A good day in better than expected weather today, climbing from Glenridding to Striding Edge and following the ridge to the summit of Helvellyn, we reached the clouds and drizzzle at the Hole In The Wall, but shortly after we started to descend Swirral Edge the cloud lifted and the rain stopped.

The views from Catstycam were great, even the summit of Helvellyn had cleared by now.

We descended by the Greenside Mine path back to Glenridding.

A great day on Helvellyn today, albeit a little windy!

We climbed by Lanty's Tarn onto the ridge at Birkhouse Moor, following the ridge onto Striding Edge.. There was a strong wind blowing across the ridge today, so a slightly easier path was taken by most.

After the steep climb to the summit we stopped in the wind shelter for our packed lunches before descending over Swirral Edge to Catsty Cam and down to the Greenside Mine path back to Glenridding.

A great day with some great clear views.

A grey and windy day today on Helvellyn, but a good walk!

We climbed to Birkhouse Moor via Lanty's Tarn and followed the ridge to Striding Edge. The weather was a llittle damp and very windy, but we completed the ridge and followed the steep climb to the summit of Helvellyn.

Not much to see today from the top so we sat in the shelter and ate our sandwiches before following the Swirral Edge path down to Red Tarn and down by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

Another great day on Helvellyn today. We set of at 9am to make sure we were down in time for the football match.
Although a bit breezy we climbed quickly onto Birkhouse Moor and followed the ridge along to Striding Edge, reaching the summit of Helvellyn at 11.30!

After a short stop in the summit shelter we descended along the Swirral Edge ridge down to Red Tarn following the path down through Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

A great day on Helvellyn today climbing via Lanty's Tarn to Birkhouse Moor and following the ridge to Striding Edge.

Not too busy on the edge today, probably due to our early start so we crossed the edge pretty quickly before the steep final climb to the summit of Helvellyn, where during the week more of the path to the right has been fenced off for repairs.

The summit shelter was full so we decided to stop for lunch at the top of Swirral Edge, finding a good spot out of the wind, high above Red Tarn.

After lunch we dropped down by Red Tarn and followed the path by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

Good weather today for our climb over Striding Edge to Helvellyn, following the wall up to Birkhouse Moor from Lanty's Tarn we followed the ridge past the Hole In The Wall to Striding Edge, crossing the edge and climbing to the summit where we stopped in the wind shelter for our packed lunches.

After lunch we descended over the Swirral Edge ridge to Catstycam and down to the Greenside Mines path back to Glenridding.

A great day with some great clear views, although a little windy at times.

A great day on Helvellyn today, although a little grey at times we had dry weather and next to no wind for our ascent over Striding Edge to Helvellyn.

We climbed from Glenridding to Lanty's Tarn and followed the wall up onto Birkhouse Moor, some great views over Ullswater to the High SStreet range and forward to the fantastic cirque above Red Tarn with Striding Edge to the left and Swirral Edge and Catstycam to the right.

We continued to follow the ridge to High Spying How where after a short stop  we climbed onto Striding Edge, crossing the edge quickly and easily in the near perfect conditions. After the short down-climb at the end of the ridge we climbed the short steep climb onto the summit plateau, stopping for lunch in the summit shelter to admire the views to  the west with all tops except occasionally Scafell Pike free from cloud.

After lunch we crossed the summit plateau and descended over Swirral Edge to Red Tarn and followed the path back by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding. A thoroughly enjoyable day in the fells!

Another damp day today, this time not on Scafell Pike though!

We climbed from Glenridding onto Birkhouse Moor, by now we were in cloud, although it wasn't too wet and windy.

We followed the ridge to Striding Edge and crossed the ridge without too much difficulty and climbed up the step pat to the summit, te wind on the summit was very strong, so we stopped in the wind shelter for our sandwiches.

Upon leaving the shelter we realised that the wind and rain had increased markedly, it was a relief to drop out of the wind onto the Swirral Edge path which we followed down to Red Tarn and the path back to Greenside Mines and Glenridding. The heavy rain continued until we were down.

A great day on Helvellyn today, climbing onto Birkhouse Moor from Glenridding we entered the cloud just before reaching the summit.

No views from the summit today so we pressed on climbing alongside the ridge to the Hole In The Wall and then onto High Spying How and the Striding Edge Ridge.

Although the ground was a little damp from the drizzle we crossed the ridge with no problems and climbed the steep slope up to the summit of Helvellyn, the footpath repairs are coming along well on the path up now.

After a lunch stop in the summit shelter we continued over the summit and descended the Swirral Edge ridge to Catsty Cam descending to the Greenside Mine path and returning to Glenridding in bright sunshine.

A great day climbing Helvellyn via Striding Edge today.

We started walking a bit earlier than usual at 8.30, a great plan as Striding Edge was very quiet. From Glenridding we climbed to Lanty's Tarn and followed the wall up the ridge to Birkhouse Moor.

There were a few light showers as we climbed the ridge but these never lasted for too long.

As we reached Striding Edge we reached the cloud base and were in and out of the cloud until descending back to Red Tarn.

Although a little damp we crossed Striding Edge without any difficulties. Climbing the steep slope up towards the summit plateau we noticed the changes to the path that have been made by the footpath repair team over the last week, a lot of the loose rubble on the path has been removed and a line of neat cairns has been put up.

We sheltered out of the wind in the summit shelter to eat our sandwiches before continuing over the summit and descending onto the Swirral Edge ridge. By now the wind was getting quite strong and blowing across the ridge so we dropped down a little onto the south side of the ridge to the path below to get a little more shelter.

We descended the path down near to Red Tarn and down by Greenside Mines, now in warm sunshine, back to Glenridding, another great days walking.

Another good day on the fells today, this time climbing Helvellyn from Glenridding.

We set off climbing to Birkhouse Moor in good weather this morning, the summit of Helvellyn was just in the cloud but this soon lifted as we reached Striding Edge and followed the ridge climbing to the summit of Helvellyn.

We were rewarded with some magnificent views from the Pennines to Yorkshire, Morecambe Bay and Scotland as we sat in the shelter eating our lunches.

As we set off from the shelter to descend Swirral Edge dark clouds blew in from the north giving heavy showers as we descended Swirral Edge and climbed Catstycam, by now the summit was back in cloud but we had some great views down over Ullswater.

We descended onto the Greenside Mine path and back to Glenridding, once again in intermittent heavy showers and sunshine.

A great day on the Helvellyn Ridge today, we climbed from Dunmail Raise quickly into low cloud and intermittent rain, taking the direct path towards Seat Sandal which was hard work on the wet grass.

The clouds occasionally broke giving us views over Grasmere and Thirlmere before quickly closing in again.

There were no views from the summit of Seat Sandal today so we pressed on, descending to Grisedale Tarn before climbing the zig-zags to Dollywaggon Pike, as we reached the ridge the clouds broke giving us wonderful views in most directions.

We continued along the ridge over Nethermost Pike before climbing to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the summit shelter for our sandwiches.

As we sat eating our sandwiches another rain cloud blew in, giving a hail shower this time as we sett off again, it didn't last long and passed by the time we were descending from Helvellyn Lower Man.

As we followed the ridge north over Whiteside and Raise the wind increased getting quite strong as we climbed Stybarrow Dodd.

We avoided all the showers during the afternoon and followed the ridge over the remaining Dodds, Watson's Dodd and Great Dodd before descending to Calfhow Pike and climbing the last slope to Cough Head.

We descended over White Pike to the Coach Road and down to the Threlkeld Cricket Club and into the village.

A long but great days walking.

A good day on Helvellyn today, climbing from Glenridding we climbed by Lanty's Tarn and up alongside the wall to Birkhouse Moor where there was a great view of the cirque above Red Tarn.

As we climbed towards Striding Edge the cloud lowered a little, not as low as the edge but just below the summit of Helvellyn.

We carried on traversing the ridge, windy at times, but we took our time on the difficult sections before climbing to the summit of Helvellyn.

We sat in the shelter to eat our sandwiches with occasional good views as the cloud broke but a strong and cold wind that blew in a snow shower, the first of the autumn / winter.

From the summit we descended the Swirral Edge ridge climbing to the summit of Catstycam before descending down to the Greenside Mine path back to Glenridding.

wet and windy day on Helvellyn and Striding Edge today, we climbed the direct path to Birkhouse Moor, through a few showers, but nothing too bad, but as we followed the ridge past the Hole In The Wall the wind increased and the rain started to fall harder.

We pressed on and climbed to High Spying How, the start of the Striding Edge ridge and took our time to cross the ridge, we had it all to ourselves today, and climbed the steep slope up to the summit of Helvellyn.

After a short stop in the summit shelter we pressed on, the wind was very strong on the summit, descending onto the Swirral Edge ridge and following the path down by Red Tarn and down by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

A good day in some good snow on Helvellyn and Striding Edge today, although the weather was pretty challenging at times!

