Friday 6 June to Tuesday 10 June 2025 - A Visit to Hawkshead

Sue and I took the opportunity to catch up with friends who had rented cottages in Hawkshead. With no realistically priced accommodation available, we chose to camp at the excellent Hawkshead Hall Campsite for just £33 per night. It was just a ten minute walk from where others were staying, and we were able to use their kitchen, thus enabling us to dispense with having to brew up and breakfast etc in the tent, though that would have been fine.

So after Saturday's parkrun at Wythenshawe (full results here), where we met Richard and Georgina for the first time, we gathered together our camping gear that hadn't been used for several years, and headed up to Hawkshead to enjoy a fish and chip supper with our friends.

On Sunday 8 June I'd volunteered to lead a walk. I chose a circuit from Hawkshead, taking in the summits of Latterbarrow and Claife Heights.

We were soon looking back to the village and heading up Latterbarrow's gentle slopes.

The summit of this small hill (244 metres) is nothing if not conspicuous, with its huge monument visible for miles around. I don't know the purpose of the monument, but it is impressive. Worthy of a lingering coffee break for the seven of us on the walk.

The touristy village of Hawkshead looks compact from up here.

We took paths NE then SE from the summit, all the way down to the shore of Windermere.

Where families of tourists and of ducks were enjoying the warm day.

Lunch was taken at the end of the tarmac track from the Bowness ferry.

We were pleased to leave the busy area by the lake, and take a lumpy path crossed by minor streams, all the way up to Scale Ivy Intakes, with good views back to Windermere on the way.

I hadn't intended to visit another summit, and it wasn't until writing this diary entry that I realised that we had gone to the highest point in the area, at 270 metres, the High Blind How summit of Claife Heights - a 'Marilyn', for those interested in that sort of thing. (I've already ticked it off several times from previous visits.)

There were good views to the southern end of Windermere, though as you can see from the pictures it was a rather overcast day.

Some tourists took this nice picture of us at the summit.

Sue positioned herself to admire the views to Windermere and Bowness, before we descended on a variety of paths through bracken and mixed woodland, all the way back to Hawkshead.

Here's our route - 18km with 550 metres ascent, taking over 6 hours. As usual, click on this or any other image for a better version/slideshow.

After a nice evening and a tasty meal with the others, Sue and I adjourned for a good night's sleep in the tent, where for some reason we always seem to get a best night's sleep.

Monday 9 June - I'd volunteered to lead another walk. This time nine of us drove to Grasmere and set off up Helm Crag, another favourite little hill.

The path starts gently in Easedale.

Then the short but relentless ascent of Helm Crag brings views of the broad ridge beyond the summit, leading to Gibson Knott.

It's a short scramble to the summit of Helm Crag. Sue and a couple of others got up there. I didn't bother on this occasion. Sue and I have memories of going up here with my mother, when she was a similar age to my current age, on the day after our wedding in 2002.

We enjoyed our flasks of coffee whilst watching the scramblers get to the top of the crag.

There's not too much descent before the path rises up to Gibson Knott.

Here, we are descending from Helm Crag.

Now on Gibson Knott, here are a couple of views back past Helm Crag, with Grasmere in view.

Across the valley, Steel Fell will be our final hill of the day.

Our next objective was Calf Crag, before which Sue found a good spot for lunch out of the cool breeze.

Then the summit of Calf Crag was an easy stroll - here are Ian and Sue on the top.

Grasmere was only just visible through the haze on this overcast day. We were however thankful to stay dry.

We were happy to change direction after reaching Calf Crag, so there was no need to climb a further 200 metres to the top of Greenup Edge and Ullscarf, pictured behind Sue as she stands near the summit of Calf Crag.

As we headed with the wind now behind us to Steel Fell, Helm Crag looked a long way from us as it lurked above Grasmere.

We've come from the left in the next picture, across some boggy ground that left some of the nine on this walk with damp feet.

From near the top of Dead Pike, on Steel Fell, our path back to Grasmere drops steeply but without any tricky rock bands.

A road is eventually reached, next to a pretty white building at Helmside.

Back in Grasmere, Beatrix Potter characters can be seen everywhere, even on a post box.

Here's our route - 15km with 650 metres ascent, taking about 6 hours. A most enjoyable outing.

