Knott, Knoutberry, Green Bell, Grere Fell and Adamthwaite Bank – A handful of Howgills
Walk date – 3rd August 2021
Distance – 3.25 miles
Weather – dry, sunny spells, substantial fair weather clouds, very slight breeze
We’ve had some rain! The hot weather finally came to an end on the Tuesday following our last walk when it turned much cooler and cloudier, and during the following four or five days the rain returned and we were able to stow the hose pipe away for the first time in weeks. Although it didn’t come down like stair rods it was sufficient to give the fields and gardens a new lease of life and turn everything green again. However, it just wasn’t enough to fill the becks, tarns and lakes so water levels remain low at the moment.
We only had a short walk today to visit some of the fells on the perimeter of the Howgills, in the north eastern section to the south west of the village of Ravenstonedale. With the exception of Green Bell, which stands at just under 2000′ the heights of the remaining four fells range from Knott at 1525′ through to Grere Fell at 1784′ so none are particularly high, although being the Howgills they all have some steep aspects. Any steepness is mitigated by the lack of height so most of the climbing is over and done with quite quickly. The only exception to that was the longer climb up Green Bell which took us about fifteen to twenty minutes I think. Although we knew we would find a trig point on Green Bell, having been there before, we did not expect that any of the other fells we visited would have anything marking their summits, which is mostly the case in the Howgills. However, we were astonished to find that every one of these little green hills had its own summit marker.
Route
Gais Gill Bridge – Knott – Knoutberry – Green Bell – Spengill Head – Grere Fell – Adamthwaite Bank – Gais Gill Bridge
We parked off road by Gais Gill bridge. The road from Ravenstonedale village carries on to Adamthwaite farm where it comes to an end so the road is quiet and mainly traffic free. There are numerous off road places to park along its length but we chose this spot because it is immediately below Knott which is the first fell we will visit today.
Low water levels in the gill which, at some indeterminate point along its length, becomes Artlegarth Beck. The shot was taken just across the road from where we parked.
The path up to Knott begins from the parking area although it is not immediately obvious. Best way to spot it is to stand with your back to the bridge and look just a couple of yards ahead for something which looks like a quad bike track. Having spotted it take the higher of the two tracks which will lead up to this flatter area from where I took this shot looking back down to the bridge. We are parked immediately below where I’m standing.
As is often the case the path eventually disappears so we made our way over the rough grasses via a series of sheep trods as often as we could. In view on the right is the summit of Knott.
The summit of Knott has, as its crowning glory, these tufts of reedy grasses and it was only by walking around them that we came across this pile of stones marking the top. Not something either of us expected to find atop such a small Howgill.
From Knott we head towards our next two objectives, the wonderfully named Knoutberry and behind that is Green Bell. We hung around a while waiting for the large cloud to drift away but with little wind to move things along it stubbornly refused to shift. From hereon we followed a well trodden grassy route all the way up to Green Bell.
On the way across to Knoutberry was this view of Adamthwaite Bank on the left and Grere Fell on the right with Long Gill between the two. They looked most attractive in the dappled sunlight.
You could be forgiven for thinking that these outlying fells get no visitors but the presence of many paths and trails in all directions indicates otherwise. J is striding out across one of them on the way over to Knoutberry. The heavy shadow has finally drifted away.
A look back to Knott just before we begin the climb up to Knoutberry …..
….. which also had its own little summit marker. Nothing more than a small pile of stones but still satisfying to have something to photograph amongst the acres of grassland. Knott is just visible on the left and over to the right is a sunlit Harter Fell which we last visited on 28th May 2020. Behind Harter Fell is Wild Boar Fell and the sight of both prompted conversations beginning with “Do you remember …..” as we recalled things we’d seen and experienced during our walks over them.
Looking towards Green Bell from Knoutberry’s summit marker. J decided that he could no longer put up with all the bits and pieces of vegetation which had found their way into his socks and boots on the way over. A thorough de-seeding of two socks and two boots ensued. I decided not to bother as there was a lot of grassland yet to cover so I’d still end up with gritty socks and boots, better just to put up with it I decided.
We begin the climb up to Green Bell summit so I took a look back at Knoutberry and Knott from just above the old sheepfold.
Its a steepish climb so during a get your breath back stop I took this shot of what lay below us. First of all we have Long Gill immediately below the lower slopes of Grere Fell. Behind Grere Fell is Adamthwaite Bank and behind that is Harter Fell. The Adamthwaite road runs between Adamthwaite Bank and Harter Fell. Wild Boar Fell dominates the skyline.
The trig column on Green Bell complete with a splash of sunshine as we arrive.
Looking south west from Green Bell. In view from left to right are Calders, Yarlside (in shadow) with Kensgriff just below it. Behind Yarlside are Bram Rigg Top and The Calf. Randygill Top and Fell Head occupy the skyline behind the trig column.
Looking east and only one thing dominates the skyline – Wild Boar Fell.
The path from Green Bell leads over Spengill Head to Randygill Top on the right of the shot. Just before we reach Spengill Head we need to bear left, somewhere around Spengill Well, to cross over to Grere Fell.
The quad bike track we were looking for was easy to see and just as we turned onto it a runner and his dog came bounding along making their way over to Randygill Top. Brief greetings were exchanged in passing and then we each went our separate ways. The path over to Grere Fell can be seen quite clearly and this was a very enjoyable tramp across. Wild Boar Fell is on the skyline again, well it would be wouldn’t it, we’ve turned eastward again.
