Thursday 8 April 2010 – Gayle and Mick’s K2CW trek – Day 17 – Thorpe to Youlgreave

Distance: 23 km (14 miles)
Ascent: 760 metres
Killer Dogs: 0
Killer Stiles: 0
Narrow Boats: 0!!
Killer Flies: 0
Killer Geese: 1
Fishermen: 0
Killer Trial Bikes: 6
Killer push bikes: 100
Runners: 0
Faffs: 8 (mainly Gayle)
Black Sheep: 2 (Glug)
Fluffy Cats: 0
Blog Stalkers: 1
Kit Failures: 0
Missing Uncles: 1
Ken’s Komfortable Taxis: 1

I enjoyed a lovely day out with Gayle and Mick, on their ‘Kent to Cape Wrath’ trek, accompanied today by Jeff, a blog stalker who goes by the name of ‘Trentham Walker’.

I slept in, a rather inauspicious start, so just as well that the many folk to whom I’d offered lifts were unable to make it.

After passing through freezing fog in Stockport, I emerged into a wonderful Peak District spring morning, with the threesome I was joining champing at the bit to shoot off into the countryside the moment I joined them at 8.15.

Here Gayle and Mick pose impatiently on the fine lawns of this swish campsite.

The views as we headed up past Bostern Grange Farm were ‘fab’, as the Pie Man would say.

Wolfscote Dale was calm and sunny – out of the cool breeze – so a second breakfast was enjoyed by us all.

The paths then became quite crowded with ramblers.  But the Waterloo Inn wasn’t crowded at all.  11.25, it was shut.

Sandwiches on a bench later, it’s doors opened, Mick having Refused To Walk Past It (the Capitals are important, here).  An hour and a half later the fully hydrated duo staggered back out into the glare of the Derbyshire sunshine.

(Incidentally, the pub has changed hands since we visited in December.  The mushroom soup was thin and creamy, but the Black Sheep was fine.)

The Tissington Trail allowed for speedy, if breezy, progress towards our destination, though we had to be constantly alert to small children the drivers of tomorrow, who seemed to be on a mission to mow down all before them.

The peaceful day was rudely interrupted by crows mocking a pair of buzzards, and by six trial bikers on the track to Middleton, where we enjoyed afternoon tea on a bench, entertained by a learner driver in a Kangaroo, before Mick spotted this motor. 

“You can smell the leather through the window” he exclaimed, ecstatically.

Don’t worry, Mick, it’ll probably still be there when you get back from your trek!

The walk into Youlgreave was delightful, as described by Gayle on her take of the day here.

Jeff got distracted by the sights of Youlgreave and the Black Bull, whilst the three of us lazed for a while outside the George, before Ken picked me up (thanks, Ken, that was Extremely Helpful) to return me to Thorpe, allowing the Dynamic Duo to stumble on to Alport.

Today’s metronomic pace matched that of Mr Naismith precisely (3 mph, adding an hour for every 2000 ft of ascent), so we completed the 14 miles with 760 metres ascent in 5.75 hours, excluding about 2 hours of breaks taken during this fairly leisurely stroll.  Well, it would seem like that for me, wouldn’t it?  The others had heavy rucksacks whilst I had a bum bag.

I’ve uploaded a few more snaps that can be viewed here.

Postcard from Timperley News Flash – ‘Follower makes it to 85’

Well, we hope so, as her birthday isn’t until Thursday…

Congratulations mum – and keep up the good work…

A Caption Contest

Here’s a chance for someone to grab a beer on me next time we meet….

A Great British Ridge Walk - Number 45 - Ben Mor Coigach

Perfect weather attracted Ken and me to this classic round, whilst four went home and Pam and Paul tackled a couple of Munros.

Sue, Anne and Janet (newly arrived last night) came with us to Culnacraig for their low level stroll back to Janet's car at Blughasary. They took longer than we did over their 10 km!

Ben Mor Coigach, at 743 metres, isn't a Munro. Nor is it a Corbett. But it's a fine hill that on all previous visits (four or so) I've ascended via the steep gully from Lochan Tuath. So Bill Birkett's route was a new one for me, and also for Ken whose previous experience of this hill had been via the Speicein Coinnich spur.