Back at camp, there was time for a quick change / shower and a wander down to the Queens Head for a meal with most of the entire group of around 20 people.

Then on Tuesday morning we quickly struck camp and pottered off homewards.

That was an excellent few days. Good to meet up with folk who we hadn't seen for some time, and two fine walks with some of the more active members of the group.

Thursday 5 June 2025 - Silverdale

Andy W joined me and Sue on this long overdue visit to one of our favourite places, Silverdale. We parked at RSPB Leighton Moss and enjoyed their coffee and cake whilst waiting for the rain to abate. Donning of waterproofs at the start of our walk did the trick. After that there was just one light shower all day.

We paused in the public hide on the causeway, where the view was pretty ordinary - just a variety of common ducks and gulls in the middle distance.

However, on the path that leads out of the reserve towards Leighton Hall, the fog-horn like call of a bittern drew our attention as we passed some friendly swans.

A sharp gradient took us past Leighton Hall and up the hill towards Yealand Conyers via a convenient bench, on the designated path past cows and sheep.

There's a good view back past the hall to Morecambe Bay.

The path we needed involved a right turn just beyond a large cairn.

Heading downhill now, we passed an old kiln before heading into the woods towards Crag Foot.

We chatted for a while with a couple heading in the other direction on a route that was partly the reverse of ours.

Descending to Crag Foot, there are good views over the wetlands of Leighton Moss.

Crag Foot appears to be on the boundary of the Silverdale district.

A pleasant coastal walk took us towards Jenny Brown's Point, before which we reached the chimney that we used to think was part of a lime kiln. An alternative theory has now been put forward, as explained on a helpful information board. (Click on the image for a better version/slideshow.)

After enjoying our lunch beside the chimney sheltered from the cool breeze, we continued to Jenny Brown's Point, where the remains of an embankment stretch out across the bay.

There's currently a major construction site on the quiet lane that leads past Gibraltar Farm to the Wolf House Gallery.

These rental properties  at the front of the gallery conceal work which is going on in the gallery which is currently closed for the renovations to take place.

Someone at Gibraltar Farm has produced a lovely sign that advertises their eggs.

I used to bring the children here for a camping experience (there's a children's playground and pub nearby) - the facilities were minimal and you could just roll up and camp anywhere in the big field. I suspect booking is now advised...

Anyway, we passed the gallery entrance and strolled up the road to a path that leads to Wood Well, where the water drips from the roof of a small recess in the base of the cliff and is collected in a small trough from which it flows into a large basin used originally for watering cattle.

We continued past a brand of Martagon Lily and some nice properties, to a left turn that took us down a back ginnel of Silverdale to the shore road.

The tide was out, so we enjoyed a stroll on firm sand to The Cove, where Sue and Andy explored the small cave.

Then it was up the lane and a right turn to Elmslack, where Elmslack Well is hidden behind a litter bin (as it has been since I discovered the beauty of this area in the 1980s).

The  camera went away for a while as we made our way across the railway and past Waterslack to Hawes Water.

On the approach to Hawes Water we passed what I can only describe as a 'curious stone building', suitable as a lunch hut. My 1986 Cicerone guidebook describes it as 'ruined', which it is no longer. A fine place for lunch on a rainy day.

With the camera out again, a sense of mystery as to the interior of the building, and Andy's lost foot.

Ah, that's better.

Rounding Hawes Water, we passed several properties and acquired some duck eggs for a small donation (they were delicious). After a campervan park we passed a campervan that was perhaps what motivated the farm to set up the park. This van is over 50 years old and perhaps not such a good advertisement for the park.

That took us to Red Bridge, where a wrong turn then led us into Trowbarrow Quarry, now disused and apparently a haven for rare plants such as Bee Orchids and Fly Orchids. Sadly we could find neither, despite a search.

There are climbing routes here, and Orpine flourishes.

The path back to the RSPB reserve is inhabited with curious robins.

That was a lovely walk of just over 18km, with 300 metres ascent, taking a little over 5 hours. Here's the route.

Apologies for the delay in this posting. It has been a busy week with no time for diary entries, which should now follow in quick succession.

Note that this posting just touches the surface of the interesting Silverdale area - other postings with more information are here.