We set of from Glenridding just after 10am climbing by Lanty's Tarn onto the ridge to Birkhouse Moor, there was quite a lot of snow lying on the ground by the time we reached Birkhouse Moor, drifted fairly deep in places, particularly along the wall as we walked towards the "Hole in the Wall", the wind was also increasing as we climbed towards High Spying How at the start of the Striding Edge ridge.

We picked our way along the ridge, taking care over the icy sections and the gusty wind in places on the crest of the ridge, but with care we made good progress along the ridge and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn.

Although we had been in the cloud from Birkhouse Moor we did get occasional glimpses of some great views down over Red Tarn and back towards Ullswater, this cleared for a while while we were on the summit giving is some great views all around, although we were being battered by spindrift blowing across the summit!

It was decided as the wind was getting stronger that  we would not descend the Swirral Edge ridge to Catstycam and instead we would follow the ridge north to White Side and descend the zig-zag path down by Keppel Cove to Greenside Mines and back along the valley to Glenridding.

A horrendous day on the fells today, the forecast was due to deteriorate during the day with 100mph winds due by the end of the day, so we set off early to see what we could do before things got too bad!

We set off from Swirls near Thirlmere at 7.30 climbing the path towards Helvellyn, heavy rain eased as we set off to give showers for the rest of the day, although some were pretty heavy.

Three quarters of the way to the summit the wind was getting too strong and it was decided that it would not be safe to go any higher so we turned round and descended back down to Swirls.

We followed the forest track up to Dunmail Raise and walked down into Grasmere where after a short lunch stop we followed the Coffin Route back to Ambleside.

A disappointing day but there was very little we could do in the end!

A spectacular day on Helvellyn and Striding Edge today.

We set off from Glenridding at just after 10am climbing to Lanty's Tarn, there was a thin layer of high cloud but nothing on any of the summits, as we climbed the ridge towards Birkhouse Moor a mid layer of cloud began to blow over from the south west, covering many of the summits.

Theis began to lift though as we climbed towards Striding Edge and at High Spying How there was just a thin blanket covering some of the high summits.

There was a fair amount of snow still on the northern side of the Striding Edge ridge, but nothing facing south, this made the crossing of the edge pretty easy, we rarely had to tread on the snow and ice.

We made good progress and climbed the steep climb towards the summit plateau, there was a little more snow settled here today, but it was easy enough to climb up and we emerged on the summit in sunshine to look west with several summits peeking out above a layer of cloud.

We walked up to the wind shelter and stopped for our sandwiches and to admire the view.

After lunch we crossed to White Side and followed thepath above Keppel Cove and descended the Zig-zags descending to the track down to Greenside Mines and back too Glenridding.

A wonderful day on Helvellyn and Striding Edge today with plenty of snow right down to the valleys.

We set off from Glenridding at 10am with a few inches of fresh snow underfoot and climbed to a frozen Lanty's Tarn turning off the main path and following the wall along the ridge climbing to Birkhouse Moor.

We followed the ridge west past the 'Hole In The Wall' and up along the ridge with firmer snow underfoot now to the start of Striding Edge.

Ice axes and crampons were used to cross Striding Edge, the edge was in good condition with plenty of snow on it and the winds were quite light and we crossed with little difficulty.

As we climbed onto the edge of the Helvellyn summit plateau we were rewarded with a short glimpse of a large Brocken Spectre before the clouds cleared and it vanished.

We stopped in the summit shelter on Helvellyn for a quick rest and a sandwich.

Our descent was down along the Swirral Edge ridge, the snow on Swirral Edge was good and we had no problem descending, taking the path down by Red Tarn and down by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

A good day climbing Helvellyn from Wythburn today, although there was some high cloud the views were exceptional.

We set off from Wythburn Church just after 10am and followed the main path climbing to the summit of Helvellyn, as we approached the summit a few icy patched made walking a little treacherous, but nothing too bad.

We stopped in the summit shelter for our lunch before continuing, following the ridge south to the summit of Nethermost Pike and over High Crag to Dollywaggon Pike.

From Dollywaggon Pike we descended west over Willie's Wife's Moor and down to Dunmail Raise, following the path back down to the woods and back to Wythburn Church.

Although there was a high layer of cloud all day the views were exceptional with vies to the Cheviots and south past Blackpool Tower to Wales, with Snowdon visible from Dollywaggon Pike!

A great day climbing Helvellyn from Wythburn today.

We set off from Wythburn Church at 10am and followed the path up over Birk Side and up to the summit of Helvellyn, we were in and out of cloud on the climb, some cracking views but as we reached the summit we were in thick cloud.

We stopped in the summit shelter for our lunches before continuing, following the ridge south, as we descended from the summit we dropped below the cloudbase and had some great views as we crossed Nethermost Pike, High Crag and Dollywaggon Pike and descended over Willie Wife Moor to Reggle Knott and down onto the forest path back to Wythburn Church.

Only a few pictures from early on (a problem with the batteries today)  but we will add more later.

A good day climbing Helvellyn from Wythburn today. We set off from Wythburn in light rain, not expecting too much from the weather. As we climbed above Comb Gill the drizzle stopped, but above Comb Crags we were in the cloud, we were in thick clouds all the way to the summit of Helvellyn. There were a few small patches of snow on the way up, but nothing that couldn't have been walked around if needbe.

We ate our sandwiches in the summit shelter without much of a view before following the ridge south over Nethermost Pike and High Crag.  As we descended from High Crag we emerged from the cloud, at first getting glimpses of views in all directions before as we descended from Dollywaggon Pike emerging below the cloud. The views on the way down over Willie Wife Moor were great, the clouds broke completely to give us sunshine as we descended over Reggle Knott and followed the forest track back to Wythburn Church.

A damp and windy day on Helvellyn today, we climbed from Wythburn Church following the path up over Birk Side climbing into the clouds just above Comb Crags.

We continued to the summit of Helvellyn, having the summit shelter to ourselves for a little while before others started to arrive.

From the summit we followed the ridge north, descending from the Lower Man to continue to the summit of White Side and Raise before descending to Sticks Pass and the path down to Stanah.

Looking down on Thirlmere before we climbed into the clouds

A surprisingly good day on Helvellyn today, two groups set off from Paterdale at 9.30 in wind and rain, one climbing to Striding Edge and the other climbing by Grisedale Tarn and over Dollywaggon Pike and Nethermost Pike to the summit of Helvellyn.

Not long after leaving Patterdale the rain stopped and the skies cleared to give us a wonderful day with some spectacular views as far as Blackpool and the Cheviots!

Both groups descended by Swirral Edge and Red Tarn back to Patterdale over Birkhouse Moor in strong sunshine.

Wonderful day on Helvellyn today. We ascended to Birkhouse Moor via Lanty's Tarn, then followed Striding Edge to the summit. After lunch and numerous photos, we descended Swirrall Edge, then onto Catstycam before returning to Glenridding via the Greenside Road. Fantastic weather and awesome views.

Another really good day on Helvellyn. We took the path to Lanty's Tarn, then continued onto Birkhouse Moor. After a rest stop, we then followed Striding Edge to the summit. We then stopped for lunch before descending Swirral Edge, climbing to Catstycam and descending to pick up the Greenside road. Yet again, another fantastic day weatherwise.
On arrival at Glenridding, we rehydrated at The Travellers Rest.

A good day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge, we followed the wall from Lanty's Tarn to Birkhouse Moor before climbing by the 'Hole In The Wall' onto Striding Edge.

We crossed the edge with no trouble and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the wind shelter to eat our sandwiches before descending by Swirral Edge and Red Tarn to the Greenside Mines track back to Glenridding.

Another good day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge today, the early drizzle and wind soon cleared as we climbed by Lanty's Tarn to Birkhouse Moor and onto the Striding Edge ridge to the summit of Helvellyn.

After stopping for lunch in the summit shelter on Helvellyn we continued north to Whiteside before descending by the zig-zags above Keppel Cove down to the Greenside Mines and the track back to Glenridding.

Congratulations to Marjorie who was an inspiration at the age of 85!

A great day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge. We climbed by Birkhouse Moor to Striding Edge and made good time crssng the ridge and climbing to the summit of Helvellyn.

Although windy with heavy showers this morning we were lucky, hail shower passed quite quickly just before and after we were on the Striding Edge ridge.

We stopped in the summit wind shelter to eat our sandwiches before crossing the summit to descend the Swirral Edge ridge, down by Red Tarn and followed the track back by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

A good day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge today, the terrible weather when we set off soon improved, drying by the time we reached Birkhouse Moor and giving us good sunshine by the time we were on the summit.

