Category: Uncategorized

Walk date – 22nd May 2023

Distance – 8.2 miles

Weather – dry, warm, a mix of sunny/cloudy spells, light breeze

We went back to Yorkshire, our native county, today although it was merely a toehold not a full immersion. We were just on the very edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park but its still Yorkshire, even though the sign, just a short distance up the road to Sedbergh from the Moorcock Inn, indicates the crossing of the county line back into Cumbria. We made the longish drive from home through the Mallerstang valley to the Moorcock Inn where there are a few off-road parking spaces. Other than a family loading up their car in the inn’s car park after staying there overnight there was no-one else to be seen. We got ourselves ready to go, J fired up the gps and then we only had to cross the road to the start of the path just below the inn.

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Route

Moorcock Inn – Yore House Farm – Cotterside Plantation – Thwaite Bridge Farm – Cotter End – The High Way – High Dyke – Shaws – Lund Chapel – Lunds Plantation – B6259 – Moorcock Inn

The path begins at this gate just below the inn so we pass through it and …..

….. begin the walk down to Yore House farm. Today’s route will take us over Abbotside Common, the skyline of which is shown in this shot. Its a warm and very pleasant day so we are suitably attired in T-shirts and shorts, well J is wearing shorts I’ve opted for crop pants with shorts tucked in my pack just in case it gets even warmer.

Below the Cobbles Plantation is the bridge crossing the river Ure where we will turn right, cross the bridge and make our way across the fields to Thwaite Bridge farm.

Approaching the bridge crossing where the lamb heard the click of the camera and looked up immediately, Mum didn’t even bat an eyelid, grass is much more important than humans any day of the week. There are actually two bridges here, the wooden one behind the original bridge being much wider and sturdier. Perhaps the stone bridge was much too narrow to accommodate modern farm vehicles, especially the monster tractors that most farmers seem to have nowadays.

A shot of this pretty little waterfall as we crossed over, not a lot of water flowing over it at present as we are having a dry spell at present.

The view back to Yore House farm as we made our way along the path. The farmer had just turned out the cows and calves into the field below so he directed us alongside the wall just to be on the safe side. Cows with calves can be a bit unpredictable sometimes although we’ve never had any trouble with them. We had a bit of chat with him about the weather and such like before continuing on our way.

From here on it was simply a case of walking across four fields of rough pastureland passing though all the various gates/stiles along the way, this is wall crossing number one …..

….. and wall crossing number two.

A look ahead across the fields towards the steep slope on the left, our eventual turn up point. If you want to walk The High Way from its southeastern end that just has to be tackled first.

The fledgling River Ure meandering along the valley bottom making its way down into Wensleydale. Its source, at Ure Head high up on Abbotside Common, is just a little further north along the valley.

Wall crossing number three was a step stile where we made a rather ungainly crossing since the steps sticking out of the wall didn’t stick out far enough for either of us to use them in a graceful/elegant manner. Not that either of us are in any way graceful or elegant but I’m guessing that you’ll know what I mean.

Wall crossing number four was simply a matter of opening a metal gate leading into the farmyard at Thwaite Bridge farm, so here’s a view of the bridge and part of the farm buildings rather than a one of a metal farm gate.

The view looking the other way with the farm buildings now behind me and the next part of the route indicated by the signpost over on the left.

We take a short uphill walk through the copse from the signpost …..

….. which led us up to this small gate and out onto the open fellside.

We had a short pause as we climbed up from the copse for a shot along the minor road between Hawes and the Moorcock Inn, this view looks back down to the buildings of Thwaite Bridge farm and towards the Moorcock direction. The pause also allowed me to change into my shorts, it was getting a bit too warm to be wearing the crop pants.

The heavy lifting started here. Below the trees in the centre of the shot it might just be possible to identify a whitish marker pole which indicates the way to a small wooden gate in the wall. Passing through the gate leads into another field crossing which in turn leads up to the gate below Cotter End. Its a steep climb over rough grassland so my back muscles weren’t too impressed.

The last little section of the steep climb as we pass through the gate leading up to Cotter End.

The flattish area on Cotter End is home to this lime kiln, plus lots of sheep who looked most put out by our arrival, one of whom added her own contribution to the large accumulation of sheep droppings lying around.

Well we’ve made it onto The High Way at last so time for a peep over the wall down to Thwaite Bridge farm with Mossdale Moor (I think) behind it.

The view ahead as we stride out along The High Way. In our walk of 1st June 2020 over Mallerstang Edge we walked part of the other end of this route. On that walk we started out a short distance from the house known as The Thrang and walked up to the stone sculpture known as ‘Water Cut’ before turning up to walk along Mallerstang Edge. We won’t be going as far as the sculpture today though as we plan to descend back down to the valley via Shaws and Lund Chapel.

Looking back along our route so far, lots of easy walking by way of compensation for the steep climb up to it.

The view ahead as we stride along. We’ve put long sleeved jumpers on now that the clouds have ganged up and the breeze is stronger and colder.

A shot of the information board attached to the gate as we passed through. There wasn’t a similar board at the end we started out from though. We did see several grouse as we walked along and heard the calls of curlews as they soared above us.

Several gills, mostly dry, were crossed as we walked along, I think this one is Johnston Gill.

Further along we arrive at the derelict buildings of High Dyke farm. All the buildings we passed along the way were in this state. Farming at this height must have been hard going and a very difficult way to earn a living so its hardly surprising that these buildings have been abandoned.

A look back at the derelict buildings as we pass by.

Dropping down towards Keld Gill where we were surprised to find a stone pitched path instead of grass under our feet. Once again no water in the gill.

Looking back across the gill towards the buildings at High Dyke.

Another derelict barn further along the route.

Another bone dry gill so the footbridge was not needed today. I’m not sure what the name of this gill is as it could be called either Scars Gill or Lambfold Gill. The two gills start out as separate entities but they eventually become one a little further back up the hill so I suppose both names would be correct. Whatever its called whenever the gill contains water it carries on down the hillside to eventually join the river Ure in the valley bottom.

A view of Wild Boar Fell as we make our way down from The High Way towards Shaws …..

….. which we found more by luck than judgement. J thought he could hear a waterfall as we were descending so he went to investigate while I waited on the path. He eventually re-appeared saying he had found Shaws so off we went to investigate and there it was. We spotted a woman coming towards us so I asked her if she knew the name of the building. She did and told us it was indeed Shaws and we ended up having a longish chat with her. She had just been to check on the chapel and was on her way home so she obviously lived nearby but we couldn’t see where home might be, every residence looked to be quite some distance from where we were standing.

I have no idea what the purpose was for this stone built round tower situated behind Shaws or when it was built but obviously it did have a purpose or someone wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of building it.

As we passed behind the Shaws buildings we came across this enchanting little series of falls in the garden. With so little water flowing down we began to think that J couldn’t have heard a waterfall after all, and that it was more likely to have been the sound of the wind blowing through the tree tops.

A look back at Shaws as we began descending again. This building used to be the Garsdale Youth Hostel but it closed its doors sometime in the 1980’s. Probably it is still owned by the YHA and if so someone will be keeping an eye on things. It is surrounded by trees and bushes now so it was difficult to photograph. If you want to see what it looked like in the 1980’s click on this link https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/6895715

At the bottom of the descent we crossed this little footbridge heading towards Lund Chapel and …..

….. then crossed another one to get to the chapel.

The chapel is a Grade ll listed building and privately owned now but you can go in and take a look around. J slid back the bolt on the outside of the door but had to make his way in sideways as the door wouldn’t open very far.

The interior of the chapel would have had wooden pews at one time, rather like the one alongside the wall, and of course the modern garden furniture now placed in the centre wouldn’t have been there at all. There is a mosaic of tiles on the floor below the window but there was no information as to where it came from.

We closed the door and slid the outside bolt back into place and then took a look at some of the headstone inscriptions, all of which dated back a considerable number of years to the very early years of the 20th century and many years before that.

From the chapel we walked down the track to this footbridge across the Ure river and continued on up the track opposite to rejoin the road and the walk back to the Moorcock. From the chapel we could have walked back across the fields to Blades farm and then onto the track we started out on earlier. We decided that taking to the tarmac would be a quicker and easier return even though we don’t care for road walking all that much. As we walked up the track to the road a lorry came down carrying a load of quarry hewn boulders and we did wonder where he was going to unload it all.

We carried on up the track which eventually ended at the roadside where these stone pillars and intricate iron gates formed the entrance. There were some initials worked into the metal on the top of the gate but I can’t remember what they were now. They would have been the initials of the original owner I would imagine.

From the gates we headed off down the road towards the Moorcock with a glance across the valley towards the white building of Shaws. The lorry still with its load of boulders came back down the road and passed us as we walked along. Had he turned down the Lund track by mistake we wondered?

On we went glancing now and then across at our route on the skyline…..

….. when the lorry came back up the road still bearing its load of boulders and the driver had passed us often enough by now to give us a cheery wave from his cab. We could only come to the conclusion that he had missed a turning somewhere. He must have found the place he needed to be because we didn’t see him or his wagon again.

An imaginative roadside sign indicating the access lane to Blades Farm caused me to wonder how much ploughing actually takes place nowadays on farms around here. Not all that much I guess given the amount of cattle and sheep we’ve seen along the way.

Looking across to Yore House farm and beyond and being reminded of our earlier steep climb up to Cotter End.

Back at the Moorcock again where the car is parked just below the line of bushes on the right of the shot. The inn does B&B accommodation but at present is only open to the public on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and no food is served after 5.00 pm. They no longer do a lunch/evening meal menu and only serve bottled beer not draught. They still serve food but there is only a limited choice available at present. I remembered going there for a meal last summer and the busy waitress apologising for the long wait we’d had before our food arrived and telling us how difficult it was to hire staff nowadays. We have had many good meals there in the past and we were sad to see how things are now so we do hope it manages to keep going, it would be such a shame to lose it after all these years.

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Walk date – 13th May 2023

Distance – 3.3 miles

Weather – warm, dry, sunny, with just a light and very occasional breeze

 

Another Saturday walk, which is not our usual practice, but it was such a lovely warm day we decided to take a short afternoon walk up to Glenridding Dodd after the routine chores around the house and garden were over and done with. Driving to Glenridding along the lakeshore road we noticed that every available parking space was full, their occupants down on the shoreline busying themselves with all manner of aquatic activities.  We began to wonder if the car park in the village would also be just as full, after all it was afternoon on a sunny Saturday, so we didn’t hold out much hope. However it wasn’t as full as we had feared and we managed to find a vacant spot, parked up and poured our £1 coins into the meter, the amount of which was equivalent to my weekly wage when I got my first job! Mind you, that was a very, very long time ago but perhaps it goes some way towards explaining the reason why we didn’t have any trouble finding a parking space.

