Lakeland Walker Apr/May 2017

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www.lake eland-walke er.com MARCH/A APRIL 2017 § ISSUE 118

20 years of dev votion to walking in the Lake District

Walki g Wa

on air

WIN ntain Keswick Mou s and Festival tickets

SPRING’ G S FINEST RIDGE HIKES

p

REGENERAT TE! Prolong the life of your waterproofs

BILL BIRKETT’S G

Trraverse

ANDY BECK

DOGGIE PURSUITS

£3.95

Ta aking to the fells with our wonderful, four--legged friends

2 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

WeLcOMe

Hair of the dog …

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Skiddaw and Derwent Water from Cat Bells, by Lee Beel

GET IN TOUCH...

Editorial Editor: John Manning Tel: 01756 693479 Email: johnm@dalesman.co.uk Twitter: @lakelandwalker Facebook: Lakeland-walker Advertising Display: Katharine Birrell Tel: 01756 693482 Email: katharine@dalesman.co.uk Classified: Sara Marren Tel: 01756 693478 Email: sara@dalesman.co.uk Subscriptions Tel: 01756 701033 Email: subscriptions@dalesman.co.uk Rates: UK one year (6 issues) £21 UK two years (12 issues) £40 UK three years (18 issues) £58 Overseas one year (airmail) £34 Publisher Country Publications Limited, The Water Mill, Broughton Hall, Skipton BD23 3AG Lakeland Walker is published bi-monthly and is available from selected newsagents nationwide or by subscription © Dalesman Publishing 2017 ISSN 1369 4553

PEFC/16-33-533

he fells are alive… with the sound of barking. At least, they are if photographs submitted for Lakeland Walker’s In the Frame pages are anything to go by. A significant number portray dogs – dogs admiring views, perched on trig points, at heel, dipping paws in lakes – and, at a pinch, I’d guess that a vast number of you head for the fells accompanied by a four-legged friend. In this issue we’ve given them full rein (or full leash) – you’ll find some of our favourite images of your pets in the mountains on page 11. Keep sending in your pup pics, as well as those of friends and family enjoying the fells; those published earn a pair of Bridgedale walking socks to keep your own paws cosy - as has this month’s cover star Mac, pictiured on Black Fell by owner Steve Higgins, of Castleford.

Speaking of photographs, our anniversary competition draws to a close any day now.

We’ve received hundreds of entries – a terrific bundle of prizes awaits the overall winner – but it’s still all to play for. You have until April 3 to submit your images; details can be found on page 10. Winners will be revealed in our May/June issue.

Many of the entries received to date are stunning and it’s clear that photography, like dog walking, is a favourite pastime among readers. We’ll be featuring more on the subject in future issues.

While most fellwalkers carry a camera, not all are united in their appreciation of dogs. A wonderful dog – Ben, a handsome mix of Yorkie and a beardie – shared many of my fells days in years gone by but so far I’ve resisted the growing pressure at home to allow another to join our family. After all, dogs need feeding and worming, they need training, they chew the furniture and the TV remote, they lap your beer, they bark when you want to sleep and sleep when you want to lark… If I’m showing any signs of softening then it’s purely because dogs, like office-bound editors, need walking and I

won’t be complaining if I’m lumbered with that chore when the day comes (if the day comes…)

In this issue Peter Naldrett takes a look at some of the issues associated with taking them on to the Lakeland fells: when should they be under close control, what should you do around livestock, what does the law say about taking them across Access Land – I’m talking about dogs, not office-bound editors, of course. Peter’s advice is especially pertinent now that lambing season is at a peak.

I’d love to hear your own stories of dogs on the fells – good and bad – as well as your advice for any fell-walker who might – just might – be thinking of adopting a dog in the near future.

John Manning Editor, johnm@dalesman.co.uk

SubScribe

TODAY Don’t miss a single issue of your favourite magazine. Call 01756 701033 or email subscriptions@dalesman.co.uk to have it delivered to your door. See page 26.

MEET OUR TEAM…

BILL BIRKETT

STEVE GOODIER

VIVIENNE CROW

RONALD TURNBULL

PAUL RICHARDSON

Fresh knees and a new Sony A7 II R camera have given Bill a new lease of life – he’s been spotted on the fells on a number of occasions recently and it’s rumoured that a Complete Lakeland Fells update is under way, with new tops to add to “The Birketts”.

Keen fell-walker Steve has walked and climbed all over the world. He is a freelance writer who focuses on the Lake District. Currently on his fourth or fifth round of the Wainwrights (he’s lost count!), he has written six books, mainly about Lakeland

Wandering Cumbria’s fells and dales since moving here twenty years ago, Vivienne has extensive local knowledge – and the awards to prove it. Author of more than a dozen guides, she’s resolved to spend 2017 tackling old favourites on lesser-known routes.

Ronald reckons he’s walked more miles in Lakeland Walker’s service than anyone else, having contributed since issue four. And the bivvy expert has won almost as many outdoor writing awards as he’s downed pints of Jennings’ Sneck Lifter.

Having walked the British hills for more than thirty years, Paul is rediscovering the special rewards of walking among the peaks of Lakeland. That said, he claims to already have, like Ronald, a wealth of experience of downing pints in Cumbrian hostelries.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 3

4 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

iN THiS iSSue

Contents 03 Welcome This spring issue has a canine feel to it – plus our regulars to inspire all fell-walkers out there

07 News Keswick Mountain Festival announces some of this year’s highlights, and our sister magazine celebrate a notable anniversary

08 Events A selection of some of the region’s guided walks, challenge events and more

11 Your Pictures

13

14

Share the fun you’ve had on the fells – your fun photographs could earn you a pair of Bridgedale socks

13 Painting by 214 numbers After a decade spent wandering the fells with camera and paintbrush, Andy Beck’s remarkable Wainwrights in Colour project is nearing completion. He shares his story with John Manning

49

27

19 Lakeland Walkies Who’d be without their four-legged pal on the fells? Peter Naldrett looks at how dog walkers, farmers and landowners can coexist happily

40 The Greater Traverse

54 Ullscarf and Grange Fell

Bill Birkett steps back in time during a round of nine peaks in the Langdale Pikes

22 Dog-friendly walks

62 Linescapes

Wild woodlands, and even wilder empty fells – Ronald Turnbull investigates the two different beauties of Borrowdale

Peter offers two routes that are perfect for pup-friendly adventures

Artist Mark Richards sketches High Street

57 Calf Crag

27 My Lakeland Adventure

THE WALKS

Vivienne Crow links two gorgeous valleys via a 1,761ft top

The Kerr family have a 1990s book club to thank for their peak bagging obssesion – and their terrific Berghaus prize

49 Sale Fell circuit Vivienne Crow enjoys constantly changing views on the edge of the Lake District

GOOD GEAR GUIDE

30 Big Picture

50 Stonycroft Gill Round

Study your maps and test your fell knowledge for a chance to win a pair of Keen boots

33 Six of the best Vivienne Crow heads for the heights to offersix of her favourite ridge walks

WALKING AND YOUR SAFETY Hill walking can be strenuous, and it is up to you to approach it with caution and, if you are inexperienced, to do so under appropriate supervision. You should carry appropriate clothing, equipment and maps, and wear suitable footwear.

The details given within this issue were believed to be correct at the time of going to press but neither the authors nor Country Publications Ltd can accept responsibility for inaccuracies. Please stick to rights of way and access land at all times.

Support Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue teams at www.ldsamra.org.uk.

CONTRIBUTING TO LAKELAND WALKER We’re always happy to receive and consider material for publication in Lakeland Walker magazine, and to encourage new contributors where possible. Please bear with us though – we’re not always able to respond immediately (we might be up a hill!).

Country Publications Ltd does not accept responsibility for loss or damage to unsolicited drawings, paintings, photographs or manuscripts. The cost of returning such material must be paid for by the original sender. No part of this publication may be reproduced,

Steve Goodier guides us around the ridges and summits above Stonycroft Gill

52 High Spy Paul Richardson combines a high plateau above Borrowdale with a relaxing boat trip

44 The regeneration game John Manning outlines a few steps any walker can take to save a few pounds by giving their gear a new lease of life

46 A pole apart John gets a handle on the latest offering from Pacerpoles’

stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any other means without the written permission of the publisher.

Photocopying or other reproduction without the publisher’s permission is a breach of copyright and action will be taken where this occurs. While the publishers will use every endeavour to ensure that advertisements which appear are accurate and reliable, we cannot be held liable for any loss or inconvenience incurred by readers.

DATA PROTECTION AND YOUR PRIVACY Country Publications respects your privacy. We will use any personal information that you provide to contact you (by post, telephone or email) regarding product or subscription orders that you place. We will also keep you informed of relevant special reader offers. Please write to our subscriptions department if you do not wish this to happen.

We do occasionally share information with other partner organisations who may also wish to contact you with details of their offers. Please write to our subscriptions department if you do not wish this to happen.

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March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 5

6 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

FeLL FOcuS

News MOUNTAIN OF STARS LINED UP TO THRILL AT KESWICK SIR CHRIS BONINGTON, Alan Hinkes, KT Tunstall, Helvellyn and Scafell Pike… you couldn't wish for a much bigger list of attractions for this year’s Keswick Mountain Festival (KMF).

But there’s more: the bill also includes Terry Abraham, pop stars Cast, fellrunners Nicky Spinks and Jasmin Paris, Great Gable and a multitude of other climbers, outdoor athletes, mountains and celebrities.

This year’s popular festival is being held later than previous events – over the long weekend of June 8–11 (see Lakeland Walker issue 116) – with a programme of Salomon-sponsored walks talking place on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The walks form part of a packed programme of sporting events, talks, walks and courses designed to appeal to families as much as athletes, as well as outdoor enthusiasts from every discipline.

Featured walks head through Borrowdale, over the Buttermere fells and on to some of Lakeland’s highest peaks, including Helvellyn, Scafell Pike and Great Gable.

For when the walking’s over, a stellar line-up will thrill audiences at Keswick’s Theatre on the Lake with tales of their exploits and achievements. One of the highlights is the double act of awardwinning filmmaker Terry Abraham and 8,000m climber Alan Hinkes, currently collaborating on a film about Alan’s remarkable achievements in the world’s greater ranges (expect the theatre bar to be well-stocked that evening).

The festival will again be based on Crow Park in Keswick, where visitors will find a wide range of displays, entertainment and stands, including Lakeland Walker’s own humble marquee. Editor John Manning

Above, crowds enjoy live music with a Cat Bells backdrop (photo by Dougie Cunningham, courtesy KMF); below, youngsters have a go at climbing (photo by Stuart Holmes, courtesy KMF) will be on hand to meet readers and chat about the magazine, the latest issue of which will be available, along with various goodies and giveaways.

The festival’s walks programme has been sponsored by outdoor gear company Salomon and has been put together by Cockermouth-based The Lake District Walker. Prices during the festival start at £20 for a family hike up Walla Crag – one of two family hikes for 2017 – and peak at £50 for the challenging Borrowdale 10, said to be on par with events such as the National Three Peaks Challenge (plus transaction fees, and ferries etc where applicable). Other activities include a beginners’ navigation course, dinghy sailing, canoeing, rock climbing and ghyll scrambling, and even windsurfing.

Friday’s music stage will be headlined by 1990s Liverpool alt-rockers Cast who, between 1995 and 1999, had a number of top-twenty chart hits. Saturday night’s headliner is international rock and folk artist KT Tunstall, who has had a string of chart hits since 2004 and released two albums last year. Regular KMF visitors will be delighted to hear that Celtic fusion stars the Peatbog Faeries – who have a number of “best live act” awards and nominations to their name – will return for the third year running with their energetic and raucous, mainly instrumental mix of pipes, fiddles, guitar and synth.

KMF organisers drew wide criticism in October when they announced that the dates of the festival had been changed from May to June. Many people intending

to visit had already booked accommodation and were faced with honouring the booking or losing a deposit, while some accommodation providers said they had not been made aware of the date change.

Organisers countered some of the criticism by stating that the change had been necessary to allow an expansion of provisions for camping, an enhanced programme and the potential to attract more visitors during early summer.

Capacity for camping close to the festival activities has indeed been expanded. Pre-pitched tents have been made available by tent-rent company Pillow, for those struggling to find accommodation in the already busy Lakeland market town. Prices start from £95 for a standard two-person tent with twin airbeds; family tents sleeping up to four are available for £175. Sleeping bags can be bought for £25 each. The top-spec rental available is a four-metre cotton bell tent complete with Aero beds, fitted sheets, duvets, pillows, rugs, throws, mats, battery-powered lamps and a table and chairs outside, which will cost £350 for the whole weekend. Prices do not include meals or festival tickets, though toilets and showers will be available.

Weekend festival tickets, which can be booked at keswickmountainfestival.co.uk, cost £46 per adult. To find out more, visit the website or Facebook, email info@keswickmountainfestival.co.uk, or follow @keswickfestival on Twitter.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 7

FeLL FOcuS

What’s On

Holding a walk, talk or related event? Let Lakeland Walker spread the news! Email details to johnm@dalesman.co.uk

Find us online at: www.lakeland-walker.com MARCH 11 Crossing the Empty Quarter British explorer Mark Evans MBE describes his forty-nine-day, 800-mile journey on foot and by camel across the world’s biggest sand desert, tracing Bertram Thomas’ unique crossing in 1930. RGS talk at Percival Lecture Theatre, University of Cumbria (Ambleside Campus), Rydal Road, Ambleside. Starts 6.30pm (drinks) for 7pm. Free, please book.