Crossing over to Grere Fell with views of the three fells we’ve walked so far. Unfortunately they sprawl a long way and I couldn’t get them all in one shot so here is a sunny Green Bell and a very shady Knoutberry. Its a warm and pleasant day and the clouds were lovely to look at even if they did persist in hanging over the bits I wanted a sunny shot of. For me this shot captures the unique tranquility of the Howgills. They are undisturbed by much of modern life and its constant hustle and bustle and thus are havens of quiet stillness where all other matters can be put aside for a few hours.
On the other side of the crossover to Grere Fell are some of the higher Howgill fells. The great hump of Yarlside is smack in the middle of the skyline behind the smaller top of Kensgriff. Yarlside has very steep sides so no matter which direction it is approached from it will involve a heavy duty climb. As somebody once noted when looking at its contours on an OS map it has a lot of brown lines and they’re very close together.
We’re almost at the top of Grere Fell at this point so I took this shot looking south over to Wandale Hill and the Rawthey valley beyond. We included this fell on our 28th May 2020 walk up Harter Fell.
Once again we find a summit marker on Grere Fell and having ‘collected’ a marker for every summit so far we’re hoping that Adamthwaite Bank won’t be the only hill without one. For now that remains to be seen.
Green Bell and Knoutberry from Grere Fell …..
….. and a little to my right for a view of Knoutberry on the left and Knott on the right.
A faint track leads us down Grere Fell towards …..
….. Adamthwaite Bank over on the right. Knott is over to the left so we’re not too far away from where we started.
Still following the track and approaching Adamthwaite Bank …..
….. from where there is a grand view down to Adamthwaite farm with Wandale Hill behind it. Notice the lamb taking a curious peek at us behind the safety of its mother. Well, you can’t be too careful with these two-legged creatures roaming about the fells, can you?
A look back towards Yarlside and Kensgriff from Adamthwaite Bank and …..
….. another look back, this time towards Grere Fell and Green Bell.
Adamthwaite Bank didn’t let us down and here, well hidden, are the three small stones acting as its summit marker. It was nice to find that all these little fells had their tops marked even though some of the markers were very small. Good to know that they haven’t been ignored despite their lowly stature.
Crossing Adamthwaite Bank with a view of Harter Fell. Behind it Wild Boar Fell is losing its prominence now that we are losing height.
If you zoom in and peer very intently you might just be able to pick out the car parked by the bridge …..
….. but if you weren’t able to spot it here it is again. It is also possible to pick out the path we used to begin the climb up to Knott. Its where the sheep are just in front of the car. We’ve just had a longish chat with a local man, a retired farmer, who was simply passing a little time up here while waiting until it was time to collect his wife from somewhere. He recounted tales of the many walkers he’d come across during his time as a farmer and the events which had assailed them, mostly through lack of preparation and inappropriate clothing. It was all very familiar because we’ve happened upon similar situations during our walks. He eventually remembered he was supposed to be picking his wife up so he had to quickly dash off and get back to Ravenstonedale. We had a very entertaining ten minutes or so.
We dropped down off the banking to walk the very short distance back to the car while the retired farmer zoomed off back down the road to collect his wife. A most enjoyable little walk in very pleasant weather during which we briefly crossed paths with a runner and had a longer than usual chat with a local retired farmer. Apart from those two there was no-one else around. We only had a very short walk which can be fitted into a couple of hours or so if that’s all you have available, but it could be made into a longer one. There are plenty of other fells close by which could be included to make a full day’s worth of walking and the Adamthwaite road is a very convenient starting point.
Finally, last Thursday and Friday evenings from 5.00 pm to approximately 10.00 pm the UK Column website hosted an international symposium presented by Doctors for Covid Ethics. Those two evenings of discussion have now been split into four separate videos and are available for viewing on the UK Column website. The first video has a timeline below it showing the start point of each topic covered. The other three, at the time of writing this, do not yet have their individual timelines. The first video lasts about an hour and a half so I am assuming that will be the approximate length of the other three. In case you don’t know about any of this the links to each video are posted below –
Part 1 – The False Pandemic
Looking at the evidence of its artificial origin, lockdowns, masks, misleading data and powerless doctors
https://www.ukcolumn.org/video/doctors-for-covid-ethics-symposium-session-1-the-false-pandemic
Part 2 – The ‘Going Direct’ Reset
The pandemic is a monetary event, looking at UK bankers and the economic drivers, and how to de-centralise control,
https://www.ukcolumn.org/video/doctors-for-covid-ethics-symposium-session-2-the-going-direct-reset
Part 3 – First Do No Harm
The complicit role of the media and the drive for control through deployment of vaccination passports
https://www.ukcolumn.org/video/doctors-for-covid-ethics-symposium-session-3-first-do-no-harm
Part 4
The Hour of Justice
The legal aspects of the pandemic, the judiciary and the justice system, legal actions already taken, ongoing actions, future justice
https://www.ukcolumn.org/video/doctors-for-covid-ethics-symposium-session-4-the-hour-of-justice
I hope you will be able to set aside some time to look at these videos and listen carefully to the views of this international team of people, each of whom has years of experience in their particular disciplines, but who have been publicly smeared and deliberately prevented from being able to contribute to any aspect of this particular phenomenon we are currently living through. By now it must surely be obvious that this situation is no longer anything to do with health, not that it ever was, and that only by refusing to comply do we stand any chance of avoiding what is being planned for us without our knowledge and without our consent. Anyone still believing that this is all being done for our benefit needs to understand quite quickly that this is far from the truth. You can help them to realise just what is happening by sharing these links with them. Thank you.