North in November

We have just returned from a wonderful ten days in the Lakes and it was a real tonic after heavy colds for both of us. An afternoon in Lancaster to break the the journey up saw us walking into the city beside the River Lune and exploring the castle for the first time, which was really interesting.

Basing ourselves in a sumptuously appointed flat in Ambleside, we took the week at an easier pace than in times past. We saw this trip as a chance to savour those areas we really love and hadn't visited for a while as our previous few visits had either been to the far eastern or far western fringes of the Lakes. We explored Ambleside in depth, noting small changes here and there, and shopping in the array of artisan and outdoor shops. We took walks from our door to places we hadn't seen or been to before. A late afternoon walk to Low and then High Sweden Bridges capped off the end of Scandale for us, having previously passed High Sweden Bridge on our way down the length of Scandale in 2016, when we only really took a brief look at the end of a long day climbing Red Screes, Middle Dodd and Little Hart Crag. This time, the mists descended and it was wonderfully atmospheric and quiet, although it began to rain heavily just as we passed the Golden Rule. We also climbed up towards Todd Crag, but carried on along a rough path towards Loughrigg, mushroom spotting along the way, before descending via the lower flanks of Todd Crag, again in drizzly rain and fading light. We walked through Rothay Park, marvelling at the force of the little River Rothay after recent rains and the flooding on the Under Loughrigg Road by Miller Bridge. We walked up to Stock Ghyll Force, having only walked to the half way point before and never to the top of the ravine where the waterfall was in full, roaring spate. We also visited Grasmere where we had lunch at Freda & Rays, had a wander round Windermere and a very busy Keswick busy gearing up for Christmas, with decorations in shop windows and the main lights being strung across the Moot Hall.

Continuing climbing the Outlying fells, we visited Whitbarrow Scar from Witherslack, dodging the rain showers on the delightful summit which we had to ourselves, but getting caught on the descent. We parked and re-climbed Scout Scar, simply because we were nearby and we'd love it when first visited in 2017. The rain started falling heavily as we began climbing, and a squall of sleety rain and strong, freezing wind hit us on the summit, so, after sheltering in the Mushroom for ten minutes, we went straight back to the car again to thaw out and dry off!

We ascended Newton Fell South from the village of Lindale and had atmospheric views over Morecambe Bay from the surprisingly chilly summit, we re-climbed Orrest Head as it had been eight years since we'd been there and it was wonderful to see 'where it all began' for Alfred Wainwright again. We loved that the paths are now properly wheelchair friendly so everyone can enjoy the scenery. We extended the walk by heading north over rolling fields and were rewarded with lovely pastoral views towards Lake Windermere, seen from a slightly different and new angle. We parked in High Sawrey and re-climbed Claife Heights on a beautiful autumn day; sunny, warm, a hint of a cool breeze and lovely colours in the woods. The simple walk gently ascended through tiny pine trees and heather and coppery bracken, looking very Scottish, with lovely Windermere views. The summit and surrounding area had been deforested since our last visit, so we found the trig point easily this time; something that had eluded us in 2015 when we failed to find it, or even see it, amongst the pine trees.

We journeyed up to the far north to the quiet village of Blindcrake basking in the sun of a spell of incredibly warm and dry weather to climb Clint's Crags; another that had eluded us a number of years ago, when we thought better of crossing the open fellside with a dog, a herd of cows and one very large bull for company! This time, the walk was bovine free, easy and enjoyable and the panorama magnificent over Bassenthwaite Lake, stretching from Grasmoor to Binsey. We went further north still, to the most northerly outlying fell in fact, Faulds Brow. The journey took us through villages and areas we had never visited before; High Ireby, Whelpo, Bothel, Caldbeck and across the stunning Uldale and Caldbeck Commons. Just incredible scenery and so totally different from the rest of Lakeland. The walk was simple and straightforward, undertaken in Tshirts and utter peace and solitude. The fell was small and simply attained, with beautiful views of the back of Carrock Fell and High Pike with Skiddaw in the distance. A walk round Caldbeck and a delicious lunch of roast beef at the Oddfellows Arms was the perfect end to the walk.