We climbed by Lanty's Tarn and followed the wall up along the ridge to Birkhouse Moor, following the ridge past 'Hole In The Wall' to Striding Edge.

Striding Edge had dried well by the time we reached it, and the strong winds had eased so we crossed the ridge easily and climbed the steep slope to the summit of Helvellyn.

We stopped in the wind shelter on the summit of Helvellyn, much of the group taking advantage of the hot food and drinks on sale at the summit today, raising money fora trip to Peru.

After lunch we descended the Swirral Edge ridge and dropped down onto the path by Red Tarn descending by Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

3 groups climbed Helvellyn and Striding Edge on Sunday.

A good day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge today, we set off from Glenridding in heavy rain, but this soon improved as we climbed by Lanty's Tarn and followed the ridge to Birkhouse Moor.

From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge past the 'Hole In The Wall' to reach High Spying How and Striding Edge. We crossed the edge quickly, there was very little wind today and climbed the steep slope to the summit of Helvellyn.

After sopping to eat our sandwiches in the summit shelter we descended the Swirral Edge ridge and dropped down to Red Tarn and the Greenside Mines path back to Glenridding.

A good day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge, although the morning was a little damp at times.

We set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn and followed the ridge up to Birkhouse Moor climbing onto the Striding Edge ridge.

We crossed Striding Edge easily and climbed to he summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the summit shelter to eat our sandwiches. After lunch we descended the Swirral edge ridge dropping out of the poor weather. As we descended by Red Tarnad down by Greenside Mines the weather improved and we reached Glenridding in sunshine.

Lovely walk up Helvellyn today.

From Glenridding, we followed the path to Lanty's Tarn then continued onto Birkhouse Moor.

After a short break we had an amusing 'walk' along Striding Edge, before scrambling to the summit where we sat in the shelter for lunch.
We then descended Swirral Edge, climbed Catstycam, and descended again to pick up the path down to the Greenside road before returning to Glenridding.

A near perfect day on Helvellyn and Striding Edge today, we set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn, following the wall up onto Birkhouse Moor making good time.

From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge, past the 'hole in the wall' to High Spying How and the start of Striding Edge. The conditions on Striding Edge were perfect, dry sunny weather with barely a breeze. We made good time crossing the ridge and climbed to the summit of  Helvellyn, reaching the wind shelter just before 12.30.

After lunch we descended Swirral Edge climbing to the summit of Catstycam before descending down to the Greenside Mines path back to Glenridding.

Another great day on Helvellyn today. We set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn, following the ridge to the summit of Birkhouse Moor. The views today were exceptional and the winds light as we climbed to High Spying How and onto Striding Edge.

We made good time crossing Striding Edge and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the sun to admire the views while we ate our lunches.

After luncch we desccended the Swirral Edge ridge to Red Tarn and followed the path down by Greenside Mines and back to Glenridding.

Another great day climbing Helvellyn via Striding Edge today, near perfect weather gave us some great views.

From Glenridding we climbed to Lanty's Tarn and followed the wall along the ridge to the summit of Birkhouse Moor, following the ridge to High Spying How and onto Striding Edge.

We crossed Striding Edge with little difficulty and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the wind shelter to eat our packed lunches and admire the excellent view, one of the clearest views I've ever seen from Helvellyn!

After lunch was finished we descended the Swirral Edge ridge and climbed to the summit of Catstycam, descending to the Greenside Mines path and down to Glenridding.

A great day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge today.

We set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn following the wall up onto Birkhouse Moor.

From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge up over High Spying How and onto Striding Edge.

We crossed the edge easily, the weather was good with very little wind and we climbed the steep headwall to the summit of Helvellyn.

After stopping in the summit shelter to eat our sandwiches we crossed the summit plateau we descended Swirral Edge and dropped down to Red Tarn and after one brave member of the group took a short dip in the tarn we descended by Greenside Mines and back down to Glenridding.

Today we had a group of 11 adults and children raring to
tackle Helvellyn, of which consisted of Amelia aged 7, Barney aged 10, and Abi
who had been ill the night before. We started off on the walk and the weather
seemed to be improving by the minute. Amelia was quick to tell me that this
time last year she made it two thirds of the way up Scafell Pike but could not
quite make it to the top, so today was her day to conquer a mountain. The group
set a brisk pace as we ascended towards Birkhouse Moor, and in order to keep
Amelia’s attention off her tiring legs Josh kept her amused with one of his
fascinating stories. By midday the group was at the hole-in-the wall and really
ready to have some fun on Striding Edge, also at this point we were fortunate
enough to have a fly past by a Eurofighter Typhoon (here at LDW we like to
provided added value sights you see!) This was the point where Amelia decided
to tell us one of her own stories about King Jamie (Jamie) and Jiggly Wiggly
the Ugly Troll (Ben), although the story was somewhat altered upon Jamie’s
cues. The entire group done a great job of taking on Striding Edge and Barney
showed his natural ability as a Rock climber as he hopped across rocks and made
easy going of tough sections. After a quick spot of lunch on the summit
admiring the views of the central fells the group set off down Swirral Edge.
After making extra quick work of this shorter edge we headed down to Red Tarn
to watch Josh take a quick swim, and to see the full moon (his bottom!). After
not too long the group was back to the car park at the bottom having had a
great day out on the mountains. A great day out with a great group of people,
and what a fantastic day to have as my first for the company.

Starting at 10am from Glenridding we set off up towards Birkhouse Moor with our sights set on Helvellyn

. We were soon admiring the views out towards Ullswater and High Street. Shortly after midday the group was on top of High Spying How ready to
tackle Striding Edge. Everyone done tremendously well on the ridge, sticking to the most exciting route as much as possible. After making easy work of ‘The Chimney’, and scrambling up the last section of rock towards the summit we were soon eating our sarnies on the summit admiring views of the central fells.

After our short lunch stop the group made short work of Swirral Edge. We then descended past Greenside Mine to make it back to the car park in a little over 6 hours.

What a great day! To say it was windy would be a major understatement! I met the group (Phil, Matthew, Rosemary and Jenny) at the usual spot in Glenridding at 10am, and we immedietly got on our way. We followed the track up towards Birkhouse Moor at a stunning pace, of which my legs from having done 10 miles yesterday (And Rosemary's of course) were not too happy about! As we got over the brow of Birkhouse Moor the wind hit us in the face, and it was quite bracing to say the least. It was at this point we discovered Matthew was a bit of a peak bagger, and he quickly ran off and bagged Birkhouse Moor. Half an hour later we were huddled down by High Spying How at the start of the ridge; I briefed the group on the ridge and we were soon on our way. It was only a matter of meters of being on the ridge that we decided it was too windy to be walking the exposed ridge line so we dropped onto the path beside. Matthew tackled parts of the ridgeline, and the rest of the group peered over the edge at one point to see the steep drop that they were not risking to be blown into. The entire group tackled the Chimney and done very well, and had soon scuttled up the last scramble and on to the summit. We swiftly grabbed a few photos and headed for the summit, and here we felt the full force of the wind. This would be our usual spot for lunch and being half one already we were all getting quite peckish. The Shelter was full  and we couldn't stay out in the open, especially as I was not risking losing my Jam sandwich to a 100m drop down to Red Tarn! We continued on moving, leaning into the wind and thinking heavy thoughts, and headed half way down Swirral Edge and picked our lunch spot in a nice windless hollow.

After a well deserved break we headed on. Matthew detoured off and bagged Catstycam as the rest of the group followed the gentle path back to Red Tarn. Before we knew it we were all sitting in the Cafe back in Glenridding drinking Tea and Beer. Smashing day, another smashing group, smashing Jam Sandwich and a smashing cup 'o tea!

Today my group was made up of Dan and Becky (From Mondays Scafell Pike Walk) Matthew a.k.a 'Trippy"  (from yesterdays Skiddaw Walk) and Tracey. We set off at 10 towards Birkhouse Moor. The group made great time and was quickly at 720m. Matt ran off and continued his bagging and got Birkhouse Moor. We all enjoyed the flat walk in to High Spying How and everyone was excited about starting the ridge. The group all made great progress along the ridge, especially as none of them had really done anything like it before. The group was gaining confidence by the metre, and quickly dominated 'the chimney'. We scuttled up the final scramble, got ourselves a spot in the shelter on the summit, and enjoyed our lunch. After lunch we headed down Swirral Edge with Matt displaying some great route finding skills. Matt and Dan bagged Catstycam and then we continued down the path towards Greenside Mine. Another great day up Helvellyn, Cheers guys! Written by Matt Burt

Another wet and windy day today, this time our planned route of climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge was cut short and instead we climbed the summits of Birkhouse Moor and Catstycam.