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Route

Glenridding – Greenside Road – The Rake – Glenridding Dodd – Mossdale Beck – Glencoyne Wood – Stybarrow Crag – Glenridding

A view of Glenridding Dodd (R) and Heron Pike (L) as we walked up the Greenside Road. T shirts and lightweight walking pants are the order of the day.

Here’s where we turn off to follow the path up The Rake which will take us up to the little col between Glenridding Dodd and Heron Pike. The first couple of hundreds yards or so leads along this very pleasant green pathway, after that it becomes rougher and much steeper. The signpost tells us its half a mile up to Glenridding Dodd.

Birkhouse Moor across the valley as we begin the steep, rough climb. The path is very loose making it difficult to get a firm foothold so plenty of slithering took place.

Its back, grrr!

On the way up The Rake the ground levels out a little where you can make a short diversion to this point which offers a good view across Glenridding village and Ullswater to this skyline view of Place Fell, High Raise, Angletarn PIkes, Brock Crags and, on the far right, part of the High Street plateau, Gray Crag and Thornthwaite Crag. The level ground of the viewpoint also offers a chance to get your breath back before continuing on up The Rake.

The Rake eventually levels out and as we’re practically at the col now I took a look back for this skyline view of Birks Fell, Saint Sunday Crag, and its subsidiary peak of Gavel Pike, with just a little bit of Fairfield peeping up on the far right. Lower down the path a young man had asked us if we knew the area and when we said yes he asked if this was this route to Helvellyn. After explaining the various routes he could take, depending on how quickly he wanted to reach Helvellyn, he decided to stay on The Rake, visit Glenridding Dodd and Sheffield Pike and then make a decision about going on to Helvellyn from there. As we carried on to the col itself we saw him sitting studying a map and then, as I was taking a few shots, he began to make his way up to Glenridding Dodd.

We eventually began making our way up the same path to complete the short distance up to the summit of Glenridding Dodd. As we did so we met the same young man, now making his way down, who mentioned in passing that he’d taken a few photos of the great views he’d seen. As I took this shot he was crossing the col towards the path through the crags opposite to begin making his way up to Heron Pike and eventually Sheffield Pike. I hope he reached Helvellyn eventually, he was certainly young enough and fit enough, and the daylight hours are now long enough, but nevertheless he was taking the long way round to reach it.

At a hair pin bend in the path I was just tall enough to see over the wall to take this shot of Heron Pike, with Black Crag over to the right. The young man has disappeared into the jumble of crags through which the path up to Heron Pike leads.

Gowbarrow Fell from the top of Glenridding Dodd and just a smidge of Ullswater showing through the trees below.

The cairn on the summit of Glenridding Dodd with Place Fell right behind. The cairn here often changes as various walkers try their hand at creating something different, this one relied on precise weight distribution to keep it upright. How will it fare in the next strong wind?

A superb view along Ullswater from the summit …..

….. followed by a closer view.

The view along Patterdale where the skyline is taken up by High Raise, Rampsgill Head, the High Street plateau and Thornthwaite Crag. Below them are Angletarn Pikes, Brock Crags and Gray Crag.

A little to the right with the rounded hump of Thornthwaite Crag over on the left with Hartsop Dodd and Caudale Moor taking up most of the centre skyline. Below them are the various humps and bumps of Arnison Crag.

Only just making an appearance above the Myers Beck route on Birkhouse Moor are the very tops of the Helvellyn range.

Another view of the summit cairn but now looking towards the very pointed peak of Catstycam, which is just beginning to show behind Birkhouse Moor, followed by the long ridge line between White Side and Helvellyn Lower Man.

A shot of Heron Pike and Black Crag to round off a selection of views from the top of Glenridding Dodd. While I had been busy taking the photos a couple of chaps had also arrived at the top and after the usual pleasantries about the weather and the views they asked us about the route down back to Glenridding as they didn’t want to return via the path they had used for their ascent. This just happened to be the one we would be using for our descent and we got the impression that they had found it a little on the rough side. Anyway we gave them the directions they asked about and off they went back down to Glenridding.

A look back at Heron Pike and Black Crag as we begin our descent back to Glenridding via the path beyond the gate at the col.

To begin with the path was pleasant enough, mostly grassy with a few boggy patches here and there. Here we are heading towards the trees of Glencoyne Wood.

The very tall and very wide root plate of a windblown tree …..

….. which turned out to be two tree trunks once we had reached the other side of the root plate. This was easy to pass by but things became much rougher beyond this point with a lot more fallen trees to contend with and several detours having to be made around them. One of the detour paths led us some distance away from the path we wanted and it soon became obvious that we would have to retrace our steps and find the more established path down beside Mossdale Beck. The only plus point of the detour was…..

….. this glorious view of Ullswater. We made our way back until we spotted Mossdale Beck again and found the path we wanted to use.

Not as good a viewpoint as the previous shot as it only offered a partial view of Place Fell and Ullswater but, on the plus side we were back on the established path, such as it was, at this point.

We’re almost back down to the parking area below Stybarrow Crag at this point and just about out of the woods and back in the sunlight. We can hear the voices of the car owners beside their cars and the slamming of boot lids and car doors as folk come and go. We haven’t used this path before because on previous walks Glenridding Dodd has always been included as part of a longer walk which usually involved getting back to Glenridding via a completely different fell. So, as we only visited this one fell today we thought we’d give this descent path a try. Its not a route I would enthusiastically recommend though, there are a lot of fallen trees, and when it can be located and followed, the path for the most part, varies between being very loose, rough, rocky, wet, muddy and/or boggy, and from the moment it enters Glencoyne Wood stays in deep shade. Anyway, for better or for worse, we have now experienced it but it was nice to have firm ground back under our feet when we reached the road. Its not surprising then that the two chaps on Glenridding Dodd asked us about an alternative route down to Glenridding.

The descent path brings you out slap bang at the parking area below Stybarrow Crag, by the ‘bus stop’ sign to be precise, from where we have a very short road walk before we veer off to the left, where the traffic cones are, and follow the lakeshore path back to Glenridding.

Along the way we watched one of the Ullswater ‘steamers’ making its way around Norfolk Island before heading over to Howtown …..

….. stopped at a viewpoint to gaze towards Patterdale beyond Ullswater and at the waves caused by the wash of the ‘steamer’ which caused some moments of concern for a few paddleboarders …..

….. and sat for a couple of minutes looking towards the boat landing area at Glenridding. From here we have just a short walk back to the car park where vehicles of all descriptions were still coming and going. The descent path was very trying but apart from that we’ve had a grand little walk on a lovely afternoon during what must have been the warmest day of the year so far. There were still plenty of folk occupying the various small beaches dotted around the water and the smell of barbecues was drifting through the air reminding us that it was getting on for tea time, so off we went to get our own tea time under way.

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Walk date – 6th May 2023

Distance – 7.6 miles

Weather – dry, overcast, light breeze, a few glimpses of sun

 

The weather forecast for today was sort of OK, dry and not very windy although it would be mostly overcast and not offering very much by way of sunshine. Although we tend not to go out walking at the weekend we thought it might be a reasonably good day for doing so today. The dull weather forecast might persuade folk to stay indoors and watch TV instead and thus parking might be easier. When we arrived at the lay-by on the A591 just outside Grasmere it wasn’t full and we parked up easily enough. After we’d crossed the road and made our way along the field path into the village we noticed the large field, where the Grasmere sports day is usually held in August, was obviously home to some other event for the day. No indication of what the event was so I checked up when we got back home and found that the Fred Whitton Challenge cycling events were being held there over this three day Bank Holiday weekend. That explained all the ‘Major Cycling Event’ notices, posted along various roadsides, that we had been seeing during the preceding days. The field contained rows of parked cars which probably explained why the lay-by wasn’t as full as it otherwise might have been. Grasmere village itself was just beginning to get started, with only a few people out and about, and there was the delicious aroma of gingerbread coming from the shop selling it as we walked past. A few walkers were spread out along the back road leading to Red Bank but none turned off onto the Kelbarrow path so we had the path to ourselves and encountered no more until we reached the top of Silver How.  It was a similar story after leaving Silver How and it was only when we got back down to Easedale Tarn that we began seeing other walkers again.

 

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Route

Grasmere lay-by – Grasmere village – Kelbarrow – Silver How – Lang How – Swinescar Pike – Little Castle Crag – Great Castle Crag – Easedale Tarn – Easedale – Grasmere village – Grasmere lay-by

Silver How from the lay-by as we set off walking into the village via the field path.

The Grand hotel’s tree sculpture now complete. We noticed that work had started on this last year but as it had only just begun I didn’t take a shot of it. The tree, dating from around 1869, is/was a giant redwood into which has been carved various creatures – a flying bird at the very top, a squirrel – presumably a red, a woodpecker, and a couple of owl faces. There is a similar tree carving, a large owl on the opposite side of the hotel driveway which was completed several years ago and which has now weathered in very nicely.

Here’s where we turned off and passed through the wooden gate onto the Kelbarrow path. All the walkers ahead of us kept straight on, presumably heading for Loughrigg or a lakeside walk.

Spring greenery along the Kelbarrow path.

A pause to remove a layer and an opportunity to look back along the path so far. It was very muggy coming through the woodland so the long sleeved jumpers just had to come off. Things are looking rather dull and cloudy over the Nab Scar to Fairfield ridge and everything is very hazy.

Feeling a little more comfortable now that we have removed a layer and had a drink so off we go again on the steady climb towards our turn off point. No bracken shoots showing as yet, it seems to be a little later in arriving than usual this year. Some green shoots of it can generally be seen by now.

Seat Sandal, Fairfield and Great Rigg looking very sombre below all that cloud.

We reach the point where we’ll turn off and make our way up to the top of Silver How, although its not looking very silvery at the moment. The first part of the climb is over grass, the second part, through the narrow gully at the top end, consists of a stone pitched series of steps. All of it is steep so it makes for very warm work on a very muggy day.

The climb does offer some decent views of Grasmere water and Rydal Water beyond it though which are not available when walking along the path by the wall.

We’re on the stone pitched path at this point and almost at the top of the gully. The path up here started by the wall down below so its quite a climb. A view of Loughrigg and Dow Bank with Windermere in the distance is what you get at this point.

Just below the summit of Silver How at this point and a grand view of the Langdale Pikes. We could have had a grand view of Bowfell had it not been for all the cloud swirling around it over on the left of the shot.

On the summit now with a view of Helm Crag and Steel Fell across Far Easedale. A glimmer of sunlight lands on them and also on Clough Head behind them.

Fairfield, in the centre, still looking gloomy although Seat Sandal and Stone Arthur have bits and bobs of sunlight now and again.

The summit cairn on Silver Howe together with someone’s pack and walking poles lying on the ground close by. Their owner is out of shot behind me encouraging the rest of the group who are still making their way up.