It was a wrench to leave this time; it had been so relaxing and full of spectacular scenery, as always, but also time spent exploring interesting, new places in lovely mild November weather. As I write this, it is cold, wet and raining, so I’m enjoying the warm memories.

CLAIFE HEIGHts OVERLOOKING WINDErmerE

high sweden bridge

bassenthwaite lake from clints crags

whitbarrow’s summit

Peak Perfection

Late September found us thankfully out of the extreme heat of August, into the beautifully warm weather of early autumn. Basing ourselves in Edale, plans had been made to climb Kinder Scout (first time for Bro, second time for me), but a gorgeous golden evening had given way to a murky early morning; the mist never really leaving the tops of the high hills all day. Instead, a quick dash up Mam Tor for Bro and a decision not to carry on along the ridge saw us in the pretty village of Hathersage instead, exploring the back streets, ambling up to the church and Little John's Grave, having lunch at Outside before making our way up and onto the sublime Stannage Edge and then Higger Tor. The mists of the Edale valley had not reached this far, so the views were soft and beautiful, the landscape gentle and rolling, painted in shades of palest green and soft lilac. The air was warm without the heat, the breeze cool, the walking simple and enjoyable.

We found Hordron Edge which we had to ourselves, exploring a lovely stone circle and eating wild bilberries while gazing out over the heather clad hills towards Ladybower Reservoir. We ventured over to Robin Hood's Stride near Elton, climbing the boulder outcrop for lovely views, explored the hermit's cave at Cratcliffe Tor and found a tiny stone circle in a nearby field. We explored Bakewell, trying the exquisite Bakewell Pudding, then went on to climb Bamford Edge; a humid climb through shoulder high bracken before revelling in cool air and wonderful views from the summit.

The final visit of our short stay was to the wonderful Chatsworth House on a day their Country Fair was taking place, meaning hundreds of visitors in the park, but the house and grounds virtually empty. We entered the house through the Duke's private garden; a real privilege as it rarely opens to the public. The opulence of the house was beautifully balanced by the wonderful grounds, especially The Rock Garden. Before the journey home, we stopped at their lovely farm shop and enjoyed a simple lunch in the cafe.

We love the Peak District, having lived about half an hour away more years ago than I care to remember, and this short visit made us fall in love with it all over again. A return trip is already being planned...

stannage edge views

ladybower reservoir from bamford edge

gorgeous little stone circle

chatsworth house

evening in edale

The Shap Fells

The hottest August on record saw us in the far east of the Lake District, walking the Shap Fells as part of our quest to complete Wainwright's outlying fells.

The hills here do not comprise individual, distinctive peaks but are rather a rolling massif of grassland and distinctive pink granite. The landscape around the pretty, linear village of Shap is beautiful; pastoral, gentle and far reaching with panoramas on a scale we have not often seen in the Lakes.

The remote valley of Wet Sleddale was a delight. It felt truly unspoiled, filled with birdsong, trees and small hillocks covered in purple flowering heather. The reservoir, although obviously a man made shape when viewed from above, had wading birds around the shoreline, was Scots Pine lined and very pleasant to walk beside on a warm early morning. The fells above Wet Sleddale were rolling rather than steep, grassy rather than rocky and completely devoid of people, even in the middle of August. Vast grasslands, small tarns and stunning views made this a wonderfully peaceful place to walk, then sit and admire the panoramas.

The limestone outcrop of Knipescar Common has become a firm favourite. A beautiful plateau with the most incredible panorama; stretching from the village of Shap, to all the high fells around Haweswater, to the northern fells and right round to the Pennines. An absolutely extraordinary view from a very modest little fell. Time was spent hunting for a stone circle or ancient enclosure in the bracken, finding stones but unable to view the whole, then enjoying something to eat in what has to be one of the most beautiful lunch spots.