From Glenridding we climbed by Mires Beck and up onto the summit of Birkhouse Moor. By now it was pretty obvious that Striding Edge was out of bounds for the day so we stopped by the Hole In The Wall and got our shelters out for a bit to eat before continuing by Red Tarn, here we split into two groups with the more adventurous heading up onto the summit of Catstycam with Chris while the remainder of our group descended with me towards Greenside Mines and back to Glenridding.

A thoroughly wet and windy day was enjoyed by all!

What an exciting day we had today! Starting from our usual spot in Glenridding, myself, Rachael, Ruth, Felicia, Helen, Darren and Carole all set off to tackle Helvellyn.

The sky looked overcast and the trees were being blown frantically so we already knew we were in for an interesting one, nonetheless we were ready to give it a good go. We made our way past Lanty's Tarn and unfortunately shortly after Rachael and Ruth decided today was not their day for Helvellyn and opted to turn back. We pressed on and were soon up to Birkhouse Moor. From here we could see Helvellyn was sitting under a blanket of cloud, and we were also feeling a greater effect of the gusts. I took the decision (encouraged by John's movements in the distance with another client) to opt out of Striding Edge today, so we followed the track towards Red Tarn. From here we could see John and his client start to tackle Swirral Edge, so we thought we would do that to!

We made our way up Swirral Edge, getting hit by multiple gusts. From this I could tell that the summit plateu, notorious for wind even on a summers day, was going to be wild! Just before we broke out onto the plateau to grab the summit and return, I briefed the group on what to expect and what the plan was. The plateau was deffinitely different, but an exciting kind of different of course! The wind was easily up to about 80mph, making the rain feel like flying needles. I turned to check on the group and at one point thought Felicia was going to be taken with the winds, fortunately Carole linked arms with her and made sure she stayed firmly planted to the ground, phew! We didn't linger at the summit and quickly retraced our steps back to the top of Swirral Edge.

We descended the edge and followed the path back to Red Tarn. We leisurly strolled along the path back to Greenside Mine and back along to the car park. Bearing in mind for the entire 6 hours of the walk there had not been more than 30seconds where it had not been raining, pretty much as soon as we entered to the car park the clouds parted, and out come the sun and blue sky, typical!

This morning I met Carl, Sally and Marion in the car park at Glenridding. The group told me that they had done limited walking in the Lakes and were feeling anxious about taking on Striding Edge and Helvellyn. We got cracking about 10.20 and started to climb towards Birkhouse Moor. We summited Birkhouse Moor and the group took in their first views of the challenge ahead. We made our way to High Spying How and started to feel the full force of the wind. Yeah it was windy, but not enough to stop this group from taking on this Lake District Classic! We hit the ridge and the group started cautiously. Everyone in the group had said that they were not great with heights, so it was interesting to see how they would react when they were in the thick of it on the ridge. The whole group perfromed extremely well and we were on the summit before we knew it. After a quick lunch stop of a wind blown summit we took on Swirral Edge and then headed back to Red Tarn. The group descended back to the car park at a great pace and were back at the cars in just over 6 hours. Written by Matt

Wow what an amazing day! 12 miles and 12 summits!

Today I met Gavin and Anne in Threlkeld, but instead of hitting the fells we jumped into John’s car and he gave us a lift down
alongside Thirlmere to Dunmail Raise. From Dunmail Raise we made our way to Raise Beck and started to make our way up the valley. We climbed high into the mist and soon we were at the zig-zagging path that would take us high onto
Dollywagon Pike. Although this steep ascent was early in the day, we knew it was the hardest bit of the day, as once we gain the height we maintain most of it for the remainder of the day.

As we got towards the summit of Dollywagon we were completely engulfed in the mist, and we were starting to feel the full force of the wind we were likely to be experiencing for the rest of the day. We summited Dollywagon Pike, and soon moved on and summited High Crag. We were now in full flow and reached the flat summit of Nethermost Pike. Next on the cards was
Helvellyn, our highest of the day, and also our lunch spot. We made it to the summit shelter shortly after midday and we were all ready for a bite to eat.

We didn’t stop for long and headed towards Lower Man, and then followed the ridge line down to Whiteside Bank. The following peaks contained lots of short ascents and descents. We made our way over Raise, Stybarrow Dodd, Watson’s Dodd and then Great Dodd. After a short stop in the summit shelter we descended to Calfhow Pike. From here we started to get some great views out over towards Keswick and Thirlmere, but they were shortlived as we started our ascent on our final summit of the day, Clough Head. We had reached our final summit and were all feeling sufficiently knackered. We dropped out of the mist and were greeted with fantastic views across to Blencathra, and our final destination, Threlkeld. We stopped and admired the view for a few minutes, but with the great risk of seizing up and not going again we started the final leg of the day.

We made our way off Clough Head to the Old Coach Road. We then descended the last 300m across the fields towards the Cricket club, and before we knew it we were back in Threlkeld.

A few weeks ago I stated the Fairfield Horseshoe is a must-do walk for any keen hillwalker, and this epic walk easily falls into the same category. A fantastic day on a route that everyone must do! AMAZING!
Written by Matt.

A wonderful day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge.

We set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn turning off the main path here and following the wal up the ridge climbing to the summit of Birkhouse Moor.

The views o the climb were magnificent today, and as we reached the summit of Birkhouse Moor we were rewarded with magnificent view of Striding Edge, Helvellyn and Swirral Edge.

We set off from Birkhouse Moor following the ridge past the 'Hole In The Wall' and climbed to High Spying How and onto Striding Edge. Although there were a few nerves we crossed Striding Edge without too many problems and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn for a well deserved lunch stop.

The views from the summit of Helvellyn were magnificent, although the distant views were a bit hazy we had good views across the Lake District.

We descended by Swirral Edge and followed the path down by Red Tarn and Greenside Mines back to Glenridding.

Well another wild windy day has hit the Lakes, but it was not to stop us from hitting the hills! Our main objective of they day was Helvellyn via Striding Edge but even from the visitors centre in Glenridding this was looking unlikely. I met Claire, Claire and Mark at our normal spot and we were soon on our way. To try and shield ourselves from the worst of the wind we took the well established path up Mires Beck, however the rain still managed to find us! We worked our way up to Birkhouse Moor, grabbed the summit and quickly made our way to some flat ground and popped up the shelter. The shelter was a welcomed break from the wind, until the wind started to properly batter the side to the point I thought we were all about to take off! Unfortunately the wind also managed to rip the indow off the shelter! During our short stay in the shelter we decided (very wisely) that today was not to be the day we would be making our way to the summit of Helvellyn via either of the edges. We opted to take a stroll along to Red Tarn, where we had a bite to eat and then followed our usual track back down via Greenside Mine. A shame we couldn't have gotten higher today but we all live to walk another day! Written by Matt Burt

A great day on Helvellyn today, from Glenridding we headed up by Lanty's Tarn and followed the wall up along the ridge to the summit of Birkhouse Moor.

The wind on Birkhouse Moor was pretty strong so we pressed on climbing by The Hole In The Wall to High Spying How. As we climbed onver High Spying How onto the start of Striding Edge the wind eased, we were now in the shelter of the summit of Helvellyn.

We crossed Striding Edge with few problems and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the summit shelter to eat our lunches before continuing across the windy summit plateau. We descended the Swirral Edge ridge and climbed to the summit of Catstycam for the last great views of the day before descending onto the Greenside Mines path back to Glenridding and a well deserved drink at the Travellers Rest.

A fantastic day climbing Helvellyn today!

I met Sharif and Mark  in a very wet Glenridding Car Park at 10am and we set off at a rapid pace up the Mires Beck path. The guys kept up the fantastic pace and we were soon enough on the summit of Birkhouse Moor. We were already in the think of the cloud, now feeling the greater strength of the wind, as well as still being rained on. The spirits were high and the guys were determined to get onto Striding Edge today. The wind was gusting but not enough to keep us off the edge, so we made our way to High Spying How. Striding Edge was suprisingly sheltered and keen to give the guys a real buzz on the edge we stuck to the crest as much as possible. Sharif and Mark scrambled very well and after tackling the Chimney and final ascent scramble we found ourselves in the summit shelter having a spot of lunch. After our short stop we made our way across the summit plateau where it was far more windy, so we were glad to get into the slightly more sheltered Swirral Edge. Again keen to give the guys the most challenging route we stuck to the crest of Swirral Edge, and after a fine bit of scrambling on some tricky terrain we were on our way back on the ascent up to Catstycam. Here the wind was really wipping over the ridge, forcing us to lean into the wind to make it to the summit, unfortunately Mark's raincover decided to leave the party and flew off down the valley never to be seen again. A very short stop on the summit of Catstycam and we made our way down to the path that leads to Greenside Mine. We descended whilst enjoying the scenery, and arrived back at the car park having all had a great day!