We got waylaid for quite a while up here. We had a longish chat with an American chap from New Jersey who, when I asked how life was in the US, replied with a smile “Well, its always a trial.” He eventually went on his way and we were then approached by a young man asking for directions to Loughrigg from this point so we helped him out a bit more precisely than the app on his phone was able to do. The females in his group looked very uninterested and remained seated around the cairn with their sleeves pulled over their hands. The light breeze was a bit stronger up here though and we put our long sleeved jumpers back on. They went on their way only to be followed at the summit by another group of youngsters who also asked for directions back to Grasmere but using a different route to the one they had used for their ascent so once again we obliged. About twenty minutes had passed by this time so we started off again before we could be waylaid yet again.

Down we go following the path over to Lang How.

One of the tarns below Lang How. No more walkers were met from hereon.

The larger tarn below Lang How is gradually silting up but when we first walked past it was a much larger body of water.However that was a very long time ago, unfortunately! The top of Bowfell is still hidden by cloud.

On we go, now heading towards Swinescar Pike.

Another tarn comes into view as we follow the path around Swinescar Pike. I think the hill over to the left must be a viewpoint across Great Langdale. There was what looked to be a cairn on it but it is not named on the map so I can’t say what what its name is.

The path turns eastward so we have a sunny view of the Helvellyn range beyond Helm Crag and Steel Fell. The walk from Silver How over to Castle How is full of humps and bumps so the views are constantly changing.

On top of another bump now with a view of Pike O’Blisco, Crinkle Crags and Bowfell encircling the green fields of Oxendale.

Approaching the sprawl of Castle How. On the OS map the area consists of Little Castle How, Great Castle How and Looking Howe but its difficult to ascertain which part is which as they all seem to blend together. Anyway this is the first part of the cluster and between us and it is a marshy area so the path winds around it to the left and then begins to climb up the hillside. With a zoom in it might be possible to see the path passing below the area of fallen rock towards the middle of the shot.

We wind our way to the left and get a view of Lingmoor and Side Pike as we round the marshy area. The smoky grey Coniston fells are on the distant skyline.

Mum keeps a wary eye on us after we disturbed her lamb’s mid morning nap as we passed by. She didn’t look at all pleased about it either.

The skies have darkened again over the Helvellyn range and Fairfield. Its a very gloomy old morning so long distance views are hard to come by. On the plus side though it isn’t cold although our jumpers are still on, but that’s more to do with us not bothering to stop and remove them more than anything else.

Having threaded our way up, down, over and around all the humps and bumps we are finally reaching the end of our journey across from Silver Howe as Blea Rigg comes into view where there is one more part of Castle How to cross before we reach today’s descent path.

I think that that part of this sprawl of rocky hillocks is Looking Howe but don’t quote me on that because I’m not sure.

A lovely little tarn comes into view just before we climb the last little hill comprising Great Castle How …..

….. so we decided that it was just the place to stop and have something to eat before going any further. A very pleasant place to tuck into sandwiches and coffee.

After our break we carried on to the descent path between Castle How and Blea Rigg from where I took a look back over our route and …..

….. over towards the Helvellyn range where the cloud has lifted and blue skies have suddenly appeared.

We didn’t bother going over to Blea Rigg today since we had a walk up there in June last year so we began to make our way backdown to Easedale Tarn.

Typically the sun shone on our backs all the way down so we had to stop after a while to take off the jumpers. After a gloomy morning it was nice to have though and we weren’t complaining.

Back down at the site of the old refreshment hut above Easedale Tarn where, as far as walkers were concerned, it was business as usual. Lots of people up here just sitting and enjoying the afternoon sunshine or taking a paddle/swim in the tarn.

I managed a shot of Tarn Crag though despite the area being busy.

I stepped off the path for this shot as so many people were making their way up that there just wasn’t the space for all of us. It has turned into a very pleasant early afternoon and it isn’t a very long walk up from Grasmere which is why people are out and about. Even Seat Sandal and Fairfield have brightened up.

Seat Sandal and Fairfield still sunny behind the col between Helm Crag and Gibson Knott.

J, now down to bare arms, viewing Easedale Beck as we continue our descent into Easedale.

As we approached the falls a swimmer plunged into the pool but at the same moment I took the shot he appeared again and you can just see part of his face behind the rocks towards the bottom right of the shot.

A longer view of the same waterfall as drops down below Ecton Crag. The swimmer is out of the pool now and getting dried off just to the right of path.

Just below the series of falls is this neat and tidy sheepfold, it might not be visible when the bracken starts growing.

Almost back down in the valley bottom now so a longer view of the falls is possible. Plenty of people were still sweating their way up the path.

Blindtarn Cottage has a sad history connected to it. A search on the web for it will give the story so I won’t repeat it here.

Passing by New Bridge where a lady was sitting on the other side of the beck and painting her view of the scene.

One more beck to cross and then we hit the tarmac to begin the walk back down to a very busy Grasmere village.

The cloud once again hangs above Stone Arthur as we cross the field back to the lay-by. Cars are leaving the field where the Fred Whitton Challenge started from, the lay-by has thinned out and so we reach the end of today’s walk. The weather was agreeable and we’ve had an enjoyable day out but there were spits and spots of rain falling on us at this point and we ran into one or two heavier showers on the way home so it seems as though we’ve had the best of weather for today. The forecast is looking a bit dodgy for Bank Holiday Monday with stronger winds and rain being on the cards, ah well ’twas ever thus.

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Walk date – 19th April 2023

Distance – 5.3 miles

Weather – cloudy with some sunny spells, strong wind

 

Today’s MWIS forecast –

British Mountain Summary:
Based on forecast chart for noon 19 April, 2023
Strong easterly winds, gale force in places with powerful gusts to lower slopes west of higher tops.

Headline for Lake District
Windy, gale force gusts. Mostly sunny, beware sunburn.

With such a forecast we decided that a low level walk would be a wiser choice today and, having chosen to take a walk in Dovedale, we decided to take the opportunity to spend some time exploring the upper reaches of the area and to find out what possibilities there might be for future walks. The higher fells around the valley would offer respite from any strong winds, it was set to be mostly sunny, even to the point of warnings about sunburn, and the surrounding scenery is fabulous so, all in all, we were looking forward to a walk through a delightful valley surrounded by some very dramatic scenery.  As you will see from the photos we didn’t need to worry about sunburn.

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Route

Cow Bridge – Brothers Water – Hartsop Hall –  Terrace path to footbridge – Stangs – Dovedale Beck – Dovedale – Cow Bridge

Its mid-week so plenty of parking spaces were available at Cow Bridge and hardly anyone around, only one person crossed the bridge and turned along the path beside Brothers Water as we were getting ready to set off. Some trees and hedgerows are beginning to show signs of new green leaf but most are still showing bare branches. The cloud cover over Hartsop Dodd and Caudale Moor looked ominous, maybe it will dissipate as the day wears on.

Red Screes in the distance as we walk along to Hartsop Hall and …..

….. across Brothers Water are Hartsop Dodd and Caudale Moor. There is a smidge of blue sky in the distance but the rough surface of the water indicates that it was more than a little draughty across this open stretch of the valley. Jacket hoods get pulled on.

High Hartsop Dodd comes into view and everything is suddenly lit up by an unexpected and very welcome burst of sunshine. The jacket hoods stay on as the cool and gusty wind flares up from time to time.

Hartsop Hall illuminated by some very thin sunshine. Out of shot to the right is a group of cows resting with their very young calves. Also out of shot are the droppings they’ve deposited everywhere across the track, thank goodness we haven’t had any rain for the past few days.

Safely through the ‘drop’ zone now and just beyond Hartsop Hall we bear off to the right on this track which will take us across a higher level terrace path, along the eastern slopes of Hartsop above How, and through the woodlands of Wood Side. The main path bears around to the left and continues on through the valley bottom. Another sunny spell came along but the sky remained overcast.

The valley bottom path is below us on the left, this path and the one we are following eventually converge at the footbridge over Dovedale beck. High Harstop Dodd is over on the left, Dove Crag is on the extreme right and on the skyline between the two is the area known as Black Brow.

Looking back to the former lead mining area just beyond Hartsop Hall. Plenty of information about the mine can be found here – https://www.mindat.org/loc-4752.html

J continues making his way through the trees on Wood Side in another sunny spell …..

….. but this sunny view of the head of the valley below us catches my eye so I stop to take a shot.

The view back along the path towards High Hartsop Dodd. No green shoots showing in the dead bracken at the moment.

We’re doing well as far as sunny spells are concerned even though they are of the short lived variety. Here the area known as Stangs is well lit and provides some incredible detailing, and the darker mass of Dove Crag right behind it is also showing up well in the brighter light. We’re planning on exploring the other side of Stangs when we reach the footbridge.

On the centre left skyline is the elongated shape of Hart Crag while on the right are some of the east facing humps and bumps of Hartsop above How.

Another look over to Stangs and Dove Crag.

The fantastic scenery around Dovedale from the lovely terrace path. We have gained quite a bit of height but although we can hear the wind whooshing like an express train across the tops above us we are not being battered by it at all.

Once we’ve passed through the gate we’ll be out of the woodland and the path will be passing over open ground. The skyline has turned menacing again.

There is usually a fair amount of water pouring over those rocks but today there was only a dribble, so no waterfall to display today.

Approaching the footbridge over Dovedale beck with the hilly area of Stangs right beside it. Two walkers passed over it as we approached, joined the terrace path we have just left, got out an OS map and then proceeded to stare upwards at Dove Crag. Yes, there’s still a long way to go and a lot of climbing left to do from this point but there is a good path and you get there eventually.

The view back down to Dovedale from the bridge. More blue sky has appeared, better late than never I suppose.

After we crossed the bridge we turned right and followed the faint path around the first hump of Stangs. We’re in unexplored territory now as we haven’t been over on this side previously and we begin to see new perspectives.

The track rises above the beck and seems follow a line of old iron fence posts, some still threaded with rusty wire. Most of the posts have fallen to the ground and have mostly sunk down into it. Consequently an upright line of posts is not visible so having noticed the first ones we carried on and kept a sharp lookout for the next ones and, of course, any stray bits of rusty wire which unwary feet could be caught in or tripped over. There were some very squelchy sections to be negotiated along the way.

A closer view of Dove Crag from Stangs.

Over on the extreme right of the shot a couple of the more or less upright iron posts can be seen. We continued to follow them up to the point where the large rock is sited and then turned upwards to the left to find out what was visible from the brow of the slight rise. Over on the right are the humps and bumps of Stand Crags, I think. Its difficult to be certain where one set of hummocks ends and the next set begins.

A view of the first big hump of Stangs, which we rounded after crossing the bridge, seen from a feeder beck as we climbed to the brow of the slight rise.