From Culnacraig we headed up Garbh Choireachan, the snow line being around 400 metres today. It was steep, leading to a flat-topped, narrow rock crest crowned with little tors and towers of sandstone. Delightful. We skipped along, enjoying every minute, with impressive views over Assynt to the north, and to the Fannaichs and An Teallach and beyond across Loch Broom.

Lunch was taken out of the wind on the 743 metre summit, from where the preceding two postings were snapped and sent. It's a great viewpoint.

The route took us onwards over the deserted hill to the spiky point of Sgurr an Fhidhleir, another fabulous viewpoint. The scenery in these parts compares with anything else I've seen in the world - perhaps I'm biased, or not well travelled, but that's how I rate it.

The walk back down the broad ridge to the car was simple. We were entertained by a couple encountered earlier at our parking spot, who could be seen slowly descending from half way along the Garbh Choireachan ridge. One of them had obviously encountered difficulties, and they hadn't managed to get as far as the main summit where Ken and I had savoured our lunch.

The above image shows Ken near the end of the 10 km, 960 metre ascent, 5.5 hour day, with the ridge behind.

All seven of us then regrouped for a final delicious meal (the larder is now bare), before preparing for tomorrow's long drive home.

There is likely to be a short interlude now, before some better images from this most successful (despite the weather) trip are uploaded.

And so, as they say, it's goodbye from me, and it's goodbye from Ullapool...

...until next time.

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Bon appetit, Ken

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A Nice Little Ridge

It's lunchtime on a fabulous day. Ken and I have just negotiated our way along this fine looking ridge - a bit like Crib Goch, but completely deserted.


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Thursday 1 April 2010 - A Touch of Spring at Inverewe Gardens

Whilst others tootled along Stac Pollaidh's spiny ridge, Sue, Ken, Anne and I took a 50 mile drive south to Inverewe.

The snow was down to below 200 metres, so the road was slushy for much of the journey. Views through the squally showers were dramatic as we rounded the vast bulk of An Teallach.

Inverewe Gardens opened today. We were amongst the first visitors. The coffee was excellent. Outside, coal tits, bullfinches and others were vying for pole position on their own restaurant.

The gardens were remarkably colourful, with lots of new life sprouting from the ground that is constantly warmed as a result of the gulf stream. Some images will follow. Sadly we were unable to walk along all the paths in the walled garden due to a 'jobsworth' Health & Safety officer having forced closure of certain excellent pathways.

Returning via the Corrieshalloch Gorge we enjoyed impromptu halts at a wartime pier, and when a bird the others thought might be a sea eagle flew over. It was probably a buzzard. Ken's an expert - he confirmed that Neil's grey goose theory was probably correct yesterday.

The gorge, also a National Trust property, harboured dangers far more hazardous than the walled garden, and would surely be closed down if inspected by the same person. We admired it from slippery pathways in a blizzard.

Back at home the sun shone for Janet's arrival from North Kessock, and all eleven of us (Lucy stayed in) enjoyed a good meal at the Arch Inn, just a few doors away.

Today's image is of Slioch, from Inverewe Gardens. The snow-capped mountains were impressive all day.

It's good to hear that Mick and Gayle are managing to bumble their way along a lumpy canal towpath, and that JJ is all set to embark on the Pie Man's big adventure. (Peebles to Moffat to Peebles.) We hope that trip is a great success, and an entertaining read...

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Wednesday 31 March 2010 - A Snowy Sea Shore Stroll

Waking again to squally snow showers and reports of roads closed all over Scotland, we opted for a lazy day.

That had nothing to do with the excesses of our 'gala dinner' last night, of course!

This morning the delights of Ullapool Pottery's superb products drew us inside, but the price labels soon repulsed us. I did really fancy a fruit bowl. But for £325?

The bookshop was far more successful at emptying our wallets.

Morning coffee was followed quite briskly by lunch, then Andrew joined the six residents of Tigh na Mara for a 12 km stroll with 300 metres ascent - to Rhue Lighthouse along the shore line beside Loch Broom, returning by road.

