Monthly Archives: November 2012
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The Fairfield Horseshoe
A great day on the Fairfield Horseshoe today, climbing eight summits from Ambleside in perfect weather, including Nab Scar Heron Pike, Dove Crag -
Green Gable from Honister
A very cold day today climbing Green Gable from Honister Pass. Our original target had been Great Gable but today's difficult conditions meant that we had to turn back at Green Gable.
From Honister Pass we climbed the steep slopes of Grey Knotts, the path today was very wet, more like a stream than a path.
We were soon on the summit of Grey Knotts, although if it wasn't for the cairn you wouldn't know, we were now in thick cloud with terrible visibility!
From Grey Knotts we followed the ridge to the summit of Brandreth, here we saw the only other person we would see all day looking for the summit cairn.
From Brandreth we descended to Gillercombe Head and climbed the long drag up to the summit of Green Gable, the summit suddenly emerging out of the mist right in front of us.
After a short discussion on the summit of Green Gable it was decided not to attempt Great Gable but instead to descend back to Gillercombe Head and drop down onto the Moses Trod path and follow this back to Honister by the Drum House and Tramway, getting back to Honister just before sunset.
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Crummock Water and Mosedale from Buttermere
A good lower level day from Buttermere following the Crummock Water shoreline to Loweswater before returning to Buttermere by the Mosedale Valley -
Haystacks from Gatesgarth
A good day today climbing Haystacks from Gatesgarth.
Weset off from Gatesgarth at 10am and climbed the path up to Scarth Gap, as we reached Scarth Gap we caught a heavy hail / snow shower but as we climbed to the summit of Haystacks this cleared giving us some wonderful views.
We descended to Innominate Tarn and as we dropped down towards Black Beck we caught another shower, this time not as heavy as earler, we dropped down to the Warnscale Hut to have our lunches in the dry.
After lunch we descended by Warnscale Beck back to Gatesgarth.
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Red Tarn from Glenridding
Another damp and windy day today, we had planned to climb Helvellyn by Striding Edge but with the conditions we decided to hedge our bets a little and climb by Greenside mines and up to Red Tarn and decide from there what to do.
As it turned out we ended up turning back for Glenridding a little before Red Tarn.
We got back down to Glenridding a little bedraggled but ready for another day out tomorrow. -
Silver How from Grasmere
A wild day above Grasmere today.
The forecast for today was foul, but as we set off from Grasmere this morning the winds were light and there was little more than light drizzle in the air.
We climbed by Wray Gill and up to the summit of Silver How in good time, by the time we were on the summit of Silver How the rain had intensified a little, still not too bad though.
As we followed the ridge from Silver How past Lang How and Swinescar Pike the wind got stronger and stronger and by the time we were approaching Blea Rigg we decided to head down by Easdale Tarn and back to Grasmere.
We dropped down to the tarn and out of the mist and followed the path by Sour Milk Gill down to Easdale and the track back to Grasmere.
A little shorter than the day we had planned but still an enjoyable one!
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The Fairfield Horseshoe
Another great day today on the Fairfield Horseshoe.
We left Ambleside a little after 9am today and headed out on the Fairfield Horseshoe, following the Coffin Route to Rydal before heading up the steep slopes of Nab Scar.
We were soon at the top of Nab Scar with some wonderful views down over Rydal Water and Grasmere and as far south as Blackpool Tower!
From Nab Scar we followed the ridge north over the summits of Heron Pike and Great Rigg before climbing to the summit of Fairfield. There was a slight dusting of snow on the high tops today and quite a chilly breeze on the summit of Fairfield as we sat and ate our lunches in the wind shelter.
After lunch we crossed the head of the horseshoe to the summits of Hart Crag and Dove Crag, two showers just missed us as we descended from Dove Crag towards High Pike and then down to Low Pike, dropping down to High Sweden Bridge.
As we followed the track back to Ambleside we got caught in our first shower of the day, but it didn't last too long and we were soon descending into Ambleside in the dry.
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Steel Fell to Helm Crag
A good day above Grasmere today following the ridge from Steel Fell to Helm Crag.
We set off from Grasmere just after 10am and followed the lane to Helmside, climbing up ridge by Cogra Breast. It didn't take long before we were in thick mist, this lasted until we were well on our way down from Helm Crag.
We climbed to the summit of Steel Fell in good time, unfortunately there were no views from the summit today, so after a short break by the summit cairn we pressed on, descending a little by Griffin Tarn and crossing the boggy section of ridge to climb to the summit of Calf Crag.
We stopped just below the summit of Calf Crag to eat our sandwiches before pressing on, turning south east and following the fine ridge towards Gibson Knott.
The path along the ridge has got very muddy this year, even more than usual, but we made good progress and were soon on the summit of Gibson Knott.
From Gibson Knott we crossed to the summit of Helm Crag and descended the new path south dropping down into Easdale and following the lane back to Grasmere.
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The Deepdale Horseshoe
A great day today on the Deepdale Horseshoe from Patterdale.
