exception, even though we could have done without the gusty wind. Come to think of it, its probably just as well we didn’t walk any of the fells today, we’d have been well and truly battered if we had. When we got back home I discovered that the spare SD card I had used was the same one that had let me down on a previous walk to Crag Fell on 19th April 2022, and so once again it had not saved any of the photos I took. It was a devil of a job to get them downloaded on the laptop, then put them all in the correct order, not to mention re-sizing and re-labelling them but we managed it eventually and so a walk report could be created. The offending SD card has been discarded so it can’t be inadvertently used again and a new replacement purchased. I don’t want to have to go through all that ever again!

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Walk date – 26th February 2024

Distance – 7.2 miles

Weather – heavy cloud, occasional sun, north-easterly breeze, dry and cold

We are having a more settled spell of weather at the moment as the very strong winds have calmed down quite a bit. We didn’t have a great deal of sunlight though thanks to the heavy cloud layer which persisted throughout our walk, but now and again the sun managed to pierce through and provide us with some distant sunlit views. Four years have passed since we last walked up to High Spy and Maiden Moor so we decided that’s where we would go today. The parking area beside Chapel Bridge at Little Town had only a couple of cars already parked there and whose solo occupants were in the process of kitting up. By the time we were ready to go they had already departed but, as we didn’t see either of them anywhere along the route we took, they must each have had some other destination in mind. Despite the gloomy weather there were plenty of people out walking today.

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Route

Chapel Bridge – Newlands Valley – High Spy – Narrow Moor – Maiden Moor – Yewthwaite Comb – Chapel Bridge

The parking area by the bridge is out of shot to the right and just a short distance up the road is a path which leads across the field to the path we are now standing on. The view ahead is of Hindscarth and Scope End (L) and Robinson (R) with just a section of a snow covered Dale Head over on the extreme left.

There’s no-one around and the only sound we hear is that of Newlands Beck as it gurgles its way through the Newlands valley. Up ahead it looks as though there is still a fair amount of snow on Dale Head.

The view back to Causey Pike and Rowling End as we walk along the valley.

Some distance further along and we are approaching the remote holiday rental cottage. No cars parked outside and no other signs of anyone being in residence today but we have seen people staying there on previous walks through the valley. I expect that there is unlikely to be much by way of telecomms/internet connection hemmed in as it is by the steep sided fells on both sides of the valley.

Spoil heaps from the former Castlenook lead mine which eventually stopped production around 1918 when cheaper imports became available. Did the ex-miners manage to find other employment when the mine closed?

J heads on up the valley towards the waterfalls in the beck, jacket hood  pulled up against the nippy breeze which has been to our backs all the way along the valley.

The path rises imperceptibly to begin with as we start to climb out of the valley passing this old sheepfold along the way. Behind it is another spoil heap on which no type of vegetation has managed to gain a foothold even though over a hundred years have passed since the mine closed. Its likely that the chemical nature of the spoil heap isn’t conducive to plant growth.

A pretty little series of falls indicates the nature of the climb now. The path threads its way through, around and often over the rocky terrain as it becomes steeper.

We reach the first of the waterslides where the tumbling beck splashes down into a series of lovely pools …..

….. here comes another one …..

….. and then comes the grand-daddy of them all, sliding over the rocks and wearing them smooth in the process before dropping into yet another pool below it. We had a brief stop, as we always do, just to watch one of nature’s spectacular creations and watch, and listen to, the water as it falls down the steep sided rock face. The path from here is steep and rocky so we grit our teeth and carry on climbing around the waterslide until we reach the flatter area beyond the top of the fall.

We paused for a breather after the steep climb, and in readiness for the next one, so I took this shot of Dalehead Crags while we got our breath back. The higher crag is named Great Gable although obviously not the more well known fell which carries the same name. There is a route up to Dale Head from the Newlands Valley which passes over those crags so have a look at our walk of 21st June 2019 for more information.

The view down to the point at which the beck falls over the tallest waterslide. Having regained our breath across the somewhat flatter area adjacent to the beck we are now climbing again. Several people are spread out at intervals along the path. Immediately below is a solo chap, behind him are a couple, beyond them three walkers who were making their way down to the valley, and last of all is another couple making their way up. It might take a zoom in to be able to see them all. We followed the continuously rising path all the way to the point where it joins other paths leading to either High Spy or Dale Head. After what seemed like a never ending climb we eventually reached the junction where we again had a short break. While we were there the two walkers who had been behind the solo walking chap came by and made their way along the path up to Dale Head, then came the solo chap who also made his way over to Dale Head and finally along came the last couple in the above shot who also went up the Dale Head path. We supposed that all of them would be following the Dale Head/Hindscarth/Robinson route.

We eventually turned back on ourselves and made our way over to the path leading up High Spy passing the prominent Miners Crag, over on the left, as we went along.

J threading his way through the various rocks, boulders, crags and cairns on the way up High Spy.

A look back at our route from the junction where Dale Head Tarn is now in view over on the right.

The view across to a snow covered Dale Head and with a zoom in it might be possible to make out one of the couples, almost at the top, who had passed us at the path junction.

