Great Crag, 4 Deer Fences, 3 Tarns, 2 Synges & 1 Failed Shortcut

Its always when the distance back home is more than the distance to the hill when you realise that you've forgotten something! Today it was when I pulled into Kettlewell car park to take a quick shot of Derwentwater - fortunately I keep a little point and click in the glove box so all was not lost, just a shame it had a bit of dirt on the mens! A short time later surprisingly I was the only car in Stonethwaite's small car park, booted for Great Crag and its two neighbouring summits Knotts & High Crag.

Skiddaw and an icy Derwentwater...

the steep pull through the woods over, the view to Honister Pass...

sunrise over Greenup Edge...

a quick heather bash and an unexpected wall topped with a deer fence, possibly Knotts high point, well its got a cairn so it will do (I don't suffer from summit OCD), Synge #1...

Great Crag, not far away...

its summit, Watendlath Tarn & High Seat...

a frozen Dock Tarn, saw a few deer but they beyond the little cameras zoom...

another deer fence crossing, and High Crag (synge #2) gave a splendid view down my favourite valley, Langstrath...

I started more deer, but they where still out of range and blended into the heather...

with no wind they didn't seem startled but maintained a safe distance, so I approached and herded them up to the skyline, finally got them...

Bow Fell, note the dirt on the lens :(...

view down to Bass...

Great Gable...

Fleetwith Pike and the Buttermere Fells...

Bowfell again...

Ullscarf...

the dog...

descending to Standing Crag...

icy descent...

looking back to Standing Crag...

a frozen Blea Tarn...

I was following the bridle way which picked up the High Tove path, but noticed a couple sets of footprints heading direct to Watendlath, suspecting a sneaky unknown route I followed them...

ice on Bleatarn Gill,

the gill narrowed & steepened and I had to cross a steep lethal frozen beck, shortly after crossing this was my 3rd wall topped with a fence and no sign of a gate, the footprints climbed this at the same point I selected to cross...

I disturbed another smaller herd of at this deer fence, the fourth, which also need crossed, no sign of a gate, frozen Watendlath Tarn...

never seen this nice packhorse bridge before...

climbing the bridleway to Rosthwaite...

the bridleway's summit...

green lane to Stonethwaite...

Moral of the day, don't follow footprints they don't know a sneaky shortcut but in fact are lost...

Snowy Fellbarrow & Low Fell - Hunting for Whin Fell

Its been a while since my last blog, one or two things got in the way and by the time things had returned to normal I was out of the habit of posting! As the months rolled by I vowed to resume 'normal' posting as a New Year resolution; ok I know its a bit late but its still January and 2015!!

The forecast for today was for a 90% chance of cloud free summits and upland gales - in one hand it was perfect but in the other the fun would be taken away. The first thing that hit me when I started scraping the ice off the windscreen wasn't the expected gale, in fact it was still? And as I headed up the road everything was shrouded in cloud - I've always been told if there is no wind then the clouds will build up (this may well be inaccurate?). I'd set off with a loose plan of either Grasmoor or Red Pike (Buttermere) but as the signs for Lorton approached it was obvious I wouldn't get a view - even Low Fell & Fellbarrow where in cloud. As the lowest hills these would be the first to clear and the Synge top of Whin Fell was still on my to-do list, the car was quickly parked in the ample space next to the telephone box & bottle banks.

Whin Rigg is awkwardly situated at the end of the Low Fell - Fellbarrow ridge, the easiest approach seemed to be over the fell road (this was a regular bike route from home when I was about 17!)...

Hopegill Head & Whiteside - Holding on, just

My friend who has recently took up walking has caught the 'bagging' bug, he even suggested an evening walk, with the excellent weather we had been experiencing this seemed a great idea and the next convenient evening was picked. Despite another day of summer conditions, this walk unfortunately also coincided with a change in the weather. As we traveled through Cockermouth it was beginning to cloud up & by the time we reached the tops it was near gale force, not the best conditions for an enjoyable evening stroll!!

Parking on the gated Hopebeck Road...

Grike to Lank Rigg - An Isle of Man viewpoint

These unfortunately are among my least favourite Lakeland Fells, down there with Dodd. I know the saying goes there is no such thing as a dull hill just dull people. If it is true them I must be pretty dull on these uninspiring hills. I may be wrong because Lank Rigg had a large party of walkers sat eating there lunch around the trig & summit cairn, no treasure hunting or photos of the top today!

Highlight of the day, the Isle of Man across the Irish Sea, today was one of those 1 in 50 when you can see it. Unfortunately the camera (or operator?) had a bad day and half my photos where out of focus & blurry!

The gate at the felled Forest Commision Heckbarley plantation...

Bow Fell Summit shared with more than I had bargained...

It was a promising start down Langdale with the last wisps of early morning cloud just licking the summit, as these hills are the most awkward to reach by car from where I live I usually try to grab as many as I can.
Of course we have had several days of clear blue skies so its time for the pesky summit cloud  to return - just in time for my weekend walk!! I'm pretty used to not getting a view from Bow Fell, this is the third no view visit in a row whilst the surrounding peaks have remained clear.

What I wasn't expecting was sharing the summit with six piles of ashes, I'm not sure if it was from one cremation spread out as much as possible or six separate cremations - none the less there was a considerable amount of ash deposited making it impossible to stop for lunch without either me or the dog stepping in some, onward to Esk Pike..

the route leaves the pass...

Rua Reidh Lighthouse - Three times on two wheels

Jun 2014

One of my families favourite places on the West Coast is Gairloch and I've been intending to visit Rua Reidh Lighthouse at the end of  Rubha Reidh point past the small settlement of Melvaig. Not fancying taking the camper van down the final narrow section (I had believed it to be a private road but it received a good amount of public traffic) I opted for the more leisurely two wheels from Big Sands Campsite a total distance, there and back of twenty miles.

Of course on my first visit I forgot my camera, and took a few low res photos on my phone, on my second visit a thunderstorm coincided with my arrival at the lighthouse. The downpour was so torrential I couldn't see - needless to say it I didn't dare get my camera out and cycling was 'interesting'. Fortunately my third visit was uneventful and thankfully I remembered my camera!!

Rua Reidh's jetty...

Stac Pollaidh - Still falling short of the summit

Jun 2014

My old man joined us for a week in the Far North of Scotland and he said he had always wanted to climb Stac Pollaidh - so my only hill of the week was a repeat and the true summit wasn't even reached, for the second time! But if there is a hill you have a repeat this one doesn't get a complaint from me :)

Stac Pollaidh from the car park...