After meeting Paul, Paul and Roz in Glenridding we made our way up to Lanty's Tarn. There was some cloud in the sky, of which I was sure we would be in later in the day, but for now we were getting great views over Ullswater. On our way up to Birkhouse Moor we were drizzled on a bit but nothing compared to the last few days! We summited Birkhouse Moor, and were now in the full force of the wind, but again it wasn't as strong as it had been previously in the week. We were soon at High Spying How, and all feeling a bit hungry we decided to have our lunch break here. We made our way onto the edge and all the group scrambled exceptionally well considering it was all their first times doing something like this. After tackling the Chimney and the final scramble ascent we found ourselves on a very blustery summit plateau. We had a short stop at the shelter and before we got too cold we summited Helvellyn and made our way towards Swirral Edge.

After more great scrambling on Swirral Edge we followed the path off the edge to Red Tarn. After another hour and a bit we had passed Greenside Mine and had made our way back to the car park in Glenridding, another Great Day! Written by Matt Burt

This morning I met a group all the way from Essex in Glenridding, ready to climb Helvellyn. We set off up the track and soon found ourselves at Lanty's Tarn. Everyone found themselves stripping off their layers as the weather was simply amazing! We continued up the steep hillside and rounded the hilltop by Birkhouse Moor to gain amazing views of Helvellyn itself. We walked across the flatter ground to High Spying how, now gaining great views into the valley bottom and down to Red Tarn; we pressed on and made our way onto the edge. Everyone in the group scrambled exceptionally well, especially as it was their first Lake District Mountain experience. We took the hardest line all the way along the edge, tackled the chimney and quickly scuttled up the final scramble. We made our way onto the summit, and after a few pictures we  headed for Swirral Edge. We made quick work of Swirral Edge and descended to Red Tarn. Soon enough we had followed the track down past Greenside Mine and back to the Car Park. A great day out at which everyone should be chuffed with their achievments!

Another great day on Helvellyn & Striding Edge today!

I met Bill and Hazel at our usual spot in Glenridding and we started on our way towards Lanty's Tarn. As we passed the Tarn and started to make our way towards Birkhouse Moor we got some magnificent views across to High Street and St Sundays Crag. There was cloud in the sky but it was allowing rays of sunshine to break through and give us the most dramatic views. We did exceptionally well up the climb to Birkhouse Moor, especially in the wind that was whipping up and over the wall. We summited Birkhouse Moor and started to make our way towards Striding Edge. There were quite a few people around and people on the edge, even in these windy conditions, which was a great sign! We reached the edge and with Bill and Hazel were up for a challenge, so we made our way on to the top, and started to take the hardest line possible. Again Bill and Hazel done well and we had soon tackled the Edge and were on the summit plateau. The wind was really ripping across the top so we decided, after a very brief stop in the shelter, to head for cover over on Swirral Edge. We found our lunch spot half way down the edge, and again after a short stop due to getting cold we got on our way. After Swirral Edge we made our way up a very windy Catstycam. We found ourselves being blown to the top and then getting pushed from all directions, it was great fun though! We followed the path off Catstycam and down to the main path to Greenside Mine. We enjoyed the end of the walk through the valley being sheltered by the wind and even with a bit more sunshine breaking through the clouds. Crackin'! Written by Matt Burt

One of the clients, Bill, is climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro for Marie Curie Cancer Care next year in memory of his beloved wife who sadly passed away to the illness in 2006. Here is the link for Bill's fundraising page to give him a hand for a great cause and towards his great adventure, and also help you get rid of some loose change! haha http://www.justgiving.com/Maria-Donaghy

A fantastic day climbing Helvellyn & Striding Edge today, but unfortunately for the last time this year! :(

I met my group, Juanita, June, Lucy, Claire, Julia, Alison and Georgina at our normal spot in Glenridding. (This was my first group of all women, so I was hoping they would play nicely with me! haha) The forecast for the day was awesful, however it seemed the eastern lakes was avoiding the worst of the weather, and aprt from some low cloud it was quite nice. We made our way to Lanty's Tarn and then started to climb up to Birkhouse Moor. We made the summit of Birkhouse Moor in good time, most likely because we were in the fog and were not getting the fine views back towards Ullswater. We were now on the flatter ground making our way towards High Spying How, and the start of Striding Edge. Soon enough we were at the start of the ridge and after a quick briefing we cracked on. Some of the group were nervious, anxious but I am sure excited too! The mist was down so we could not see down either side of the edge, which I think helped. All the ladies scrambled very well, tackling all the hardest sections, even when the gusts started to pick up. Everyone tackled the chimney and then the final scramble. Just as we were reaching the summit plateau the mist blew through for a few seconds to give amazing views of the edge, and the opportunity for the ladies to see what they had just conquered in fine style! I think at that point the sense of achievement that the group was feeling was doubled instantly (although I did hear Claire say it made her feel dizzy!) We got ourselves to the busy summit shelter, but found a place to grab a spot of lunch. The stop was short, and then we made our way to Swirral Edge. We tackled the steep first section but then met the path for easier walking. The cloud had now lifted and we were getting great views of the side of Striding Edge, Catstycam and the fells in the distance. We enjoyed a leisurly walk back down to Greenside Mine and then made our way to the pub for a nice cool drink to round off the day. A fantastic day, and I am already looking forward to when we will be up there again!

A wild day on Helvellyn today as the snow starts to arrive!
We set off from Wythburn at 9.30am and climbed the steep path through the woods and up the steep Wythburn path to the summit of Helvellyn.
Lower down the winds were very light but these got much stronger as we climbed higher and as we reached the summit the wind was whipping the snow and hail across the summit plateau.
After a brief stop in the shelter we pressed on southwards crossing the summit of Nethermost Pike and climbing to the summit of Dollywaggon Pike before descending out of the winds over Willie Wife Moor and down by Reggle Knott to meet the path back to Wythburn.

A second winter day on Helvellyn today again climbing by the Wythburn path to the summit of Helvellyn.
The wind today wasn't nearly as strong as yesterday but there was much more snow settling and falling today.
After a short stop in the summit shelter we headed south, crossing Nethermost Pike and. Limping to the summit of Dollywaggon Pike before descending west over Willie Wife Moor and down over Reggle Knott to meet the path back to Wythburn.
Not long and we may have some real winter walking on our hands!

2012 is here, and what a great way to spend new years day!

Starting at Wythburn Church we pretty much started our ascent from the first step as we made our way through the forest. As we emerged from the forest we came into an amphitheatre like comb which was absolutely stunning, especially as the recent rain was making all the streams very clear. We continued to ascend on the good path to the very aptly named Comb Crags. The path made its way through the crags before turning to the North making its way over Birk Side. Soon after we were on the main plateau by Nethermost Pike, but our first objective of the day was Helvellyn. Up until this point we had been rained on a bit but the loud was still above the summits. As we made our way towards the summit the cloud dropped and with it our view disappeared. There were still quite a few Cornices hanging around which was good to see. We made it to the Summit of Helvellyn where we could see even bigger cornices forming over the steep back wall. To have a break and shelter from the weather we sat in the shelter and enjoyed our lunch.

We continued the walk by turning south and summiting the flat top of Nethermost Pike . We rejoined the main path which led us towards High Crag and then Dollywagon Pike, where we got spectacular views straight down the Grisedale Valley, and out to Ullswater in the distance. With all our summits bagged we started to descend down towards Willie Wife Moor. Just a few metres into the descent a hail storm set in, which really hurt! Like real mountaineers we pressed on.... however this was short lived (literally 30 seconds!)  and I quickly grabbed the group shelter out of my bag and we sought some shelter while the storm went over (this turned out to be one of the favorite bits of everyone's day!). The storm did soon pass and with our stinging faces we continued our descent, and that was actually the last of the bad weather. We got to Reggle Knott, a large rocky outcrop and were rewarded with fine views down pretty much the full length of Thirlmere.

Just a short descent from here brought us to the track that led us back to our start point at Wythburn Church. A thoroughly enjoyable day out on a fantastic route!

Another fantastic day forecast and blimey did it produce one! I met Claire and Gina at Wythburn and we got moving straiught away before our toes fully froze! The start of the climb was steep, but it warmed us up and gave us good height gain early on to gain some spectacular views, especially as much of the ground was white with frost. We climbed around Comb Crags and started to feel the wind, which started to cool us down a little. The views continued to get better and better as we made our way to Helvellyn. On our way to  Helvellyn we got amazing views of Striding Edge, and before summiting we went to the exit ramp of the edge to have a look directly down onto it. We had a spot of lunch on the summit but didnt stop long as it was quite chilly. This was when the felltop conditions man appeared on the summit and Gina went to ask him what the temperature was. He told us it was -3.6 degrees C, but -12 with Windchill! and it did feel it!