Now that we are higher, and the low cloud has lifted a little, we are getting a much better view of Great Gable and Green Gable over towards the left of the shot. A bit of cloud still obscures the very top but at least we can see it.

We decided to have something to eat before walking the remaining short distance to the summit of High Spy so we found ourselves a spot out of the wind with this view of Dale Head to gaze at. Great Gable’s summit is obscured by cloud again although Kirk Fell to the right of it manages to stay free of it. The walkers who followed the Dale Head path must be well on their way to Hindscarth by now and there’s no sign of anyone else over there.

The cairn on the top of High Spy looks more weatherbeaten every time we see it. High Spy stands at 2,142 feet or 653 metres and the cairn is situated on the Newlands Valley side. High Spy’s North Top, is a little lower, standing at 2080 feet or 634 metres, and is about a kilometre to the north from this point, on the Borrowdale side. In the distance the Skiddaw group is getting a splash of sunshine. We could do with some of that sunshine over here because its absolutely freezing up here and, despite wearing a pair of fleecy lined gloves and a pair of waterproof and fleecy lined mittens my hands have turned numb. J is similarly afflicted.

The cairn looks even more weatherbeaten from this angle.

If you zoom in you should be able to spot a woman wearing a blue jacket. A few minutes before this shot was taken she was taking a photo of the cairn as we arrived and she asked us for the name of the fell we were on. She also mentioned that they had only started out to climb up Catbells but had decided to continue further up. After telling us that the youngster was only seven years old she headed back down to where Dad and youngster were waiting. Mum had obviously decided to go on alone and take a shot of the cairn while Dad and youngster waited some distance further down. I did wonder why a seven year old wasn’t at school but maybe they were taking a holiday during term time. The Skiddaw group is still getting some sunshine and …..

….. so is Blencathra, grrr!

Hindscarth Crags are in full view on the opposite side of Newlands Valley, with a smidge of Robinson right behind.

On the skyline beyond Hindscarth is the snow covered top of Grasmoor and some of its neighbours …..

….. and a little further to my right is the familiar knobbly outline of Causey Pike with Grisedale Pike rearing up behind it on the extreme left of the shot.

Still on the summit area but now looking to the east where The Dodds are also basking in the sun …..

….. looking northwards again and seeing the entire northern fells group as bright as a summer’s day made me wonder when it was going to be our turn to get a sunny spell. Not today, as things turned out.

Despite only having spent five minutes or so on High Spy’s summit we were throughly frozen through by now so we started walking away from the summit and headed off over towards Maiden Moor in an effort to get warm again. Here’s a look back towards the cairn with Green Gable and Great Gable just behind it to the right.

The view ahead across High Spy’s bleak and wintry plateau with the northern fells still bathed in sunshine, even more grrr now!

Things are even looking brighter over towards the rest of the north western fells so how come High Spy isn’t getting some of it? Because we are beneath a lump of heavy cloud which is hanging over us and the wind has dropped so its stuck there, that’s why.

Great Gable is still the most prominent fell as I take a look back across High Spy and to its left the Scafell group remains under cloud as it has been all the time we’ve been out.

We’ve reached the craggy area just before Narrow Moor from where there are some fabulous views. From the viewpoints on the crags we look across Derwentwater towards the Vale of Keswick and Blencathra where even bits of blue sky have begun to appear. Its a simply fantastic view.

From the same viewpoint, below us is Maiden Moor and to the left of the path running across the middle of it is another path leading over to Bull Crag, the summit of Maiden Moor, where we’ll be heading next.

It was quite busy on the opposite crag so we didn’t go over today. Sunlight still accentuating the snow covered Dodds and the Helvellyn group, and to a lesser extent the snowy tops of Fairfield and Seat Sandal.

After crossing Narrow Moor we are now on Bull Crag and looking at the three fells, Dale Head, Hindscarth and Robinson, which make up the Newlands horseshoe …..

….. some of the rest of the group making up the Northwestern fells.

The Northern group of fells, still bathed in sunshine, from Bull Crag. The northern fells seemed to be getting the best of the sunshine today so it looks as though that was the place to be today.

Having left Bull Crag we begin our descent to Hause Gate, the col between Catbells and Maiden Moor. Sunny Blencathra and opposite it, and just as sunny, Clough Head form quite a majestic entrance to the Vale of Keswick.

The Dodds, Raise and the Helvellyn group create quite an eye-catching sight behind the drab appearance of the Bleaberry Fell to High Seat ridge.

Catbells and Derwentwater below us and the sunny northern fells in the distance as we make our way down to Hause Gate ……

….. which seems to appear in almost no time at all. There looked to be just one person on the top of Catbells and, as far as I could make out, nobody at all on the descent path to Hause Gate.

We take a left turn at Hause Gate and follow the path down to …..

….. Yewthwaite Combe and the former lead mining area. Lead mining ended here in the 1890s after about a hundred years worth of being worked. Even so there are still plenty of spoil heaps. shafts and adits around. The structure in the shot is marked on the OS map as a sheepfold but I’ve always wondered whether it was a former mine building. This area is also said to have been the home of Beatrix Potter’s famous hedgehog character, Mrs Tiggy-Winkle, who was supposed to have lived in a hole somewhere above the mine.

