A successful but breezy day climbing Scafell Pike today!

I met James at Seathwaite Farm, already wearing more layers than usual! It was quite chilly. We got on our way and immedietly fell into a great conversation about Nepal, as James is off to Everest Base Camp in March and was climbing Scafell Pike with us today as a means of training for his trek. This conversation stuck with us for most of the first bit of the walk, and before we knew it we were past the stockley bridge, up past Taylorgill Force and at Styhead Pass. Here the wind was whipping up from the Wasdale Valley so we made quick movements towards the far more sheltered corridor route. We made great progress up the Corridor route, getting caught in a couple of light showers along the way. Just before Lingmell col we ascended into the mist, and took this moment to take a brief rest bite. Now on the final push we made our way up the steep ascent to the summit of the Pike. As we hit the zig zags we were also hit by a strong wind but we pressed on. Very strangely as we made our way onto the flat summit plateau, the wind disappeared! It was very strange! We walked with ease onto the summit, where there was evidence of ice starting to build up. As we reached the cairn we were then smacked in the face by more wind coming from the south. It was on the summit that we saw our first fellow hillwalkers of the day! We had already made the decision due to the wind strength and direction that we would be better off going back the way we came and not taking the exposed ridge line route back along the tops. We descended off Scafell Pike and re-joined the corridor route. We had a pleasant descent, apart from the ball bearing type hail that hit us at about 50mph, ouch! haha. A great day out!

A bracing day climbing The Langdale Pikes from the New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel in the Langdale Valley. Taking in all five summits of the Langdale Pikes, Pavey Ark, Thunacar Knott, Harrison Stickle, Pike O'Stickle and Loft Crag.

I met the group bright and early this morning at Seathwaite Farm ready to climb Scafell Pike. The weather was dry but a bit windy, and better than the forecast had stated. We got on our way and were soon at Stockley Bridge. We ascended past Taylorgill Force and gained the flatter ground that leads towards Styhead Tarn. On this stretch we started to feel some more of the wind that was forecast. Shortly before the Stretcherbox by Styhead Tarn the rain started and we felt the full force of the wind. Taking the conditions in mind, and that it was now unfortunately worse than forecast we thought best not to press on to Scafell Pike and make our way back down the valley. Instead of heading back the way we came we ascended up past Sprinkling Tarn under the shelter of Great End and met the path that runs down the valley next to Grains Gill. Although we didn't get to the top it was great to get out nonetheless.

Starting this blog entry with my usual 'Wow!' simply doesn't cut the mustard for today...but Wow!!! What a day!

I met the group above Braithwaite ready to take on the mighty Coledale Horseshoe, a Lake District Classic and a personal favorite. The start of this walk does not lend any warm up period as we immediately climb the staircase that leaves the car park. We gained height quickly as we walked up the slopes towards the summit of Grisedale Pike, and into the cloud and mist. However, again it was a lovely clear day, with crisp air and the sun was already brightening up the sky. A hundred metres of so from the summit we were into the mist and our views restricted, but just under the summit we emerged above the cloud, to see the most spectacular cloud inversion! For miles below all we could see was a blanket of cloud covering the entire district, with just the summits of the biggest mountains such as Skiddaw and Blencathra, Great Gable, the Scafells poking through. it really did stop us in our tracks. To add to the amazement a Brocken Spectre was being cast on the clouds behind us (A large magnified shadow with a circular rainbow or spectrum around it, there is a picture of it below) After summiting Grisedale Pike we made quick progress over to Hopegill Head and then Sand Hill. We dropped into Coledale Hause with the biggest peak of the day, Eel Crag, ahead of us. With the group fancying a bit of a challenge we opted to take the scramble up the North face of Eel Crag, of which everyone thoroughly enjoyed. We stopped for a spot of lunch on the summit and continued to enjoy the views and the cloud inversion. We pressed on over Sail, Scar Crags and finally Causey Pike. We decided to make our way back to Braithwaite through the centre of the Horseshoe, so after a small back track we made our way down towards Outerside and passed between this small peak and Stile End.

An absolutely phenomenal day, with great banter, and great views! Enjoy the pictures :)

 

Day 1:

I met Robin outside the Brit Inn in Elterwater this morning, and before we made our way towards the fells we sat on the benches and ran through some basics. After covering Grid References, scales, contours and map symbols we got on our way. We slowly worked our way up past Dub How and towards Silver How via multiple navigational legs, each time adding new techniques such as pacing and timings. At the bottom of Megs Gill me had a spot of lunch and enjoyed the stunning views (another great November day!). After lunch we moved onto bearings, stressing their effectiveness when done correctly. Robin picked up bearings extremely quickly, and with great accuracy so we continued to build on overall navigational tactics, combining everything we had learnt previously. After a few more legs we decided to turn back towards Elterwater and enjoy a leisurely walk back to the cars.