The view back down to the Dove Crag path crossing a feeder beck on the other side of Dovedale beck.

There wasn’t anything very much to see having reached the brow of the hill as the Stangs area seemed just to spread further ahead of us so we didn’t bother going further on. We could have walked the ridge line over to the top of the first hump of Stangs but we didn’t bother doing that either bearing in mind the strength of the wind. Having seen how the land lay from the vantage point just beyond these rocks that is all we wanted to find out and that’s now tucked away in our memory bank for future reference. The feeder beck had to dribble its way through this particular outcrop on its way down to Dovedale beck. Above the outcrop was a cluster of large rock and boulder just asking to be sat down on so we did and spent a few minutes gazing at the splendid views around us.

On the way back down at this point and a look over to where the Dove Crag path crosses another feeder stream. This is a closer view of the shot shown in the second photo above this one.

Back at the footbridge for a sunny view of Hartsop Dodd and another patch of blue sky.

Dovedale beck at the point where it begins to tumble down towards Dovedale, the footbridge is out of shot on the right.

Dovedale from the descent path. The clouds close ranks again and blot out the sunshine.

Dovedale beck is tumbling down the ravine over on the left and there are various places to view its waterfalls just a short distance from the footpath all the way down.

This one is more of a waterslide than a waterfall …..

….. while a little lower down is this charming set of falls.

Down in the valley bottom now and we’re about to cross the footbridge and make our way back over to Hartsop Hall.

Hartsop Dodd, Dovedale Beck and the footpath back to Hartsop Hall.

The patch of sunlight on Hartsop Dodd grows larger and …..

….. by the time we are back at the farm we are back in the sun again. Angletarn Pikes and Brock Crags aren’t quite so fortunate though. The cow standing in the middle of the track didn’t budge so we had to detour well over to the right to try to avoid the worst of the sloppy stuff.

Hartsop Hall.

Back at Brothers Water where the sun shone on us for the remainder of the walk back to Cow Bridge …..

….. where I took this last shot of the bridge as we reached the parking area. It was very nice to have a stretch of unbroken sunshine for the last bit of our walk but as for the ‘beware sunburn’ warning, forget it. We never even took our jackets off!

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Walk date – 7th April 2023

Distance – 6.8 miles

Weather – warm and sunny, very light breeze

 

Good Friday arrived together with the forecasted sunny weather and we had been giving a lot of thought as to where to go to take advantage of the fair weather but avoid being caught up in the inevitable Bank Holiday crowds. J didn’t relish the idea of struggling to find a parking spot, even getting there early these days seems to be no guarantee of that, and I fancied somewhere that wouldn’t be too crowded. In the end we decided to stay very close to home and walk over the only section of the humps and bumps above Swindale that we hadn’t already walked over, namely the path from Truss Gap up to Tailbert farm, then turning back on ourselves and walking over to Great Ladstones and back down to Truss Gap via the Gouthercrag Gill path. A few groups of walkers and rock climbers were already getting themselves ready when we arrived but by the time we were ready to go they had gone on their way and we walked along to Truss Gap enjoying the tranquillity of the quiet valley lane. Once we had crossed over to the opposite side of the valley at Truss Gap we met no-one at all. Just as we were about to turn towards Gouther Crag we did see two walkers arriving from the Wet Sleddale side but we were too distant from them to have any conversation with them. They turned to follow the route down to Tailbert Farm and before long they were hidden by the undulating landscape of the fells above Swindale. Only when we were descending by Gouthercrag Gill did we see the group of rock climbers on the path below us and, in the distance, walkers returning back to their vehicles along the lane from Swindale Head to the parking area.

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Route

Parking area below Bewbarrow Crag – Swindale Foot – Truss Gap – Tailbert – Blaze Hill – White Raise – Great Ladstones – Glede Howe – Gouthercrag Gill – Truss Gap – Swindale Foot – Parking area below Bewbarrow Crag

We spotted these three highland cattle sitting quietly in the dappled shade cast by the, as yet, leafless branches of the trees alongside the lane from the parking area. There was another one, looking a bit hot and bothered by its coat of long hair, standing in the sunshine some distance away.

Gouther Crag and Outlaw Crag appear in the distance as we walk along. The rock climbers will be hauling themselves, and all the equipment we saw them carrying, up there by now. Those crags are popular with rock climbers and we often see them scaling the rock faces when we take a walk along here.

Approaching Truss Gap where we will cross Swindale Beck, via the bridge in the shot, over to the opposite side of the valley.

Truss Gap House from the stepping stones across the beck. From the bridge its just a few paces to the path from the stepping stones. Just a very short distance along that path we bear left to follow the path rising up the hillside leading over to Tailbert farm.

Looking across to the barns we passed while walking along the lane from the parking area.

J is about to de-layer at this point, the jacket is removed and secured to his rucksack, mine has already been removed and tied around my waist. We could have left the jackets at home as it turned out. This path ultimately leads over to the slight dip in the bumpy skyline over on the extreme left of the shot, from there the path descends slightly towards Tailbert farm.

Bewbarrow Crag with Swindale Foot farm over on the right.

The path rises steadily and is gently graded with only a few slightly steeper rises. A few sections of it are quite narrow and the brambles creeping across and the gorse bushes growing close by needed to be watched out for.

Further along we came across this deer gate, no sign of any deer though.

The view ahead as the path rises higher above Swindale. With a zoom in it might be possible to see the parking area over on the extreme left just above the small green field. Over on the right is the old filter house which, over the past couple of years, has appeared to be having some work done to it. We noticed a couple of caravans, the static variety, beside the building so perhaps that’s someone’s living quarters until the work is completed.

A look back along Swindale with Selside Pike and Branstree on the left skyline and Gouther Crag just below them on the left. We are about to lose this view as we have almost reached the top of the path. Beyond that point it will begin the slight descent over to Tailbert farm.

The long sweep around from the top of the path passes by a few old barns, some still with roofs like those in the shot, others without and looking more or less derelict.

Tailbert Farm, with hundreds of sheep scattered around the fields and some very large barns almost dwarfing the farmhouse. Over on the right is Knipe Scar and on the extreme left is Heughscar Hill.

Having spotted some handy stone seating we took a short break where the path begins to turn up Blaze Hill and spent a few minutes gazing across at the north Pennines in the distance. Cross Fell is the flat topped one over to the right and the dip over on the extreme right is where High Cup Nick is. We saw a couple of trains go along the lines beside Shap village and noticed the sunlight glinting off car windows as they passed along the A6 and the M6. The only sound we heard was that of some machinery running at Tailbert farm and even that didn’t last long. It was very pleasant just to sit and watch the world go by for a few minutes.

Refreshment break over so we turn up Blaze Hill to begin the return leg of our walk. As can be seen there are no obvious features to aid navigation so walkers not familiar with the area should perhaps wait for a day like today when visibility is good and you can see where you are going. Its not really the best place to be when the mist is down. There are quite a lot of squidgy areas too.

A steady walk up Blaze Hill brings us out onto the flatter area beyond it so here’s a look back to one of the high points on Blaze Hill, it might even be the highest point for all I know. This too had a soggy section cross over.

We carried on across the flatter area when suddenly this group of deer came running across, seemingly out of nowhere, quickly followed by …..

….. the rest of the herd. They were moving very quickly but I still managed to rattle off a couple of shots before they were out of sight. A very surprising sight and lovely to see them.

The deer had emerged from the dip behind this stone structure so we went over for a closer look at it. The OS has it marked as ‘bield’/’cairn’ but it is quite large for a bield or a cairn, something similar to the one on Low Raise, so I’ve no idea what its original purpose was.

Just across from the stone structure, on the western side, are the various lumps and bumps making up Langhowe Pike, the summit of which is over on the left of the shot.

Another spongy area to cross as we make our way over to Great Ladstones accompanied by more exclamations/cursing from J when his boots sank into it.

Passing below part of Great Ladstones over what was the wettest part of the route so far and which was quite difficult to avoid.

Up on Great Ladstones now looking to the northeast. With a zoom in it might be possible to see a cairn on one of the rock outcrops. That cairn isn’t on the summit since what we’re standing is much higher so perhaps its just a way marker cairn.

Looking to the south east from Great Ladstones where the Pennines stretch along the skyline. The white buildings to the left are the Tata Company’s agri-lime works producing agricultural lime for mixing with fertiliser. Nearby quarries supply the raw limestone.

Seat Robert is the fell on the centre skyline but we are aiming for the small outcrop, with its prominent cairn, over on the right skyline

Making our way over to the cairned outcrop with a view of High Street, Kidsty Pike and High Raise over on the western skyline.

Climbing up to the cairned outcrop with a look back towards the sprawling mass of Great Ladstones.

A look back over our route from Blaze Hill with as much peace and quiet as you could ever wish for.

A big cairn on a small hill. There are smaller cairns than this on many of the high fells so this cairn is definitely punching above its weight. We thought we would be able to locate the path leading over to the west from up here but …..

….. although we have a good view of Seat Robert we can see nothing which remotely resembles any sort of path going west although both the gps, with a red dotted line, and the OS map, with a green dashed line, clearly indicate one.

J stuck to the red dotted line indicated by the gps but, as this look back to Seat Robert and Great Ladstones shows, there is nothing on the ground which could be identified as a path. A rough walk over uneven ground ensued.

A close up shot of Gouther Crag and Kidsty Pike when they eventually appeared again …..

….. and the rough ground suddenly magicked up a few sheep trods for which our ankles and knees, and my back muscles, were thankful. The humps on the right skyline are White Howes.

There’s still not much of a path but the sheep trods help us on our way over to the path down Gouthercrag Gill.

Wonder how the rock climbers are getting on? At least there are some paths on Gouther Crag for them to use in their descent back down to the valley.

Gouther Crag behind the wall and Gouthercrag Gill in front of it …..

….. where an established path appears so we follow it down beside the gill. There were a few waterfalls here and there but not enough water in the gill to produce anything spectacular.

The view from the gill path down into the valley and Truss Gap House. As the path wound its way around the crags we saw the group of rock climbers heading for the gate on the path below.

A view of Bewberry Crag over on our right as we make our way down.

The stepping stones at Truss Gap in the afternoon sunshine. Plenty of people on the lane now making their way back to the parking area after their Good Friday rambles.

Back on the lane ourselves now with a look back to Gouther and Outlaw Crags and Swindale Beck sparkling in the sunlight.

Over on the left skyline, set further back from the prominent crags, is the top of Langhowe Pike. A zoom in might also reveal the path passing below the crags which we used on the outward leg earlier.