The soft grassy path eventually disappeared under this slew of boulders, rocks and stones which was a nightmare to walk on as can be imagined. Not sure whether it is spoil that the old miners chucked down the hill just to get rid of it or whether its the result of a landslip some time in the past. An ill-timed foot placement on the very loose stones would lead to a most uncomfortable and bruising sit-down so we trod carefully until we were back down on the gravel path below it.

We followed the gravel path to this point where we veered off to the right down the hill and back to the former mine track below which we joined at the beginning of today’s walk. From there it was back to the path across the field and then we were back on the road once more and heading down to the parking area. There are more cars down there than when we arrived this morning so it obviously filled up after we had set out. The couple of cars which were already parked when we arrived have departed as we will be doing in a few more minutes. So we come to the end of today’s walk and although we weren’t lucky enough to have any sunny spells at least it didn’t rain and we weren’t battling gale force winds and being blown sideways. That counts as a decent day in our book. Looking back we’ve managed to be out on a walk, somewhere or other, four times altogether during February. Decent days have been few and far between this winter so let’s hope that March continues in the same vein as February so we can keep walking on a regular basis.

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Walk date – 19th February 2024

Distance – 7.76 miles

Weather – sunny start then very overcast, brisk westerly wind at height, no rain

 

The day started off with sunshine and blue skies which turned overcast much earlier than the forecast had predicted. That was supposed to happen later on during the afternoon but things soon took a turn for the worse and by the time we reached Swindale Head the sky was beginning to look very gloomy indeed. We had intended to follow our usual route and walk over Selside Pike, Artle Crag and Branstree but we changed our plans once we arrived on Selside Pike. Our route from there turned out to be much more interesting than we had expected and provided some very different views to the ones we would have seen had we continued with our original route. Despite the poor weather, or maybe because of it, we had a much more varied route and saw familiar sights from different viewpoints than would otherwise have been the case.

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Route

(Manual map instead of the usual gps one – something went awry!)

Swindale Foot – Truss Gap – Swindale Head – Old Corpse Road – Selside End – High Blake Dodd – Selside Pike – Geordie Greathead Crag – Hobgrumble Gill – Nabs Moor – Mosedale – Dodds Bottom – Swindale Head – Truss Gap – Swindale Foot

Looking back from the parking area at Swindale Foot on a beautfiul sunny morning, unfortunately it wasn’t to last for very much longer.

Walking along Swindale Lane in bright sunshine, no wind and no other walkers around either.

We reach the stepping stones at Truss Gap and shortly afterwards …..

….. we arrive at the farm buildings at Swindale Head although it hasn’t been a working farm for many years now. The house has had several changes of ownership during the years we have been walking here but I don’t recall ever seeing it as a working farm. The tarmac surface ends here and once through the gate a wooden signpost indicates the path to Mardale following the Old Corpse Road. Walkers also have the option at the signpost of carrying straight on over the rough and stony farm track over to Forces Falls and on into Mosedale.

A look back at the blue sky disappearing eastward as we walk through the lonning from the farmhouse. The crags and hills across the valley are sandwiched between Swindale and Wet Sleddale and form part of the Shap group of fells. As can be seen from the water trickling along the centre of the path we have now begun to trek over some very wet ground.

A little higher up the path there’s a beck to be crossed which was somewhat awkward today thanks to the volume of water and thus plenty of wet stones on which to place our feet.

A closer look at the waterslide above the beck crossing.

Safely across the beck and carrying on up the soggy path with a look across to the end of Swindale and its surrounding rim of crags. The sunshine has been replaced with the customary blanket of cloud.

A look back along Swindale as the gradient eases a little. Just before we reached here we were approached by three walkers, possibly a family group, if so then Dad was carrying a dachshund, coming down towards us. The lady, who I assumed to be Mum, asked if we were local, (yes we are), and could we help them with their route finding, (of course we would). They had the correct OS map for the area and it was open at the right spot so we were able to pinpoint where they were and direct them to where she said they wanted to be. She mentioned that they found the contour lines very confusing, how lucky we were to live here, and that they were from London. The younger female of the group said nothing at all. We could only hope that they managed the rest of their walk by themselves as there weren’t many people out today who might have been able to help out if they lost their way again.

We carried on with our walk and eventually reached the wooden post marking the path junction for the route up to Selside Pike. I asked J if he recalled the first time we walked the corpse road up to this point and how, all the way up, he had said that the wooden post that we were looking out for had probably rotted or been blown away. Well, a few decades have passed since that walk  but the post is still here and still doing its job of guiding walkers up to Selside Pike. I always wonder how many walkers have missed it altogether and ended up somewhere they weren’t planning on visiting.

On the way up Selside Brow now and a look across to Brown Howe and the fells beyond. Between it and them is Haweswater down in the Mardale valley and I guess the fells on the skyline will be familiar to regular visitors to this site. For those unfamiliar with the view includes the pointed peak of Kidsty Pike.

The soggy and slip-slidy path continues on up the slope as we make our way towards …..

….. High Blake Dodd so we divert from the main path in order to take in the views from the top of it.

The view back along Swindale from High Blake Dodd and …..

