Castles, mills and cloud inversions

Our final visits of the year to the Lakes were in October and November, for a week each time. The weather in October was perfect and we had what we considered to be one of our most interesting weeks. We stayed on the west coast, just outside Whitehaven from where we climbed Dent and Flat Fell on a sublimely warm and sunny day, walking up through tangy smelling spruce woods to Dent’s pretty summit, before dropping down into two tiny hidden valleys, then climbing up on to Flat Fell with its coastal views. We climbed Ponsonby Fell up through the lovely Blengdale Forest, seeing only two people all day and marvelled at the views of the Screes from such a different viewpoint. We re-visited St Bees in time for a beautiful sunset and wandered round Eamont and Whitehaven’s harbour.

On a day of not climbing, we drove to Nether Wasdale and walked to the foot of Wast Water through Low Wood and were rewarded with the most spectacular view of the Screes and the head of Wasdale, and again, had it all to ourselves. Walking back through beautiful pastoral landscape was made more interesting by the discovery of tiny, ancient bridges and delightful old cottages. Our next stop was the lovely Boot Inn in Eskdale, catching the tail end of Storm Babet, which meant our climb up to Boat Howe was very windy indeed and sent us staggering on the exposed summit! A quick look round Burnmoor Lodge by the tarn and exploring three stone circles and several old shepherd huts made the return journey very interesting. We also spent a couple of hours at the wonderful Eskdale Mill in Boot; a tiny corn mill dating from the 16th century and about as authentic as it’s possible to find. Having it to ourselves made it more special and it was fascinating.

We then moved on to Ravenglass, to a hotel right on the waterfront with the most beautiful sunsets over the estuary from our bedroom window. We spent the morning at Muncaster Castle, watching the birds of prey and having a very entertaining guided tour. The views back down towards Wasdale from the castle’s high vantage point were gorgeous.

Our final morning saw us up and out early to climb Stainton Fell and The Knott lying across the valley, almost opposite Muncaster Castle. The weather had deteriorated and it was very windy and very cold, with more than a hint of rain to come. As we climbed higher, the wind hit us like a freight train and cold, although light, rain was flung in our faces like needles. We decided not to climb Stainton Fell as it was a long way on, the ground was saturated and the paths were either indistinct or non existent. Being close to the coast, we had the views, but the walk was not the most enjoyable as the wind made even talking difficult. We reached the summit after a fairly circuitous route involving some clambering over walls and through streams, but the wind was so strong we began to get really cold as we tried to force down an energy bar. It dropped as we dropped, but we can’t say that was one of the most enjoyable walks we’ve done!

In November, we treated ourselves to our second stay in a beautiful ‘penthouse’ flat in Ambleside. We loved it so much last year, that we booked it again and loved the warmth, comfort and central location. This was our chance to savour those areas in the ‘middle’ of the Lake District which we love and that we’d missed during the year, staying out on the edges as we continue to climb the Outlying Fells. We climbed eight fells in two walks, happy to make them longer, and then relax a little in between. The first walk was part of the Bannisdale Horseshoe and took in Lamb Pasture, The Forest, White Howe and Long Crag, The weather was fine; sunny but frosty and very cold as we started, and we knew rain was forecast for mid morning, so we were ready in full waterproofs. The walk was long but straightforward, although the climb up to The Forest was much steeper than anticipated. The promised rain thankfully began much later than predicted, and we were well on our way back, although it still entailed a solid two hours of walking in heavy rain. Thankfully in our wet weather gear, we stayed warm and dry.

We then spent a day relaxing as Storm Debi hit and the rain was utterly torrential and, having been out briefly first thing, we enjoyed being in the flat. The next day we drove to Keswick for a look round and lunch, then walked in light rain up to Castlehead where the most staggering view of Derwentwater was laid out in front of us, swathed in mist, with weak sun breaking through the cloud every so often. We hadn’t been up there before and will definitely return when the weather is better. The following day saw us walking round Rydal Water, up to Rydal Caves and on to Loughrigg Terrace with our cousins before lunch at The Swan Grasmere, which was lovely and good to see them.

A day in and around Ambleside preceded our final walk, saved for the last day of the week when sun and clear skies were forecast. We parked in Staveley and set off up to Nameless Potter Fell 1, Brunt Knott, Nameless Potter Fell 2 and Ulgraves. Accompanying us first thing was the most spectacular and perfect cloud inversion; something we’ve waited about 16 years to see and it was utterly stunning and totally spellbinding. The cloud and mist seemed to follow us from peak to peak, but we were always just ahead of it, in the sun and it only disippated around lunchtime. The walking was easy, the views were gorgeous and we really enjoyed this set of fells, especially the views of the Howgills from Ulgraves. A walk back past Gurnal Dubs and Potter Tarn and through an old mill, now a tiny farm built in 1542 was lovely, as was a chat with the lady clearing the farm’s yard of leaves.

All in all, two lovely weeks despite (or in some cases because of) the weather, leaving us with 34 fells to go to complete the Outlying Fells challenge!