Details: Chris Loynes, email chris.loynes@cumbria.ac.uk 18 Derwent Water Dawdle Challenging 22-mile route with three tough ascents during a full circuit of Derwent Water. Starts from Victory Memorial Hall, Keswick, and heads up Cat Bells then to Rosthwaite, Dock Tarn, Watendlath, Surprise View, Ashness Bridge, Walla Crag and Castlehead. Cost £29; booking essential. www.sientries.co.uk; www.ascendevents.co.uk 18–25 Backpacking week Annual Backpackers’ Club Lakeland meet – join for a weekend or the whole week, finishing with a pub meal at Wainwright’s Inn at Chapel Stile. First night is at Baysbrown campsite, Great Langdale (GR: NY313049, £5). Must be pre-booked with organiser. www.backpackersclub.co.uk 25 Reston Scar and Black Crag Join members of the Wainwright Society for a pre-AGM 3.5-mile, two-hour walk from Staveley Village Hall. www.wainwright.org.uk

APRIL 9 Hills, Gills and Falls Moderate 6.2 miles over Tom Heights to

The Hike programme will be at the heart of the 2017 Keswick Mountain Festival, photo courtesy of KMF Colwith Force and Holme Fell for views across Coniston Water. Starts 10.30am, Glen Mary Bridge/Tom Gill National Trust car park.

Adults £5, children free. Booking advised. www.lakedistrict.gov.uk 14 Family Walk: Coppermines Valley Moderate four miles, hearing tales of the men, women and children who worked in the copper-mining industry. Starts 10.30am, Coniston TIC. Free of charge. www.lakedistrict.gov.uk 28 Images from a Warming Planet Award-winning environmental photographer Ashley Cooper’s RGS slideshow outlines his thirteen-year journey to document the global impacts of climate change and the rise of renewables. Starts 7pm (drinks) for 7.30pm, The Box, Kendal College Media and Arts Campus, Beezon

Road, Kendal. RGS-IBG members free, nonmembers £5 on entry. Details: Tim Foster, 017687 79601, email nw@rgs.org April 29–July 2 Derek Eland – Being Human at Base Camp Rheged, near Penrith. First exhibition by Cumbrian multi-media artist Derek Eland of the work he created over six weeks as Everest Base Camp’s first ever artist in residence. Includes photography, raw and confessional handwritten accounts collected in the artist’s unique “diary room”, social media and video. Free entry. www.rheged.com

LOOKING AHEAD 8-11 June Keswick Mountain Festival For details see pages 7 and 12. www.keswickmountainfestival.co.uk

MARY WELSH MARY WELSH, whose walking routes introduced many thousands of Lakeland Walker readers to Cumbria’s trails and footpaths, has died at the age of eighty-eight. Mary’s careful and meticulous routes appeared in the magazine from the early days until she retired, before moving to London to be closer to her family.

Mary also contributed for many years to our sister title Cumbria magazine and wrote two walking guides, reprinted several times, for our publisher Dalesman.

John Manning said: “When I started editing Lakeland Walker and Cumbria, Mary was part of the bedrock upon which both were built. She managed to be thoroughly professional while always a pleasure to work with. She was a great favourite with readers and an inspiration to many outdoor writers.”

Mary’s childhood was spent exploring the countryside around Hemel Hempstead, where she was raised. She

8 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

took up hostelling in her teens and, during a hostelling trip to Devon in 1947, met her future husband, journalist Tom Welsh. In 1979, when Tom was appointed editor of the North Western Evening Mail in Barrow-in-Furness, Mary took up a teaching post at Whitehaven Grammar, moving later to John Ruskin School in Coniston.

The couple moved to Broughton-in-Furness and the joy Mary found in rural life was expressed in her first book, A Country Journal – The Diary of a Cumbrian Naturalist, in 1982. She went on to write fifty titles and contributed walks to numerous publications including The Times, The Express and The Big Issue in the North.

After Tom’s death in 2014, Mary moved in 2016 to be closer to her children in London. Even then, she didn’t hang up her boots and continued to introduce her grandchildren to the Essex forests and the Chilterns hills. Characteristically, she had started to prepare a new portfolio of walks.

FeLL FOcuS

LIFE OF AN EXHIBITION: BLENCATHRA

Photo courtesy of Phil Rigby

AN ExHIBITION FEATURING Terry Abraham’s award-winning Life of a Mountain: Blencathra documentary opens at Keswick Museum on May 20, thanks to Heritage Lottery funding worth £27,200. The display will run until January 2018 and, like the documentary, will have input from community groups.

Coordinator Jenn Mattinson is working with volunteers and residents to collect memories, stories, objects and photographs about the mountain as well as their hopes for the future. Their offerings will be combined with Terry’s stills and film footage to create the exhibition, which also involves Blencathra Centre occupants the Field Studies Council and the Mountain Heritage Trust.

Terry (pictured right), whose Blencathra film made its TV debut on BBC4 in February, said: “I’m absolutely thrilled that my documentary will be used in a different way and extended by this project. It’s great to be able to retain and build on all the relationships I’ve made with people in the area.”

The exhibition will be open 10am–4pm daily. For information contact curator Sue Mackay on 017687 73263 or by email at sue.mackay@keswickmuseum.org.uk. l Nurture Lakeland has announced that Terry has agreed to become its patron. Terry has already supported the charity and its beneficiaries, with an exclusive outdoor screening of Life of a Mountain: Blencathra’s director’s cut; the one-night-only event raised more than £2,300 and proceeds were donated to Nurture Lakeland and Fix the Fells.

Nurture Lakeland’s trustees chair Gill Houston said, “I am delighted that Terry has agreed to be patron. His talent at capturing the Lake District on film demonstrates a real empathy with the landscape that links well with the aims of Nurture Lakeland.” www.nurturelakeland.org

CONGRATULATIONS…

CONGRATULATIONS…

…TO OUR sister magazine Cumbria, which marks its 70th anniversary with the March issue, on sale from February 23–March 23. The edition includes a reproduction of the original March/ April 1947 magazine – which features an article by renowned mountain writer Harry Griffin – and tells the story of original editor Leslie Hewkin.

Leslie founded the magazine on behalf of the sub-regional Lakeland groups of the Youth Hostels Association. Subsequently, as a member of the National Park Authority Planning Board, he formed the Lake District’s volunteer wardens service, which served as a template for similar countryside services across the country. He was made an MBE in 1972.

The issue also reveals the results of the anniversary poll to identify Cumbria readers’ favourite views, in which many Lakeland Walker readers also cast their vote. Yes we know the answer and no, we’re not telling…

… TO FILM MAKER, LW cover snapper and ale enthusiast Terry Abraham, who with wife Sue recently moved to a new home in Cumbria’s Eden Valley, from Newark in Nottinghamshire. It means Terry is now based in the county he loves, which provided the setting for his most successful documentaries to date.

They include his Life of a Mountain instalments Scafell Pike and Blencathra, and others including Helvellyn with Mark Richards, the LW inksman (see page 62), which included a cameo by editor John Manning.

Terry’s currently working on a film about mountaineer Alan Hinkes, still the only Brit to have scaled the world’s 8,000m peaks, after which he is due to start on the third instalment of the Life of a Mountain series, focussing on Helvellyn. We’re wondering, though, if the delights of Eden will tempt him to focus his lens instead on Cross Fell…

SEARCH ‘WAINWRIGHTGOLDENBEER’

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 9

FeLL FOcuS

THRICE THE CHALLENGE THE TRIPLE SPINE LAKELAND CHALLENGE – a testing three-day hike over some of Lakeland’s highest peaks and toughest ground – is set to be held over the long weekend of September 22–24.

Based around Ambleside, the challenge was devised by fellwalker and backpacker Richard Jennings, in memory of Dave “Lakesnut” Clapham, who died in 2015 after suffering with depression for many years.

It involves walking sixty-six miles over the three days, covering thirty-three Wainwrights and ascending 17,300 feet. day one runs from Ambleside to Threlkeld The Hard Way; day two’s Roman Highway follows High Street from Brocavum to Galava; while day three tackles a Bog Hop between Ambleside and Keswick.

This is the third year Richard has invited people to take part in a TSLC weekend. While he walks to raise money for mental health charity Mind, participants – who take part at their own risk – are welcome to use the event to raise funds for any cause close to their hearts.

The TSLC is intended as an any-time challenge, with information – including itineraries, accommodation suggestions and public transport times – provided on the website.

For details of the event and the any-time challenge, visit tslc.uk.

THEY SHALL HAVE WIFI WHEREVER THEY GO… KENDAL MOUNTAIN RESCUE TEAM has taken delivery of a satellite wifi system to improve communications among the fells.

While most of us go into the mountains to get away from it all, such links are vital for rescue volunteers for whom the ability to converse with other team members, control centres and other emergency services can mean the difference between life and death.

In February team members took the equipment, which includes a small, portable satellite dish and computers, into the Kentmere Valley – a known communications blackspot – and gave it a thorough test in poor conditions.

“In driving wind, rain and snow we managed to establish a wifi link and initiate MR map and SARCALL,” it reported on its website.

“We also managed to Skype with crystal-clear voice communications. The equipment will allow us to operate more efficiently in isolated areas away from base. We would like to thank all members of the public who make donations to Kendal MRT, which in turn enables us to make these purchases.”

The SARCALL system allows incident managers to quickly and easily identify which team is best-placed to respond to an emergency call and enables teams to request assistance from colleagues in other areas. www.kendalmountainrescue.org.uk

Capturing the glories of the fell

L

akeland Walker’s anniversary competition is in its final stages: photographers have until April 3 to submit their finest images to be in with a chance of winning our fabulous prize package. Hundreds of entries have been received so far – from skilled enthusiasts and professionals alike – and a small selection is shown on this page.

Entries for the competition to mark the magazine’s twentieth anniversary are invited in three categories: Paul Hamilton Landscape: capturing the region’s physical beauty (tip: think Where in The Lakes, p30/31) Outdoor Action: evoking the excitement of Lakeland walks (think LW’s front covers) Fun in the Fells: sharing the joy of time in the Lake District (think Your Pictures, p11) The judging panel – photographer Nigel Flory of lead partner Cumbrian Cottages, documentary maker Terry Abraham, Fix the Fells’ Tanya Oliver and editor John Manning – will select category winners and choose the overall prize recipient. He or she will win a £400 holiday cottage voucher provided by Cumbrian Cottages and a MindShift Gear rotation180 Horizon photographer’s backpack (worth more than £200) provided by Snapperstuff. Prizes for category winners include DVD box sets of Terry Abraham’s stunning documentaries Life of a Mountain: Blencathra and Scafell Pike, courtesy of Terry and Striding Edge, and £100 vouchers to spend with Cumbrian outdoor gear manufacturer EDZ. Email your images – high resolution preferred – to johnm@dalesman.co.uk (subject line “LW photo comp”) or post them to: Lakeland Walker Anniversary Competition, Country Publications, The Water Mill, Broughton Hall, Skipton BD23 3AG. Remember to include your name, email address, category entered and a brief caption. Guidelines, and terms and conditions, can be found at www.lakelandwalker.com Partners Cumbrian Cottages offers a stunning selection of selfcatering Lake District holiday cottages. www.cumbrian-cottages.co.uk

l Photography gear specialist Snapperstuff is the only UK distributor of MindShift Gear’s innovative rotation180 photographers’ packs. snapperstuff.com

l Lakeland-based EDZ’s range of outdoor clothing and accessories has a reputation as top-quality, functional kit. www.edzlayering.com

l Terry Abraham’s award-winning Life of a Mountain documentaries, shown on BBC TV, are available from www.stridingedge.com. terryabrahamlakedistrictvideo.wordpress.com

10 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Steve Harradine

PHOTOS

Your Pictures Carrying a camera on the fells? Send in your favourite shots – if one appears here it could win you a pair of Bridgedale socks

WIN ME

The sender of every photo published will receive a pair of Bridgedale WoolFusion CuPED Trekker socks worth £15.99, renowned for outstanding comfort, durability and performance. Their bound copper ions offer enhanced antimicrobial properties, reducing odour and promoting healthier feet. Please ensure you include your full address and shoe size in your email.

t Daisie the rc, of Blairgowrie, trea nzies and their son Ma towards lley Fiona and Alastair Me Va s n the Newland Cat Bells, looking dow Many t! mi Charpoo to the view from oyed their first sum y Fiona and Daisie enj ull pef Ho ite. wa sending nth for sse Ba in East Ayrshire, n Scott, of Mauchline ria Ad dad ’s na Fio to thanks in the photo.

Six-year-old twins Chloe and Lucy Forster, of Cleator, enjoyed a summit view with Labradors Jessie and Rosie.

“They have always enjoyed walking but this is their first Wainwright – Sale Fell!” said Mum Jen. “They are already planning their next one.”