The light coloured area below the two rocky bumps on the right skyline also indicates the path we took this morning. It continues on over to the left of the shot and eventually passes between the very slight dip in the skyline over on the extreme left. The OS map indicates a cairn somewhere above that dip and also puts the name Thiefstead very close by, so maybe that’s the name of the longish bumpy top to the right of the dip. Its a most unusual name whatever it refers to. Well we’re just about to come to the end of today’s walk, we’ve just walked past the house at Swindale Foot and the parking area is just a short distance away and so the second walk this week comes to an end. We haven’t been able to do two walks in one week for a very long time, what a difference a bit of decent weather makes. We’re still wondering about that clearly marked but non-existent path though.

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Walk date – 3rd April 2023

Distance – 10.3 miles

Weather – dry and very sunny, strong cool breeze

 

One walk report for the whole of last month tells you all you need to know about the weather in our neck of the woods during March. Now we’re a couple of days into April and a short spell of settled and sunnier weather has turned up so we decided to make the most of it in case everything goes downhill again, hence today’s long walk over to Lonscale Fell. Overall we had a good walk despite the irritating and constant breeze and the increasing and never-ending stream of aircraft depositing their trails of who knows what chemicals into the atmosphere. The breeze wasn’t the blow you over variety just the kind that encourages the eyes to water and the nose to stream endlessly. Ah well, its one of the things that has to be put up with when you’re out on the fells but its damn well irritating to be wiping eyes and blowing noses every five minutes isn’t it? What we shouldn’t be having to put up with are those planes spraying their noxious chemicals everywhere and fouling the beautiful blue sky that we had to start with. By the time we were back at the car the stuff had spread out and formed into an enormous blanket covering most of the sky. We all know why its happening, or should do by now, and its time it was stopped. There is no global warming, there is no climate change, there is no scientific basis at all behind any of this, its one huge scam in order to a) make more money for those who already have more than they could spend in three lifetimes never mind one, and b) install a ‘control’ system over the rest of us, AGAIN! OK, rant over, on with the walk.

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Route

Parking area above Blencathra Centre – Glenderaterra Valley – Cumbria Way – Skiddaw House – Sale How – Jenkin Hill – Lonscale Fell – Burnt Horse – Cumbria Way – Glenderaterra Valley – Parking area above Blencathra Centre

A few paces up from the parking area and we’re out onto an open area with a view across St John’s in the Vale towards Bleaberry Fell, on the centre skyline, and the bulbous profile of Walla Crag, just to its right. A light overnight frost hasn’t left much of a mark other than a slight nip in the air which should soon dissipate as the sun gets higher. What a beautiful blue sky start to the day.

Over to the right from the previous shot is Latrigg, occupying the middle ground with many of the north western fells creating a backdrop on the skyline. Long distance views in that direction were on the hazy side today.

We stop admiring the views and begin walking across the track high above the Glenderaterra valley with this view of Lonscale Fell ahead of us. Despite the sunshine jacket hoods go up to keep the chilly breeze at bay.

Further along Great Calva comes into view, we are about to walk in the chilly shade for a while.

Plenty of water still coming down this un-named beck as we splash through the shallow ford across the track. No sunlight to brighten up the scene a little on this side of the valley at the moment. I’ll take a brighter shot on the return leg, it will have some sunshine by then.

We’re almost at the end of the valley now so just before we cross over I took this shot of Lonscale Fell looking very stately in the morning sunlight.

We’ve just passed a couple of ladies who walked past our car as we were parking up. As we climbed up the opposite side of the valley we could see that they were still at the bridge area so perhaps this was as far as they were going today. They could also have crossed over the two bridges in the shot and returned along the path across the lower slopes of Lonscale Fell. They didn’t follow us up the opposite track so we lost sight of them after that. They are the first walkers we’ve come across since starting out and they turned out to be the only ones we met until we were well beyond Sale How.

A different view of Lonscale Fell from the Cumbria Way path on the opposite side of the valley.

Great Calva, covered in tangled brown heather,  from the gate across the Cumbria Way.

Also from the gate, another view of Lonscale Fell plus the beginning of the  path over Burnt Horse, another route, very steep, over to Lonscale Fell. We will be back at this point later on as we will be using the Burnt Horse route for our descent.

A lovely view of Great and Little Calva as we make our way over to Skiddaw House.

Burnt Horse and Lonscale Fell from the Cumbria Way. On the far right of the shot is the faint grey line of a collapsed wall beside which is the very steep Burnt Horse path.

En route for Sale How now with Skiddaw House nestling in the group of trees below us. Carrock Fell is over on the left skyline with Bowscale Fell and Mungrisedale Common over on the right.

From Sale How we have a view of the extensive top of Skiddaw …..

….. and to the left of that are Lesser and Little Man. Sweeping over to the left of those is …..

….. Lonscale Fell while even further around to the left is …..

….. the somewhat gentler and grassier northern side of Blencathra.

The lower slopes of Blencathra mingle with Mungrisedale Common, across the middle foreground, and the bump behind it is Bowscale Fell.

Still on Sale How I pan round to the left for this view of Carrock Fell and then …..

….. a little further left to take a look at Great Calva with a sunlit Knott right behind it.

Passing a very small tarn (puddle?) as we descend Sale How and continue on upwards to join the Skiddaw track. The brown fell on the left is Bakestall more or less at the end of the Skiddaw range.

A look back towards Sale How having just ‘meeted and greeted’ the walker, an oriental lady of middle years, you can see making her way up Sale How. Like us she had to make quite a wide diversion to avoid the soggy patch in the dip between us.

A pause for breath up the initially very steep slope from the soggy dip so another shot of Knott and Great Calva. After the initial steep slope the path tracks over the much less steep ground beyond it.

A look back at the view behind us as we approach the Skiddaw path. About five minutes ago we had a short conversation with a couple coming down the path who were making their way back towards their parking area by Peter House farm. They had just descended Skiddaw and mentioned that it was very cold on the top despite which several people were wearing shorts. Well, that’s what folks do when the sun shines and if they get cold legs as a result that’s what they’ll have to put up with. People tend to forget that it gets colder the higher you go but its up to them what they choose to wear. By the way I chose to wear my lighter weight summer walking trousers today, and never felt cold, while J stuck to his winter weight ones, to each his own as the saying goes.

On the Skiddaw track now and the young lady on the right of the two descending just in front of us was, presumably, one of the ones wearing shorts that the couple had mentioned to us a few minutes earlier. The couple lower down have just started walking up again. They were sitting on the grassy verge when we joined the track so presumably they felt in need of a rest before carrying on up to Skiddaw’s summit. Its a long old haul up to Skiddaw via this route.

We had seen plenty of walkers coming up/going down the Skiddaw track and beyond the gate two more are on their way to join the ones going up. Here we left the track and went off to the left to cross Jenkin Hill on the way over to Lonscale Fell.

A look back to Lesser and Little Man as we make our way across Jenkin Hill. Over on the left the white trails in the sky indicate how busy those planes have been during this morning.

Descending Jenkin Hill now and making our way over to Lonscale Fell with Blencathra keeping us company all the way across.

The walk across wasn’t as devoid of walkers as this shot may make it seem. Every now and again a head, or group of heads, would pop up above a dip in the landscape so there were more greetings exchanged than the shot would have you believe.

The final section of path up to the summit of Lonscale Fell from another wet area in the dip between it and Jenkin Hill.

Blencathra from the summit cairn on Lonscale Fell.

We wandered across the summit area to take a look across St John’s in the Vale towards the Helvellyn range and Thirlmere. Across the middle foreground are High Rigg and Low Rigg, and if you squint hard enough you might be able to pick out Tewet Tarn below them.

Over to the right now for a hazy view of Keswick, Derwentwater and the surrounding fells.

There’s also a good view of the Coledale Horseshoe, albeit under a rapidly spreading white cloud of chemicals, the result of all the planes which haven’t stopped spraying all morning and are still doing so.

More chemical trails above the Skiddaw group as I take a look back from the cairn.

We walked a little way towards Blendcathra from the cairn from where you can see the path going over to the distinctive ‘pointy’ part of Lonscale Fell. We didn’t bother walking over to it as sandwiches were crying out to be eaten because its been a while since breakfast. We walked back to the cairn area, dropped down a little to avoid the breeze and got out the soup and sandwiches.

The descent route from Lonscale Fell …..

….. which gets very steep further down, so steep that at this point we can’t see the bottom because of the convex curve of the hill and which makes you feel as though you’re walking on the outside of a very large ball. We couldn’t see them from here but below us was a small group of walkers, some of whom were reduced to climbing up on all fours. Accompanying them was an elderly dog with extremely grey whiskers who seemed very reluctant to go any further leaving me wondering if they would get it to go any further. We also met a young woman coming up who was carrying a very small dog whose legs were no longer than the length of my hand. No way could that dog have negotiated the steepness but at least it was light enough to be tucked under an arm and carried up. Parts of the path had given way so we had to negotiate some very deep stepdowns. Some of them were much too deep for my little legs so I shuffled my way round them as best I could.

After a very careful descent on we go with J leading the way across the humps and bumps of Burnt Horse.

From Burnt Horse we have a very gentle descent back down to the gate we passed through earlier and the Cumbria Way path. A handful of walkers passed over the Cumbria Way as we were descending.

Back at the gate where the view of Great Calva is marred by the criss-crossing noxious lines of chemicals spewed out by those damned planes, and they were still at it as I took the shot.

Just before crossing over to the other side of the valley I took a look along the Glenderaterra valley, noticing another sheet of chemical covering forming over on the right.

Down the path, through the gate, across the two bridges and then we’re back on the same path we followed on the outward leg this morning. No sign of the dreaded bracken awakening from its winter sleep just yet but its only a matter of time.

Water pouring down Roughten Gill as we approach the concrete and stone bridge across it …..

….. and a longer view upstream from the crossing point.

Further along and we’re back at the un-named beck for a sunnier view of the falls than we had this morning. We splash through the shallow water for the second time today.

Bleaberry Fell and Walla Crag are back in view so journey’s end is not too far away now and …..

….. when Clough Head, the Dodds and the Helvellyn group come into view you know that just around the next bend the parking area will come into view and that you are only minutes away from placing yourself onto the soft and comfortable seat you left behind earlier on and that sheer bliss awaits you. Well, that’s it for today folks, we’re at the end of our walk today. I’ve had my grumbles along the way but in spite of those it has been good to get out and about again after such a long lay-off. Let’s hope that it won’t be too long before the next good weather day turns up.