En route we spied two familiar shapes, lurching towards us like ghosts from a horror movie. Ken and Anne emerged from the blizzard looking very pale. They had been birding, and reported 'seagulls and ducks'. We took the opportunity of taking a group photo and went our separate ways.

A man was collecting (peri)winkles in a big bucket on the beach. "They go to France" he said, adding that he harvests different beaches every day. Further along the shore there was much life to observe, including bucket loads of winkles.

Beyond a field of cute black pigs, a river crossing was needed to reach the lighthouse. It wasn't very deep, but our little troupe (pictured) conspired to make it as difficult as they could. This was one of the day's few photo opportunities, in between snow squalls.

Slithery rocks led eventually beyond busy oyster catchers to the small white lighthouse at Rhue, in the lee of which we rode out a violent blizzard. Sustained by a shared KitKat, the seven of us then hit the road for an hour long stroll back to Ullapool, passing the site of a couple of pre-historic round houses that may have been home to an extended family of 20-30 people around 3000 years ago.

We were entertained on the drag into Ullapool by a flock of grey geese, grazing in a field. Most of them were Greylag Geese, but one noisy intruder was being eschewed by the rest of the flock. It was different. Neil thinks it's a juvenile Pink-Footed Goose that has 'got lost'; whereas to me it looked more like a 1st winter European White-Fronted Goose. Neil is probably correct.

Back in 'town' the hedges and trees were teeming with bird life, including busy chaffinches and greenfinches, cooing collared doves, and a treefull of bedraggled starlings.

Now we are looking forward to Neil and Sam's culinery contribution, a curry. Interesting smells are emanating from the kitchen...

Sorry about the poor quality of the postcard images on this trip. It's been difficult. Judging by Jamie's comment, the weather in Timperley has been no better!

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Tuesday 30 March 2010 - Fresh Snow Up North

The curtains were thrown open to a wintry scene this morning. The day then gained a leisurely start. We are on holiday, after all.

Morning coffee having been imbibed, and Ken's arrival having indicated impending activity, yesterday's Munro bagging quintet plus Ken drove up to the Braes of Ullapool, where a local homeowner acted as parking attendant for P+P's car.

It was snowing.

We wrapped up warmly and trudged slowly up to the 558 metre summit of Beinn Eilideach. The snowline was around 200 metres and the summit held 10-15 cm of fresh snow. Well, 'held' is a misnoma as most of the stuff seemed to be airborne, blasting into our faces from the north east.

We huddled briefly around the trig point, itself enclosed by a wall/cairn. There wasn't a copy of Pravda to be seen today, though apparently copies have been found there in the past. There must be a hill-bagging breed of Russian seaman!

I'd judiciously kept to the back today. I had no map. Yesterday, when I thought Paul was 'in charge', I had inadvertently drifted to the front a couple of times. "Thank you for leading" had been something of a surprise comment at the end of the walk! Not today...

Neil led us down through a gusty avalanche-free snow shower past herds of red deer and a noisy grouse to Leckmelm, where we lunched beside a snowy farm track (pictured).

Then a spot of road walking and very muddy forest paths led us past some 'eco-lodges' to our safe car parking spot. Neil and Sam's car hadn't enjoyed the guidance of a local attendant, and sadly had been involved in an accident! 'C'est la vie', as they say.

The 9 km walk involving 600 metres ascent had taken about 4 hours.

Blustery showers continued whilst Sue continued to teach Andrew and Anne some Photoshop skills, and our resident chefs set to work preparing a 'progressive' multi-location meal for 10 people and Lucy.

That's all for now as this evening's 'gala dinner' is unlikely to leave any time for blogging.

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Monday 29 March 2010 - Sgurr Mor on a Sunny Day

We started in light snow, but the amenable forecast eventually prevailed.

Crampons and ice axes were deployed after a couple of hours. They stayed on our feet for around four hours. At the top of the icy ramp that led us to the summit of Carn na Criche, a huge avalanche reverberated from the vicinity of Sgurr nan Clach Geala. A big slab of snow slid down its steep east face, leaving a huge brown slash down the mountain.