….. the view down to the drumlins and Forces Falls …..

….. nearest the camera is Great Geordiehead Crag with Nabs Crag below it over towards the left.

The shelter on the summit of Selside Pike where we made ourselves comfortable out of the brisk wind and enjoyed some hot coffee and a bite to eat for ten minutes or so. We got out our map and held an executive meeting while we were here as the views ahead were less than promising.

This was the view ahead from beside the summit shelter on Selside Pike.

The clouds coming in from the west were becoming heavier and darker and the views were losing what little definition they had so we decided to go eastward down Selside Pike alongside the fence …..

….. J views the route as we begin our descent. We will follow the fence line down to the first dip, which contains Hobgrumble Gill, then cross the gill and, still keeping to the fence line, climb up over Nabs Moor before dropping down to pick up the path along Mosedale.

A steady descent down to Hobgrumble Gill while trying to avoid the soggiest patches. At least we’re out of the brisk wind now that we’ve left the summit.

Looking over the fence into the Hobgrumble basin where the water from the surrounding hillsides drains into the gill.

A glimpse of Forces Falls over on the left, with Nab Crag on the right, as we continue our descent.

Another look over towards Hobgrumble gill and its collecting basin. Just behind the rim of the basin is Howes which rises up to what we call High Howes. It all looks very moist across there.

We made a slight diversion over to Great Geordiehead Crag from where there is a fabulous view along Swindale and the beck winding along its length. What a shame that the sunshine went elsewhere.

There is also a bird’s eye view of Forces Falls from the same spot …..

….. plus this front row view down to Nab Crag.

With the sight-seeing done for the time being we made our way down to Hobgrumble Gill for this view of the gill just a few paces back from its steep drop through a narrow gorge down into Swindale.

From the same spot I turned around to take a look at the water coming downstream from the Hobgrumble basin.

We made our way back to the fence line and after crossing Hobgrumble Gill began our climb up and over Nabs Moor. This is a look back from just a few paces into the climb. The gill was too wide to stride over or risk jumping but fortunately there was a fairly new and sturdy ‘sheep stopper’ style gate across the water so we made use of that to get across.

Descending Nabs Moor now and making our way down to the path coming along Mosedale. The fence line continues on the other side of Mosedale Beck and leads up the slopes of High Wether Howe. If you want to see what things are like on the High Wether Howe side take a look at our walk of 19th April 2020 for more information. As we got further down a solo walker appeared making his way down from High Wether Howe, he crossed the beck, turned onto the path we were aiming for and made his way back into Swindale. He was wearing all black clothing which makes him difficult to spot in the photo, even with a zoom in.

A glance over towards Howes as we walk across Nabs Moor. The light is not improving one iota so the surrounding scenery has a very dreary appearance.

We follow the path around and begin our descent back into Swindale passing below Nab Crag as we do so.

The Swindale drumlins are directly below us and the old corpse road we followed from Swindale Head farm rises up the hillside and curves around the stand of trees which can be seen on the opposite slopes just below the skyline.

This is looking back up at what looks like a recent landslip which had started much higher up. It had crossed the path we were using and came to a halt just by the signpost indicating the path to Forces Falls. The resulting wet slurry layer was like quicksand if you stepped on it by mistake.

The path we were using doesn’t pass close to the falls but the glimpses we had of the frothing white water indicated a very full beck coming out of Mosedale, which is a very wet place at the best of times.

J making his way down the path and through the drumlins which …..

….. the beck, now called Swindale Beck, weaves its way through.

From the bend in the beck a look back along it towards the waterfalls.

As we reach Dodds Bottom on our left is the steep sided gorge through which Hobgrumble Gill is falling.

Making our way back towards the Swindale Head barns along the farm lane lined with its lovely ancient walls.

Back at the signpost at Swindale Head for a drinks stop and then …..

….. we’re back on Swindale Lane making our way back to the car. Across the valley are Gouther Crag (L) and Outlaw Crag (R), both are favourite haunts of rock climbers.

We pass the stepping stones at Truss Gap once again and continue on …..

….. to Swindale Foot farm which does appear to still be a working farm although we didn’t see any activity taking place today. Its only a very short distance from here to the parking area so this was the last shot I took. It’ll be great to flop onto the car seats and relax our legs after walking over energy sapping sodden, squelchy ground. All in all it turned out to be a most interesting walk today and looking back perhaps the weather did us a favour. The low light and subdued long distance views gave rise to a change of route which we probably wouldn’t have planned beforehand but which turned out to be a most enjoyable one. At least it didn’t rain on us, unlike today when its been pouring down since lunchtime!

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Walk date – 12th February 2024

Distance – 4.5 miles

Weather – some sunny spells to begin with, then mostly overcast, intermittent rain showers, brisk wind

 

The morning was dull and very overcast to begin with but about 11.15 a.m. the cloud began to break up and revealed, little by little, blue skies and sunshine. It happened rather too late in the day to think about a longish walk so we decided to drive over to the old quarry parking area at Park Brow and take a walk over Gowbarrow, always a nice little fell to fall back on when there is only a morning or afternoon to do something with. Unfortunately the blue sky and sunshine eventually went somewhere else  but it was nice while it lasted.