High on the Shap Fells, we ventured over towards Crookdale early one morning, climbing over surprisingly marshy ground as the heat began to build. Toiling up the first grass covered bulk, we stopped often to catch our breath and the breeze, and to take on water. The summit was shimmering in a haze of heat, and time was spent searching for the three small stones making up the summit. Discussions were had as to whether to venture on to another, higher peak given the heat, but on we ploughed. The breeze thankfully cooled us as we climbed higher; the views opening out over Crookdale, the Long Sleddale fells and the hazy Pennines on the horizon. The summit was unclear; we ventured on further, wasting precious energy, then had to re-trace our steps and climb a wall in order to find a concrete summit ring buried in the grass, marking the true summit. The descent was swift, but in the bottom of the small valley out of the breeze, the heat had reached fearsome proportions and, after labouring up the other side of the valley, we felt ourselves overheating and dripping with perspiration. A quick breather, taking long, deep gulps of water and dousing ourselves liberally from a small marshy pool, revived us enough at the end of the climb for the walk back to the car to a welcome change of clothes and refreshment.

A beautiful area; one that really made an impression on us and one we will return to, of that I have no doubt.

beautiful wet sleddale

SCOTS PINES ALONG THE SHORE

views from the fells above wet sleddale

photos don’t do the panorama from knipescar common justice

crookdale

On peace and tranquility

I’ve just read a fascinating book, Windswept by Annabel Abbs, in which the author follows routes taken by several well known women, when it really wasn’t common, usual or even safe for women to walk recreationally, never mind alone. They all had different reasons for walking, but the common thread seems to have been a search for either freedom or peace. This got me thinking about my walking and what I’m searching for.

Aside from the more obvious reasons such as health and fitness, exploration in a more intimate way, experiencing the seasons and the weather and all the accompanying sights, smells and sounds, it’s just something I really love doing and have done for decades. More esoterically, I find I’m seeking out peace and solitude as I get older and this thought occurred to me when a recent walk in beautiful bluebell woods filled with birdsong was marred by the whining, continuous shriek of a chainsaw tearing through the silence. I know people have valuable work that must be done, but we are assailed by so much noise every day and most of it I’m not sure we realise is there, so attuned have we become. An hour or two of peace is calming, restorative and grounding. An hour or two of walking in peace clears my head, stills my mind, restores the equilibrium. It’s become an important part of my day when I switch off the phone for an hour and wind down. A quick evening walk in the summer months after work gives me a wonderful sense of freedom after being cooped up inside, as well as siphoning off the stresses and strains of the day. Many an hour stuck in traffic has been borne with the anticipation of a walk in the woods or by the river.

As a youngster, I was very shy and introverted. As a teenager, I was never heavily into partying or drinking and preferred to be outdoors with Bro, friends, dogs or horses for company. During our decades of travelling the world, Bro and I journeyed to slightly off the beaten track, less populated places such as the Galapagos, Namibia, Tanzania, Borneo and Tibet which, twenty or so years ago, weren’t as popular as they have now become. I think our shyness and slight lack of confidence perhaps led us to avoiding places with lots of people, and whether that was a conscious or subconscious choice, I’m not sure, but it certainly had a bearing on where we went, and still does to an extent. We like wild, empty places with big views and dramatic skies, plenty of wildlife and beautiful scenery.

In latter years on the fells and mountains of the Lake District, we loved loved the wide, open fells in less frequented areas, revelling in the views, the peace and the solitude. We also started setting off on our walks earlier and earlier, enjoying the cool, quiet of the dawn and delighting in the most beautiful sunrises from the summits. This usually was a conscious decision, but for practical and logistical reasons, such as finding a parking spot in the height of summer or not wanting to be caught in traffic, rather than a need to get away from everyone; we certainly enjoyed many, many conversations on the hill and in the pub afterwards with interesting, wonderfully friendly people, lots of whom became friends on social media.