The five of us, Pam, Paul, Neil, Sam and I, had a great day out, continuing over Sgurr Mor and Beinn Liath Mhor Fannaich to add two Munros to Paul's impressive quota (56 at the last count). 18 km and 1150 metres ascent, in 8 hours, were the day's stats (14 km, 750 metres, 6 hours - yesterday), particularly impressive in Sam's case as she was wearing brand new Scarpa Mantas for the first time and suffered no ill effects.

Snow showers did their best to blur our views through the otherwise clear air, and the above image taken from BLM Fannaich towards Loch Broom is sadly deficient despite incorporating a number of iconic profiles. Can you spot Stac Pollaidh, for example?

We saw nobody on the hill yesterday, but today, being Munro country, we got waves from two distant walkers, and a gruff greeting from a lone speedster who appeared just as we had finished using the self-timer on Sgurr Mor.

Nick - thanks for your comment, we'll certainly add some better images when we get home.

While Lucy and Rosemary stayed at home today, the others (Sue, Andrew, Ken and Anne) contrived to arrive home later than the rest of us after their brave ascent of the Graham, Beinn Ghobhlach. Very impressive!

Tonight's catering, courtesy of P+P's stilton and pine nut mountain, was nothing less than superb.

And so, it's goodnight from Ullapool, after another fine day in the hills.

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Sunday 28 March 2010 - A Wet Corbett

Thanks, everyone, for your good wishes concerning this week's weather. We'll need all the luck we can get, especially as Dave - our good weather mascot - has been unable to join us here this year.

Beinn Enaiglair was a good choice for this showery day. Ken and Anne could leave me at lunch time to continue to walk around the hill using amiable stalkers' paths, and I could nip to the summit (pictured) and slither down the other side in time to meet them for afternoon tea.

The remaining snow was very soft. Ice axes and crampons proved to be unnecessary encumbrances on this small (889 metre) 'hill of timid birds'.

Throngs of red deer were low on the slopes in the stormy weather, but wheatears and meadow pipits flitted about, seemingly impervious to the rain. Unlike my old leaky boots. Sealskinz socks came to the rescue today, and hopefully I'll start tomorrow dry, thanks to the absorbent qualities of some handy Sunday papers.

By the time the three of us got home, after our 5 hour walk, Sue had given Andrew a lesson on some technical aspects of digital photography, and Pam, Paul, Neil and Sam had arrived and installed themselves in Tigh na Mara. Ken and Anne joined the six Tigh na Mara residents for the chicken dinner that Mike usually gets at home (did you miss it, Mike?) and Andrew, Rosemary and Lucy joined us later. At some point amidst all this, I burnt a hole in a finger.

Ouch!

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Saturday 27 March 2010 - A Long Day In The Car

On the road again, for 10 hours, but well worth it. We are at a favourite spot. It's called Tigh na Mara. Occasional showers and spectacular rainbows accompanied us today, with sun specs being needed for most of the time.

We chased Andrew, Rosemary and Lucy, who are installed nearby, and Ken and Anne, whose luxurious quarters are called Hallival. Our own 'house mates' will arrive tomorrow.

Ken and Anne cooked us a lovely meal, then R+A arrived to polish off the wine. They needed something after appearing in a very bedraggled state due to slightly inclement meteorological conditions.

Today's postcard was taken on arrival here, from the same place as the header that adorns this blog. Today's conditions on Loch Broom were somewhat different less photogenic!

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Dunham Massey in Spring (1)

We have become frequent visitors to the new Winter Garden at Dunham Massey.

Now it’s spring, lots of stuff is ‘springing’ to life.  Apart from what the harsh winter and temperatures of –15C to –20C has killed off, that is.  This winter was a bit of a surprise to the gardeners, given the Mediterranean nature of recent such seasons.

The above picture was taken by Sue on Tuesday.  The garden really was most colourful, with swathes of daffodils as well as some more unusual varieties.

We’ll be back there soon, but first we head north.  So it’ll be a return to ‘mobile blogging’ for the next week or so.