We set off from Patterdale just after 9.30 and followed the road south to Deepdale Bridge and followed the ridge up by Gale Crag climbing eventually to the summit of Hartsop Above How.
By now we were in pretty thick cloud, although there were a few breaks we had the odd good view across Deepdale towards St Sundays Crag.
We followed the ridge west climbing to the summit of Hart Crag where we stopped for a short lunch break.
After lunch we continued, this time north climbing to the summit of Fairfield, our highest point of the day and after a quick photo stop at the summit were off again, descending the rocky ridge over Cofa Pike to Deepdale Hause and then up again, this time onto the summit of Saint Sunday Crag.
A short descent to the east towards Gavel Pike brought us down onto the good path above Gavel Moss and out onto the summit of Birks, our final summit of the day from where we dropped down Thornhow End and onto the path back towards Patterdale.
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The Bannerdale Round
Another good day above Mungrisdale today on the Bannerdale Round.
We set off from Mungrisdale at 10am and followed the track west by the River Glenderamackin, climbing up the side of The Tongue, by the time we were up on the plateau we were in thick cloud and there was quite a strong breeze, we took a slight detour to the north to take in the summit of Bowscale Fell.
From Bowscale Fell we walked south and followed the ridge to the summit of The Bannerdale Crags, still nothing to see!
As we dropped down to the south over White Horse Bent we started to drop below the cloud, we crossed the stream and climbed up the southern shoulder of Souther Fell. The ridge was now out of the cloud, we crossed the summit and descended the northern end of the ridge back down to Mungrisdale.
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Great Gable from Seathwaite
A wonderful day today climbing Great Gable from Seathwaite.
We set off from Seathwaite a little after 10am and climbed by the Taylorgill Force path and up to Sty Head alongside Styhead Gill.
As we approached the stretcher box at Sty Head we met the crowds descending from today's remembrance service on Great Gable. It felt a little like we were fighting against the tide as we climbed the path from Sty Head to the summit of Great Gable.
As we reached the summit of Great Gable all was quiet, all the crowds had now left and we had the summit almost to ourselves. We dropped down to the Westmoorland Cairn to eat our lunches with one of the best views in the Lake District in front of us.
After lunch we again crossed the summit before descending north, dropping down to the remarkably still Wind Gap and climbing again to the summit of Green Gable.
After a short break on Green Gable to admire the wonderful views we were off again, descending north to Blackmoor Potts and then up to the summit of Base Brown.
We descended north down the steep northern shoulder of Base Brown to meet the better defined path below as it descended alongside Sour Milk Gill and back to Seathwaite.
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Scafell Pike from Seathwaite
A showery day today climbing Scafell Pike from Seathwaite.
We set off from Seathwaite a little after 9am and climbed by Stockley Bridge and up onto the Sty Head path to Sty Head Pass.
From Sty Head we crossed to the Corridor Route, crossing Skew Gill and eventually up to Lingmell Col, turning up towards the summit of Scafell Pike.
As we sat and ate our sandwiches on the summit of Scafell Pike it started to snow, it was quite hard for a few minutes before easing off again as we set off, descending to Broadcrag Col, we followed the ridge north, crossing Broad Crag and Ill Crag to descend through Calf Cove to Esk Hause, dropping down onto the Grains Gill path back to Seathwaite.
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The Coledale Horseshoe
A good day above Braithwaite today on the Coledale Horseshoe.
We set off from Braithwaite just after 10am and climbed the long Kinn ridge to the summit of Grisedale Pike. As we climbed the last slope to the summit of Grisedale Pike we were in the cloud.
There were a few showers as we followed the ridge over Grisedale Pike and onto Hopegill Head, descending over Sand Hill to Coledale Hause, but none of these were too bad.
We climbed the log gentle climb from the hause to the summit of Eel Crag or Crag Hill, our highest point of the day, stopping in the small wind shelter near the summit for a quick lunch stop before pressing on descending over Sail to Sail Pass before climbing again over Scar Crags and out to the wonderful summit of Causey Pike.
We still hadn't dropped below the cloud, but as we descended from Causey Pike towards Outerside we were at last below the cloud again, we crossed Outerside and were soon over Stile End and down onto Barrow, our final summit of the day and the best views before dropping down the northern shoulder to Braithwaite.
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Scafell from Eskdale
A damp day climbing Scafell and Slight Side from Eskdale today.
We set off from Wha House at 9.30 and climbed by Catcove Beck climbing the southern shoulder of Slight Side. By the time we were on Slight Side the early drizzle had turned a little heavier and we were now in thick cloud.
We didn't stop on Slight Side for too long and were soon off again, climbing the southern ridge of Scafell over Long Green eventually reaching the summit of Scafell.
After a short stop we decided to return the way we had come, the wind was now quite strong, so we retraced our steps over Slight Side and down again by Catcove Beck, eventually returning to Wha House a little after sunset.
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GPS Training
A good day in Ambleside today with a GPS Training Course.
From the Lake District Walker shop in Ambleside we ran several exercises today, during the morning heading out around the park before after lunch planning a route and then following it over Loughrigg.
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