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Walk date – 8th March 2023

Distance – 7.1 miles

Weather – mostly sunny, some light cloud, breezy east wind, cold

 

This was our third attempt to walk over Wansfell in as many weeks. The first attempt was on a very sunny Sunday but, despite arriving early, all possible parking spaces were full. Changing walk plans didn’t work either because everywhere else was full too. A second attempt was planned for a day which was forecast to be dry, not much wind and with sunny spells. Bags were packed, food and drink prepared in readiness, batteries charged etc. etc. but when the day arrived the forecast turned out to be nothing more than a triumph of hope over expectation. Strong winds, very low light and dark clouds scudding overhead resulted in us being stymied yet again. However today’s forecast turned out to be very near the mark so off we went albeit with me nursing a very painful calf muscle in my right leg following a severe cramp in it just as I was waking up. So that didn’t bode well. All went well until we had just passed the Aira Force car park on the Ullswater lakeside road where signs indicated that the road  beyond was closed. As traffic was both coming and going beyond the signs we thought that perhaps the road had been opened again and that the signs simply hadn’t been taken down yet so we carried on with the other traffic doing just the same. However just a short distance past Glenridding there was a further sign telling us that the Kirkstone Pass was closed. Annoyance/despair ensued. Nothing for it  then but to get to Troutbeck by going the long way round. We turned the car around and drove back to the Aira Force turn off for the A66. As if to add insult to injury just before this road joins the A66 there is another Troutbeck, just not the one we were aiming for. Having joined the A66 it was on to the St John’s in the Vale turn off and the long journey down to Grasmere, Rydal, Ambleside and eventually Troutbeck. By this time the early start that we’d had had been knocked sideways by the extra mileage so we were starting to think that parking might not be available but as we arrived at the parking area by Church Bridge, just below Jesus Church, there was still one space available for us to pull into so we counted ourselves lucky today on that score. We had just as much trouble when we set off for the drive back home after our walk but more of that later. Given that both the drive to and from Troutbeck each had their individual tribulations it almost seemed as though the fates didn’t want us to arrive and were glad to see the back of us. Although today’s walk may eventually fade from our memories the journeys to and from it will definitely be there for a much longer time.

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Route

Parking area beside Church Bridge, Troutbeck – A592 to bus stop – public footpath from bus stop up to Holbeck Lane – Robin Lane – Hundreds Road – Wansfell Pike – Baystones – Nanny Lane – Jesus Church – Church Bridge

Having slotted into the last space in the little area beside the beck we could see the A592 sprinkled with many signs telling us that the Kirkstone Pass was closed. Its a good job we know the area well because the diversion signs were few and far between. Visitors would have been hopelessly confused I expect.

From Church Bridge we walked up the A592 to the bus stop which also has a footpath direction sign attached to it. We turned down the grassy hill with its view of Wansfell and Troutbeck village and followed the footpath down to …..

….. the footbridge across Trout Beck. The last time we used this footpath down to the bridge was on 28 Nov 2017 and the walk photos show the type of bridge and the state that the bridge was in on that occasion. Now the old bridge has been replaced by a very sturdy arched one which should be immune from future floodwaters destroying it. It would probably have to be a flood of biblical proportions to shift this one.

Crossing over the first bridge with the second bridge ahead of us. This second bridge crosses a smaller tributary of Trout Beck.

Beyond the bridges we follow a rising path up into the village. Note the daffodils blooming in the lower right hand corner of the shot. Spring is definitely just around the corner.

At the top of the path is Holbeck Lane where we turned left and walked a couple of hundred yards or so until we came to the turn off onto this rough track. This track, which is uphill all the way, eventually joins up with Robin Lane. Around one of the bends in the lane we were met with the sight of this old oak tree, lovely to see such a fine specimen of a native English tree.

The rough track joins Robin Lane at this junction. There is a seat just behind me for anyone in need of somewhere to sit and rest an aching calf muscle so I took full advantage of it for a couple of minutes. There’s a fine view of Windermere from this point too.

Very pleasant walking along Robin Lane especially for me and my sore calf muscle as I don’t have to subject it to a great deal of pressure.

Further along Robin Lane a step stile is set into the wall which affords us the opportunity to climb the short distance up to this pillar. There is no information given as to the date or the purpose of the pillar but there is a lovely view along Windermere from it.

There is also a good view of Coniston Old Man and Wetherlam from it.

Zooming out for a longer view where Crinkle Crags and Bowfell are also on the skyline.

Minus the pillar for another view along Windermere. The veil of thin white cloud drifting around has dimmed the sunlight a little but enough gets through to make it a worthwhile shot.

The step stile to the path leading up to the pillar. Its a bit awkward and there’s not a lot to hold on to but its quite do-able and the views are worth the effort.

Another junction, at which Robin Lane bears off through the gate on the left and carries on down to Ambleside. The lane on the right now becomes the Hundreds Road and that’s the one we’ll take. I’ve always wondered what ‘hundreds’ were so I had a look for some info and here’s one explanation although I don’t know how accurate it is – “Until the introduction of districts by the Local Government Act 1894, hundreds were the only widely used assessment unit between the parish, with its various administrative functions and the county, with its formal, ceremonial functions in size. Originally, when introduced by the Saxons between 613 and 1017, a hundred had land which sustained approximately 100 households.”

A closer look at the skyline view of Crinkle Crags, Bowfell and the Langdale Pikes. The land mass below Crinkle Crags and Bowfell is Lingmoor Fell.

A look back at Windermere from the Hundreds Road …..

….. together with another view over towards Coniston Old Man and Wetherlam.

The view ahead of us as we walk along the Hundreds Road.

As the track begins to curve and crosses this little beck we take our leave of it and take to the path leading off to the right just before the beck crossing. My sore calf muscle is not looking forward to the next section of the route which, although its just a moderate climb with some steeper bits here and there, will involve it being subjected to discomfort as I put pressure on it.

The uphill work is behind us for the time being so my leg can have a bit of a rest as we cross the always marshy section to join another path coming up from Troutbeck. Fortunately we had an overnight frost which has firmed the ground to some extent so it wasn’t as soggy as it usually is.

Having joined the path from Troutbeck we made our way up Wansfell Pike from where I took a few shots of the surrounding views. Obviously this one is of Windermere …..

….. then looking towards Red Screes and Caudale Moor. The V shape between them marks the top of the Kirkstone Pass which we couldn’t use this morning. Leading from it is the road down to Troutbeck, indicated by the higher of the two walls going off to the right of the shot below Caudale Moor. Altogether a much shorter route to Troutbeck for us than the one we had to take.

A skyline shot of some of the fells to the east – Thornthwaite Crag, on the extreme left, followed by Froswick, Ill Bell and Yoke.

The sprawling southern end of Red Screes occupies the middle foreground and behind it is the Fairfield Horseshoe. I won’t name all the fells making up the horseshoe and if you don’t know what they are they are easy to look up.

Layers of fells to the west of us which I’ve already named so no need to add them to this shot …..

…… and another view of Coniston Old Man and Wetherlam …..

….. followed by another look over Windermere before we begin making our way over to Baystones. My calf muscle is not looking forward to that as its full of a lot of ups and downs.

Yours truly climbing the stile on the way over to Baystones with my hair getting a re-style thanks to the lively breeze.

Looking back at Wansfell Pike from the stile, humps and bumps galore across here.

I’ve made it to Baystones at last. Progress for me was on the slow and steady side with the calf muscles in both legs now giving out impending cramp signals all the way across. Frequent pauses and calf massaging had to be brought into play. Given the early start we had and a long time since breakfast we were both getting hungry so just below the top of Baystones we stopped and had something to eat and drink. It didn’t help the cramping but stomachs were more than grateful. It was fortunate that we stopped for food below the summit of Baystones because the easterly breeze was much livelier up here.

Thanks to the cold breeze we didn’t stay very long so I only took a couple of shots, this one looking eastwards towards the fells making up the western section of the Kentmere Horseshoe, the most prominent of which is Ill Bell.

Then this one looking towards Red Screes and Caudale Moor again. The black smudge along the bottom of the shot is part of one of my mittens which was hanging from my wrist and was caught by the breeze just as I took the shot. I didn’t even notice it at the time.

Sallows and Sour Hows are rather muted as the cloud thickens over on the other side of the Troutbeck valley. Mittens are put back on and we begin to make our way back down to Troutbeck.

The path from Baystones eventually leads us to this very tall stile which is crossed, rather awkwardly in my case as my calf muscle is quite sore now and is about as much use a wobbly lump of jelly. J waits at the bottom just in case but here we are on Nanny Lane without mishap.

The walk down Nanny Lane wasn’t very enjoyable given the amount of mud and semi-frozen water lying on the track, so clagged up boots all round by the time we reached this point. The double gate on the left leads to the top of Wansfell Pike and is the one we joined earlier on in our walk.

The Froswick, Ill Bell and Yoke group in full sun now, they were in the shade when we were on Baystones and had a better view of them, oh well.

A firmer and drier Nanny Lane allows us to shed some of the clag from our boots as we make our way back down to Troutbeck.

The chalets of Limefitt Holiday Park come into view across the valley as we continue making our way down.

J striding out down the lane, I’m taking it at a rather steadier pace.

The rooftops of Troutbeck village come into view so its just a case of rounding the bend and dropping straight down between the houses onto the main street running through the village. Once on it and a few hundred yards along it we take a left turn onto a public footpath leading back down to …..

….. Jesus Church where we took the pathway through the grounds back to Church Bridge. We stowed our gear away and I settled back in the comfy seat to relax my sore leg and enjoy the drive back home. All went well until we were about to join the dual carriageway over Dunmail Raise where we joined a queue of traffic and came to a halt. We initially thought that traffic had built up because the Kirkstone Pass was closed, and it was about the time that children would be coming out of school so Mums would be out and about picking them up. We could also see the occasional vehicle coming our way on the other side of the carriageway so maybe roadworks and one way traffic lights were the cause of the hold-up. When an ambulance came tearing up alongside us, light flashing and sirens wailing, we realised that it was none of our supposed reasons and that an accident was the cause. The cars we had seen coming towards us on the other side of the carriageway had been the ones at the head of the queue being turned around and heading back towards Grasmere. We only found out about that when a police officer came along and told us what was happening. In the meantime an air ambulance helicopter also took off, it flew over us and headed southwards possibly to the hospital in Kendal. As cars at the head of the queue turned around and headed back towards Grasmere the queue slowly inched forward and by the time we reached the top of Dunmail a recovery vehicle came past us and headed down towards the accident spot. Eventually we learned that we would have another twenty minutes to wait while the road was cleared after which we could go on our way. All we could do was wait it out. The Kirkstone Pass was not available, using a myriad of minor country roads would be a nightmare and the other option of driving down to Kendal and picking up the A6 or M6 didn’t bear thinking about. Eventually we saw the flashing lights of a police car turning around and leading our queue of traffic down Dunmail all the way back to the Helvellyn lay-by where the road widens out and beyond which we were able to turn off at St John’s in the Vale and make our way over to the A66 and home. All in all we were stuck in the queue for about an hour, to say that we were glad to get back home is a bit of an understatement. We checked for information about the Kirkstone Pass later on, so for future reference if you are planning on using the pass in the coming months this is what we found:

The first planned closure is scheduled for Monday 6 March to 31 March, weather permitting. This will be between Brothers Water and the Kirkstone Inn. The Kirkstone Inn will remain accessible throughout this closure period via Windermere or Ambleside. A more detailed diversion route will be available in the coming weeks.