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Route

Park Brow – High Cascades bridge – Gowbarrow summit – Yew Crag – Aira Beck – Park Brow

As we started out from the Park Brow parking area we thought we would be enjoying a dry and sunny afternoon but it wasn’t to be. However at the time, albeit with a fairly brisk wind blowing, we set off down the hill towards Aira Beck in good spirits.

Aira Beck was roaring thunderously below us as we made our way down the hill.

I made my way gingerly across the damp, slithery rocks for a closer look at some of the falls at High Cascades.

A less precarious view upstream from High Cascades bridge. Lots of folk around today, some were doing the up and down walk alongside the beck, others were making their way up to the path above the beck to take a walk up the fell itself.

Parkgate farm and Watermillock Common as we walk the path across the open fellside. The path from the bridge through the woodland was running with water, as it often is, the path across the open fell was less watery but far more muddy. Swings and roundabouts I suppose.

Oh dear! The gaps in the heavy cloud allowed the sun’s rays to cast a silver sheen on Ullswater but the weather is coming from that direction and it doesn’t look at all promising, does it?

Approximately where the wooded area ends we turned off the usual path alongside the wall to follow this path just to vary our route a little. From this path this is the view over to the west. They are a little difficult to identify in the shot but beyond the farm and Watermillock Common are Birkett Fell, Hart Side, Stybarrow Dodd and Great Dodd all of which still have some remnants of snow scattered over them. A zoom in might help to differentiate between them all.

Looking north from the same spot we can see Blencathra which is also showing what remains of last week’s snowfall. We haven’t really had any snow covering at valley level, it has fallen as sleety rain instead. The first of several rain showers started pitter-pattering on our jacket hoods as we got going again. They weren’t heavy and didn’t last long, long enough though to create a build up of raindrops on my specs.

Still following our alternative path with Airy Crag, the summit of Gowbarrow fell, just ahead. We were between showers at this point.

Ullswater isn’t quite as silvery as it was although some sunbeams are getting through. Seems like the bands of cloud are joining forces.

A look back along the path we’ve taken for this view over towards Place Fell which is also still sprinkled here and there with snow remnants ….

….. and from the same spot, more sunbeams land on Ullswater and over on the right skyline the Helvellyn range appears to have a rather more substantial snow covering.

Looking westward across Matterdale towards Clough Head (L) and the Skiddaw group (R). Blown there by the strong winds some snow still nestles against the field walls of Matterdale. Clough Head has barely any but Skiddaw still has plenty by the look of it.

Sunbeams still managing to get through the small gaps in the cloud and illuminating Place Fell in the process. Wonderfully atmospheric and dramatic theatre by courtesy of mother nature.

The trig column and an almost sunny Great Mell Fell from a very windy Gowbarrow summit, we didn’t hang around.

Looking over towards Blencathra as we left the summit to find a sheltered spot in which to take a short break and have a drink. The sunny spells have become fewer now with longer cloudy spells between them.

Great Mell Fell gets another dollop of sunlight which misses us completely as we begin to make our way down to the terrace path for our return journey.

Little Mell Fell is briefly similarly favoured.

Great Meldrum in the centre of the shot with just a smidge of Ullswater to its right as we make our way down the muddy and very slippery path. As we went further down a young woman, in running strip, asked us if we had seen a mobile phone along the way but we hadn’t so she carried on up the path to look for it further up. She caught up with us again as we reached the old shooting lodge at the bottom of the path so we asked if she had found it to which she replied ‘Yes, thankfully’ before continuing her run along the terrace path.

Another shower moving along Ullswater as we walked along the terrace path …..

….. and immediately behind it another heavier one came along. A sunshine and showers day if ever there was one. As we progressed along the terrace path it had given way in a handful of places and careful consideration regarding crossing the gap was required. The result of too many feet and too much wet weather on a very narrow path I suppose.

A zoom in on Hallin Fell and Sandwick which were both lit up like Christmas trees in comparison to the very shaded Loadpot Hill/High Raise ridge

Zooming out for a longer view of the ridge and the middle section of Ullswater. The brighter weather has headed eastwards.

The end of a rainbow lands behind Heughscar Hill.

A look back at Yew Crag as we pass by and …..

….. a look at the view ahead as we make our way along. A solitary sunbeam pierces the cloud, just misses lighting up Silver Point and falls, appropriately enough, on Silver Bay instead.

Eventually the clouds won and that was the last we saw of the sunshine. Methinks the camera has automatically compensated for the low light as things were much darker than the photo shows. Looks as though another rain shower is falling at the Glenridding end of the water.

A zoom in on the castellated roof of Lyulph’s Tower as we pass above it. Another shower landed on us too so I didn’t take any more shots until …..

….. we reached the fellside path above Aira Beck and headed back up to High Cascades from where the following shots were taken …..

….. where the bridge was back in view and the water still thundered down over the rocks.

Back at the bridge and all that is left to do is walk back up the path to the A5091 and cross the road over to the parking area in the old quarry at Park Brow. It has only been a very short walk and nine days have gone by since we were last able to get outdoors so it was good to be out in the fresh air and sunshine again, even if the latter didn’t stay around very long. By the time we were home it was raining, again!