We walked the short distance southwards to the summit of Nethermost Pike, and then round over High Crag to Dollywagon Pike, where we were rewarded with amazing views down the Grisedale Valley. It was here we saw the interesting flying saucer like clouds (see picture). We descended down to Reggle Knott over the frozen boggy ground, where again we had great views, this time of the full length of Thirlmere. We walked back to Wythburn along the flat track in the forest. A fantastic day to be in the fells!

A great day today climbing Helvellyn from Wythburn.

We set off from Wythburn Church at 100am and climbed by Birk Side in glorious sunshine to the summit of Helvellyn. There were some great views today, stretching as far as Blackpool Tower to the south and north over the Solway to the hills of Dumfries and Galloway.

After a short stop in the summit shelter for our lunches we headed south, crossing to the summit of Nethermost Pike, the ground was a little icy as we crossed High Crag and onto the summit of Dollywaggon Pike, descending by Willie Wife Moor and down over Reggle Knott, with it's spectacular views over Thirlmere down to Dunmail Raise and the path back to Wyhtburn Church.

A great day out!

Winter had more or less been written off for the Lakes, what with the last patches of snow finally disapearing and the conditions getting ever milder, nobody would have predicted that the fells would have been the way they were today!

I met Faye and Lisa at Wythburn set to climb Helvellyn. We climbed steeply from the church through the woods before emerging below combe crags. We were already walking on snow, and a fair bit of it considering it had all fallen just that night! It looked spectacular. We climbed up through Combe crags and over Birk Side. The snow was getting deeper, and by now we were up in the cloud. We trudged on and soon enough we were at the col above Swallow Scarth. The conditions had continued to deteriorate but we were happy to make the short distance to the summit of Helvellyn at least. The snow underfoot was getting deeper  and there must have been at least a foot of fresh snow on the final path to the summit. We grabbed the summit, got a couple of pictures but then started to make our way back towards the col. From the col we continued south but opted to stick to the main track, although not very clear, it was the easier option considering the conditions. As we skirted around Dollywagon Pike we turned to the west and started to make our way down Willie Wife Moor. Here we were rewarded with some fantastic views as we got under the cloud and the sun had come out. We stood and admired the views before descending down onto Reggle Knott. From Reggle Knott we got a good view down Thirlmere, and we decided to take this moment to have a bite to eat. Typically just as we got out our sandwiches it started to hail, which then turned to snow. We finished out descent down to the track, but then almost magically it all cleared again, and the sun came out! We enjoyed this lovely bit of sunshine along the track and back to the cars at Wythburn Church. A day out in all weathers, apart from rain, but I am sure there will be plenty of that to come in the rest of the year!

(Apologies for the lack of photos but some will appear soon from Faye and Lisa)

A magnificent day climbing Helvellyn and Striding Edge in the sunshine.

We started out from Glenridding, and once again the sun was beaming down on us. We climbed slowly through the trees via Lanty's Tarn to the join the grassy ridge up towards Birkhouse Moor. As we climbed higher and higher the views over Ullswater opened up, as well as those over St Sundays Crag and Fairfield.

We finished this initial climb and were greeted with the great view of Helvellyn standing proud, with the arms of Striding Edge and Swirral Edge coming towards us. After a nice stop we walked across the much flatter ground to High Spying How, the start of Striding Edge. The guys all scrambled extremely well, sticking to the crest all the way, and making the chimney look very easy. We finished the edge with the steep exit ramp, and after a few snaps at the top we found our lunch spot. We enjoyed our lunch with the entire Lake District stretched out in front of us, and the sun still shining down, it was great!

Unfortunately we did have to get up, but we had more fun in store. On our was past we 'bagged' the summit of Helvellyn and then made our way to the top of Swirral Edge. We took the crest down the edge and once again everyone scrambled very well.

We finished off the walk with a gentle descent down via Red Tarn and Greenside Mine. A fantastic day out!

A blustery day taking on Helvellyn from Wythburn today.

Starting from the Wythburn Car park we started our climb immedietly as we ascended through the forests. We emerged out of the forests and into the impressive comb where we followd the path up through the crags and onto the easier ground above. As we traversed across Birk Side we could see the snow on the route ahead, and also unfortunately the cloud covering the summit of Helvellyn.

The path eased as it traversed around Nethermost Pike and not before too long we were on the final ascent to the top. The path was covered in snow and now in the cloud we couldn't see much at all. Soon enough we were at the summit, and we didn't stay in the open for long as it was getting blasted with wind and hail (ouch!). We ducked into the summit shelter for a bite to eat, but as it was pretty cold we didn't stop for long. As the conditions were pretty poor along the tops we opted to descend back to Wythburn via the same track.

On the way down we had some great views mixed in with a few light showers.

Wow, wow and just wow! Helvellyn & Striding Edge is back on the diary and what a great day for it to fall on!

I met Sandra and Lee in Glenridding and the day was already looking like a cracker! The sun was beaming down, and there was hardly a single breath of wind! We made our way out of the car park and climbed the easy track through the woods and up to Lanty's Tarn. From the tarn we took the quiet route up the grassy ridge that leads towards Birkhouse Moor. The views were amazing, with St Sunday's Crag being the most impressive of all. We made great time up the fellside to meet the main path from Glenridding, and then followed this up to the top of Birkhouse Moor.

From here we had fantastic views of Helvellyn and its amazing edges. We made our way to Low Spying How over the fairly flat ground, and then stopped for a spot of lunch. After our lunch break we walked the short distance to High Spying How, and the start of Striding Edge.

The Edge was fairly quiet and bone dry, which made it all that much better for us! Both Lee and Sandra scrambled very well, and took on 'The Chimney' in fine style. We scrambled over the final buttress before making our way up the steep final exit ramp and onto the summit. We soaked up the views of the rest of the Lakes for a while before having another bite to eat at the top of Swirral Edge.

We descended Swirral Edge with more great Scrambling before ascending to the pointy summit of Catstycam. We left this summit down its grassy nose from where we met the main path that leads down to the mine. We enjoyed the afternoon heat along this stretch, as well as the good track that led back to Glenridding, and more importantly, the pub! A fantastic day out!

Another bright day was upon us as we were ready to tackle Helvellyn & Striding Edge.

From Glenriding we climbed to Lanty's Tarn before taking the secluded path up the grassy spur by the wall. The forecast satated the visibility would be 'virtually unlimited', and it wasn't far wrong. Everyone climbed well and soon enough we were on the summit of Birkhouse Moor. From here we enjoyed the flatter ground and made our way to High Spying How, and then start of Striding Edge. We opted to have a quick bite to eat here before getting into the really fun stuff! We got onto the ridge and everyone scrambled really well, and the big smiles on their faces displayed they were having a good time. Before we knew it we had completed the edge, and after walking up the steep exit ramp we were up on Helvellyn's busy summit plateau. We stopped again to finish our lunches and to soak up the incredible views. We descended from the summit down Swirral Edge where again more great scrambling was had.

After bagging Catstycam we descended via the good path down to Greenside Mine, and then into Glenridding.

Another fab day up one of Lakeland's most popular routes, Helvellyn & Striding Edge.

We left a windswept Glenridding and made our way through the woods to to Lanty's Tarn. We turned to the west from the tarn and ascended up the grassy spur. All of the group made great progress up this steep slope (especially as 4 of the group were from Holland where the highest hill is only about 300m high!). Soon enough we were on the summit of Birkhouse Moor enjoying fab views across to Helvellyn and the edges. We crossed the flatter ground and made our way to High Spying How.

The wind was gusting at a fair speed, however we were happy enough to go on the edge and maybe miss out some of the more exposed bits. Everyone scrambled exceptionally well along the ridge and not before long we were making our way up the exit ramp and onto a an even windier summit. We made quick progress into the shelter where we enjoyed some lunch.

We soon cooled down so got on our way. We descended the fine Swirral Edge and then re-ascended up to the conical summit of Catstycam. We descended from this summit to the east and joined the good track past Greenside Mine and then back into Glenridding.

A stunning day today as we climbed up Helvellyn & Striding Edge.

From an already baking Glenridding we climbed through the shade of the trees up to Lanty's Tarn. From here we followed the wall up the large grassy spur that meets the main path out of Glenridding. The heat of the morning was unrelenting as we climbed up the long slope, but nonetheless we made great progress. Not before too long we were up on the summit of  Birkhouse Moor.

From here we enjoyed the flatter ground and made our way to High Spying How, and then start of Striding Edge. We decided to stop before the edge for our lunch.

After our break we got onto Striding Edge to enjoy some good scrambling. As always everyone scrambled very well! After tackling the chimney and the final buttress we walked up the steep  final exit ramp and onto the summit of  Helvellyn. The views were a bit hazy, but we were glad we could at least see something! We stopped again just past the summit for another break, which is where Mandy put her apple down beside her and unfortunately (and very amusingly!) it rolled down Red Tarn Cove and went bouncing down Helvellyn's steep face!