Nettle takes in the view from Gowbarrow’s summit cairn as owner Jonny Martin, of Workington, and girlfr iend Charlotte Pattinson prepare to com plete their two-day walk around the new Ull swater Way.

John J. William, of Billingham in Teesside, takes a break with wife Joan and their dog Roly on the new stone bench near the crossroads that lead to the stone circle from Pooley Bridge, to Howtown and Arthur's Pike.

“Such a beautiful walk with amazing views” is how Lynsey Searle, of Tollesby, Mi ddlesbrough, describes thi s walk she took over a snowy Wansfell Pike with Molly the col lie.

iN THe FrAMe

Email your images to johnm@dalesman.co.uk. Please include your full name, address and shoe size, along with a sentence explaining who or what is in the frame – and what they’re up to! You can also upload pictures to www.lakeland-walker.com

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 11

KESWICK MOUNTAIN FESTIVAL – More than £800 worth of prizes to be won with walker Lakeland

Keswick Mountain Festival – the ultimate outdoor weekend – returns on the weekend of June 8–11 with a packed schedule of outdoor activities, sports events, family attractions, camping and live music.

Lakeland Walker is delighted to be a media partner of this vibrant event: come along and join us in the Festival Village on Crow Park, on Derwent Water’s shore, where walkers, water sports enthusiasts, runners, cyclists, swimmers and triathletes will all start and finish their adventures. The site will be packed with displays, activities and great food and drink. In the evening, the crowds will be entertained by the likes of Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall, the Peatbog Faeries and Cast. Meanwhile, speakers include climbers Sir Chris Bonington, Alan Hinkes OBE and trail runners Nicky Spinks and Jasmin Paris.

The eleventh Keswick Mountain Festival looks set to be as good as ever and Lakeland Walker has five pairs of weekend tickets (worth £92 a pair) to offer as prizes.

The tickets give access to festival village activities, including the live music on both nights.

Each winner will also receive a 30-litre Berghaus Freeflow daysack (right) worth £85. Berghaus is sponsor of the festival’s Adventure Hub, from which many of the weekend’s visitor adventures will begin. Its iconic Freeflow pack has been a fixture on the hills for a generation and, after more than a year in development, the new Freeflow range promises to be more popular than ever. Its cleverly updated back system minimises contact between pack and walker – extensive tests on the fells have shown that backs remain thirty per cent drier than with a closefitting system. The new Freeflows are available now in a range of sizes, from 20 to 40 litres. For more information visit www.berghaus.com.

To be in with a chance of winning, answer the following question: Which Scottish singer-songwriter will perform at this year’s festival?

Email your entry to linda@dalesman.co.uk (subject line “Keswick Festival”) or send it on a postcard or back of a sealed envelope to: Keswick Festival Competition, Lakeland Walker, Country Publications Ltd, The Water Mill, Broughton Hall, Skipton BD23 3AG. To find out more about this year’s festival, ticket and camping information visit keswickmountainfestival.co.uk. The first five correct entries drawn after April 24, 2017, will win. If you do not wish to receive promotional material, please indicate on your entry. Usual Country Publications Ltd rules apply. *The weekend ticket does not give access to camping, individual speaker sessions or other ticketed activities.

Special offer to Lakeland Walker readers.

Lakeland Walker readers can receive £5 off the price of a weekend ticket to Keswick Mountain Festival. Simply quote the promotional code “LWWEEKEND” when booking your tickets online at www.keswickmountainfestival.co.uk.

12 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

OuT AND AbOuT

Andy Beck on Haystacks

Paintings by 214 numbers John Manning chats with artist Andy Beck about his ten-year project to depict all the Wainwrights in colour

W

e’re just into the first full week of February when the phone rings. It’s Andy Beck who, just days earlier, had answered Lakeland Walker’s questions about his magnum opus, The Wainwrights in Colour. The publication date is just weeks away. So close… but I can tell straight away from Andy’s voice that something is wrong.

This remarkable project has consumed Andy’s life for a decade. His goal has been to reproduce, in his own hand and in colour, every illustration in Alfred Wainwright’s seven-volume Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells.

On the phone, though, Andy sounds anxious. He’s just received printer’s proofs and isn’t happy. Gone are the vibrancy and colour of his paintings. While you or I might

not notice, Andy sounds despondent. So close and yet…

It’s fair, I reckon, to describe Andy as a perfectionist. The Wainwrights in Colour is no mere exercise in copying AW’s meticulous pen and ink drawings and colouring them in.

Andy has been out in the field countless times, visiting and revisiting the precise spots from which Wainwright worked, to create his own pieces of art, working in watercolours to produce 1,509 sketches. All will feature in a book so weighty that, when printed, each of the 5,000 numbered and signed copies will have to be bound by hand.

So when he saw the proofs Andy, who has self-funded the publication, postponed the March launch at Kendal’s Castle Green Hotel and set out to reformat every digital

illustration. As this issue of Lakeland Walker went to press, Andy – a relieved and much happier Andy – was able to report that publication was back on track for the first weekend in May.

A

ndy was born in South Wales and raised in Northern Ireland, where he boarded at The Royal School in Armagh.

His early memories are of cycling holidays around the North Antrim coast, and summers spent sketching and painting. “Living in Northern Ireland there was always a country atmosphere, even though we lived in a town and I was at boarding school,” he recalled.

“My grandfather was a farmer in County Down so there were plenty of visits there.”

After leaving school – his qualifications

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 13

included an Art O-level – he joined the Royal Air Force, and served in Germany and Belize as well as at stations around the UK. He continued to practise his artistic skills, painting and making models of military figures and armoured vehicles. He also produced cartoons for in-station magazines, and paintings for different units.

“I used to do military training, involving navigation and adventure training, in various areas throughout the UK and Germany. But Lakeland – dramatic mountains all within a relatively small area – was a favourite,” he said. “The RAF Regiment was always on operation duties somewhere, such as the Falklands and Northern Ireland, but I left before major conflicts such as the first Gulf War. It seemed time to make a change.

Having once seen the RAF as a career, I changed my mind after twelve years and decided to take up painting, as I had a flair for it. Being an artist is totally different but I still need the discipline to sit all day on my own and paint.

“We became regular visitors to the Lake District. At that time Wainwright was not such a feature – I had one or two of the Pictorial Guides but did not follow him religiously.”

Those earlier Lakeland visits were guided not by AW’s guides but by those of Bob Allen, which he used regularly. Andy only came across the Pictorial Guides by chance, in an Ambleside bookshop.

“I like Wainwright’s unique style and attention to detail. No-one did it like him and no-one will again,” he explained. “His

14 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Above, Andy at work in his studio; below, his painting of Helm Crag

guidebooks are of their time but will stand the test of time. The hand-drawn illustrations appealed as an alternative to photographs.

Wainwright decided on his own format, which was his personal trait. Others have tried to copy but none will better it. I am a fan of what he did – what he put on the page is important.”

Fifty-nine-year-old Andy and his wife Esther live in Bowes, County Durham. I was surprised that, given his obvious love for Lakeland, he hadn’t moved closer.

“I live only an hour away from Keswick so it was not so problematic,” he replied. “Living in the Lake District has never particularly appealed to me. Driving over Stainmore Pass and seeing the fells laid out is a bit like going on holiday, even though it’s work. I know I’m going into an inspiring area to explore and work so I can enjoy the fells for what they are.

Besides, I live in Teesdale and just over the hill from the Yorkshire Dales – why would I move?”

The Wainwrights in Colour project came about by chance during one of those trips over Stainmore Gap. “I had been walking in Wasdale in July 2006 between Red Pike and Pillar, near Black Crag,” said Andy. “I turned round and the view looked familiar. I got out my Pictorial Guide and compared the picture. I must have been standing within three or four metres of where Wainwright had stood. I found that very interesting and considered doing a colour version of that sketch.

“That watercolour sketch started as a oneoff. There was no big plan, but an inspired

A small selection from the 1,509 images contained within Th Wainwright’s in Colour: main picture, Crinkle Crag; above, Dow Crag; left, Tarn Crag

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 15

Middle Dodd from Red Screes

idea. It was as simple as that but it snowballed.”

Andy has worked in other media but chose watercolour for The Wainwrights in Colour.

“There is a nice vibrance of colour, and it is immediate – you can sketch in the field in watercolour easier than oil. It’s easier to carry watercolour kit around with you – I generally carry it while out walking – you can sketch and make colour notes.”

Wainwright produced his own drawings at home, from photographs taken on the fell.

Andy adopted a similar approach,

“

I imagine that many people will read my book while comparing the sketches to those in the original guides

photographing views then painting them in his Bowes studio. “Wainwright often stood in places that would be impractical to paint in the field – on scree slopes, or on summits with others around,” he said. “He was also taller, so I had to hold my camera higher.

Painting in the field just wasn’t feasible.”

Pinpointing some of AW’s more obscure vantage points wasn’t always

16 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

straightforward. Locating features such as the rocky spire near Crinkle Crags known as Gladstone’s Finger, and the grave of foxhound Charmer near the outflow from Goat’s Water, required assistance which was, fortunately, always forthcoming: “Derry Brabbs helped me to find Gladstone’s Finger, as I was getting frustrated. Andrew Leaney gave a pointer to the location of Charmer’s grave. Botanist Dr Margaret Bradshaw gave advice on how to locate the rare Alpine Catchfly on Hobcarton Crag. She’d never been there herself but knew the flowering times and the possible location.”

Ten years, 1,727 miles, two Wainwright rounds, 628 summits and a breathtaking – often literally – 587,992ft of fellside down the road, Andy’s book is finally about to be published. A new date of the first weekend in May has been set and Andy is keenly anticipating delivery of the first hand-bound volumes.

“The project was finished when the last painting was done, but the publication of the book is the final stage. There are 1,509 sketches and all will feature in the book,” Andy tells me. “The original idea was just to put a majority of the sketches in the book but that looked incomplete so I redesigned it to include each sketch, nearly always to scale and in the order that they appear in the

Pictorial Guides. I imagine that many people will read my book while comparing the sketches to those in the original guides.”

Despite having been consumed by the Wainwright book for so long, Andy already has plans for future work. “Prior to the project I painted landscapes and wildlife from places I know – mainly Teesdale and the Yorkshire Dales. I would like to do a project on Teesdale; it’s a fantastic area rich in subjects right on my doorstep. I do have another Lakeland project in mind but I plan to get back up to the Highlands of Scotland first and do some work, I have missed going up there.”

Making a living as an artist has been a struggle at times, and Andy has been grateful for wife Esther’s support. “I might not have chosen this career if I had a family, but my wife has a steady job. Art is something I enjoy so if I can make a career out of a passion then why not give it a go? It’s very difficult to make a living from art – if I hadn’t done The Wainwrights in Colour I might not still be an artist – but Esther is very understanding.

“Even as the Wainwrights project has proved a success, it’s not been easy. My more traditional style does not appeal to funding from arts councils or other agencies, which tend to support more avant-garde styles.

Thankfully, there are some who appreciate my style when they could have bought photographs or paintings in other mediums.”

Those people have provided Andy with the drive necessary to complete the project.

“The reaction from other Wainwright followers was so good I knew the project was likely to be an artistic success. The interest and support from customers, the fact that clients were prepared to order works that were hardly even started, have been the driving factors to see The Wainwrights in Colour through to its end.”

Finally, I had to ask Andy whether he had ever met AW. “I never met him. There’s something quite nice about not having a personal connection – what if we had met but didn’t get on? Perhaps that would have tainted my opinion of his work. There is something intriguing about him; even today it seems there is this myth about his grumpiness – often a tag given by those who never met him in person. If he was a happy-go-lucky, back-slapping-in-the-pub sort-of-guy, would he still be held in such reverence as he is today? I think not.” n l For more information about The Wainwrights in Colour, including the launch weekend and ordering details, see andybeckartist.co.uk.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 17

18 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

WALkiNg WiTH DOgS

Lakeland walkies With great dogs comes great responsibility. Dog walkers have as much right to enjoy the mountains as other fellwalkers but they must also think about others – people and animals alike – says Peter Naldrett

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 19

W

hen I spent a year writing The Lake District Dog – A Walker’s Guide, I had to put myself in the mind of both the dog handler and the dog.

I had to bear in mind both the planning of the walks and the act of getting out there to enjoy them. While we as fellwalkers might want challenging terrain and outstanding views, the dogs in our lives are just as likely to wag their tails over something as easily accessed as a nice river and a small wood.

The walks you and I plan with our dogs have to be fun for owners and dogs alike: if they aren’t, we might as well not bother putting on our boots – or his lead.

I had additional perspectives to consider.

It’s also important to think about walkers who aren’t dog owners, and those who are positively not dog lovers. They don’t want a muddy dog jumping up at them, especially if they or their children are terrified of Man’s best friend.

Then there are the farmers, the custodians of Lakeland, who are responsible for so much of the landscape and, of course, earn their livelihood from it. Nobody with any sense wants to upset a farmer.

Planning a dog walk is about so much more than keeping you and Rover happy.

With all this in mind, there are two words that you need to think of before you take off on to the fells to enjoy a fun and exciting time with your dog: sense and responsibility.