I met the group in the small car park just down from Little Town, and we got on our way down the track towards our first summit of the day, Robinson. After a steep, but short, climb we were on the north ridge of Robinson. The ridge follows an undulating line before it climbs steeply to the summit. As we got to the summit, after numerous false summits, we were met by a strong wind coming from the south, however we were also greeted by great views of the Buttermere fells. We continued off the eastern side of Robinson and followed the contouring path up to the summit of Hindscarth. On this summit we didnt linger long and made headway for Dale Head. Soon enough we were on the summit of Dale Head and from here we gained the best views down the Newlands Valley. Getting hungry we descended down to Dale Head Tarn and ate our lunches in the shelter of a sheepfold. Our next challenge was ascending back up to High Spy. On this leg we were blessed with some sunshine poking through the clouds and it was casting some magnificent light over the surrounding hills. We reached the spectacular summit cairn of High Spy and after that summited Maiden Moor. We would usually then take in Catbells but for various reasons the group decided to head straight back to the car from the col. An excellent day!

 

After meeting at Seathwaite Farm at 9am this morning, we made our way along the flat track to Stockley bridge. The morning was fresh and again mostly clear, although more cloud cover than the last few days. There was even a bit of hope of the sun making another appearance! We tackled the first ascent of the day up past taylorgill Froce and then made our way to Styhead tarn. From here we could see the tops of all the surrounding mountains, Great Gable, Lingmell, Great End and of course Scafell Pike! We joined the corridor route and made quick work of it indeed. Before we knew it we were on the final ascent to the top of Scafell Pike. On the way up we went to the the viewpoint over Wastwater and grabbed a few stops before heading to the top. The summit was much windier so we huddled behind the summit cairn for some shelter, and also for a bite to eat. Towards the end of the stop Patrick was having a photo or two with his girlfriend Rebecca on the summit, when.....he got down on one knee and proposed!!!!!!! And of course she said Yes! A big cheer erupted from the rest of the group who were unawares and it was smiles all round! Massive congratulations from all of us here at TLDW! To warm up again we got on our way and after an hour we had made our way across Broad Crag, Ill Crag and down Calf Cove. We had another short stop at the top at the top of Grains Gill, but then got on our way down the long descent to Seathwaite Farm.

I have to share a funny story with you which Simon told me on our way down. Simon said when he was eating in a Restaurant he overheard a very American women voicing her love for the town. The town was, as she said it (phonetically spelt) Am-bless-sid-eey. Haha!!! Another classic.

A magnificent day to walk the 14 mile epic Above Ennerdale!

We started from the car park on the western end of Ennerdale Water and after a few minutes of flat ground we were soon on the steep forest track that works its way up the hillside. As we gained height we edged closer to the sunshine and we could all see that it was going to be another fine day! We got to the summit of Crag Fell and the rest of the route was now visible. We descended down into the forest and climbed up the hillside to follow the long wall that goes along the hillside for just over 3km. The wall led us to the summit of Haycock where we were greeted with fantastic views of the Scafells. After a spot of lunch we desvended a few hundred metres to a col and then turned north to descend over  Tewit How. The path off the nose of Tewit How was steep so it was slower going, but before long we were back on flat ground ready to walk along the south shore of the lake. Walking back along the lake was an enjoyable way to finish the day, especially as the fading light was casting some beautiful light. We got back to the car just as it was getting really dark, ready to head home for a well earned cup of tea! A Great Day!

A wonderful shorter walk on Lingmoor Fell today.

Starting from Blea Tarn we skirted around the Little Langdale side of the fell to climb up onto the eastern end of the Lingmoor Fell ridge, traversing the ridge to the summit.

The views from the ridge today were spectacular, we stopped just below the summit cairn for a short stop admiring the glorious views across the valley to the Langdale Pikes and Bowfell before descending west to Side Pike, skirting the crags to the south before climbing to the summit.

A short descent from Side Pike brought us down to the roadside and the bath around Blea Tarn and back to our start point.

a good short walk today climbing Castle Crag from Grange, we set off from Grange at 10am and climbed from Gowder Dub by Broadslack  Gill and up onto the summit of Grange Fell.

