Sunday, July 24, 2011

Lake District 2011: Day Four - Going Home

Sunday morning. It is another lovely day. Sheila Nicky and Katy decide to go swimming before breakfast. After a leisurely breakfast and get ready for departure. Our ferry leaves Holyhead at 5:15 pm so we have plenty of time.


Wastwater Swimmer

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Morning Day Four
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The setting for the hostel is wonderful. The building itself is also very pretty dating back to the early 18th century. It's certainly worth thinking about again.

Just one last group photograph and we are on our way.
For the record and from the left, Martin, Mark, Barney, Eoghan, Sheila, Louie, Nikki, Katy and Senan.


Job Done - Ready for Home, Uploaded by M+MD.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Lake District 2011: Day Three - The Big One

Day Three The Big One

It was a beautiful morning and the forecast was good. Today's plan was simple. We intended to climb Scafell Pike, 3,200 feet. It is just a 3.5 mile hike up from Wasdale. The contingency plan was that if it was too much for us or the weather was bad we would do Lingmell which is beside Scafell Pike and is on the same route.


Lake District 2011, Uploaded by M+MD.

We drove to the other side of the lake and started up Brown Gill. This route had a number of options. We had a choice of two routes up Scafell Pike. It also allowed us a fall-back objective Lingmell, which is 2,700 feet if Scafell Pike proved too much. Brown Gill is probably the most direct route up Scafell Pike, It is just a 3.5 mile hike with a climb of about 3'000 feet.

We met a group of "3 Peakers" coming down the path we knew we were on the best route. They had climbed Ben Nevis and Scafell Pike, and were about to drive to Snowdon. It was only 10 in the morning so they had had an early start.

There were lots of people on the path. We made good steady progress. The path had been paved with steps for much of the route. It was also one of those quick rising routes that a a little more difficult at the start - but very satisfying and also gave a good reward for effort.

After 2 steady hours walking with lots of short breaks it was clear that Scafell Pike was not going to be a problem for anyone in the group. As we reached the col between Lingmell and Scafell Pike it was only 12.15. It was time to make some choices. The first decision was that we would all go for Scafell Pike - the was still a good 700 feet of climb to go. But since we had already climbed about three times that we were fine.

So the contingency plan was unnecessary. However Lingmell was one of those Wainwright peaks I hadn’t bagged yet. So while Sheila, Louie and Senan waited on the col the rest of us took the 30 minute detour to climb Lingmell. It was worth it. The views were fantastic.


From Lingmell

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On Lingmell

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Back with the main group at 12.45 we were ready for the last 600 feet to Scafell Pike. We were well ahead of schedule and I started to hatch another plan. We were on top by 1.30 along with about 300 other people!. We found a quite shelter and had lunch.


On Scafell Pike, Uploaded by M+MD.

After lunch I announce my crazy plan. It was to climb Scafell also. Although Scafell and Scafell Pike are beside each other with a col connecting them, there is a 30 foot high rock wall known as Broad End, at the col which make the direct route only possible for climbers with ropes.

There is a route which involves dropping down about 200 feet and then going up a gully filled with scree called the Lords Rake. It is a route I have often looked for on the Scafell side but never quite found. It is easier to see from the Scafell Pike side and I had checked it out on the way up. I was hoping that I would get one volunteer – though in the end I got four! So we split the party in two Sheila, Louie, Nicky and Senan headed down the main descent while Barney Eoghan, Katy and Mark headed down with me to the Lord's Rake. The path down to the entrance was narrow and very steep. But it was only about 100 feet, before we could see the challenge clearly.


The Lords Rake is a traverse through a couple of gullies to the other side of the mountain. Wainwright says that the path is straight and as long as you go through three ups and two downs you are one track.

The first up is a very steep scramble up a gully full of scree. The gully is about six feet wide and the walls of the gully give some handholds. Like any scree you just have to go with the flow. Unfortunately the flow is down while we want to go up! But we made it with a bit of effort.

After that the path dropped down a little with another little climb, followed by a steeper drop and the last scree run to climb out of the traverse. The last run was easy enough and then we were on the other side of Scafell about 400 feet below the top. From there it was just an easy walk up over stones.


On top it was windy and quite - there were none of the hoards that were on Scafell Pike. there was just one other couple who had been 10 minutes ahead of us in the gully. We got the photo to prove it and set off down the ridge to Wasdale Head. We were tired, but very proud of ourselves.


Last Descent

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We decided on a pretty steep descent back to Wasdale. A narrow scree path which got us down very quickly and then we had a very steep sheep pasture to get back to the bridge over Brown Gill where we started. We were pretty shattered but The stream was cool and refreshing.


Refresher!

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Back at the hostel we swapped stories - the others had a pretty steep descent at first and then rejoined the paved path down Brown Gill. The Big One had been a very successful day. It reminded us of that day one Hellvellyn two years ago.

We had a swim in the lake. It was cold... icy cold, but invigorating. Showers and a clean up and back to the pub for dinner. We were tired and ready for home. Another successful Lake District week-end.

Soon it'll be time to start planning next year. There was a strong view that the Hostel was probably the best of the four we stayed at recently. So maybe Wastwater would be a good base for next year. Then again there are a lot of Far Eastern Fells that we have still to explore.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Lake District 2011: Day Two - The Screes

Day Two it was lovely and bright in the morning. I was awake early and walked down to the lake for a quick sketch. The hostel was quite, we had a good fry-up for breakfast. Then the sandwich making team got into action. We were ready to leave at about 9.45. It was raining. Our route today starts and ends at the hostel.


Its Raining, Uploaded by M+MD.

We were walking from the hostel up to the ridge above the Wastwater screes and then walking back along the bottom of the screes. First we had to walk through the woods. It was raining pretty hard. It eased off a little as we started to climb, but as we got up to the ridge it stopped.