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Walk date – 3rd February 2024

Distance – about 5 miles, probably a bit less

Weather – very windy but dry and sunny

 

We have been battered day after day by very strong winds and heavy rain since our last walk. The countryside is littered with trees felled by the strong winds, becks and rivers are close to overflowing and the surrounding fields are waterlogged. We have managed to take a couple of local and unrecorded walks when the rain slowed down to a drizzle for and hour or so but all in all it hasn’t been a very pleasant few weeks. There was a chance of some brighter weather today although it would still be very windy and, given that there was a possibility that the east of Cumbria might have the best of the sunshine, we decided to go and see what the results of the repair works to the Smardale viaduct and lime kilns were like. The route had been closed during the latter part of 2023 while the repair works were carried out but as we’d heard that they were now finished it seemed a suitable day to go and take a look for ourselves. The walk along the dismantled railway track towards Smardale bridge would be sheltered enough and the wind would be at our backs as we made our way across Smardale Fell back to the Smardale hamlet and that’s how it turned out to be. The mileage given above is approximate as the tracking facility on the gps didn’t get turned on until we reached the viaduct. Oops!

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Route

Smardale hamlet – Desmesne Wood – Smardale Bridge – Smardale Fell – Smardale hamlet

We didn’t have a promising start to our walk. We made our way to Waitby village, then made our way along the very narrow and winding lane towards the parking area only to find it padlocked all of which resulted in having to continue on to Smardale Mill before we could turn the car around and drive back to Smardale hamlet. When we arrived notices on the gate informed us that this parking area (for the disabled only) was closed as was the footpath through Demesne Wood until further notice. The closure was explained by a reference to ‘ash die back’ and that the affected trees were being felled as a result. There was no sound of any tree felling activity, and likely there wasn’t going to be given that it was now 10.45 am on a Saturday so I, being the anti-authoritarian person that I am, decided to ignore all of it. J wasn’t in the mood to be put off either given that he had just had to deal with the locked official car park issue so off we went through the little handgate to begin today’s walk.

A quick peek up the private approach to Smardale Hall as we cross over to the gate. Everything might be damp and soggy but we have bright sunlight and blue skies at last.

Walking along the old railway track through Demesne Wood with sawn off bits of ash trees lying along the route. Walking along here on a hot summer day would provide plenty of cooling shade but quite the opposite in winter when the absence of leaves allows the winter sun through and lights up everything ahead of us.

Approaching a viaduct which carries the Settle/Carlisle rail line. When we reached it the white notice attached to the other side of the gate ahead informed us that no unauthorised persons were allowed to proceed beyond it. So on this side of the gate we were unauthorised but the minute we passed through the gate we were authorised. We’ve already met runners and dog walkers on the path through Demesne Wood and exchanged cheerful hellos so we weren’t the only ones ignoring the notices it seems.

More notices fixed to the gate across the entrance to the viaduct. All of them forbidding various activities including cycling and horse riding. These viaducts were built to take the weight of steam locomotives pulling dozens and dozens of heavily laden wagons and yet the occasional cyclist/ horse rider isn’t supposed to cross it. They all carried the same message ‘No you can’t’. The old information board telling folks all about the history of the railway line and the viaduct was nowhere to be seen. I’m getting sick  and tired of all this ‘nannying’ nonsense and the erasing of our history. Over on the left of the above photo is a stile …..

….. which took me down the path on the opposite side of the beck which offers a splendid view of the viaduct …..

….. and the beck which it was built to cross. There is plenty of information about Smardale and its viaduct on the web if you are seeking further details. The strong wind whooshing through the valley stopped me in my tracks for a couple of seconds as I made my way along the path.

Back up to the viaduct which now sports new railings and a tarmac surface and don’t you dare to ride your bike across it. Just as a matter of interest who is going to stop anyone doing so?

A look back as we reach the end of the viaduct and take to the gravel path once more.

We reach the area where the former quarries used to be worked …..

….. complete with an information board about …..

….. the repairs to the old lime kilns. Having checked against previous photos I’ve taken of them its difficult to see exactly what has been done as they look just the same as they always did. Maybe quite a lot of pointing work needed to be done or perhaps the interior of the kilns needed some attention. Whatever has been done it wasn’t immediately obvious and nothing stood out like a sore thumb which is exactly what restoration work should be all about.

The fence on top of the limestone cliffs looks a little ricketty.

A couple of walkers reading the info board. They were walking the same route as us but in the opposite direction and we met them later on as we were dropping back down Smardale Fell so they must have had a few minutes of being ‘unauthorised’ too.

Just beyond the lime kilns is the old railway house …..

….. which in the past would have housed the families of a couple of railway workers.

Just beyond the railway house is a bridge where we left the dismantled railway track, climbed the banking alongside the bridge up to the stile crossing and from there we followed the path in the shot over to Smardale Bridge.

Smardale Bridge below us with some of the hazy Howgill fells in the distance.

A closer look at the bridge as we follow the path down.

We paused at the old bridge to take a couple of shots, the above shows the view over to Smardale Fell to the east of the bridge …..