We descended down Swirral Edge, and as the heat of the day had sapped a lot of our energy (and water was low) we opted not to summit  Catstycam. We filled our water bottles up out of the beck that runs from Red Tarn, and then descended down to the pub via Greenside Mine.

Another glorious day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge.

We set off from Glenridding just before 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn, following the ridge west to meet the Mires Beck path and followed this onto the summit of Birkhouse Moor.

The weather was glorious and we had some great views over Ullswater, there was a lot of haze today and we couldn't see as far as the Pennines.

From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge west past 'Hole in the Wall' and climbed to High Spying How and onto Striding Edge.

The conditions were perfect today, there was next to no wind and we easily crossed Striding Edge before climbing to the summit of Helvellyn.

We stopped by the summit of Helvellyn for a lunch stop before descending over Swirral Edge and down by Red Tarn onto the Greenside Mine path back to Glenridding.

Another great day climbing Helvellyn and Striding Edge today despite the cloud on the tops!

We set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lantys Tarn and followed the ridge to Birkhouse Moor, it was very quiet until we met the crowds coming up the Mires Beck path.

Helvellyn and the edges were in cloud as we looked up from Birkhouse Moor but as we approached Striding Edge the cloud lifted a little, off the edge and briefly giving us some views up to the summit of Helvellyn.

We crossed Striding Edge with little difficulty and climbed the steep slope up to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping behind the summit shelter four our lunches.

By now we were well into the clouds and didn't come out of them until we were well below Swirral Edge and almost down to Red Tarn, but as we followed the path down towards Greenside Mines the clouds began to break up, eventually lifting off the summits as we approached Glenridding.

A good day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge today.

Today's forecast was far from perfect, so as we set off from Glenridding this morning we decided to take the slightly quicker route up by Mires Beck onto Birkhouse Moor, hoping to get over Striding Edge before the worst of the weather hit us!

As it turned out the weather wasn't nearly as bad as the forecast and we were up onto Striding Edge before we were in the cloud and although it rained for quite  while it was never hard!

From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge past the 'Hole in the wall' and climbed up to High Spying How and onto Striding Edge.

We crossed the edge dropping down to the path for much of the route and climbed the steep slope onto the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the summit shelter for our sandwiches before descending the Swirral Edge ridge and down by Red Tarn, dropping back out of the cloud as we passed the tarn and followed the track down by Greenside Mines and back to Glenridding.

A great day climbing Helvellyn & Striding Edge today.

We set off from Glenridding at 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn, following the wall onto the ridge and climbing up onto Birkhouse Moor.

So far the weather was pretty good, the cloud was just catching the highest tops but there was plenty of breaks in the cloud as well.

As we reached High Spying How, the start of Striding Edge, the cloud blew over Red Tarn and onto the ridge meaning that wee were engulfed in the cloud, this didn't stop us though and we crossed Striding Edge with little difficulty and climbed up onto the summit of Helvellyn, stopping in the wind shelter to eat our lunches.

After lunch we crossed the summit of Helvellyn and dropped down onto the Swirral Edge path, descending the ridge, which took a little care today as it was quite slippery in places, and descended onto the path below climbing again onto the summit of Catstycam before descending onto the Greenside Mine track and following this back to Glenridding.

A great day on the Helvellyn Ridge today.

We set off from Dunmail Raise at 10am, climbing by Raise Beck in quickly improving weather, by the time we were on the summit of Seat Sandal the bad weather had cleared most of the summits and there were some great views.

As we climbed from Grisedale Tarn up onto the summit of Dollywaggon Pike the weather was looking great, only the summit of Great Gable was in cloud now.

We crossed the summit of Nethermost Pike and climbed to the summit of Helvellyn, stopping for lunch in the wind shelter by the summit cairn before continuing north, crossing Lower Man and following the ridge to the summits of White Side and Raise before crossing Sticks Pass and climbing onto Stybarrow Dodd.

As we crossed Watsons Dodd and Great Dodd the temperatures increased and we were now in sunshine descending over Clough Head and down by White Pike to meet the Old Coach Road and down to Threlkeld.

A very good day on the classic Helvellyn & Striding Edge.

We left a very humid Glenridding heading for a cloudy Birkhouse Moor. We climbed the grassy slope exceptionally well and made great progress to a misty summit of Birkhouse Moor. With the bulk of the climbing under our belts we enjoyed the gentler ground over towards Striding Edge. The mist was now starting to lift and it firstly revealed Catstycam, and then the edge came out itself. Just as we set off across Striding Edge a Sea King Helicopter came past us quite close! We all enjoyed the scrambling across the edge and by the time we got to the summit of Helvellyn it was clear and we enjoyed some great views. Afte  a spot of lunch on the summit we descended down Swirral Edge and then climbed up to the conical summit of Catstycam. After enjoying these views we descended its eastern nose down to the main track that leads into Glenriding via Greenside Mine.

Another fantastic weekend of toughing it out on the 24 Peaks Challenge in 24 Hours.

On Saturday morning I met the group in Buttermere, and after a few minutes of finalising kit we were on our way (8.17am). The start of the challenge is not a kind one as we got straight into the climb by heading up the steep steps leading to Red Pike. We made great progress up this steep climb, despite intentionally taking it easier as to not burn out. After the final scramble we were on the summit of Red Pike after 1 hour and 20 minutes. There was a bit of mist on the Buttermere Fells but there was more over towards Great Gable where we would be heading later.

From Red Pike we followed the ridge and a short climb brought us up to summit number 2, High Stile. From High Stile another ridge walk brought us quickly onto summit 3, High Crag. With 3 summits in the bag within a couple of hours we now had a large descent to deal with. We descended the steep slope of Gamlin End before heading across Scarth Gap. From here we scrambled quickly up the slope to the summit of Haystacks, unfortunately not one of the 24 peaks!

We headed south from Haystacks past Inominate Tarn and weaved our way around the many tarns and outcrops before joining the track that climbs up to the Moses Trod Path. We joined this path for a short while before cutting off to hoin the northern slope of Green Gable. A short drag up into the mist brough us summit number 4, Green Gable. Great Gable soon followed as we headed across windy gap and up over the boulders to its windswept summit. We didnt linger long as we were planning on having Lunch at Styhead pass. We reached Styhead Pass after the knee crunching descent and the break was very well received!

After the break we were back on the ascent and we made our way up the Corridor Route to the summit of Lingmell. We were still climbing really well and focused on now reaching the highest summit in England. The group continued to climb well and after about 20 minutes we were on the summit of Scafell Pike. We were lucky enough to have some views so we took a moment to soak them up before heading onto our next peak. We crossed Broad Crag Col follwed by Broad Crag and Ill Crag before a short ascent brought us up to Great End. We continued with great pace across Esk Hause and summited Esk Pike shortly after. 9 down, 1 to go. We crossed Ore Gap and picked our way through the boulders and onto the summit of Bowfell.

With all of Day 1's peaks done we now just had to descend, and we had 1 hour 30 to get to the bottom to do it in 12 hours. We descended to the Three Tarns before turning east and joining The Band. We walked very quickly down the good path and we got to the bottom at about 12 hours exactly!

The alarm clock went off way too soon on Sunday morning, but we had some unfinished business to attend to, so out of bed we had to get! Unfortunately 3 of the 10 were unable to continue onto day 2 of the challenge.

After meeting in Ambleside at 7am we got our lift to the Kirkstone Pass, a great place to start the second day as its 350m above sea level. However, despite having a head start the first slope up Red Screes was by no means an easy one. We set off and the sun was already breaking through the patchwork of clouds, it was looking like a good day. We actually made amazing progress up this steep slope and we were on the summit after just 35 minutes.

We took a few minutes to have a breather on the summit, but then we made our way across the grassy slopes to Dove Crag. Hart Crag and Fairfield followed soon after. With just over 2 hours gone we were now on the toughest section of the day. We descended down the steep western side of Fairfield before climbing the very steep slope on the side of Seat Sandal. From this summit we had to descend straight away. Back in the col we chose to take the steep runners path up to the summit of Dollywagon Pike, this was hard work, but once again the group climbed well.

We were now onto the easier section of the walk and the summits would start to come much quicker. After Dollywagon Pike we took in Nethermost Pike, Helvellyn, White Side and Raise. We had just 3 summits left and we seemed to be walking better than ever. It had been windier across these last few summits, but the sun was starting to come out again. We cracked on to the Dodds, and we had soon taken in Stybarrow Dodd, Great Dodd and our final summit, Watson's Dodd. We had done it, all we had to do was descend down to the roadside.