A second closure will take place in June 2023 to install the first part of the safety crash barriers.

To carry out resurfacing, a third closure will occur in September 2023.

As part of the final resurfacing, the road will be closed in March 2024.

Road closures will be weather dependent, and more information on road diversions will be available nearer the time of each closure.

Throughout the work local businesses will be open as usual, however please allow extra time if you need to follow the diversion route.

The website for further information is here: https://news.cumbria.gov.uk/News/2021/saferoadsprojectheadstokirkstonepassin2023.aspx

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Walk date – 13th February 2023

Distance – 2.5 miles

Weather – sunny, no wind, very hazy as the air flow was southerly today

 

Today we were out on the fells again after the usual mix of circumstance and glum weather conspired against us over the past couple of weeks. In an attempt to get back into the hill walking groove again we opted for a short morning walk over Steel Knotts, a fell of modest height with a bit of steepness to it and which offers some good long distance views. Having said that today’s very hazy conditions resulted in those long distance views being non-existent, more or less. However, the sunny conditions and the absence of even the slightest breeze more than made up for the lack of views and the view of the executive officer was that it was the best day’s weather we’ve had so far this year. There weren’t many people around at the start of our walk and we met no-one while we were on Steel Knotts but when we arrived back at the hause the place was buzzing with cars and walkers, all of whom were heading for a walk up Hallin Fell so we gave that one a miss today.

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Route

St Peter’s Church, Martindale – Lanty Tarn – Cotehow – Brownthwaite Crag – Steel Knotts – Birkie Knott – St Peter’s Church, Martindale

The view from the car park alongside St Peter’s church across to the northern spur of Beda Fell with Place Fell right behind it. The summit of Place Fell is over towards the left of the shot and over on the right is its subsidiary top, High Dodd. That patch of cloud around the summit area never really completely disappeared while we were out.

We walked up from the car park towards the church and then left the main path just about at this point and veered off to the right heading towards …..

….. Lanty Tarn which seems to have dried out completely now. Will it ever be a tarn again? From here the path begins to rise steeply over Cotehow. No problems today, the bare earth path was firm and dry and getting a firm foothold on it makes the climb much simpler. Its a different matter altogether after a rainy spell which we haven’t had lately, we’ve had grey skies and strong winds mostly, with an occasional brighter day here and there.

Once we were over Cotehow we made a shortish diversion, through a double metal gate off to the right of the path, to take a look along Martindale. Along the way is the above view of Hallin Fell. Nobody walking up there at the moment.

A new bench has been installed since we last made this diversion on 13th February 2016. Exactly seven years later, to the day, and by complete coincidence here we are again. Lanty Tarn also had water in it when we did that walk.

From the bench area- below us are the dwellings of Doe Green and the road from the hause leading over to Sandwick.

Looking across Martindale for this view of Beda Fell. Had to chop off the Winter Crag end of the fell otherwise the shot would have been so small as to not be worth the effort. Beda occupies all the middle ground between us and Place Fell.

Returning from our diversion and beginning to climb the western flanks of Steel Knotts. The cone shaped and very indistinct fell in the centre of the shot is The Nab.

The view back to Winter Crag farm whose dogs barked incessantly, mercifully by this point the noise had faded to a great extent but we could still hear them. J reckoned they were letting the farmer know they were hungry, I just wanted them to quieten down. This is getting to be warm work now with the sun not only on us but also directly in our eyes making it difficult to see where we were going. Gloves get taken off and jackets are unzipped.

The rocky top of Steel Knotts from the gate in the wall.

Climbing towards the col at this point from where we have a view into Bannerdale between The Nab, on the left, and the lower slopes of Beda Fell to the right. The pointed top of Heck Crag on the right skyline indicates the beginning of the extensive sweep of crags starting at the head of Bannerdale and continuing on over to Rampsgill Head towards the left of the shot. Rest Dodd, which could be thought of as marking a mid-point between the sweep of crags, can just be seen behind The Nab.

Up at the col now between Brownthwaite Crag and Steel Knotts. On reaching the col I walked on a little way to take a shot. In my absence J took the opportunity to plonk himself on a handy stone and get the Mars Bar out! They’re only the mini Mars Bars anyway so it wasn’t a long stop and we were soon on our way and climbing the short distance up Brownthwaite Crag.

Gowk Hill and a distant Wether Hill from the top of Brownthwaite Crag.

A few shots while we were on Brownthwaite Crag. Looking across Bannerdale here and above the line of humps and bumps to the right are Fairfield and Cofa Pike, and to the right of them is Saint Sunday Crag. Heck Crag is over on the left …..

….. The Nab with Rest Dodd peeking out behind it …..

….. looking across Martindale, Beda Fell and Place Fell with the Skiddaw group and Blencathra on the skyline. Looked like there was a bit of an inversion going on along the Vale of Keswick, it’ll need a zoom in to see it though …..

….. Steel Knotts behind which a line of thick haze was obscuring the northern Pennines …..

….. looking along Fusedale for a view of Bonscale Pike and Ullswater. The line of thick haze I’ve just mentioned is more obvious in this shot.

….. a shot from over the wall down into Fusedale. The sunny conditions highlighted something I had not noticed when I took the shot. In the bottom right corner of the shot, above the path running alongside Fusedale Beck, is a series of what looks like pathways leading up to a couple of indentations in the hillside. With the low sun casting long shadows its difficult to tell how deep these indentations are. Evidence of spoil heaps can also be seen. I haven’t been able to find any information about any mining having taken place around Fusedale so maybe these are only prospecting trenches …..

….. another view along Bannerdale from Brownthwaite Crag …..

….. and a view over to Steel Knotts showing some of the descent route back to the col and the stile in the wall. The wall can either be crossed at the stile or further along the path to the left of the wall. The stile crossing has steps as you approach it from this side of the wall but those on the other side were missing so have probably broken off at some point. It made for an awkward crossing especially for me and my little legs as its quite a tall wall, even J had difficulty and he’s a lot taller than I am. Anyway we managed it and carried on along the path on that side.

A look up at the rocky summit of Steel Knotts as we begin the climb. Its not as bad as it looks.

A hazy look back towards Gowk Hill and Brownthwaite Crag from just below the summit.

View along Martindale towards The Nab from the summit area …..

….. the mass of crags below the summit of Beda Fell …..

….. and the summit itself, known as Pikeawassa …..

….. Saint Sunday Crag and Place Fell (still with that patch of cloud) on the skyline beyond the crags on Beda …..

….. and in the distance still some sort of inversion cloud around the Vale of Keswick.

J had the anemometer with him today so we took a couple of readings, with apologies for the blur on this one, today’s wind speed in mph, it wasn’t even enough to ruffle our hair …..

….. and the temperature in °C, no wonder the gloves were off and jackets were unzipped.

We spent about ten minutes up on the summit just enjoying the sunny and wind free weather before starting back down again.  On the right of the shot is Birkie Knott but we diverted from the path over to it at the large outcrop to the left of the main path to begin the steep descent down its western slopes.

A lovely view of Ullswater on the way over.

The Birkie Knott path is very steep in places and badly eroded so care is needed for most of its length. At least it wasn’t thick with slithery mud today given that we’ve had a few dry days recently.

St Peter’s church and Hallin Fell below us as we continue to descend, there is no respite from the steepness until those paths leading to the church are reached.

Another lovely view of Ullswater taken after five attempts because the shutter button on the camera kept refusing to click down. I hope its not about to refuse permanently.

A shot taken looking straight down the path to show the steepness of the path. Most of it is now worn down into deep grooves as more feet trample over it, something for Fix the Fells to consider perhaps?

Back at St Peter’s church where all the parking spaces are filled and there are folks everywhere. Yes, its a sunny day but its most unusual for a Monday in February to see so many people around, even more puzzling was the fact that the majority were of working age, no school age children around as its not half term yet, and no obvious senior citizens (except the two of us of course). Anyway, whatever the reason for the crowds, we’ve come to the end of today’s walk, having passed on going up Hallin Fell accompanied by everyone else, so its back to the car, plonk our gear into the boot and make our way back home. Not a long walk and long distance views would have been nice to have but the sunshine and lack of any breath of wind more than made up for that. Let’s hope a few more days like that are on the cards so we can get out a bit more often.

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Walk date – 21st January 2023

Distance – 4 miles

Weather – sunny, dry, very light breeze

A few photos from our short walk over to Heughscar Hill and the Cockpit Stone Circle today. This morning was very sunny with only  a light breeze, a mere whisper compared to what we experienced on Souther Fell during our last walk a couple of days ago, so we decided a spend a couple of hours walking the moorland above Helton village with a wander over to Heughscar Hill and a stroll over to the stone circle. Its a popular place especially with dog walkers and lots of people were out walking the numerous paths which criss-cross the moorland up here.

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Route

Off road parking above Helton village – Heughscar Hill – Cockpit Stone Circle – Off road parking above Helton village

Knipe Scar from the off road parking above Helton Village …..

….. and the view towards Loadpot Hill from our parking spot. Still some snow lying around and deeper in some places than others.

The line of trees marking the top of Heughscar Hill.

Blencathra and some of the northern fells in the distance.

J returning from his inspection of an old lime kiln. Just by chance a seed found a sheltered spot in which to thrive and over the ensuing years it has developed into a fine tree. Just as well that seed found this spot, it wouldn’t have stood much of a chance otherwise on such wide open moorland.

Icy puddles across our path so we moved to the left and …..

….. found an even bigger one. You’ve never got your ice-skates with you when you could use them have you? Not a problem though, there’s plenty of snowy grass to walk on. Heughscar Hill is not too far ahead so we trek on over the slightly rising ground. There are plenty of paths to choose from to get you to your destination.

Arriving at the gale damaged signpost just below the top of the hill with Arthur’s Pike over on the left. We walked on past the signpost to take a look at the views from the crest of the rise. At the top there was a small group of people and a lady member of the group asked us if the hills she could see from there were the Pennines. Once we’d sorted that out she asked us if we knew the names of them so we identified the ones we could see, told her what their names were after which she thanked us and returned to the little group to pass on the information. Hopefully she remembered to mention that they were looking at the Lake District fells and not the Pennines.

On the skyline the first group we pointed out, the Northern Fells, namely Blencathra, Bannerdale Crags and Bowscale Fell. Billowing cloud around Blencathra didn’t allow any of us much of a view of it.

A hazy view across Ullswater towards the Dodds and the fells around Glenridding …..

….. but a much clearer one towards Arthur’s Pike where all the various paths stand out clearly in the snow.

Surprisingly, for such a lowly hill, the top has two cairns, almost as if there was some uncertainty as to which was the highest point.