All this, I suppose, crystallises my feelings that now peace, quiet and contentment and a certain amount of freedom (I have constraints and responsibilities like everyone else) are hugely important to me and this comes with a simpler life, a slower pace, a greater appreciation of the little things and simple pleasures. Being outdoors, surrounded by green, by birdsong, in fresh, clean air perhaps with a view, with company or alone; I feel I’ve become much more attuned to nature and the natural world around me and that brings me great inner peace.

Enjoying Ennerdale

Our first visit to the Lakes of the year was towards the end of March. We decided to re-climb Steeple, but this time from the Ennerdale Valley as we’d really only looked down on it and Ennerdale Water from the surrounding fells and had never walked in the valley. On the way to Cleater Moor, we stopped at Tebay Services having watched the television programmes, and were very impressed with the range and quality of everything on offer and, of course, the lovely setting. We had a cup of coffee and then made another stop at Rheged to stock up on some of their amazing salads and pastries.

We booked to stay a couple of nights at a country house hotel in Cleater Moor which made it very handy for the drive the next day to the head of the lake, which we did fairly early. Parking at Bowness Knott, the walk by the lake’s northern shore was lovely, although it started to rain quite hard. Togged up in full wet weather gear, we entered Ennerdale Forest, a cool, shady and quiet place made up of lovely Scots pines and home to a herd of wary looking black cattle. Luckily the rain stopped as we came out of the forest and it actually began to warm up a little. We followed the path to a bridge crossing Low Beck, then took a steep path up through the forest next to a substantial waterfall crashing down a very deep gully for some way, carrying on climbing steeply for perhaps half an hour until we came out of the tree line and into the sun and heather. After a quick breather and drink, we followed the path up towards Long Crag, seeing Steeple looming ahead.

The views of Ennerdale Water were gorgeous, as they were down Windgap Cove and across to Pillar, but as we climbed higher, the wind became much stronger and colder and the mist descended. It did clear momentarily on the summit, so we had views across to Haycock and Caw and the down the whole of the Ennerdale Valley. We didn’t linger very long on the top as the wind was really very cold, but as we began the long descent, the weather gradually improved and back down in the valley it was a lovely warm and sunny late afternoon.

The following day we headed back to Grasmere where we visited Dove Cottage and the Wordsworth Museum which we’d never been to before and found really very interesting. We were incredibly lucky to see the only known written version of ‘Daffodils’ which was on loan from the British Library until the end of May. The next day we re-climbed Helm Crag which was the first fell we climbed 14 years ago and it was certainly the right thing to do that day as all the surrounding higher hills were shrouded in mist while we had fantastic views. We walked out and back to Gibson Knott to get views back to Helm Crag and, on the descent, tried to shelter from an unexpected hail shower before stopping for a delicious lunch at Lancrigg, just as the heavens really opened! The lovely staff put everyone’s wet gear in their drying room which was so kind of them as we dried out in front of the fire. We couldn’t believe how much about the summit we’d forgotten, apart from the Howitzer, and we certainly found it much easier climbing this time than before!

We then moved on to Windermere for a some relaxing time for a change, and visited Beatrix Potter’s Hill Top at Near Sawrey, also somewhere we’d never been, although we had been to the village before. It was very interesting and you could see where she had used places like her staircase in the books. We stopped at Esthwaite Water on the way back and had a little walk along the shore which was lovely and peaceful, making a mental note to perhaps return and walk from there along the Beatrix Potter trail to Near Sawrey. We climbed our 50th Outlying Fell, Raven’s Barrow, from the Gummer’s How car park, a new area for us and lovely in a gentle, undulating way, with views over to Cartmel. The weather wasn’t at its best, but the hotel was very comfortable with a beautiful lounge and wonderful views of Windermere; perfect with a glass of wine in the evening. We wandered around the town, down to the lake and I walked round to Cockshot Point one afternoon as my brother had aggravated his sciatica and was relaxing at the hotel.

All in all, it was an interesting week and we satisfyingly achieved everything we’d set out to do. It was so good to be back and we really enjoyed it.

Looking forward, but also glancing back

So, a new year has begun and I start it off with a dose of Covid… I managed to avoid it for the last two years, then I go back to work after Christmas and bam…!