From the summit of Grange Fell we descended west to meet the River Derwent following the path north and climbing up to Millican Daltons caves, stopping for a short lunch break outside the caves with a wonderful view over the Derwent Valley before continuing north past Gowder Dub and back to Grange.

A good day climbing Glaramara and the Allen Crags as well as Seathwaite Fell from Seathwaite Farm in the Borrowdale Valley

A good day climbing Scafell Pike from Seathwaite today, we set off from Seathwaite at 9am and climbed by Sty Head and onto the Corridor Route climbing by Lingmell Col to the summit of Scafell Pike, there were a few people near the summit of Scafell Pike who had climbed up from the Wasdale side of the mountain, but otherwise we didn't pass anyone else all day.

From the summit of Scafell Pike we crossed Broad Crag and Ill Crag descending by Esk Hause and down onto the Grains Gill path back to Seathwaite.

This morning I met Bob outside the Britannia Inn ready for a bit of GPS Training. Bob wanted to do the GPS Training to see the benefits and limitations of having a GPS before he made the commitment to purchase for himself. After being on a 2 day nav course with us over the past 2 days Bob realised the importance of having the base skills before using a GPS. We started by running through the basics across 2 GPS units and then decided to head for the fells Usually we use Lingmoor Fell but as we were up there yesertday I thought we would head over towards the Langdale Pikes. We set off from the bottom of Stickle Ghyll and headed straight up to Stickle Tarn, making reference to the GPS units along the way. We arrived at Stickle Tarn, and for a bit of excitement we chose to ascend Pavey Ark via Jacks Rake. We tackled this scramble well and slowly ascended into the mist. We descended from Pavey Ark in the mist, and this was a great chance for me to show Bob the navigational techniques we used over the previous 2 days in action in the mist, but also the benefits of having a GPS in the same situation. When we got back to Stickle Tarn we had a nice spot of lunch before descending back to the car. Another great day of learning on the fells! Written by Matt Burt

Day 1:

The weather has produced yet another fantastic day on the fells!

Myself, Clive, Claire and Bob met outside the Britannia Inn in Elterwater ready for 2 days of navigation training. We sat outside the Inn for a while running through some theory such as grid references, handrails and common map symbols. Soon enough we started some navigation and got on the move, climbing towards Silver How. We ran multiple navigation legs, each time learning more and more techniques such as pacing, distance and orientation. After a spot of lunch we continued up Megs Gill and at the top we ran through Bearings. Everyone was navigating well and all had more success when we made our way to the summit of Silver How. From the summit we conducted a final bearing for the day before having a nice leisurely stroll back down to Elterwater.

Day 2:

Another successful day navigating on the fells today! Again we met at the Brittania Inn but today we headed over towards Lingmoor Fell. We got straight into what we had learnt on day 1 and started making our way up the fellside. It was clear all members of the group were improving after each leg and developing a much better understanding of mountain navigation. After a spot of lunch we moved onto 1:50,000 maps, relocation and more contour interpretation. The day had flown by so after another individual leg each we made our way back off the fell and down to the Inn for a debrief (and a drink!). I am very happy to also say that over these 2 days, these 3 virtually novice navigators have all passed our NNAS (National Navigation Award Scheme) Silver Award.

Written By Matt Burt

Today was truly fantastic, and a very special one as Clive (A regular TLDW walker and a close friend of the company) finally got views from the summit of Scafell Pike after 3 previous attempts!

Myself, Rob (from yesterdays walk) and Clive started from Seathwaite Farm and although there was a bit of frost on the ground, the sky was crystal clear, we knew we were in for a good one!

We set off to the Stockley Bridge and then climbed up the hillside alongside Taylorgill Force. This climb warmed us all up quickly and we were soon walking in our T-shirts, In November!!!!

From Styhead Tarn we got amazing views towards Lingmell, Great End, and Scafell Pike. We got on the corridor route and soon enough we were on the final climb up to Scafell Pike. On the way up we stopped off at the viewpoint and took some snaps looking down over Wastwater. 5 Minutes later we were on the summit of Scafell Pike, with views!
Clive’s mission was finally accomplished! Yay!!! We stopped on the summit for a snack and soaked up the views before moving off over Broad Crag, Ill Crag and made our way to the summit of Great End. On the summit of Great End we were again soaking up amazing views but we stopped a bit longer this time and enjoyed our lunch in the sun.

We descended down to Grains Gill and then followed this long path back to Seathwaite Farm, enjoying even more amazing views in the afternoon sun. What a great day, again! :D Written by Matt Burt