Looking down to Pooley Bridge and Dunmallard Hill from just above the path leading to Roehead.

From the top of Heughscar we made our way down one of the many paths to rejoin the main east/west path between Helton and Roehead. In contrast to over here in the east, to the south and west there was a mix of cloud. Some thin, high level stratus formations together with plenty of lower level billowing cloud of the cumulus variety.

Looking along Ullswater towards Glenridding where the clouds drift slowly by.

Looking towards the northern fells from the main path. We are about to leave it once again as we turn off to follow the path over to the stone circle.

The snow capped tops of Great Dodd and Clough Head stand out well enough but only the very tip of snowy Stybarrow Dodd is visible over on the left of the skyline.

A mix of stratus and cumulus over the south and west but nothing directly overhead here in the east.

The Dodds skyline.

A short break at the stone circle before we start heading back. Lots of people here today, both at the stone circle and on the various surrounding paths.

Most of the cloud has thinned out over Blencathra so there’s more of it on view just at the moment.

A moorland mound with trees on it, a.k.a. Heughscar Hill, from the stone circle.

Back at the junction on the main east/west path now and heading back to the car and then home for something to eat.

Knipe Scar just visible on the left as we head towards the left hand turn off to walk the path which passes by a couple of interesting stone markers …..

….. this is a very small stone circle, obviously made by human hands with large stones having been brought here for just that purpose and then …..

….. just a little further on a couple more just beside the path. There are quite a few of these stone arrangements between the farm access lane above Helton and the main stone circle. Were they just way-markers or did they have some other significance?

I’m pleased I wasn’t standing on top of this shake hole when it finally caved in!

Almost back at the car now so once again Knipe Scar is in full view.

Before getting back into the car I took this shot looking down towards Helton village and over towards Cross Fell and its neighbours on the northern Pennines creating a long snowy line on the distant and slightly hazy horizon.

This shot was taken from the car as we dropped down into Helton village on the way home. We didn’t bring anything to eat so we’re off home to put something or other on a plate and have a spot of lunch. As the photo shows there is very little cloud over here so we’ve had a very pleasant couple of hours of sunshine. I’ve just had a look at the forecast for tomorrow where apparently its going to be a low cloud day with strong gusty winds. If that’s what turns up then we’ll be confined to barracks, we’ve had our fair share of strong gusty winds this week I think.

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Walk date – 18th January 2023

Distance – 2.8 miles

Weather – dry, sunny, ferocious north westerly wind

 

We may have only walked quite a short distance today but by the time we got back to the car we were as ragged as if we had completed a ten miler. The forecast had mentioned that the north westerly wind speeds would be in the range of 25 – 35 mph and possibly higher occasionally. Thinking that lowly Souther Fell, at a little over 1700′, and being in the lee of the higher fells to the west of it, wouldn’t be too badly affected off we went. The off-road parking areas at Low Beckside were all available so parking up was no problem but once out of the car we knew we were in for a windy walk, just how windy we were as yet unaware. All the photos I took as we struggled across the summit plateau were taken in extremely high winds, so strong that I was amazed to find that the shaky scene I was seeing in the camera viewfinder did not appear on any of the photographs. All I can say is ten out of ten for the anti-shake feature on the camera because it most definitely was working overtime today.

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Route

Low Beckside – Souther Fell – Low Beckside

Bowscale Fell from our off-road parking area at Low Beckside farm. The road is too icy to cross just here so we walked over the snowy grass verge until we reached the ice free patch of road just up ahead. Having reached it we crossed over and followed the path down to the footbridge over the Glenderamackin river. With a zoom in it might just be possible to identify the signpost which indicates the start of the path.

There’s not much to be seen of the path thanks to the snow but there is one nevertheless. The ditch to the left was waterlogged as was the crossover point when we reached the bottom of the slope. After crossing the ditch we go through the handgate and make our way over to …..

….. the footbridge across the river. The wind had dropped as we walked the short distance to the bridge but it was only a temporary lull.

A view of Low Beckside farm from the other side of the bridge. From here we had a short walk up to the double gate which led us out onto the back access road which begins behind the Mill Inn at Mungrisedale and terminates at Scales.

Low Beckside farm as we leave the back road and begin the climb up to the path we will be using today. A zoom in will show where we were parked, on the other side of the wall to the red slurry wagon. We could hear the slurry wagon being filled when we got out of the car.

The back road, on the left, continues on towards Scales, we take the snowy path rising up towards the right of the shot and begin the climb up the eastern slopes of Souther Fell.

Little and Great Mell Fells across the snowy fields of Mungrisedale as we climb the equally snowy path.

A little further on, when we stop for a breather, we notice that the farm buildings are about to disappear from view. Apart from the gusty wind along here its a beautiful morning, blue skies and sunshine with just a light patchwork of cloud here and there.

Looking ahead as the path climbs steadily. This is the first really snowy walk we’ve done since last winter but fortunately the path has already had quite a few people walk over it so its well compacted and we are spared the hard work of breaking untrodden snow. Despite that the gusty wind is now right in our faces making the climb much harder than it would have otherwise been. Eventually we reach the path junction and bear off right to climb the last few feet up to the little col between the slightly lower south top of the fell and the actual summit. That right turn brought us up to the col and straight into the full force of the wind …..

….. where I could barely stand up to take this shot towards Bannerdale Crags. I was intending to walk across and get a little closer but the extreme wind put paid to that idea. Before starting this report I had a look at the fell top assessor’s report for this day and noted with some surprise that he had recorded a maximum wind speed of 22.2 mph at 1.00 pm on Helvellyn summit, that the average wind speed up there was 9.5 mph and no indication that the wind was making walking difficult. However, given that we were back in the car by 1.00 pm when he took his reading it may be that the wind speed had dropped considerably by then as it often does during the afternoon. It was most definitely much more than that up here this morning.

The east ridge of Bannerdale Crags on the left and the long sweep across the crags over to Bowscale Fell. It just wasn’t possible to stand around, look for good camera angles and compose a decent shot so the photographs taken from the summit plateau were a matter of point, click and hope for the best. J did a sterling job of standing behind me and holding onto my pack straps to stop me from being blown over. That also applies to the rest of the shots taken along the plateau.

On the left is the snow covered summit of Bowscale Fell and to the right is the slightly lower east top. If the winds were so extreme along here what must things have been like up there.

Looking back across the little col towards the south top where once again there wasn’t a soul in sight. Well, not everyone is as daft as us I suppose. With a zoom in you might be able to spot the little cairn situated over there on the right.

A big lump of cloud obscuring today’s view of Great Dodd and Clough Head.

The very top of Blencathra is covered with cloud but Atkinson Pike has managed to put in an appearance behind Bannerdale Crags. Surely no-one has attempted Sharp Edge today. J didn’t have the anemometer with him for an exact reading but we estimated that the wind speed across here was well in excess of 30 mph.

Another look back towards the south top as the cloud moves along and lets the sunlight through.

A zoom in on the east ridge of Bannerdale Crags with Atkinson Pike still clear of the cloud which continually smothered Blencathra while we were up here.

Icy pools here …..

….. there and everywhere. This is the end of a particularly long stretch which straddled the path. Not trusting the ice to hold we diverted around it. Towards the upper right of the shot is Cross Fell and its near neighbours, all with a good covering of snow. As we picked up the path again heading for the summit I noticed two large shadows moving in front of us and turned around to see two tall fellows in winter running gear running up behind us. They gave us a quick hello as they passed, had a brief pause at the scrape of rock marking the summit area and then went on their way complete with ice axes strapped to their backs. How they were able to run in such extreme winds and without getting blown over baffled me, we were having a battle to even walk in a straight line plus walking poles to provide at least a little stability. You have to hand it to fell runners as hardy as these two were.

The Tongue and the path alongside it leading up to the top of Bowscale Fell. Its only just over a month ago that we were walking down that path during the very frosty period we had in early December 2022.

Another look across over towards Bannerdale …..

….. followed by a look down at the many paths below The Tongue and Bowscale Fell. The one directly below the slopes of Bowscale Fell is the one alongside Bullfell Beck which we used on our 7th Dec 2022 walk up to Bowscale Fell summit.

We dropped down into this little hollow for some respite from the wind so I took the above shot while we got ourselves together again. We had linked arms all the way along the plateau in an attempt to buttress each other and used a walking pole in our free hands for stabilization. Several times along the way the wind speed increased, when it did we just sat down and waited until the speed decreased and we could stand up and start walking again.

From the same spot I took another shot, hoping that the cloud might have lifted from Blencathra but it hadn’t thinned out quite enough for a clear shot of the very top.

We are off the plateau now but even as we descended the wind did not abate one iota and J was still on buttress duty as I took this shot looking along Mungrisedale …..

….. and this one for a final view of Bowscale Fell.

Looking eastward from the descent where Gowbarrow is in view just to the right of Great Mell Fell.

Below us is the little hamlet of Mungrisedale. This is a steep descent route so we decided to avoid descending via this path because of the strong wind, cut this corner off and instead take an off path route through the dead bracken …..

….. to the one of the paths just visible in the bottom right of the shot. We weren’t completely out of the wind as we descended and the bracken was a pain in the you know what but at least the risk of being blown over had decreased. The risk of being legged over by the tangled bracken increased commensurately so we proceeded carefully. Anyone who has ever had a fight with dead and tangled bracken will know exactly what I mean.

Low Beckside farm is in view again now that, and despite the bracken’s best efforts, we have reached the path we were aiming for.

Here’s J on the afore-mentioned path having been relieved of buttressing duty. This is the path we would have eventually joined had we taken the steep descent route I mentioned a couple of shots back.

Before long we are at the path junction leading down to the access lane and back where we started. We dropped down to the lane, went through the gate and walked the short distance to the double gate we passed through when we started out and back onto …..

….. the little path alongside the river leading to the footbridge.

Once across the bridge we turned left, walked the very short distance to the handgate, crossed the muddy dip and walked up the slight rise back to the car.

The morning sun has melted the ice on the road, its still a sunny blue sky day and down here the wind has lessened a little. The path we used on our outward leg is clearly visible over on the extreme left of Souther Fell but our return path over to the right is all but obscured by the dead bracken. The lunch boxes remain unopened as an open air picnic was a non-starter today but never mind, those bacon and tomato sandwiches would taste just as good in the car as they would have up on the top of Souther and they did. The farmer at Low Beckside came past us with his tractor and slurry wagon, backed into his yard and began refilling it in readiness for his next slurry spreading trip. The sight of two folk sitting in a car and munching on sandwiches will be a familiar sight to him, this little road is always jam-packed with cars during the summer months so he didn’t so much as bat an eyelid as he drove past us. All in all we don’t seem to have much luck on Souther Fell, this is the third time we have walked over it and each occasion its been in strong winds. Perhaps that’s why we haven’t walked it very often.

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