To be fair, I haven’t really been that ill; just a cold and a feeling of heavy tiredness, but it’s the isolation that really gets me. A short turn around the garden and sitting in one room with the window open is all the fresh air I’m getting, but I’m lucky and grateful not to be worse as so many have been and still are.

Now that watching television has momentarily lost its appeal (although there are some good films on Netflix I’ve enjoyed), and I don’t feel like reading any more at the moment, my thoughts have turned to plans for the year ahead, but also to thoughts of last year and the completion of our Wainwright journey after 9 years. I thought I might add one or two reflections on our time spent completing the wonderful challenge, for anyone contemplating it for themselves.

oOo

I would say start with all the lower fells first. I know there’s a tendency to want to leap up the biggest, hardest and highest, but if you’re in it for the long haul and you haven’t really done much climbing before, it will pay to start off more slowly. We made all our mistakes on the relative safety of lower, grassy fells with shorter distances to walk if we felt tired, if the weather turned cold or wet, if the light started to fade, knowing where we were if we went wrong (we didn’t) and no real harm done if we slipped.

You build up a sure footedness over time, a knack of moving on rock and grass, of getting used to carrying a weighty pack, of honing your navigation skills along with developing fitness and greater muscle strength. Once you’ve built all that, muscle memory kicks in and, as long as you continue exercising in between visits, you will be able to pick up where you left off, even if it’s some months later (and I’m aiming this at people who like us, have to travel to the hills).

I would say though, you can’t really train for the mountains unless you’re in the mountains; it doesn’t matter how many times you go up and down a grassy bank or run on a treadmill, it’s just not the same as dealing with uneven ground and the elements whilst climbing, watching your feet, balancing your pack or handling a dog as we did for years in the early days. Being hill fit I think, is in a category of its own.

You will know get to know your limitations and your tolerances and this becomes a very useful tool indeed. We know how long we can put up with torrential rain, high wind, boiling sun or freezing sleet. We know how much water to take and how much each of us needs to drink to avoid dehydration. We know when we’ve had enough, we know when another peak is one too many, or that yes, we could climb another and still have energy for the return trip. We know we can ignore being super hot and sweaty or having freezing thighs and still be able to carry on. Everyone’s different, but it will mean you can plan your hill days accordingly over time.

Don’t give up. I know that sounds a bit trite, but we pondered on what made us keep going when we’d climbed say, 70 or 125, when it’s hard to see an end and it feels like there’s so much more to do. The honest answer is we can’t remember, but I suspect it’s that we loved it and just wanted to complete it, but we also didn’t really focus on the end point, just that week’s walking. Of course there were the odd times we really didn’t feel like doing it, but persevere because it’s an immense and wonderful feeling of achievement when you finish.

It was surprisingly easy to change our mindsets from ‘what, up there?’ or ‘how far?’, to positive, can-do attitudes and when that happened, it really made a huge difference to, well, all of it. I don’t really remember trying to being more positive, it just happened organically the more we did and the more we started enjoying it. It’s a good feeling.

In fact, all of it’s a good feeling when everything comes together and all you have to think about during the day is the landscape around you, the fresh air and the skylarks.

oOo

So after this, what’s next for us? We fully understand now why people immediately start a second round of Wainwright’s; there’s a powerful pull there that’s hard to ignore and you’re unwilling to let go of. However, we are going back to the Lakes in March, to Ennerdale this time for a walk round the lake and up Steeple from that side. We’re also going to climb Helm Crag and Latrigg again as these were a couple of the very first ones we did and it was so long ago (and we were rubbish back then) that we’d like to revisit them. We aren’t going to stay in the Lakes for the whole time either; we’re going to veer off into the Yorkshire Dales and climb round High Cup Nick, perhaps one or two (but probably three knowing us) of the Yorkshire Peaks and maybe a Howgill or two.

oOo

Whatever you plans are for this year, I hope you’re healthy and happy doing it.