….. this one looks northwards and shows the path we’ve just come down. Plenty of water in the beck today.

A look back at the Grade 2 listed bridge which dates back to the 1700’s as we begin the climb up Smardale Fell.

The view ahead as we make our way up the lower slopes. At the signpost there is the option to take the path on the opposite side of the beck which leads back to the stile at the end/beginning of the viaduct. A solo walker and her dog coming from the Ravenstonedale direction eventually took this path when she reached the gateway. Take a look at our walk of 11th June 2020 for details of the route from the Ravenstonedale direction.

We’re much higher now so we take a look over the wall and get a fine view of the viaduct and the beck plus, over on the left the former quarries and lime kilns. The hazy North Pennines are in the distance.

J matches the height of the tall gate which crosses the path so he deals with the opening of it, the handle at the top being too high for me to exert enough force to open it.  We’re still climbing but the gradient is very gentle.

Even higher now and another peek over the wall to get a view of the railway house, the quarries and the lime kilns.

A close up view of the quarries and kilns from the wall.

We’re just about on the top of Smardale Fell now and, with the wind at our backs, we can look forward to a good tramp across without watery eyes and noses.

Wide open spaces, lovely views and lots of walls to enjoy across the fell. The North Pennines are in the distance.

What a lovely day for a tramp across the moorland.

J does a quick check on the gps to make sure that it hasn’t thrown a wobbly. The signpost tells us where we’ve been, which direction to follow if Kirkby Stephen is our destination but makes no mention of Smardale. Just as well then that we know that we need to keep following the wall.

Demesne Wood comes into view again just below us and we’ve just met the couple who were reading the info board at the lime kilns.

Another tall gate for J to deal with as we begin to descend back into Smardale …..

….. beyond which the handful of houses forming the little hamlet begin to come into view. A photographer had set up his camera and tripod over on the right of the shot so he probably had a better view of the North Pennines from there than we did from the pathway.

Passing by a couple of the houses in Smardale as we reached the dirt road.

The lane is crossed by another bridge also carrying the Settle/Carlisle line.

You can’t not take a photo of this, can you? The three calves showed a keen interest in us as we passed by.

The sunny side of Smardale Hall. Probably the front entrance judging by the cars parked over to the right of the shot.

Almost at the end of our walk now and the waterlogged field bears witness to the amount of rain that has fallen recently. The car is parked just around the corner and as we were preparing to leave another one arrived and parked just behind us. A young couple and three small dogs climbed out, they took absolutely no notice of any of the ‘No unauthorised persons’/’Car park closed’ notices, didn’t even glance at them, passed through the gate and started out on their walk. A good weather day on a Saturday hasn’t happened for a while now so just as we did they were making the most of it. Can’t say I blame them either!

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Walk date – 15th January 2024

Distance – 4.6 miles

Weather – dry, sunny, with a very cold and brisk north wind

 

A short walk up to High Pike today which might possibly have included Carrock Fell but didn’t in the end. We spent the morning in bright sunlight and blue skies accompanied by a brisk and very chilly wind, so chilly that the muscles on the right side of my face became somewhat anaesthetised while those on the left side were kept warm by the blazing sun, it was rather like trying to talk as the anaesthetic was wearing off after a visit to the dentist.

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Route

 Carrock Beck ford – Quaker Hill – West Fell – High Pike – Sunny Bank – Carrock Beck – Carrock Beck ford

We parked just a little way up the hill from the ford across Carrock Beck and then walked a few paces up to the start of the path across Carrock Common.

A quick look over to our left as we start out reveals the north facing slopes of Carrock Fell covered by a smattering of snow, none of which had fallen on the south facing ones as we approached them from the road from Bowscale and Mosedale.

The path across the common flattens out to reveal the route ahead. The path winding its way crosses Quaker Hill to begin with, behind that are the snow sprinkled slopes of West Fell and over to the left is a much more snowy High Pike. A bitingly cold wind is blowing across from the right which, despite hats, hoods and, in my case, two pairs of gloves, gradually leads to frozen face muscles and chilled fingers.

We left the main path over Quaker Hill to begin the climb over West Fell where I took a look back at our route so far. The North Pennines and Cross Fell, with its distinctive bump, can be seen on the left skyline.

We reach the snow line on West Fell where I took another look back before trying to get some warmth into my right hand by blowing into my glove, which was comforting for the few seconds it lasted.

On we go and further up I took a shot of our route ahead. The view gives the impression that we are almost at the top but we aren’t and there’s a whole lot more steep climbing to be done before we finally reach the top. The snow was only a sprinkling but it added some definition to what would otherwise be an unremarkable view.

After a couple more ‘get your breath back’ stops we reach the level path across the top of West Fell from where High Pike looks a lot less snowy than it did when we first saw it. The deep gullies on High Pike contain an abundance of former mine workings

Approaching some of the old mine workings from West Fell. A time line history of mining on High Pike is available on this site –

https://www.catmhs.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Carrock-Fell-Mine-Chronology-boss.pdf

Deep shadows in a deep hole and similarly in the shallow trench beyond. Hard to tell whether these were prospecting holes/trenches or whether they are due to underground workings collapsing.