If you plan your walk sensibly and responsibly, you won’t go far wrong.

Sadly, it’s evident that some people’s definition of sensible and responsible behaviour differs to yours and mine – and indeed to that of the Lake District National Park Authority. I reckoned that a chat with landowners and decision-makers in the Lake District might help give us all a bit of a reminder.

“

Sadly, it’s evident that some people’s definition of sensible and responsible behaviour differs to yours and mine

Nick Thorne is the countryside access adviser for the National Park Authority and is keen for more people to learn about being safe with dogs on the fells.

He said: “We don’t get many complaints about people walking their dogs on the fells, thankfully, but I’m not sure if that’s because there aren’t any problems or people don’t report them.

“We have had some issues of dogs worrying sheep, but aside from these

A common-sense approach: keep your dog on a lead when on Access Land

20 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

isolated incidents the biggest problem we encounter in the Lake District is dog mess.”

This is, of course, a worrisome and recurring problem in many areas, particularly on paths close to settlements. It only takes one person failing to clean up after their dog and, over the course of a few weeks, you have an unsightly, unhealthy mess. Nobody likes that, particularly families with young children.

Nick points out that the responsibility for dog waste bins lies with district councils and there are plenty in place already, though they tend to be in car parks and urban edges rather than in the countryside.

Ironically, many of the comments received by the National Park Authority about dogs come from dog owners themselves. There are several instances of cattle chasing dogs and their owners in the Lake District and elsewhere, some resulting in serious injuries.

Nick Thorne is clear on his advice: “Around cattle, walkers should keep their dog on a lead if at all possible but if cattle come up to the dog and start chasing you, at that point you should let your dog off the lead.”

The National Park Authority, along with the National Farmers’ Union, has been busy over the years putting signs up around farms to warn people of the issues associated with walking with dogs, particularly in lambing season.

The biggest job they can do is to educate people. Using their websites, leaflets and by

spreading the word in the media, they hope to get the word out and encourage responsible walking.

And taking responsibility is the best way for humans, dogs and cattle to stay safe out on the fells.

One of the most commonly asked questions is “when should a dog be kept on a lead?”. The answer, unfortunately, is not entirely straightforward.

The law says dogs don’t have to be on a lead if you are on a public right of way. If you’re hiking across Access Land, however, then dogs do have to be on a short fixed lead of up to two metres between March 1 and July 31. Those dates are important: it’s lambing time and it’s nesting season. There have been many instances when, sadly, dogs have stolen eggs from nests on the ground, and have chased pregnant ewes and young lambs. The stress of what the dog might see as a game, but to the sheep is an attack, can literally kill sheep of any age.

Remember, even the most reliable of dogs can dash off to chase the source of any scent; a common-sense approach is needed, and it’s always better to be safe than sorry. As well as having to wear a lead when on Access Land, it’s sensible to do it everywhere else in the countryside.

Away from Access Land, or outside of lambing and nesting times, the answer about whether your dog should be on a lead can come down to the individual dog: sometimes it will be “constantly”; occasionally it won’t matter; and the answer might differ from day to day. Livestock might be moved from field to pasture one day,

farmyard to field the next; different dogs have different temperaments. The general response, however, is that you should have your lead handy at all times, and your dog should always be under control, close to you.

If you are in an area where there is livestock nearby, it wouldn’t hurt to slip the lead on.

There is no textbook answer: you have to be both sensible and responsible. n l Peter Naldrett is the author of The Lake District – A Dog Walker’s Guide and a companion volume for Derbyshire & the Peak District (Countryside Books)

Getting the message across, so that our four-legged friends can also enjoy the countryside in safety

Serious business Sheep worrying is about much more than bringing a playful dog back under control. Last year there were twentytwo instances of dogs killing one or more sheep on Cumbrian farms, and police received reports of twice as many attacks across the county.

Garsdale farmer Ian Calvert had to put sheep down after they were worried by dogs. He said: “It is soul destroying, and completely out of my control. There is a footpath which goes across my field and I purposely don’t put my best sheep there because I can’t control other people’s dogs. I understand that dogs don’t do it on purpose but I won’t tolerate it any more.”

It is an offence to allow a dog to worry livestock. In some circumstances, farmers and landowners have a defence in law to shoot dogs when they are endangering animals. Police also have powers to seize dogs and an owner can be fined up to £1,000.

Superintendent Gary Slater said: “Worrying is a very serious issue and one that the police take seriously. It can lead to significant consequences for sheep and therefore farmers, and can be so easily prevented by owners keeping their dogs on a lead.

“The issue of sheep worrying is more pertinent … as lambing season approaches. A dog does not have to physically attack livestock to cause harm – even chasing them can cause distress and easily cause a pregnant sheep to miscarry.” l Sheep worrying can be reported to Cumbria Police on 101 or to Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 21

Hike: NOrTH WALkieS: WeSTerN FeLLS

Red Pike Two legs good, four legs even better. Enjoying the view from Red Pike (courtesy of Jeff Coates) THERE’S SOMETHING DEEPLY satisfying – for hound and handler – about reaching waterfalls and tarns. These amazing natural features, caused by the slow process of erosion over millennia, provide a sense of inner peace in calm Lakeland surroundings, and a place where a dog can enjoy a dip and cool down after the exertion of bounding up a fellside.

This walk is blessed with one of each.

Scale Force is hidden away in a deep gorge up Scale Beck, which leads into Crummock Water. Wordsworth described it as “a fine chasm, with a lofty, though slender, fall of water” and Coleridge described how it glimmered through trees hanging before it “like bushy hair over a madman’s eyes”.

Just hearing Scale Force from above is enchanting.

Descending from Red Pike, you’ll be enraptured by your view directly below of Bleaberry Tarn. Sitting in a fantastic glacial corrie, this is the stuff of geography textbooks and the lapping of the water will bring calm to the most frantic of lives.

The Red Pike hike is full of canine adventure. As well as the water, the dogs will love dipping their noses in two lakes; there are trees and heather to rummage around in and the challenge of negotiating rocks. You will love the view from the top as well, but remember to have your lead handy for when the need arises.

22 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Peter Naldrett scales a pooch-friendly peak that demands the use of hands as well as paws to ascend and descend 1 START Leave the car park and turn right along the road towards Buttermere, turning right again after the Bridge Hotel. Pass the café and the Fish Inn, following the sign for Crummock Water. Through a gate, continue along the track; you’re now between Buttermere to your left and Crummock Water to your right.

The track bends left then right to take you almost to Buttermere’s edge just as you bear right across a footbridge.

2 0.7 MILES/1.1KM Over another wooden bridge, pass through a gate in the wall and turn right. Beyond another gate, cross a stream (on either stepping stones or another bridge) and press on towards Crummock Water on a pleasant tree-edged path strewn with mossy stones.

The easy path crosses another wooden footbridge as you reach Crummock Water.

3 1.6 MILES/2.6KM At a fork in the path (GR: NY163170) bear left, climbing steadily as a magnificent view of Crummock Water and Buttermere opens up

Paws for a drink: a waterfall on Scale Beck

behind. At a large cairn, keep ahead; the path – rocky and wet in parts – starts to trend left as you slip towards the small valley of Scale Beck.

The north-western corner of Buttermere

4 2.7 MILES/4.3KM When you reach a wall (GR: NY151171), head through a gate and turn left. This is the start of the day’s long climb. After about 450 yards you reach Scale Beck and the long gorge it has created. Follow the beckside path upstream; some might need to use hands to surmount rockier sections but the heathery path does level to offer some respite.

5 3.2 MILES/5.2KM The streamside path takes a sudden left turn (GR: NY149164) on a well-established, short, steep climb straight up to the top of Lingcomb Edge.

6 3.8 MILES/6.1KM On the brow of the hill, a cautious peer over the edge will reveal that you’re between Crummock Water and Buttermere. Head right (GR: NY155161), for a steep final ascent to Red Pike, with a steep drop to your left. The closer you get to the summit, the rockier the path becomes. Should mist descend, cairns guide the way – though this is no place for anyone whose navigation skills are dodgy.

7 4.8 MILES/7.2KM After admiring the views from the summit, continue past from the small stone-built shelter, passing a cairn as you begin to

high above Buttermere’s shore is corrected by a sharp-left just after crossing a stream.

Continue to descend as though towards the lake’s near-corner.

descend. Take a wide path forking off left, north-west, down to The Saddle: the path is near-sheer, rocky and unstable, and you’ll need both hands as well as great care to lower yourself down safely. The gradient soon eases though and a red, rocky path leads down to Bleaberry Tarn.

9 5.8 MILES/9.3KM Pass through a gate into a wood, turning left along a path which brings you out at Buttermere. Pass through another gate to join your outward path and retrace your steps to the car park, though my money’s on a visit to the café or either pub before calling it a day. n

8 5 MILES/8KM VITALS Grade: Terrain: some steep and rocky ground to the summit of Red Pike, with a steep hands-on descent to Bleaberry Tarn Distance: 6.5 miles/10.4km

Head round the tarn to cross the outflow, Sourmilk Gill, and take the path left. There are great views of the two lakes as you descend the improving path; a sharp-right

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY173173

Time: 4 hours

3

Climb: 2,582ft/787m Start/finish: National Trust car park on the B5289, between Buttermere and Crummock Water (GR: NY173173)

START/ FINISH

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Maps: Harvey Maps 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25, Lake District North; Ordnance Survey 1:25000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area Transport: Buttermere is on Honister Rambler bus route 77/77A, April–October Accommodation: Buttermere Youth Hostel (0345 3719508), The Fish Inn (017687 70253), The Bridge Hotel (017687 70252) Refreshments: award-winning Croft House Farm Café is open throughout the week, 10am–5pm (017687 70235, www.crofthousefarmcafe.co.uk)

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March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 23

WALkieS: WeSTerN FeLLS

Ennerdale Water Peter Naldrett visits a canine paradise which holds a special place in the hearts of Bill and Hillary Clinton THE WONDER OF Ennerdale is its blissful remotenesss. It goes without saying that it’s also a beautiful location, where wild, rising peaks are tamed as they fall to the coast.

This is an ideal route on which to take your dog. With water on hand all the time, woods to sniff about in and few livestock encounters likely, it is a canine paradise. The real glory of this walk around Ennerdale Water, however, is its seclusion. Many day-trippers are put off by the fact that the dale is only accessible by car from the west, leaving you and your fourlegged friend in an oasis of calm.

Every trip to Ennerdale is an adventure offering a different aspect of the wildlife of Cumbria. During my last walk here, I was enjoying a moment of solitude, sitting on a bench, when hundreds of geese flew overhead on their annual migration. I encountered only six people during the entire walk, two of them resting by the shore with a dog in a kayak.

The fact that Bill Clinton proposed to Hillary here is perhaps no wonder: it is a romantic location, making it all the more surprising that she said “no” (at that stage). This is a favourite place of the former President and the one-time Presidential hopeful. It’s also a great antidote to the current whirlwind of American and domestic politics.

before it heads into more substantial woodland. This is a popular walk for dog lovers and you’re likely find it a social experience. Though easily followed, the woodland path can be rocky and slippery in places, so take care. You’ll cross several streams spilling off The Side high above to your right, into Ennerdale Water. And look out for the magical, troll-like blanket of moss-covered rocks.

After about a mile and a quarter (GR: NY113151), a path leads back to the water and offers a prettier, rockier return to the car park as you listen to the lapping of the water, as well as a different perspective on the crags passed earlier on Ennerdale Water’s south including detail – such as scree slopes – you were unable to see on the first half of the walk.

4 3.2 MILES/5.1KM

7 5.8 MILES/9.4KM

6 5.2 MILES/8.4KM

Leave The Side through the gate and follow a grassy path beyond to the far side of Ennerdale Water. Sheep usually graze here so dogs should be on leads. Stay with the path; don’t be tempted to cut across the grass on the left: wait until you reach the proper track (GR: NY131138). Turn left on to this and follow it over the bridge across Char Dub.

5 3.9 MILES/6.3KM When you reach the track on the opposite bank turn left and start to follow this as you begin your journey back on a lovely wide track, defined by woods rising to the right, inlets giving access to the water on the left, and several picnic sites. Watch out for other users, especially cyclists: dogs can alarm – and be alarmed by – cyclists.

Another path, soon joined, becomes a better established track as you pass through a gate at the water’s edge. This is a lovely, easy going section, with scree-strewn Herdus up to your right and isolated white farmhouses dotted around the fields. It looks like you’re nearly finished, but there’s still a lovely big loop around the head of Ennerdale Water to come.

The path takes you around the western edge of the water, through a number of gates, all dog-friendly. When the path splits, take the left option, following signs for The Grike. Over a stone footbridge, take the path on the left once more and you’ll soon find yourself crossing a bridge above a weir, close to where you started. Turn right along the track and right again at the collection box to reach the car park. n

1 START From Bleach Green car park, head through the gate and down towards Ennerdale Water, turning left on the track at the donations box. At the bridge, take the easily followed rocky path on the right, through the gate towards Anglers Crag, past pebble beaches and clear water.