New Scarpa Infinity GTX Boots take a Mud Bath

My old Asolo Fugitives* having seen better days, I took a trip on Wednesday to the Alpenstock emporium in Stockport.  Their boot selection isn’t as extensive as that at Outside in Hathersage, my usual source of footwear, but the Infinity seemed to fit, so I bought the pair and saved myself a wet drive to Hathersage.  They are very similar to the Fugitives, and at 1475 gm (size 43) are virtually the same weight.  Thanks to Hugh and Jose at Alpenstock for their patience during my lengthy visit.

The boot quest had become a little urgent, as I could do with these boots for some upcoming trips.  Whether I can break them in in time remains to be seen, but tonight (Thursday) they got their first outing – a 6 km jaunt around Alderley Edge with Andrew.  We were the only ones daft enough to turn out for this scheduled evening walk.  It was dry and comfy in the Drum and Monkey; not so outside.  The boots were ‘well muddied’ so there’s no chance of them going back.  They were ‘reasonably’ comfy, and should be ok so long as the ankles don’t rub my tendons, a problem that I’ve encountered in the past (but not with the Asolos).  So a few short walks with these new boots will be needed to break them in.  This is a slight problem, as some longer walks are on the cards for next week; it looks as if I’ll be carrying a spare pair in the bag!

The walk started just as the overhead tap was turned on, but the rain did ease from time to time, with the moon even coming out for a while.  Despite the rain and the canopy of trees, the ambient light (Andrew theorised that it all emanated from the local footballers’ security systems) meant there was no need for torches.  This didn’t prevent my esteemed companion from taking a bum slide down a boggy path, causing him to reject any idea of re-entering the pub after the walk; and my muddied new boots – the only footwear I had – probably wouldn’t have been appreciated either. So it was home to an early bath!

Hopefully our forthcoming evening jaunts will be better attended.  All are welcome, of course.

Scarpa Infinity report as at March 2014:

A second pair of boots was soon acquired as Alpenstock offered a very good deal on them (£99). They were comfortable from the start and hardly needed any breaking in.

The first pair is still keeping the water out and has covered over 2,400 km (1,500 miles), including two TGO Challenges, the Dales High Way, a trip to Turkey, backpacking in the Maritime Alps, and a week along Markus Petter’s Caledonian Trail route. They have been superb.

The second pair was used, as was the first, for numerous day walks, and for one TGO Challenge and a couple of weeks in the Apennines. Their biggest trip was 2013’s 950 km GR10 trek, at the end of which they were showing serious signs of wear. So, knowing that the other pair was in better condition, I abandoned this fine pair of boots after just 2,200 km, on the outskirts of Banyuls-sur-Mer.

Excellent boots. I hope that the Mustangs that succeed them will be as good.

*The Fugitives bought in October 2008 have now (March 2010) done about 1000 km and are in good condition but leaked after only a few (albeit very wet) km.  The ones bought in 2007 leaked after less than 500 km, and are now starting to disintegrate after over 2000 km of use.  Both pairs have been extremely comfortable.
 

Tuesday 23 March 2010 - Alpine Points of View – Comes to Stockport

Sue and I escaped to the Alps for an hour and a half last night, courtesy of Stockport Walking & Outdoor Group, who had booked Kev Reynolds for the evening.

Kev’s lecture, one of many in his repertoire, was excellent, transporting his seventy strong audience to the playgrounds of the Alps that Sue and I so much enjoy visiting (that may be obvious from sight of the little bundle of books I pulled off our shelves for today’s postcard).

This particular lecture enjoys the following trailer:

“Over a period of more than 30 years Kev Reynolds has walked and climbed in many different parts of the Alps; has lived and worked there, written more than a dozen guidebooks to specific regions, as well as Walking in the Alps - a comprehensive guide to the whole alpine range, from the Alpes Maritime to the Julians of former Yugoslavia. In this talk some of Europe's most dramatic scenery, plus its flowers, animals and villages will be displayed.”

It’s good to know that such enthusiasts as Kev are willing to travel long distances to talk about the things they love, for modest fees within the budget of smalls clubs like this Stockport one.  The landlord of ‘The Grapes’ looked quite pleased as well, with such a huge influx of unexpected customers after the talk had finished.