We descended down the grassy slope towards Castle Rock, and after passing the rock face we had made it to the roadside. John met us at the bottom and produced some champagne to celebrate our success. We had managed to complete the second day in just 8 hours 20 minutes, brining our total time to 20 hours and 20 minutes! Well done Chaps!!

A great day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge in great weather!

We set off from Glenridding a little after 10am and climbed by Lantys Tarn, turning off the main track and following the ridgeline towards the summit of Birkhouse Moor. After several stops to admire the glorious views we were on the summit of Birkhouse Moor admiring the new views to the west, over Red Tarn to Striding Edge and Helvellyn.

We now made good time following the ridge to High Spying How, stopping for lunch on the rocks before attempting Striding Edge.

We crossed Striding Edge without much trouble and climbed the steep slopes to the summit of Helvellyn, the views from the summit today were wonderful, the best views I have had from Helvellyn in a few months!

After a short stop on the summit and the obligatory photos at the cairn we pressed on, descending over Swirral Edge and down onto the path down by Red Tarn and then down the Greenside Mine track back to Glenridding.

Another successful day climbing Helvellyn & Striding Edge

We left Glenridding under blue skies with the sunshine breaking through the clouds. We climbed out of Glenridding via Lanty's Tarn and  then followed the wall up towards Birkhouse Moor. With most of our height gain out of the way we enjoyed the flatter ground over towards Striding Edge. Along the way the cloud kept on dropping and then clearing, and we even had to get the waterproofs on for a brief hail storm.

We had great fun along the edge, tackling all of the hardest sections, and by the time we were ready to climb up to the summit plateau the sun was out and all the cloud had cleared.

We enjoyed lunch in the shelter before summiting Helvellyn. Again we could hear a few thunderstorms in the distance, but we were confident they were not coming our way. We descended down Swirral Edge and met the path that leads back to Glenridding via Greenside Mine.

Another glorious day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge.

We set off from Glenridding just after 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn, following the ridge west to meet the Mires Beck path and followed this onto the summit of Birkhouse Moor.

The weather was glorious and we had some great views over Ullswater, and over to the Pennines in the distance.From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge west past 'Hole in the Wall' and climbed to High Spying How and onto Striding Edge.The conditions were perfect today, there was next to no wind and we easily crossed Striding Edge before climbing to the summit of Helvellyn.

We stopped by the summit of Helvellyn for a lunch stop before descending over Swirral Edge and down by Red Tarn onto the Greenside Mine path back to Glenridding.

A very hot on the classic Helvellyn & Striding Edge.

We left a very humid Glenridding heading for Birkhouse Moor. We climbed the grassy slope  well and made great progress. As we reached the flatter ground we branched off and summited Birkhouse Moor. With the bulk of the climbing under our belts we enjoyed the gentler ground over towards Striding Edge. With an excited group we jumped straight on the edge and had great fun tackling all of the hardest sections. We climbed the exit ramp and reached the busy summit of Helvellyn. We enjoyed our lunch taking in the great views. After lunch we descended down Swirral Edge and then climbed up to the conical summit of Catstycam. After enjoying these views we descended its eastern nose down to the main track that leads into Glenriding via Greenside Mine.

A Mixed day climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge.

The weather forecast was for scattered showers and that was what we got. From Glenridding we went via Mires Beck as it was a bit windier, and all the way up to the start of Striding Edge we had on and off showers. The wind was still gusting every now and then, so as we made our way across the edge carefully we just chose particular bits to do. Everyone did well on the edge in the conditions we had, and by about half 1 we were on the summit. During our lunch it all cleared to provide great views and the sun even came out for us.

We descended Swirral Edge and made our way back to Glenridding via Greenside Mine in the lovely afternoon heat!

A super wet day climbing Helvellyn & Striding Edge.

Rain was the main feature of the day today, oh and wind! We left Glenridding and within minutes we were already pretty well saturated! We climbed by Mires Beck up towards Striding Edge where we saw the wind really ripping across. We were confident and did make our way across Striding Edge, but missed out some of the more exposed sections. Soon enough we were on the summit of Helvellyn. We stopped in the shelter for lunch, and it was a welcomed escape from the wind.

After our break we descended Swirral Edge and made our way back into Glenridding via Greenside Mine.

Another great day on Helvellyn and Striding Edge today.

We set off from Glenridding just after 10am and climbed by Lanty's Tarn, turning off the main path to follow the wall along the ridge towards Birkhouse Moor, the weather today was great, the wind of the last few days had eased and there looked little chance of rain as we climbed to meet the Mires Beck path up onto Birkhouse Moor.

From Birkhouse Moor we followed the ridge west, past the 'Hole in the Wall' and climbed up towards High Spying How and Striding Edge, taking a short break at High Spying How before climbing onto Striding Edge.

We had little problem crossing Striding Edge today and were soon climbing up the final slog towards the summit of Helvellyn, the wind on the summit plateau was a bit stronger than lower down, we stopped for our sandwiches by the Gough Memorial, just out of the wind and with a wonderful view over Red Tarn and Ullwsater.

As we ate lunch we caught a few drops of rain, just the edge of what looked like quite a heavy shower to our north.

After lunch we crossed to the summit cairn for the usual photo stop before descending onto the Swirral Edge path and out to Catstycam before dropping down onto the Greenside Mine track down to the mines and back to Glenridding.

A glorious day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge.

What a difference a day makes, yesterdays wind and rain was replaced with bright sunshine today as we set off from Glenridding and climbed by Lanty's Tarn towards Birkhouse Moor.

The views over Ullswater were great, the lake was very still today with only one boat out sailing.

We climbed the ridge up onto the summit of Birkhouse Moor and followed the wall to the 'Hole In The Wall' before following the ridgeline up onto High Spying How and Striding Edge. We had a great time crossing Striding Edge, the winds were very light and the rock was dry and we climbed the steep headwall to the summit plateau of Helvellyn in good time for lunch in the summit shelter.

After a good break we crossed the summit to descend the Swirral Edge path, scrambling down to the path below and descending by Red Tarn and down the Greenside Mine track back to Glenridding.

A good day today climbing Helvellyn by Striding Edge, despite some damp weather.

We set off from Glenridding at 10am, with the weather forecast to deteriorate during the day we headed up the Mires Beck path to get high a little quicker than usual, this worked well and we were up over Birkhouse Moor and onto Striding Edge within 2 hours. So far the weather wasn't too bad, a little light rain but not nearly as bad as we had expected.

Once on Striding Edge we were in the cloud, but we made good progress crossing the ridge and by 1pm we were sat in the summit shelter eating our sandwiches.

After lunch the rain started to get a little more persistent, we dropped down onto the Swirral Edge ridge and down the path by Red Tarn, dropping out of the cloud and taking the Greenside Mine path back to Glenridding.

As we reached the village the rain got a little heavier again, we were back at the cars just in time!

A great day on the Helvellyn Ridge Walk today.

We set off from Dunmail Raise early, climbing up in thick cloud towards Grisedale Tarn until just before we reached the tarn when we emerged above the cloud.

We had some great views towards the Scafells, Bowfell, The Crinkles and the Coniston Fells as we climbed to the summit of Dollywaggon Pike.

At the summit of Dollywaggon Pike we saw a Brocken Spectre below us.

We followed the ridge north crossing Nethermost Pike and climbing to the summit of Helvellyn. From the summit of Helvellyn we saw several Brocken Spectres in the cloud below us.

As we followed the ridge north we caught a short snow shower on Whiteside, this didn't last long and the weather had cleared up again by the time we were on Raise.

We crossed Sticks Pass and climbed to the summit of Stybarrow Dodd, we were in the cloud for a short time on the summit, but were soon out of it again as we dropped down to Watson's Dodd and then climbed again up onto the summit of Great Dodd.

The final summit of the day, Clough Head was climbed with little difficulty and we were soon off on the final descent, dropping down by White Pike and then onto the Old Coach Road, dropping down onto the lane back to Threlkeld.

A perfect day today climbing Helvellyn from Wythburn.

We set off from Wythburn at 10am and climbed the steep path through the trees to emerge in the sun above the trees, there were a few icy patches on the path this morning, but nothing that couldn't be avoided as we climbed up onto Birk Side following the zig-zags and up onto the main summit ridge.

The views were spectacular and we were soon on the summit of Helvellyn.

After a short stop on the summit we headed off again, it was too early for a lunch stop so we crossed the ridge south to the summit of Nethermost Pike and then over High Crag to Dollywaggon Pike.

We stopped for lunch on the summit of Dollywaggon Pike before descending west down onto Willie Wife Moor and over Reggle Knott, with it's wonderful views over Thirlmere, before descending to Dunmail Raise and taking the forest track back to Wythburn.