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY085152

START/ FINISH

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2 1.3 MILES/2KM At Anglers Crag, and the rocky formation known as Robin Hood’s Chair, there is a short but steep section of ascent. Once accomplished, you’ll be able to see the rest of Ennerdale Water. The magnificent fells of Starling Dodd and Red Pike rise ahead, and a glance back will remind you how the fells sink away to the coast. Dogs will love the smells that abound in these parts – not least from the surrounding heather – and the lakeside access from the path which, in wet weather, becomes a stream.

3 2.2 MILES/3.5KM A few scattered silver birch grow by the path

24 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

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Win ethically produced Beco dog food with Lakeland and walker

Every trip to Ennerdale is an adventure VITALS Grade: Terrain: established paths; the southern shore can be rocky and slippery with short climbs; the north shore is gentle Distance: 7.5 miles/12.1km Time: 4 hours Climb: 393ft/120m Start/finish: Bleach Green car park, close to the shore of Ennerdale Water, east of Ennerdale Bridge (GR: NY085152) Maps: Harvey Maps' 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25, Lake District North; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4 The English Lakes, North-western area Transport: none Refreshments: none along the way but you’ll find the Gather Café (01946 862 453) in Ennerdale Bridge Accommodation: nothing along the route; Ennerdale Bridge is the nearest settlement, where The Shepherds Arms Hotel offers rooms and meals (01946 861249)

Beco Pets’ team members care about what they feed their dogs at mealtimes. Beco’s new dog food contains only human-grade ingredients: ethically sourced meat and fresh vegetables and herbs, all free of grain and meat-meal.

Available in three tasty flavours – Free Range Chicken, Wild Boar, MSC-certified Cod and Haddock – your dog will come home to a delicious meal after your Lakeland walk. For more information – and a twenty-per cent discount on orders – visit www.becopets.com and use the code “BECOLAKE” at checkout.

Lakeland Walker is delighted to offer four readers the chance to win supplies of Beco Pets dog food worth £65 each. To be in with a chance of winning, answer the following question: How many dog food recipes are available from Beco Pets?

Email your entry to linda@dalesman.co.uk (subject line “Beco Pet Food”) or send it on a postcard or the back of a sealed envelope to: Beco Pets Competition Ltd, Lakeland Walker, Country Publications, The Water Mill, Broughton Hall, Skipton BD23 3AG. The first four correct entries drawn after April 24, 2017, will win. If you do not wish to receive promotional material, please indicate on your entry.

Usual Country Publications rules apply.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 25

MY LAkeLAND ADVeNTure

These books were made for walking Brian Kerr and wife Marjorie became hooked on hills – thanks to a 1990s book club offer in association with

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t’s all thanks to a book club. You might be old enough to remember them: you’d get six books for a couple of quid while agreeing to buy another six over the next year at full price. Too good an offer to turn down – I have books today, almost twentyfive years on, that I still enjoy perusing. Some months, nothing would really stand out… then wow! The Mountains of England and Wales in two volumes by John and Anne Nuttall. How much time and effort had this couple put into compiling these works of art?

“Nuttalls”, unlike Wainwrights, have a very precise definition. They are summits of 2,000 feet or more which rise above their surroundings by at least fifty feet in all directions. Imagine the work in ascertaining that 432 tops met this criteria. Think of the ones that didn’t quite make it, due to height or because of the fifty-foot rule (they even list those, with reasons, at the back of the book). Couple in the fact that route finding is

included to guide you to each top, and you’ll appreciate the enormity of the task. Clearly a labour of love.

My son Andrew, who had already proven to be a keen hiker on our occasional walks, was fourteen years old when I showed him the books. Living in the North East of England, we noted that most of the 251 mountains in England were within a hundred miles or so of us – 170 of them in the Lake District – and were therefore achievable on weekend trips.

So the first adventure was planned.

Camping at Castlerigg Hall we did Walk 1.2 on Saturday, September 18, 1993.

Starting at the Ravenstone Hotel on the A591 we did Long Side, Carl Side, Skiddaw, Skiddaw Little Man, Lonscale Fell and Sale How. Thirteen miles and 4,550ft of ascent.

It was a long way back from Sale How via Skiddaw House and Whitewater Dash but we were hooked. The next day it was five more tops, including Blencathra.

Many nights were spent planning future ventures in the North Pennines, Yorkshire Dales, our local Cheviots and, of course, the Lake District. Often we would backpack in order to combine walks or complete the longer ones; breakfasts on Hedgehope (Cheviots), Cross Fell, Wetherlam and Cold Pike Far West Top were particularly memorable.

A family holiday to Derbyshire in 1995 saw us do the Peak District tops: Bleaklow Head, High Shelf Stones and Kinder Scout.

Very early one August morning in 1995, we were camping at wet and dreary Wasdale Head while the rest of the country basked in a heatwave. We phoned Okehampton Police Station and, assured that we would not be fired at on the military range, decided to go for it: after a few A59-somethings, the M6, M5 and A30, we were ready to climb Yes Tor and High Willhays on Dartmoor. It was sweltering and both tops had something we have yet to see in Cumbria: people

On the Wainwright trail: Brian and Marjorie on Harter Fell in early 2016

The adventure begins: Brian (left) and son Andrew on Skiddaw Lesser Man, on September 18, 1993. Right, Haystacks, Marjorie and Brian’s final Wainwright, was the first for daughter-in-law Donna (left) and granddaughter Evie, together with son Andrew (rear) sunbathing in swimwear! Then, after another long drive and an overnight camp in Cheshire, we did all nine tops of Walk 5.1 – the Scafells – the following day.

On Saturday, August 31, 1996 we completed the Crummock Horseshoe – eight tops – finishing on Whiteless Pike. All 251 done. What a feeling.

Well, actually, I’ve a confession to make.

We were guided by a friend on Pillar Rock, the only Nuttall requiring rock climbing skills.

This massive lump of rock overlooking Ennerdale unfortunately happens to be above 2,000ft… you know the rest. Having reached Jordan Gap and roped up, we scrambled down initially, and I quote: “1. Climb the 8-foot wall and cross the sloping slab to belay at the foot of the vertical crack” – what’s the point of a great view if you have your eyes closed? and “2.

Climb the vertical crack and belay on a ledge.”

Have we done it? Is that rain? Is it getting really windy or is it just me? Now, to condense the next hour into a few seconds, let’s just say that we could not find the way “around the corner” and one of us was

freezing in more ways than one way.

The chicken pie and chips in the Wasdale Head Inn was great but alas we failed.

Andrew completed it a little while later and said, “Dad, you were within ten feet.”

“Good enough for me,” said I. Mr Wainwright, sensible man, advises that for walkers “Pillar Rock is positively out of bounds”.

Over the next few years we returned to many favoured tops. Then, in late 2002, we purchased a luxury two-bedroom en-suite dwelling a few miles north of Greystoke (okay, a second-hand caravan). The Lakeland Nuttall adventure was about to begin for wife Marjorie and springer spaniel Roley. This time, the 170 Lakeland tops were split into shorter walks… well, poor dog, we did not want to tire him too much. Strange that he always beat us to the top. The Langdale Pikes, with Andrew, was our finale, finishing on Loft Crag on August 17, 2007.

We then embarked upon a list compiled by that chap named Wainwright. Obviously many had been done as Nuttalls but there were still a good number to do, mostly under 2,000 feet. And so on August 18, 2012, with

Tales from the trails After your adventure among the stunning Lake District fells, why not share the story with fellow readers? We’ve teamed up with leading British outdoor brand Berghaus to offer a waterproof Island Peak 3-in-1 jacket – worth £280 – to all whose tale is published. Tell your great Lakeland adventure in around 1,200 words and send it, with photographs, to johnm@dalesman.co.uk, subject “Lakeland Adventure”. Include your postal address and clothing sizes.

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28 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Andrew, his wife Donna and their daughter Evie doing their first, we finished on – where else – Haystacks and at last achieved national fame as our celebration photograph appeared on page nine, issue ninety-two, of Lakeland Walker.

In 2013 it was announced on national news that another hill had been reclassified as a mountain over 2,000ft. So, after a bacon bap at Hartside Café, Andrew and I made the ascent of Thack Moor on August 29 that year.

Brilliant weather and views it was not… rather, winter in summer.

A couple of caravan moves later, we now look directly on to Blencathra from Hopkinson’s wonderful Whitbarrow Hall site at Berrier. Blencathra is a favourite which we often do from Mungrisdale, via Bannerdale Crags and Atkinson Pike, and back over Souther Fell.

Late on in 2015, Marj and I were having Herdwick stew in the Flock Inn having just completed Wainwright’s lowest top, Castle Crag. Something caught my eye: a Summit Tick & Date List Map of all 214 Wainwright Fells. “You know,” I said, “we never really did

them justice, being something of a clag-on to the Nuttalls. How about starting them again from scratch?”

A quick nod was enough, aforementioned publication was purchased and a new adventure began at the beginning of 2016.

Mardale’s Harter Fell in snowy conditions was our first as we carefully planned our walks so that we covered all seven areas and had a good variety of heights.

What a year! Seventy completed. Scafell and Great End from Seathwaithe, ring ouzels on Fairfield, redirecting lost Duke of Edinburgh girls on High Street, an osprey from Dodd, bus pass walks from Buttermere and Crummock Water over the tops to Braithwaite and many, many more wonderful days…

Now pensioners, we appreciate the fells even more and hope to remain fit and healthy enough to keep going for many years to come. So if you see or hear a couple of old Geordies with walking poles please stop for a chat. It’ll probably be us. And it’s all thanks to that book club, with enormous gratitude to John and Anne Nuttall and Mr Alfred Wainwright. n

More from the family album: top, Brian refreshes his Nuttalls during his mountain round; Thack Moor, scaled on a summer’s day that resembled winter; and Roley the bog dog

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 29

in association with

Think you know the fells like the back of your hand? Test your knowledge by entering our popular competition‌ you could win a pair of Keen's versatile and waterproof Wanderer Mid WP boots.

WHere iN THe LAkeS?

Winter retains a slim hold in Andy Stothert’s latest landscape – but where did he depress the shutter? Root out your maps, resuscitate your navigation skills and work out the exact spot, then send us the six-figure grid reference – not forgetting the National Grid prefix. If your answer matches Andy’s and is first from the bobble hat, you could win a pair of Keen’s Wanderer Mid WP boots, worth £120.

The Wanderer Mid WP is a premium hiker with a quality nubuck and suede upper attached directly to a PU midsole for comfort and durability. Its KEEN.DRY membrane and hydrophobic mesh lining provide great breathability and out-of-the-box comfort. A dual-compound outsole offers reliable grip on a variety of terrains.

For more details visit www.keenfootwear.com

EMAIL YOUR ENTRY TO: linda@dalesman.co.uk (subject line “Where in the Lakes”) OR POST IT TO: Where in the Lakes?, Lakeland Walker, Country Publications Ltd, The Water Mill, Broughton Hall, Skipton BD23 3AG. Don’t forget to include your boot size and postal address… We’ll announce the winner in our next issue.

Many thanks to all who entered last issue’s competition. Andy's image was taken at NY217175, above High Crags on the lower slopes of Hindscarth, looking up Little Dale with Pillar peeking out over Littledale Edge. No one hit the nail on the head but John Lennox, of Cark in Cartmel, was among the nearest at NY217174. Congratulations John, your Hi-Tec Banderra II boots and a copy of Ray Mears’ book Out on the Land will be despatched as soon as possible.

The small print: the competition is open to all UK residents and closes at 9am on Monday, April 10, 2017. If more than one correct entry is received, a winner will be determined by a draw. If no correct entries are received, the draw will be made between those who submitted the next best guess. The editor’s decision is final. We won’t disclose your information to third parties but may hold it on a database so that we can inform you of offers we think might be of interest. If you’d rather we didn’t, just mention it clearly on your entry. l Apologies to recent winners for delays sending Alt-Berg boots and Teko socks; we’re assured that stocks will be replenished and prizes despatched in the near future.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 31

SiX OF THe beST

32 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

SiX OF THe beST

Walking in the air Not every great ridge demands hands-on-rock. Vivienne Crow strides out along six of Lakeland’s finest spines

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 33

Three Tarns, with its excellent view of Scafell Pike, sits in the saddle between Bow Fell and Crinkle Crags

Crinkle Crags

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his classic route will take you among some of the best mountain scenery Lakeland has to offer. Crinkle Crags (2,816ft/859m) is made up of a series of dramatic buttresses, scree gullies and knarled, rocky peaks that tower above the western end of Great Langdale. Picking a route along these fractured tops, walkers are treated to breathtaking views across the head of Eskdale to the Scafells. A section of scrambling can be avoided if you’re not in the mood.

Route Head back to the road and turn right. At a left bend, keep straight ahead along the farm track. Follow the waymarks through Stool End Farm’s yard and continue on the path heading into Oxendale. Almost half-a-mile

CRINKLE CRAGS Grade: Distance: 7.3 miles/11.8km Climb: 2,852ft/870m Start/finish: Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel, Great Langdale (GR: NY286060) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District West; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL6, English Lakes, South-western area beyond the farm, having passed through a series of gates, cross the bridge over Oxendale Beck. Beyond the top of Browney Gill, as the steep climb abates, turn right at a path junction. The next mile or so is rather dull but things get more interesting as you clamber up on to the first Crinkle. Then, having dropped from the first top into a

stony saddle, you have a choice… Straight ahead is the infamous Bad Step, a tricky manoeuvre if you’re not used to scrambling.

