Rosthwaite Fell and Glaramara from Rosthwaite

It’s always nice to start a walk straight from the campsite and Chapel House Farm has the added benefit that I can have breakfast looking up at my first hill of the day, Rosthwaite Fell. Wainwright dedicates his book on the Southern Fells, the book I’m currently walking through to “The Sheep of Lakeland, the hardiest of all fellwalkers”. In what has been a sustained spell of dry weather these hardy Herdwicks are suffering a little. Richard, the farmer and campsite owner tells me the dry weather has not been good for his flock of a thousand Herdwicks who are suffering from the lack of water and parasitic infestations growing in their wool. For his livelihood and the sheep’s well-being I hope Lakeland has some rain soon, maybe just not today.

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Three Wainwrights from Coniston Village

Before starting my book by book journey through Wainwright’s iconic 214 I had climbed many of them before, one hundred and one of them to be precise. Coniston Old Man was one of those and my walking journal tells me I climbed it on Friday 14th August 1987 with a couple of other guys and the weather was clear. To be honest I don’t remember much about that walk but the 80’s and early 90’s were years when long social evenings in the pub were as much a part of any visit to the Lakes as the walking itself so that may account for my somewhat hazy memory.

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A walk up Holme Fell

The day is turning into a very fine one for walking as I park in the very same spot I occupied two months ago. The sky is cloudless and eggshell blue, the sun is beaming but it’s April and the temperature is still pleasant and there is not so much as a breath of wind to rustle the leafs. Busyness has been ruling out any visits north but the diary and the weather have both become clear and my season opener is to be a not too taxing leg stretch up Holme Fell.

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A walk around Tarn Hows taking in Black Fell

The unpredictable weather of January and trying to sync available time with rare windows of opportunity proved fruitless so it was the beginning of February before I headed up the M6. Knowing that commitments would be ruling out the rest of the month into March I was hoping, despite the mixed forecast, for a couple of cloud free days to keep some forward momentum on Book Four.

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Lingmoor Fell from Great Langdale

My walk up Lingmoor Fell starts conveniently at the National Trust campsite at the head of Great Langdale. I don’t even have to move the van and take full advantage by having a lazy breakfast. This may be my first walk of book four but it certainly won’t be my last from this location as Great Langdale is the launch pad for some of the big ones and a place I will get to know well over the coming months.

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Wainwrights Coast to Coast Walk

Coast to Coast Walk

My journey along Wainwrights Coast to Coast Walk from St Bees Head to Robin Hoods Bay. Walking from the Irish Sea to the North Sea through three National Parks this walk has everything, Mountains, Dales, Moorland and Ocean and is soon to become a National Trail. Click on the walk to read the post or use the interactive map to see the route. 

Coast to Coast Walk - An Introduction
Introduction. I’m sitting in the bedroom at our bed and breakfast in St Bees the night before I set off ...
Coast to Coast Walk - St Bees to Ennerdale Bridge
Day 1 St Bees to Ennerdale Bridge 14 Miles. It's a rainy start to our adventure. Gwen and I picked ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Ennerdale Bridge to Rosthwaite
Day 2 Ennerdale Bridge To Rosthwaite 14 1/2 Miles. Day two dawns dry but misty. We set off from our ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Rosthwaite to Grasmere
Day 3 Rosthwaite to Grasmere 9 1/4 Miles. Today was the day I got a twenty six year old monkey ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Grasmere to Patterdale
Day 4 Grasmere to Patterdale 8 1/2 Miles Today turned into a very eventful day for what was meant to ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Patterdale to Shap
Day 5 Patterdale to Shap 17-18 Miles Overnight, Gwen and I had talked and we decided that if the wind ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Shap to Kirkby Stephen
Day 6 Shap to Kirkby Stephen 20 miles Had a leisurely breakfast catching up with Bob and Alan who were ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Kirkby Stephen to Keld
Day 7 Kirkby Stephen to Keld 12 miles We don’t often consider it, but sleep is a powerful healer. Despite ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Keld to Reeth
Day 8 Keld to Reeth 12 Miles Keld sits right in the heart of the Yorkshire Dales. If you are ...
Richmond comes into view
Day 9 Reeth to Richmond 10 miles After a comfortable night in the Dales Bike Centre we enjoy a leisurely ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Richmond to Danby Wiske
Day 10 Richmond to Danby Wiske 14 miles When I first walked this section of the Coast to Coast 26 ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Danby Wiske to Osmotherley
Day 11 Danby Wiske to Osmotherley 10 miles We had breakfast with a couple who had stayed in the same ...
The path stretching out along the Cleveland Crest
Day 12 Osmotherley to Clay Bank Top 11 Miles Having spent two days crossing the Vale of York we are ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Clay Bank Top to Glaisedale
Day 13 Clay Bank Top to Glaisdale 18 Miles The end of the walk, which for a couple of weeks ...
Coast to Coast Walk - Glaisdale to Robin Hoods Bay
Day 14 Glaisdale to Robin Hoods Bay 19 Miles Day fourteen, the last day, starts with a wholesome farmhouse breakfast ...

 

 

An Outer Langdale Round

‘If I should bow my head let it be to a high mountain’ Maori Proverb

I’m back in Great Langdale just a couple of weeks after my previous visit when I was fortunate to walk the Langdale Pikes in glorious weather. The weather isn’t so good today but it’s dry and the tops are clear which is what matters. I’m heading for a group of hills that form an outer circle around the rather compact Pikes, Blea Rigg, Sergeant Man, High Raise and Thunacar Knott. And in visiting these, I’ll also bring to a conclusion my journey through Wainwright’s Book Three, The Central Fells.