Through the Woods

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Rain is Clearing

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When we got to the top of Whin Rigg it was clear. We could see right down to the hostel. You could see Sellafield and the Irish Sea appearing from under the raincloud.


We then had an easy ridge walk to the next top. We were at 2,000 feet. There was a centre path through the open moor. But over to the side there was a path along the edge with fantastic views down to the lake and the screes – you could call it vertigo ridge. The views down the scree cliffs were fantastic.


Open Moor

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Vertigo Ridge

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Vertigo Ridge

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Vertigo Ridge

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We had lunch on the next top (Illgill Crag). Then we took the long walk down to get to the start of the screes.


Lunch Time

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The screes path is about 3 and a half miles long. It starts off nice and easy through ferns and bracken above the lake.


Through the Ferns

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After about a mile we came to the first scree. The scree was small and these was a nice easy level path along the screes. After than we had more bracken, then some more easy screes. Then we came to some small but slippery boulders. Then we came to what could only be called a boulder field. It was about 500 yards across and the scree was large rocks. Some were unstable and some moved under your feet. I suddenly remembered why I had only done this once before! It was a very challenging and slow scramble across.


Boulder Field from Above, Uploaded by M+MD.

We were running well behind schedule. Barney and I had planned to meet Katy and Mark at Windermere railway station at 6pm. It was clear we were never going to make that. Barney speeded up, as he wanted to have a shower before we went to collect them. I found the big boulder field very difficult. The path was hard to follow. I went too high above the path. and although I was a long way ahead of the others when we started across the boulder field, they were within talking distance by the time I was finished. I speeded up after that but I was nearly an hour behind Barney. We managed to contact Mark and Katy and told them we would be about an hour late. We still had an hour drive to Windermere.

The others were a long way behinds us. They made it safely off the screes. Sheila took a tumble on the easy path. When they got to the hostel Sheila and Nicky went swimming. We met them later at the pub for dinner. It had been a very pleasant morning and a very difficult afternoon.


Ill Gill Head

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Whin Rigg

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Note to Self. Twice is more than enough times to walk the bottom of the screes. It is very pretty - but the boulder field is very difficult. Once you are half way across it feels like you are trapped. The only way to escape is to continue.

The forecast for to-morrow is good. Scafell Pike is the plan - we will see!

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Lake District 2011: Day One - Yewbarrow

The ferry left Dublin on time at 8.45. We were in Holyhead at 10.45 and on the road just after 11.00. It is a four hour drive from Holyhead. We stopped at a service station just below Preston to have a cup of coffee. Just as we were leaving I heard a familiar voice behind us - Sheila, on her way from London had stopped at the same services. Its a small world!
The drive from Holyhead is dual carraigeway and motorway for 3 hours. It was a tough final hour as we drove up the Duddon valley and turning left at Ulpha. It was not as bad as the year we went over Wrynose and Hard Knott - but it was slow and winding for the last 45 minutes.

Our plan was to meet at the car park at the foot of Yewbarrow. It was raining as we drove into the valley and alongside the lake. Yewbarrow is often photographed because of its position halfway up the Wasdale valley. More than any mountain it looks like an upturn boat. It is one of the two Wainwrights I am planning to add on this trip. As we parked I thought that we may have to cancel due to the weather. Sheila had arrived five minutes before us. As we were consulting and considering, it stopped raining.
So we set off at 4pm. It is a serious first walk – 2,200 feet. It is a no nonsense climb as the path rises directly from the lake.

Wastwater Uploaded by M+MD

We puffed and panted as we started to get our "mountain legs" but we were encouraged by the sight of the lake getting smaller below us. We started up the spine of hill along a wall. Once we were over the wall the path moved across the hill and towards a gully. We scrambled up the gully, the lake still receeding. After about an hour we reached the first top of the gully. At first we were disappointed because we could see there was still quite a bit of a ridge walk to get to the top. But then as we got to the top of the ridge, suddenly, there was the view. It was breath-taking. The lake was now below us, down a vertical gully. The sky was clear and we could see Great Gable; Scafell Pike, Scafell and all the mountains around.


Up the Gully
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Gaining Height Uploaded by M+MD


Yewbarrow Ridge Uploaded by M+MD

Louie Uploaded by M+MD


As we continued on the ridge the views were amazing. We had a clear view to the top of Scafell Pike, a rare sight. Finally we reached what looked like the top. Then we saw that the real peak was about 500 metres away - though not much higher. Finally, we made it. After a rest and some chocolate we continued down towards the col with Red Pike. We cut down an a path before the col - it was a little rough and a little steep but we made it down to the valley. After ten minutes on an ill-defined path beside a stream we joined the main path down the valley. The rest was easy.


Yewbarrow Summit, Uploaded by M+MD.

We did the walk in just over 3 hours. We headed back to the hostel and checked in. We were all in one big dormatory with the boys on one side and the girls on the other side of an internal partition. It was perfect. By the time we had got ourselves together it was just nine o'clock. We rang the local pub to see if we were too late for dinner – we were! But they took our order on the phone and ten minutes later we were tucking into steak/salmon and chips and pints. A successful first day behind us, a Wainwright bagged and mountain legs getting into shape.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Lake District 2011

We are planning another Lake District trip. This year there are nine of us.
Some newcomers: Barney, Eoghan, Louie and Nicky,
a couple of sometimers: Mark and Katy
and some all-timers: Sheila, Senan and Martin.

It is the usual 3 day format.
Arrive on Thursday around 3.30, get a quick warm up walk.
Friday a full day walk getting ready for
The Big One - on Saturday.

This year we will base ourselves in Wastwater youth hostel. It is a lovly early 19th century house on the shores of the lake - the lake is just at the bottom of the garden.

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