Alternatively, bear left at the base of the scree to locate an easier route up on to the second Crinkle. If you choose the latter, bear right at the top of the climb to regain the ridge. Continue generally north along the rocky tops as far as Three Tarns. Now turn right to descend The Band. Go left at a Tjunction close to the valley bottom.

Re-entering the farmyard at Stool End, retrace your steps to the car park.

Options Extend your day by climbing Pike o’ Blisco first. If that’s still not enough, continue beyond the Crinkles to add Bow Fell. From there, you could descend Ore Gap or keep going over Esk Pike. Once you’re on that ridge, you’ll never want to come down!

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY286060

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Looking down on Great Knott and Pike o’ Blisco from the climb on to Crinkle Crags

34 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

High Stile range

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tarting with heathery moorland and culminating in a windswept, rocky landscape, this long ridge route takes in several summits from Great Borne (2,021ft/616m) in the west to High Stile (2,647ft/807m) and High Crag (2,440ft/744m) in the east. With every step taken, the scenery becomes increasingly dramatic as the surrounding mountains, including some of the highest in England, gradually close in around you.

Route Turn right along the road. After almost half-amile, climb the stile on the right – next to Rake Beck. This acts as your guide on to the fells but ensure you bear left at a fork next to a large boulder. Beyond Rake Beck, a clear path swings right to reach the trig pillar on Great Borne. Locate the grassy path next to the fence north-east of the summit. Follow this trail roughly south-east to Starling Dodd, then towards Red Pike. Climbing towards the latter, you’ll encounter a line of rusty old fenceposts. These act as your guide all the way to Scarth Gap. They bypass Red Pike’s true summit but the top is just a few yards up to the left. Follow the fenceposts over High Stile and High Crag, down the horribly loose path of Gamlin End, up and over Seat and into Scarth Gap. Turn right to drop into Ennerdale. Turn right along the valley track and, ignoring a track to the left soon after the High Gillerthwaite youth hostel, follow this all the way back to the car park.

Options If, on arrival at Scarth Gap, you still have a little energy left, you could continue east to bag Hay Stacks too. Keep to the south-west edge of the fell to locate the path beside Loft Beck that will drop you back into Ennerdale.

For a less strenuous walk without missing out on the best bit of the ridge, bypass Great Borne and Starling Dodd by climbing Red Pike via the Gillerthwaite path.

Above right, studded with boulders, the ridge leading on to High Crag

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY109153

HIGH STILE RANGE Grade: Distance: 12.6 miles/20.3km Climb: 3,700ft/1,128m Start/finish: Bowness Knott car park, Ennerdale Water (GR: NY109153) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District West and North; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, Northwestern area

START/ FINISH

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 35

Ard Crags and Knott Rigg

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his has to be one of the best low ridges in the Lake District. Climbing to a high point of just 1,906ft/581m and overshadowed by its popular neighbours, it’s an area that many walkers tend not even to notice. Their loss, however, is your gain because, climbing via Sail Beck, you’re likely to have these delightful heather-clad slopes to yourself.

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY174169

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Route Turn left along the B5289 in front of the Bridge Hotel and go through the gate on the right to enter Ghyll Wood. Having left the woods via some steps, turn right. Keep right at two forks, staying with the broader path close to the beck. Normally, the higher path would be the preferred option but, due to a landslide higher up the valley, it’s better to stay low. The path disappears at Third Gill. Ford this tributary beck then make your way up the slope to avoid the damp ground in the valley bottom. You should find a faint trail running parallel with Sail Beck, about 180 yards up the western slope (the main path is about 100 yards further up). Nearing Addacomb Beck, you’ll be able to see where, on the other side of the stream, floodwaters have brought debris surging down the fellside, cutting across the main path. Fording the beck where the lower path reaches it, carefully negotiate the debris fan at the point where it hits Addacomb Beck. Beyond the landslide, head east-north-east on a rising traverse.

Eventually, you’ll step up on to the main path continuing more gently uphill. Before

36 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

the path descends the other side of the pass, cross damp ground on the right and climb the steep slope on the other side. On reaching the Ard Crags ridge, turn right.

Follow the path over Knott Rigg and down to Newlands Hause. Turn right to follow the road back down to Buttermere.

Options Instead of following the road back to Buttermere at the end of the walk, head up on to the northern edge of Buttermere Moss and across to High Snockrigg before descending an old peat road into the village.

ARD CRAGS AND KNOTT RIGG Grade: Distance: 6.4 miles/10.3km Climb: 1,990ft/607m Start/finish: pay-and-display car park behind Bridge Hotel, Buttermere (GR: NY174169) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District North; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area

Dark recesses at the head of Deepdale hide the cliffs ringing the eastern edges of Fairfield

St Sunday Crag

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his back-door route on to St Sunday Crag provides a slightly more challenging approach to the popular routes on to this 2,759ft/841m summit. The sketchy ridge that the fell throws out to the east, taking in Lord’s Seat and Gavel Pike, involves some tricky navigation and some easy scrambling.

From the top, the high ground heading south-west forms a superb ridge that’s just narrow enough to give a feeling of airiness

but wide enough to avoid discomfort for walkers without a head for heights.

Route Take the track heading west into Deepdale.

On reaching the buildings at Lane Head, turn left. Almost immediately after crossing the bridge over Coldcove Beck, take the faint, grassy path on the right and climb the eastern side of Latterhaw Crag. Swing left, around the back of the crag, then head straight up the steep eastern front of Lord’s Seat. Continue west along the sometimes

grassy, sometimes rocky ridge to Gavel Pike and then St Sunday Crag. From the summit cairn, head south-west along the ridge to Deepdale Hause. Descend east on a steep, horribly loose path. The path improves after 300 yards or so, but there are still some exposed areas of rock to negotiate and a tricky beck to cross before you’re in the valley bottom and following Deepdale Beck downstream. Eventually, you’ll recross Coldcove Beck. Retrace your steps to Deepdale Bridge.

Options Once you’re on the high ridge, it’s tempting simply to stay up there. And why not?

Instead of dropping back into Deepdale at the hause, carry on up on to Cofa Pike and Fairfield. From there, continue to Hart Crag then head out along Hartsop Above How to complete an alternative version of the Deepdale Round.

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY399144

ST SUNDAY CRAG Grade: Distance: 6.3 miles/10.1km Climb: 2,300ft/701m

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Start/finish: roadside parking on the A592 at Deepdale Bridge (GR: NY399144) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District East; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL5, English Lakes, North-eastern area

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 37

Fleetwith Edge

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY194150

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re you just itching to feel the fells under your hands as well as under your feet? To climb a ridge that rises from valley level to 2,125ft (648m) quickly and smoothly in a series of manageable, rocky steps? With crags falling away steeply on both sides and awesome views back down to Buttermere, Fleetwith Edge is the answer. Perfection!

Route Head southeast along the road. Just after Gatesgarth Cottage, step on to the rough track on the right and immediately take the narrow path on the left. This leads on to Low Raven Crag, from where the ridge route heads southeast. Although you will need your hands at times, there are no technical difficulties and no sense of exposure as long as you keep to the path. From the cairn on Fleetwith Pike, follow a faint path southsouthwest at first, quickly swinging southeast. When you see the upper workings of Dubs Quarry just below, swing southwest. Turn right along the quarry track.

Drawing level with Dubs Hut, turn left down a slate slope then strike off right to ford Warnscale Beck. A clear, stony path heads uphill but bear right after about 150 yards (137m), along an indistinct trail. Keep right at an early fork to follow Warnscale Beck downstream. Nearing the valley bottom, cross the beck via a bridge, climb to a clear Fleetwith Edge is the much photographed ridge rising from the southeast end of Buttermere

START/ FINISH

bridleway and turn left. Turn left at the road to return to the car park.

FLEETWITH EDGE Grade:

Options “Too short!” I hear you cry. Instead of descending beside Warnscale Beck, you could continue over Hay Stacks then drop to Buttermere via the Scarth Gap path. But perhaps you added Hay Stacks to the High Stile route? In which case, if you really want to get your teeth into something, drop to Honister, climb Dale Head then head out along another excellent ridge, Littledale Edge, to Robinson. Drop to the lakeshore via Buttermere Moss and High Snockrigg.

Distance: 3.5 miles/5.6km Climb: 1,840ft/561m Start/finish: pay-and-display car park at Gatesgarth Farm, Buttermere (GR: NY194150) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District West; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area

Heading towards Calfhow Pike with Skiddaw in the background

The Dodds

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chance really to stride out – there’ll be no rock in your way on this walk. The Dodds make up the northern end of the Helvellyn range. They are rounded, grassy tops linked by broad, whaleback lines of high ground. This route visits Stybarrow Dodd, Watson’s Dodd and Great Dodd – which, at 2,812ft/856m is the highest of the three – before continuing north along the spacious ridge to Clough Head.

more steeply. Go left along the Old Coach Road and follow it to the road. Turn right, left and left again. Just before St John’s Church, go through the large gate on the left, signposted “Sosgill Bridge”. Follow the path along the base of High Rigg and past Low Bridge End Farm, eventually coming out on the A591. Turn left and left again along a lane. After almost 300 yards (275m) , enter Legburthwaite car park via the small gate on the right. Leave via the vehicle entrance/exit

and turn right along the road to return to Thirlmere Recreation Hall.

Options The Dodds form part of one of the best and longest stretches of sustained high-level walking in the entire Lake District. Try the high section of this route in reverse, then continue south, taking in Helvellyn too. A magnificent day out along a 7.5-mile (12km) ridge that never drops below 2,000ft (610m).

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY318189

Route Head uphill along the narrow lane. As it bends left, cross the ladder stile straight ahead and follow the bridleway up to a crossing over Sty Beck. Having crossed, turn left to climb. This path is followed all the way to the ridge at Sticks Pass. Now turn left along the ridge, following it all the way to Clough Head. The summits of Stybarrow Dodd, Watson’s Dodd, Great Dodd and Calfhow Pike can all be visited or bypassed.

From Clough Head, descend northeast. From the base of White Pike, turn left to descend THE DODDS Grade: Distance: 11.5 miles/18.5km Climb: 3,464ft/1,056m Start/finish: Thirlmere Recreation Hall, Legburthwaite (GR: NY318189).

Alternative parking at Legburthwaite pay-and-display car park Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District East; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL5, English Lakes, North-eastern area

START/ FINISH

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 39

birkeTT ON THe birkeTTS

The Greater Traverse

Crown of thorns, Langdale Pikes above Great Langdale

Bill Birkett steps back in time during a round of nine peaks in the Langdale Pikes

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piky, like a crown of thorns above the head of Great Langdale, the Langdale Pikes are among Britain’s most evocative and celebrated peaks. The walk I regard as the “Greater Traverse” is a big undertaking that knocks off nine tops to capture the high points of the high northern watershed around Great Langdale and Mickleden Head. You get a lot of ticks. It’s far from the whole story, however: there’re many ways to explore and enjoy the Pikes.

I’m fortunate to have spent much of my life in their shadow, something for which I will be eternally grateful. I have had opportunity to explore their many facets and experience something of their moods. Let me talk it over with you.

My first close-up encounters with the Pikes came while climbing, usually with school chums, on magnificent Gimmer Crag – the great buttress below Loft Crag – Pavey Ark above Stickle Tarn, Raven Crag, which

40 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

looks directly over the Old Dungeon Ghyll Car Park, and little Tarn Crag above Stickle Ghyll. And winter climbing, ascending Pavey Ark’s snow-filled Great Gully and descending an ice-glazed Jack’s Rake. On the latter we had a single, long wood-shafted ice axe; Roy, my ever-innovative pal, fixed hobnails in the soles of his leather shoes, which marginally helped his grip.

“

Stickle Tarn, below Pavey Ark’s massive face, is an iconic mountain view

My proudest school-years achievement was meeting my English teacher on my return from soloing – that’s climbing without companions or ropes – three routes on

Gimmer Crag. She stopped while driving over Blea Tarn as I was on the long walk home to Little Langdale. I pointed to the crag and told her what I’d been about. She seemed impressed – perhaps the first and last time I ever impressed a teacher. I can’t remember topping out but it’s likely that I stumbled my way over Pike O’Stickle, Harrison Stickle and Pavey Ark. The point is that there are ways to enjoy the Pikes without reaching a summit.

The route I describe here takes the Stickle Ghyll path to Stickle Tarn below Pavey Ark and skirts above the edge of the waterfalls which most people pass unaware; a pity because they are impressive. In cold winters, particularly if an easterly wind blows, they are among the first to freeze solid. A handful of years ago, this time with all the modern paraphernalia of ice tools and crampons, I set off to scale them with my son. Lightweight and nimble, he crossed the big pool; slower

Top, Stickle Tarn below Pavey Ark. Below, enjoying the views on Pike O’Stickle

and heavier, the ice broke beneath me and I was submerged to chest height.