If you run a small walking group, you could do worse than book this inveterate climber, walker and guide book writer to inject a dose of infective enthusiasm into a cold winter’s evening.

Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 March 2010 – RentaHostel at Fellside, near Caldbeck

This was home to the 26 attendees of this weekend – the YHA’s Fellside Centre, near Caldbeck.  A ‘virtual tour’ of this Georgian shooting lodge is here.

As is customary on weekends organised by Sue W, we woke on Saturday morning to rain, so whilst one group chose to head into the cloud that cloaked the fells to the north of Skiddaw, eleven of us set off on a 21 km circuit contrived by Notchy to pass by a number of hostelries.

It was ‘dreich’ as we observed various becklets heading down the slopes to give Caldbeck a good wash.

Farm tracks, bridleways, and this flooded road led us on the anticlockwise circuit towards the fleshpot of Hesket Newmarket.

 

The Old Crown pronounced itself ‘open’, but not for us, as we trailed past in the wake of our over-enthusiastic leader.  This was all too much for Sue and Martin S, who elected to amble back along the riverside via Caldbeck.

Notchy led the remaining nine of us past boxing hares into this quagmire at Hall Field, before taking us alongside a quarry, beside which dire warnings encouraged us to keep to the path.

As we approached another haven from the rain, coal tits twittered in the hedge, and a small tsunami just missed us as a vehicle tore past on the flooded road.

The Sour Nook Inn didn’t suit Notchy, who dragged us on to a church yard in Sebergham, where he could hold court without fear of repercussions, though Ken and Anne rebelled.

The gentle route of the Cumbria Way drew us through a pleasant wooded valley beside Cald Beck, in improving weather, leading to yet another hostelry.

“We went there last night”, asserted the Boss, who led us instead into The Old Smithy, for pots of tea and coffee for 92p each.  It turned out that various members of our party occupied this place continuously for over four hours in a sort of relay!

With tea sloshing around his interior, and his predilection to cramping up on the top of ladder stiles, Notchy took to the easy roads for his return to Fellside.  He retained just two disciples, letting the remaining six off the leash.  We strode purposely towards the heights of High Pike, steaming in the afternoon sun. 

Leaving that particular summit for the morrow, we soon turned west towards our destination, pausing frequently to look back across the pleasantly sunlit landscape.

This was a gentle 21km, 6.5 hour stroll, including numerous halts and less than 500 metres ascent, along the thin blue line shown below.

Sunday dawned clear and sunny.  Whilst others embarked on a longer traverse of the peaks at the back of Skiddaw, six of us chose a short morning stroll up High Pike, which at 658 metres towers high above Fellside.

Various groups of children were embarking on their D of E Award training.  Jenny was keen to follow them as (she said) our leader, pictured in the distance below, seemed unable to haul his vast bulk up the gentle slope extreme incline at anything like a reasonable pace.  Anyway, as it turned out, the children couldn’t keep up with either Notchy’s blistering speed, or our supersonic pace.

It was quite cool and breezy, so elevenses were taken in the lee of the summit.  We probably needed to stop anyway, to draw breath and for Notchy to attend to his blisters.

A sign at the summit tried to tell us that London was visible, over 200 miles away, but all we could see was Carrock Fell, with the Peak District beyond that blocking any chance of seeing London in today’s atmospheric conditions.

Richard and Jenny tried their x-ray specs, but they couldn’t even see Carrock Fell.  We look happy enough, though…

We descended by a similar route under hungry buzzards, observing groups of milling children, lolloping lurchers and sunny vistas.

And finally to Fellside, where, locked out after our sojourn had ended on Sunday morning, we enjoyed a picnic lunch on the….picnic bench.

Here’s our 7km route, taking just over 2 hours and involving an energy sapping 385 metres of ascent according to Mr Anquet.

There’s a short captioned slide show (37 images) here for anyone interested.

As in some previous years (latterly in 2007) Sue and I catered for this weekend, the Saturday evening menu for which, for record purposes, is shown below.  I’ll upload any recipes that anyone may like to have – in fact I may upload them anyway when I have the time.  The links will be indicated by the usual underlining.