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Book Two The Far Eastern Fells

All the hills of the Far Eastern Fells listed in height order with the sixteen walks that took me over them and interactive map showing hill location and route. Click on the hill or the walk to read the post. Scroll down to use the interactive map.

1. High Street 828m 2,717ft 10. The Knott 739m 2,425ft 19. Tarn Crag 664m 2,178ft 28. Arthur’s Pike 533m 1,749ft
2. High Raise 802m 2,631ft 11. Kentmere Pike 730m 2,395ft 20. Place Fell 657m 2,156ft 29. Bonscale Pike 524m 1,719ft
3. Rampsgill Head 792m 2,598ft 12. Froswick 720m 2,362ft 21. Selside Pike 655m 2,149ft 30. Sallows 516m 1,693ft
4. Thornthwaite Crag 784m 2,572ft 13. Branstree 713m 2,339ft 22. Grey Crag 638m 2,093ft 31. Beda Fell 509m 1,670ft
5. Kidsty Pike 780m 2,559ft 14. Yoke 706m 2,316ft 23. Hartsop Dodd 618m 2,028ft 32. Wansfell 488m 1,601ft
6. Harter Fell 778m 2,552ft 15. Gray Crag 699m 2,293ft 24. Shipman Knotts 587m 1,926ft 33. Sour Howes 483m 1,585ft
7. Caudale Moor 763m 2,503ft 16. Rest Dodd 696m 2,283ft 25. The Nab 576m 1,890ft 34. Steel Knotts 432m 1,417ft
8. Mardale Ill Bell 760m 2,493ft 17. Loadpot Hill 671m 2,201ft 26. Angletarn Pikes 567m 1,860ft 35. Hallin Fell 388m 1,273ft
9. Ill Bell 757m 2,484ft 18. Wether Hill 670 m 2,198ft 27. Brock Crags 561m 1,841ft 36. Troutbeck Tongue 364m 1,194ft
Selside Pike and Branstree

Selside Pike and Branstree

Endings and Beginnings are, as Mufasa might say all part of the great circle of ...
A High Street Round

A High Street Round

The low morning sun is glistening off the still waters of Haweswater and the bright ...
Grey Crag and Tarn Crag from Sadgill

Grey Crag and Tarn Crag from Sadgill

I arrive at the little hamlet of Sadgill at the far end of Longsleddale just ...
A Harter Fell Round from Sadgill

A Harter Fell Round from Sadgill

It’s the second day of my stay in the little hamlet of Sadgill and I ...
A walk up Wansfell and Wansfell Pike

A walk up Wansfell and Wansfell Pike

I knew that I had to get away before Christmas otherwise the festive season with ...
A freezing walk up Sour Howes and Sallows

A freezing walk up Sour Howes and Sallows

When I leave my warm sleeping bag and look at the thermometer it tells me ...
A short walk up Hallin Fell

A short walk up Hallin Fell

My wife and I have very different interests and hobbies. She is a creative, an ...
A walk up Gray Crag and Thornthwaite Crag

A walk up Gray Crag and Thornthwaite Crag

It’s a promising morning, the sun is shining and blue sky is all around. As ...
Brock Crags from Hartsop Village

Brock Crags from Hartsop Village

From the car park at Hartsop the lush green tree peppered slopes of Brock Crags, ...
Five Wainwrights from St Peter's Church Martindale

Five Wainwrights from St Peter’s Church Martindale

The morning sunlight is casting soft shadows over the quiet valley of Martindale as I ...
Stony Cove Pike and Hartsop Dodd from Brotherswater

Stony Cove Pike and Hartsop Dodd from Brotherswater

Putting my boots on in the car park of the Brotherswater Inn, my eyes are ...
A walk up Rest Dodd and The Nab from Brotherswater

A walk up Rest Dodd and The Nab from Brotherswater

It’s a dank grey day in Lakeland with a cloud filled leaden sky hovering worryingly ...
A walk up Place Fell from Patterdale

A walk up Place Fell from Patterdale

Place Fell is one of Lakeland’s iconic and best known mountains. The walk up it ...
Cloudbusting in Kentmere

Cloudbusting in Kentmere

It’s been a while. My summer has been spent elsewhere but the seasons wait for ...
A walk up Troutbeck Tongue

A walk up Troutbeck Tongue

Troutbeck Tongue is a small mound of a hill, separated from the higher hills surrounding ...
Beda Fell and Angletarn Pikes from Patterdale

Beda Fell and Angletarn Pikes from Patterdale

Winter has arrived in Lakeland. Which is a day early for the Meteorological calendar and ...

 

 

The Langdale Pikes

Just as autumn seemed to have arrived, summer sunshine and warmth has returned for one last hurrah and I’m fortunate to be in Great Langdale to enjoy it. The Langdale Pikes are an iconic group of hills whose relative accessibility, moderate height and interesting routes have made them emblematic of all that is attractive about the English Lake District. From the moment their shapely and unique outline is glimpsed across Windermere on the road to Ambleside you know you have entered into the heart of Lakeland with its mountains, lakes and rivers. It’s time to relax, breathe out, and for a while leave your workaday stresses behind and allow your heart to be stirred in anticipation of adventures that lie ahead. And today, in the sunshine, I’m walking the Langdale Pikes.

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A walk up Ullscarf from Thirlmere

My last visit to Ullscarf was thwarted when the clouds which had been hovering above it all day decided to lower onto the summit plateau just as I reached it. As I have a rule that I will be able to see the view from each top on my journey through the Wainwright’s this unfortunately meant a return visit. At least going up again gives me a chance to try a different route and today I’ll be ascending via Harrop Tarn and returning down the Wythburn valley which means I don’t have to walk back on myself.

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