Nevertheless, we scaled icefalls above.

Happy days.

Stickle Tarn, below Pavey Ark’s massive face, is an iconic mountain view. I still can’t believe the Lake District National Park Authority tried to sell this jewel in Lakeland’s crown in 2016. It might have been strapped for cash but that can’t be the right way.

I’ve many great memories of Pavey Ark. From extreme routes in bendy “walking” boots, to tackling the hardest routes of the day and guiding my then seven-year-old daughter up Jack’s Rake. It looks improbable and shouldn’t be underestimated, offering considerable exposure – particularly on the “bad step” and higher finishing slabs – though it can prove relatively straightforward. And helping on various rescues, human and animal. The latter, with Dave Birkett, five Coniston foxhounds that had followed a fox and were stuck on a ledge some fifty-foot above the Rake. All went well ’til the last dog, the notorious man-eater Rockwood, had to be caught by Dave and passed to me. Faced with certain

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 41

To Loft Crag and Gimmer Crag from Pike O’Stickle

death or being hauled by the neck up the crag to safety, it stayed as quiet as a lamb. Smart dog, that Rockwood.

You cross above the tarn by Bright Beck and ascend the shoulder to the rocky knoll of Pavey Ark, a great place for a picnic on a warm spring day, with the bulk of the ascent behind you.

A little care is required to locate the top of Thunacar Knot. While still within the Langdale watershed, Thunacar Knott is somewhat out on a limb to Pavey Ark’s west. Next stop is the Pikes’ highest and best view point, Harrison Stickle, overlooking the valley to the south-east.

Thorn Crag and Loft Crag lead to Pike O’Stickle’s rocky cone, most aesthetic top of all. If you have had enough by Thorn Crag, or bad weather threatens, then the descent path before the Loft Crag climb begins, initially steep and stony, soon levels and a great path leads down to the shoulder of Mark Gate, to cross the foot of the Dungeon Ghyll and lead back to the start (this route provides one of the most user-friendly descents or ascents of the Pikes).

The approach to Pike O’Stickle is scrambly but worthwhile: it feels like you’re on top of the world. The view, particularly over the great sweeping red-grey rhyolite cliff of Gimmer Crag, is sensational. Among the many fine climbing routes to be found here are my father Jim Birkett’s classics North West Arete and F Route, first climbed in the 1940s,

Summits

n Pavey Ark 2,288ft/697m n Thunacar Knott 2,372ft/723m n Harrison Stickle 2,414ft/736m n Thorn Crag 2,106ft/642m n Loft Crag 2,238ft/682m n Pike O’Stickle 2,324ft/709m n Black Crag 1,929ft/588m n Buck Pike 1,988ft/606m n Rossett Pike 2,136ft/651m

42 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

and Arthur Dolphin’s breakthrough Kipling Groove, so-called because it was “ruddy ’ard”. Still is…

Down below, inaccessible to nonclimbers, are the “chipping points” made during the production of stone axes some 7,000 years ago. Langdale axes, objects of rare beauty and huge importance, changed the face of Britain in an age before mankind worked metal. The volcanic tuff from which the axes were shaped allowed for a razor-sharp edge, which enabled mankind to fell and shape timber from the forests, to produce tools and buildings. Society thus evolved from one of nomadic hunter-gathering to one of farming. When bronze and then iron were discovered, Langdale axes became status symbols, or currency: the polished, bluntedged examples seen in museums have usually been taken from burial mounds or graves, where they were placed to accompany the great and powerful into the afterlife. So important were Langdale Axes that they are found throughout Britain and across Europe. Not bad for 5000BC. Brexiteers take note…

I knew little about Langdale Axes when I first visited the chipping points but was spellbound by their size and extent, particularly because the great piles of steely grey-blue tuff flakes were unlichened and unweathered, as though they had just been made. To cap it all, on a little rock ledge, I spied two carefully placed hammerstones

of tough Scottish granite, used to chip the tuff and shape the axes. It was as if someone had blown the tea-break whistle and the craftsmen had gone off for a quick brew. The hairs stood up on the back of my neck as I realised that prehistoric workman had placed those tools, not minutes but thousands of years ago, And there they remained, untouched, a moment frozen in time.

Descent leads over Martcrag Moor to cross Stake Pass before ascent of the shoulder bags another three tops. The best viewpoint on Rossett Pike – which you should visit even if a little fatigued – lies a little way down the spur, above the head of Mickleden. Descent to the valley is best made on the purposebuilt path south of Rossett Gill. Probably no time now to look for the intriguing packhorse woman’s grave (see Cumbria magazine, September 2016). No matter, it’s all level walking and, as Dave Birkett once reminded me, “you’re in God’s own country”.

Never a truer word was spake. n l Langdale Pikes – The Greater Traverse features in The Complete Lakeland Fells,

by Bill Birkett (Ted Smart, 1997), available from www.billbirkett.co.uk l Access to the axe working site is off-trail, precariously steep and unstable. If you choose to risk venturing there, respect the archaeology and leave any artefacts in place.

Stickle Ghyll falls. Inset, an unpolished Langdale Axe from Pike O’ Stickle

January–February 2017 Lakeland Walker 43

gOOD geAr guiDe

Regeneration game geAr cAre John Manning outlines a few steps any walker can take to save a few quid on their outdoor kit

R

esist, you must resist… We’ve all felt the urge, when the weather on the fells is too foul for a hike and instead we take our debit cards for a walk around the retail trails of Ambleside or Keswick.

That glisteningly clean, brightly toned, impressively over-specified, waterproof and breathable jacket on the gear shop’s apparel rail is just calling out to you. You try it on – it fits! It makes your lumpy bits look trim, and ooh, sir, it matches your eyes! You look at your own waterproof, discarded in a corner of the changing room floor… back in the days before your bits lumped out on you, it too was glisteningly clean, brightly toned, over-specified, waterproof and breathable…

You must resist: that faithful old jacket, which served you well for years, could be just as glisteningly impressive once again.

Three words – “clean”, “reproof”, “repair” – could save you a small fortune on replacement gear. Cleaning and reproofing can be achieved at home by just about anyone, thanks to the variety of easily available specialist products on the market –

44 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Just a few examples from the wide ranges offered by Storm, Nikwax and Grangers

you’ll find them in most outdoor retail stores, somewhere near those rails of glisteningly expensive new jackets.

A scoop of your usual laundry powder in the washing machine drawer won’t do the job. Standard detergents will leave behind water-attracting residues which will counteract any waterproof treatment you might subsequently apply. Instead, most outdoor brands recommend products specifically designed to be kind to the hightech fabrics used in modern outdoor wear.

Three main cleaning and reproofing brands – long-established Nikwax, longerestablished Grangers and relative newcomer Storm – dominate the domestic market and produce many of the proprietary waterproofing systems also used by gear manufacturers.

Their ranges aren’t limited to waterproofwear: such companies can help you to revive your baselayers, footwear, down jackets and sleeping bags, softshells and even your ski skins, maps, ropes and tents.

Washing and reproofing products tend to

be sold separately. Nikwax’s TX Direct is a wash-in DWR – durable water repellency – treatment product that renews the ability of your waterproof’s outershell to shed rainwater before it soaks into the fabric.

Storm’s Eco Proofer – “Eco” as in PFC-free – does a similar job, as does its Proofer, which doesn’t require a hot wash. Grangers’ wash-in equivalent is Clothing Repel.

They aren’t doing the same job as the waterproof-breathable membrane behind the face fabric, which is preventing the same rain from penetrating right through the fabric to the wearer – you – while allowing your sweat to exit through the fabric and therefore maintain comfort. The DWR is more like your own personal forcefield, keeping the rain off and preventing a saturated face fabric getting heavier and more uncomfortable.

Any repellent replacement treatment should only be applied to a waterproof garment after it has been cleaned. Jump the gun and the treatment will just rub off, its benefits soon lost. And here’s a tip: nine times out of ten, after cleaning a jacket, you’ll find the original DWR – which might have been masked by dirt, oils and other waterattracting compounds – is still present: they’re called “durable” for good reason. Only when water stops beading nicely on a cleaned garment’s surface should you consider reproofing.

Storm, Nikwax and Grangers all produce

Popping your jacket in the tumble dryer on low heat for a few minutes can revitalise DWR properties (courtesy Nikwax) detergent-free washing products for waterproof garments. Grangers’ Performance Wash is said to be good for cleansing any technical garments of odour while preserving breathability and leaving any existing repellency intact. Storm’s Cleaner similarly works on most fabric types and will

leave surfaces clean for reproofing if, indeed, it doesn’t reveal a still-active DWR under the layers of muck. Nikwax’s Tech Wash is also suitable for a range of gear and, like the others, can revitalise an existing DWR. Opinions vary on whether it’s best to use a wash-in reproofer or a spray-on. Storm, Nikwax and Grangers all offer both methods.

However, a few years ago one industry insider told me that a wash-in didn’t just reproof the outer but also a jacket’s inner face. “That blocks breathability … It’s obvious, even to a blind man, that the only thing you have to reproof is the outer fabric,” she said. “I always recommend a spray-on.”

And here’s another tip. Before you embark on the rigmarole of cleaning and reproofing a jacket just because it seems to be wettingout, pop it in your tumble dryer on a low heat for a few minutes: you might find that that is enough to revive the DWR. If it really is time for a new jacket (or just this year’s trendy colour), consider what you’re going to do with the jacket you no longer love. Landfill should never be an option: after all, when all our landfill sites are full, who’s to say that eyes won’t turn to Wasdale or Borrowdale?

The best method of passing on unwanted gear that I’ve come across is the Gift Your Gear scheme devised by Sarah Howcroft, who co-founded the Rohan company in Continued on page 46

Rejuvenate, repair, revive…

Repair Even LW’s editor is able to sew a button on occasionally but technical repairs – broken zips, torn shells, worn soles – are beyond most folks’ capability. There exists, however, a little-known sector of the outdoor industry devoted to extending the longevity of your gear. Whether it's down jackets or sleeping bags, waterproofs or gaiters, boots or tents, there’s someone out there who can rejuvenate your gear. Here’s a few… l Scottish Mountain Gear: Gore-Tex specialists, tents, packs and more www.scottishmountaingear.com, 0845 330 3140 (local rate) l Classiclean: Harrogate-based downcleaning specialists www.classicleanofharrogate.co.uk, 01423 520930 l Feet First: Chesterfield footwear resoling experts www.resoles.co.uk, 01246 260 795

l Lancashire Sports Repairs: Burnley fixers of almost anything, including Gore-Tex www.lancashiresportsrepairs.co.uk, 01282 439109 l Mountaineering Designs: repairs, refurbishes and revitalises down gear www.mountaineering-designs.co.uk, 015395 36333 l Elite Cleaning Services: specialist Sheffield cleaners of down sleeping bags and jackets www.elitecleaningandaftercare.co.uk, 01709 833189

Tips l Fill yer boots: wash them out every few months to remove sweaty salts and acids, which can crack and corrode leather. Fill them with lukewarm water and rinse before the water has chance to seep through any membrane; stand them upside down to dry naturally. l Dry boots slowly: drying boots on a

radiator or stove will crack and harden the leather, making repairs impossible and shortening their life. Feed the leather with something like Aqueous Nikwax. Beware of waterproofing products that block pores and hamper breathability… l … but dry them well: water that penetrates a boot’s leather outer or the internal membrane can get trapped between and rot the boot. l DIY: carry a bicycle puncture repair kit, or small roll of duct tape, for short-term repairs to waterproofs, packs and more. l Give ‘em room: contrary to widely held opinion, you can wash smaller downfilled gear items – vests and jackets – at home. For larger items such as sleeping bags, consider using your local launderette's industrial-size facilities. l In a spin: tumble drying works better than hanging them out: use the biggest machine available at the most delicate setting and let bags air between drying stages: heat will cause damage.

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 45

From page 45…

1972. Gift Your Gear – or GYG – will donate outdoor clothing and equipment to community groups, youth groups and charities working with young people in the outdoors. Sarah and her team evaluate all the gear received before passing it on, to ensure that it gets many more years of doing what it was designed to do.

GYG works with outdoor brands and retailers, holding collections in retail shops, at outdoor events and festivals. The next collection event will be held at Rohan stores across the country, including those in Keswick and Ambleside, and anyone handing in gear will be offered a 15 per cent discount off any full-priced Rohan gear

A pole apart PAcerPOLeS DuAL LOck TrekkiNg POLe £107 (pair) www.pacerpole.com Price includes storage bag, large and small baskets, ferrules and worldwide p&p Materials: carbon fibre shaft, moulded thermoplastic-rubber handles; tungsten carbide tip Maximum length: 133cm Minimum length: 97cm Collapsed length: 65cm Weight (pair): 570g

I

purchased that day. Details can be found on the scheme’s website.

It has to be borne in mind that, for many folk, a jacket should last a very long time.