Caldbeck Menu - 20 March 2010

Crisps and dips

To Start (7.30pm)
Winter vegetable soup (V), or
Crab cakes with chilli sauce, or
Baked artichoke and Parma ham gallettes

Main Courses
Salmon and fennel fish pie, or
Lentil and tomato moussaka (V), or
Venison and beef with port and apricots*, or
Coq au vin*
accompanied by Great British Mash* and Petit Pois

Desserts
Fruit salad, or
Strawberry cheesecake, or
Lime and lemon meringue, or
Chocolate bread and butter pudding

Coffee and After Eight Mints

All washed down with Cape Chardonnay and Cape Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon

Thank you to all who helped with kitchen duties, and especially to Ken, who cooked the breakfasts.  As usual, one of the hardest jobs was that of returning various implements and containers to their places in our own kitchen, and so far all that seems to have gone missing is our large Teflon cooking mat.  A mystery, as we searched Fellside for it.  Ah well! 
Also for the record, the luxury ingredients for two breakfasts and Saturday dinner worked out at £18 a head for the 26 strong group.

A View – 19 March 2009

Good Morning!

There’s nothing likely to be of interest from Timperley today, unless you like cooking or driving up the M6, so here’s a reminder of the view we had on 19 March last year.

Given the numerous distinguishing (or should that read ‘distinguished’) features, there are no prizes for guessing the location.

Tuesday 16 March 2010 – A Great British Ridge Walk – Number 20 – Skiddaw by Ullock Pike and descent by Birkett’s Edge

These ‘Great British Ridge Walk’ ventures seem to be coming thick and fast.  Today it was the Lake District’s turn, starting early, with my journey heading in a rather bizarre direction – to Graham’s house in Marple – before the battle through traffic jams to eventually gain the M6 at Preston.

Phew, at least I wasn’t driving today, and could grab a cup of coffee at Tebay  that I could sip at my ease all the way to Keswick.

Mike and Bruno were ready and waiting at the more than ample-sized lay-by at NY 237 311 near Bassenthwaite, so by 10.30 we were ambling casually up a small hill called Watches. 

A sheep was strolling unconcernedly along a wall.  (No trickery here, I promise.)

We took our time, willing the cloud to lift off the summit of Skiddaw.

Today’s views were excellent.   Here Mike and Bruno laze on warm rocks during a brew stop with a fine view to Bassenthwaite Lake and beyond.

Some competent cyclists sped down the rocky bridleway up which we had risen; we admired their skill on this technically demanding terrain.

The summit of Ullock Pike yielded more fine views – towards Keswick, Derwent Water and the central fells, but better vistas were available from Carl Side, which summit Bill Birkett strangely omits from his route.

A group ahead was struggling on the snow slope that slanted up to the summit ridge, so we took the direct approach, with less by way of snow and steep drops.

It was easy going, with no ironmongery required.  There were quite a few folk on the ridge, but the summit was deserted by the time we reached the trig point.  It was pretty cool, with a cold stiff breeze keeping us alert.

Bruno tugged a bit too hard in his quest for snow fights.  Mike stood his ground.  Bruno’s lead broke.  He cried.  (Mike, that is.)

An easy descent led to this glaciated valley down which Dash Beck, well, ‘dashes’.

After which we dashed through some fields, so unobservantly that we missed the path at Hole House and finished up going along a metalled lane rather than by-passing the farm at Barkbeth.

“Never mind” said Graham.
”Never mind” said Mike.
”Ruff” said Bruno.
”It’s so nice to have such forgiving companions” said Martin.

We were down soon after 4pm.  Mike sucked deeply on a curious cigar (see above) before heading back with Bruno’s guidance to the Great Wilderness known as ‘County Durham’, whilst Graham and I adjourned for fish ‘n chips in Carnforth, where it went dark.

Mike’s excellent report is here.

A slide show (32 images) is here.

And here’s our route for the day: 14 km, 940 metres ascent, taking 5 hours plus stops.

The next ‘Great British Ridge Walk’ will see me venturing into, passport and visa permitting, the wilds of Scotland.  Watch this space!