The deep hole from another angle plus the view across West Fell’s plateau. Note the deep shade on the north facing slopes of Carrock Fell.

Looking across the summit of West Fell.

Deep shade on Carrock Fell’s north facing slopes.

We turn our attention away from the mining remains and take to the path heading up to the summit of High Pike. The group in the far distance have walked the same route as we have and they and us have remained more or less the same distance apart. We kept seeing them as they passed over the various humps and bumps between us. The three ladies ahead of J were talking non-stop as they passed by us when we were taking photos at the mining area, they came over from the Calebreck direction.

Another fenced off collapsed area beyond which is the path going around Sunny Bank and which eventually would be our return route, although we did not know it at the time.

The summit of High Pike, suitably snow covered but not deeply so. There was just enough to provide an appropriate winter walk photo. At the height of 2159’/658m this is one of the Lake Distict’s most northerly fells and with no fells close enough to provide much of a wind break we were fully exposed to the brisk and very cold wind. The stones of the wind shelter were covered with iced up snow and the bench was covered likewise so it wasn’t a place to linger very long. The three ladies hadn’t stayed long either and as we were approaching the summit they were making their descent over the path back to Calebreck.

Another view of the wind shelter and trig point.

Carrock Fell, its plateau catching the morning sun although the sun isn’t high enough to land on its north facing slopes, nor will it be for a good few weeks yet.

I would have had a shot of the Skiddaw group just a few seconds beforehand.  By the time I’d switched the camera on and lined up the shot the bank of cloud appeared from nowhere and blanked out the view.

I managed to keep the sun out of this shot to get this very shadowy view of Blencathra and Mungrisedale Common, taking any further shots in this direction was futile.

Looking across Roughton Gill towards Great Sca Fell and Little Sca Fell on the skyline above Yard Steel, the great bump across the centre of the shot.

Little Sca Fell on the left skyline sweeping down to Brae Fell over on the right.

Brae Fell with Cumbria’s coastal plain beyond.

Across the misty Solway Firth is Criffel, over in Scotland.

Back to the summit area for another look at the ‘furniture’ adorning the top and then …..

….. we dropped down just a few yards to the north of the summit to take a short coffee break in the second wind shelter. This too was deeply iced over but its taller walls did provide cover from the wind, unfortunately they were also tall enough to prevent the sun getting into it which meant the hot coffee was more than welcome.

While we took our coffee break we discussed whether it was worth going over to Carrock Fell. We would normally include it on a walk up to High Pike but today the views from it would be too backlit by the low sun for good photography, furthermore our descent from Carrock Fell would mean walking the path down the deeply shaded northern slopes and straight into the wind. We decided to stay on this northern path, drop back down to the mining area we had stopped at previously and from there follow the path around Sunny Bank back to the car above the Carrock Beck ford.

Following a quad bike trail back to the mining area below West Fell. The path we used to cross West Fell is clearly visible as is the path winding its way around Sunny Bank over on the right.

Sunny Bank living up to its name today as we make our way over to the path going around it.

A look back at some of the gullies created during mining operations.

A few more gullies further down. Not formed naturally by becks, there were none in any of them, but formed by human hands/machinery digging into the hillsides searching for the minerals they contained. Plenty of spoil still lying around as the photo shows. One solo walker, accompanied by his dog, is walking up the path who we had a brief chat with as we passed each other. I began to wonder if dogs can imitate human speech because this dog looked me straight in the eyes and then seemed to greet me in two quite distinctive tones, something that sounded like a quiet ‘hello’. It wasn’t a bark or a growl but it was the most unusual sound I’ve ever heard coming from a dog. I mentioned this to its owner and he replied that the dog did make that sound from time to time but whether it was some form of friendly greeting or not he didn’t know. I’m still pondering about the incident.

More gullies from long ago searches for minerals as we part company with him and his dog and continue our descent.

Much lower down the valley now and still enjoying the blazing sunshine. Note the deep shade on Carrock Fell’s slopes to the right, that would have been our descent route had we gone over to it. Furthermore the bulk of Sunny Bank and West Fell are protecting us from the brisk and chilly wind and we still had some snow to crunch through so the walk back down was very pleasant.

Rounding a bend so a look back at High Pike before the view is lost.

Crossing Quaker Hill again we noticed this small group of fell ponies grazing on its slopes. There was a larger group of eight further up the hill but they were too far away from us to take a photo of them. Nice to see them roaming the fells again.

A look back at West Fell as we descend Quaker Hill …..

….. and a look ahead to where we are about to re-join the main track leading back to the car.

A look back as we reached the main track from the path on the right. The view of High Pike has disappeared and only the tip of West Fell can be seen.

Once on the main track we only have a short distance to walk until we are back at the car so this is where today’s walk comes to an end. Its been a gloriously sunny walk and, although the brisk and chilly wind definitely outmatched any warmth offered by the bright sunshine, we have enjoyed the chance to get out into some proper winter weather again. We woke up to find snow on the ground today (Tuesday) and it has been snowing on and off, and settling, all day so far. Will it continue to snow and settle, will we get the chance for another snowy walk in bright sunshine? Who knows, we’ll just have to wait and see.

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