Our interaction with outdoor wear amounts to little more than shoving a jacket in a rucksack and only wearing it when the weather’s bad. Unless they’re worn for daily use as well as on the fell, most will only experience a few days of serious action each year. Yet we treat them as disposables: when we perceive that performance is waning (or that the colour’s out of fashion), they’re sent to the charity shop or binned. GYG’s great catchphrase – “Born to be worn, not stitched to be ditched” – is a matra that bears frequent repetition. n CONTACTS l Storm Care: 01773 521309, www.stormcare.co.uk l Grangers: 01773 521521, grangersinternational.com l Nikwax: 01892 786 400, www.nikwax.com l Gift Your Gear: 07928 613771, giftyourgear.com

46 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

t’s not often that someone improves on perfection but one of my favourite pieces of kit – designed and based here in Lakeland – just became better.

There are many pole designs on the market but Windermere-based Pacerpoles are unique. Their handles are shaped specifically to match the resting positions of each hand: there’s no unnatural flex of the wrists necessary to grip them, no needless strain. Benefits claimed by other poles – use of upper body for thrust, knee relief, additional balance on uneven ground, extra stability during river crossings – are there in spades but without that additional tiring of the hands and wrist. They also help encourage an upright posture.

My first pair had aircraft-grade alloy shafts. While weighty, their benefits far out-weighed their weight (unavoidable pun intentionally not avoided). Length adjustments were made by twisting shaft sections to expand and contract internal plastic bolts, as required. I’ve used later, lighter, carbon fibre-shafted versions – also adjusted via internal bolts – satisfactorily but the shaped handles (which have always been disproportionately heavy) and lighter shaft affected (only very slightly) the pole’s swing. While happy with the lighter carbon poles for day walks, I turned to the alloys for multi-day adventures.

Black Diamond’s patented FlickLocks – a shaft-mounted adjustment that acted like an easily-released vice – looked like they could provide a better solution to length adjustment but would have added too much weight in the base (and,

before that patent expired, some cost).

Now Pacerpoles’ inventors, Heather and Alan Rhodes, believe they have solved the weighting issue of the threesection pole with what they’re calling Pacerpole Dual Lock. As “dual” implies, there are two locking elements: the first is a selftightening Lever lock – which somewhat resembles the original Flicklocks – between the upper and middle sections; the second, a “lock pin” between middle and lower.

The lock pin is a small sprung pin that pops out of the lower shaft when fully extended, to prevent it collapsing. Extending the lower section sufficiently takes some elbow grease – it’s very snugly fitted to reduce rattling – and means that the lower length is now constantly fixed, rather than variable. That’s no disadvantage: necessary length adjustments can be made between upper and middle.

I prefer the upper Lever lock to FlickLocks, which could occasionally work loose and necessitated the carrying of a screwdriver for occasional tightening; the lock pin can be tightened easily by extending and winding its clasp.

I’ve used various Pacerpoles – to my mind the ultimate trekking pole – for many years. They’ve propelled me over countless fells and even the length of the United States. I wouldn’t embark on any big hike without them.

While it’s not the lightest Pacerpole available – that’s the three-section Carbon Fibre expansion bolt model – the new Dual Lock pole has, to my mind, taken pole position. n JM

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 47

48 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

STrOLL: NOrTH-WeSTerN FeLLS

Sale Fell Circuit Vivienne Crow enjoys constantly changing views on the edge of the Lake District IF YOU FANCY a relaxing walk but you’ve only got a couple of hours to spare, you can’t go wrong with this circuit of tiny Sale Fell. It’s easy going all the way and the views change with every twist and turn of the path. One minute, you’re looking into Scotland, next it’s Broom Fell and Lord’s Seat, and then you’re gazing across to Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite Lake.

1 START

Looking towards the Whinlatter hills from the slopes of Sale Fell

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY191302

1

START/ FINISH

6

5

2 3

4

From the roadside parking area, cross the road and go through the gate, signposted “Kelswick”. The clear path heads uphill and, soon after a gap in a wall, swings right.

ridges loom large over the sheep-filled enclosures. At a faint fork, keep left along the higher, more obvious route. With Bassenthwaite Lake visible down to the right, the path passes through an area of gorse.

2 0.5 MILES/0.8KM

5 2 MILES/3.2KM

Distance: 3.1 miles/5km

At the top of the rise, with a wall now on your right, ignore a clear path climbing left. The track begins descending, soon swinging away from the wall.

Emerging from the gorse, you’ll see a gate into the forest about 100 yards ahead. Leave the wide path here by turning left on a faint trail climbing the steep slope. Just beyond a tiny copse of gnarled old trees, ignore the path to the left; stay close to the old wall and forest fence on your right for now. As you begin descending, the route becomes more obvious. It steadily swings away from the recently felled forest and fords a tiny beck.

Time: approximately 90 minutes

3 1 MILE/1.6KM Nearing the farm at Kelswick, drop on to the lane to the right. Turn left along this and, when it bends sharp left on its approach to the farmyard, bear right along a rough track, signposted “Beck Wythop”. You soon pass the site of Wythop’s old church on the edge of Chapel Wood. The bridleway enters the atmospheric oak woods via a deer gate. Keep left at a fork.

4 1.6 MILES/2.6KM As you go through a second deer gate and climb away from the woods, Skiddaw and its

6 2.5 MILES/4KM After negotiating the damp ground on the other side, go through the gate over to the right. A gorgeous path now descends gently, later swinging around the northern side of Sale Fell. It drops to a junction above St Margaret’s Church. Turn right to return to where the walk started. n

VITALS Grade: Terrain: tracks and broad, grassy paths; gentle gradients

Climb: 840ft/256m Start/finish: roadside parking 200 yards north-east of St Margaret’s Church, near Wythop Mill (GR: NY191302) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District North; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area Transport: none Refreshments: Pheasant Inn near Bassenthwaite Lake Accommodation: B&Bs and hotels at Dubwath and Embleton

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 49

Hike: NOrTH WeSTerN FeLLS

Stonycroft Gill Round

VITALS Grade: Terrain: high level round with steep and rough ups and downs. Some easy scrambling in places; the final ascent of Causey Pike can be tricky and should be avoided in wet or icy weather.

Route-finding is straightforward, paths mostly clear Distance: 6.6 miles/10.7km Time: 4 hours Climb: 2,820ft/859m Start/finish: large parking area south of Braithwaite, between Uzzicar Farm and Stoneycroft (GR: NY232217) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lakeland North; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area; OS 1:50,000 Landranger 90, Penrith Transport: none Accommodation: Royal Oak, Braithwaite (017687 78533, www.royaloak-braithwaite.co.uk); also Keswick or Buttermere

Above, on Causey Pike’s summit. Right, making the descent

50 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Steve Goodier guides you around the ridges and summits above Stonycroft Gill A ROUND OF Stonycroft Gill, which rises in the wilderness of High Moss, takes in two separate ridges to link Causey Pike (2,090ft/637m), Scar Crags (2,205ft/672m), Outerside (1,863ft/568m), Stile End (around 1,400ft/426m) and Barrow (1,496ft/456m) in a neat horseshoe with great views.

Causey Pike and Scar Crags can be busy but you’ll leave the crowds behind as you

leave Sail Pass and on the traverse of the Outerside-to-Barrow Ridge you will see few others. The final descent down Barrow’s northeast ridge is a true Lakeland classic and a worthy finish to this outing.

Stonycroft Gill itself flows from High Moss to the hamlet of Stair via a narrow gully sandwiched between Causey Pike and Barrow. It is considered one of Lakeland’s

On the way to Scar Crags

more exciting watercourses and is popular with gill scramblers; you’ll probably find yourself sharing the car park start point with them, as well as with walkers intent on the famous Coledale Round.

Today, however, it is the ring of summits above provides Stonycroft Gill that demands our interest.

1 START Take the lane south, dipping to cross Stonycroft Beck and Bridge, then rise, soon taking a footpath right, up steps. Rise on the path to bear left at a junction. Keep ahead, climbing steeply on the path towards Rowling End above, over several scrambly rock steps to emerge on Rowling End ridge.

Continue west, undulating towards Causey Pike, joining a path by a cairn at Sleet Hause Pass. Keep ahead, climbing steep rocky steps to the base of Causey Pike’s final buttress and scrambling to the summit.

ahead through rocks to continue climbing to Barrow’s rocky summit.

4 3.5 MILES/5.6KM Continue northeast, descending steeply to the broad wet col of Low Moss. Cross this, making a wide loop right and back left (avoiding a bog) to reach the base of Stile End. Climb the main path swinging left to unmarked summit. Head southeast down a rough path, to the pass of Barrow Door.

Cross straight over, taking the rising path

5 4.8 MILES/7.7KM Take the north-east ridge (towards Skiddaw, on a fine day!), dipping through a prominent notch. Continue down the ridge to a path junction by a little sign. Go right, soon rising past woods on your left before descending to a lane. Bear right, back to the car park. n

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY232217

2 1.6 MILES/2.5KM Follow the undulating ridge west, over subsidiary summits, descending to a col and keeping ahead at a junction up the ridge of Scar Crags, to the summit cairn.

1

4

5 START/ FINISH

3 2.3 MILES/3.8KM Continue along the ridge, now descending southwest to Sail Pass. At the crossroads go right, descending the zigzag path and curving right near the bottom towards Outerside. At a path junction and cairn, take the grassy path left over a marshy hollow then rise up to Outerside’s rocky summit.

3

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March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 51

Hike: NOrTH WeSTerN FeLLS

High Spy and Maiden Moor The view from High Spy summit

VITALS Grade: Terrain: high level, clear tracks throughout. Check Keswick Launch timetable Distance: 7 miles/11km Time: 5 hours Climb: 2,200ft/670m Start: Rosthwaite (GR: NY257148) Finish: Hawse End Landing Stage (GR: NY251213) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District North; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4.

English Lakes, North-western area Transport: bus 78 from Keswick to Rosthwaite – service 78 (www.travelinenortheast.info, 0871 200 2233). Boat from Hawse End Landing Stage to Keswick – Keswick Launch Company (www.keswick-launch.co.uk, 01768 772263) Refreshments: the Flock Inn Tea Room in Rosthwaite (early February to mid-November, 10am–5pm, closed Wednesdays, borrowdaleyewtreefarm.co.uk/flock-in)

52 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Paul Richardson combines a plateau above Borrowdale with a boat trip IF YOU PREFER your routes to be in the “get high, stay high” bracket rather than the “get high, come down a bit, go back up a bit…” category, then this walk over High Spy and Maiden Moor might just fit the bill.

Magnificent views from High Spy summit over some of Lakeland’s iconic peaks will probably have you mentally retracing routes from the past. On the ascent from Rosthwaite, the disused Rigghead Quarries on the rugged hillside make you realise what a bleak daily commute the hardy souls that worked here had to endure to earn their keep. Maybe we don’t have it too bad after all.

If you are staying in Keswick, this route involves a short bus ride to the start and a leisurely boat trip back to Keswick.

1 START From the main Borrowdale road at the northern end of Rosthwaite, take the track west that leads past the public toilets. At the stream veer right on the main path, keeping to the right of the stream for about 220 yards before crossing on a footbridge. There are two gates just after the footbridge: go through the one to the left, that leads to a

small ascending track. Continue uphill over Lingy Bank then turn left on to the path that skirts the hill ahead of you. Cross Lavery Gill beck and veer right on to the track that follows the right-hand bank of Tongue Gill.

2 1.5 MILES/2.4KM Virtually all of this route’s ascent lies directly ahead on a well-defined track that goes steeply up the gill between High Scawdel to the left and Robin’s Fold on the right. Keep the stream on your left until the path crosses it just above the climbing hut over to your left. This section takes you through the disused Rigghead Quarries, where you can peer down over Rosthwaite village and perhaps see some of the slate and stones that were mined from these hills in the buildings way below.

Leaving the rocky terrain above the quarries, the climb becomes much gentler as you head across the grassy slopes of Wilson’s Bield. Several small tracks head generally north towards High Spy but if you remain on the main path, a right turn just above Dalehead Tarn will lead you along a firm cairn-marked track.

Left, the view from Blea Crag and , above, Looking back over Rosthwaite from Rigghead Quarries

3 2.8 MILES/4.5KM High Spy’s summit height might be modest compared to surrounding peaks but it offers breathtaking views northwest across the Derwent Fells, to favourites such as Sail, Causey Pike and Grisedale Pike. Continuing north from High Spy’s summit, the firm track continues along the top, with Derwent Water soon coming into view to the right.

GRID REF START: NY257148/FINISH: NY251213

6

FINISH

4 3.4 MILES/5.5KM Although the main track leads directly to Maiden Moor’s summit, it’s well worth taking a slight detour to the top of Blea Crag, for panoramic views across Derwent Water and a distant Keswick on the far shore. Turn right, back on to the main path, as it leads north over Narrow Moor, then Maiden Moor.

From Bull Crag, the path leads steadily downhill, with the tip of Cat Bells towering above the western shores of Derwent Water ahead. Keeping to the main path soon leads to the dip between Maiden Moor and Cat Bells, just above Hause Gate.

5

5 5 MILES/8KM A gentle ascent leads to Cat Bells’ summit.

The path from the summit is rocky in parts and can be slippery when wet. Hopefully, by the time you’re descending Cat Bells, the lines of walkers ascending from Hawse End will have settled down, along with the necessity for polite waits at passing places.

Near the base of Cat Bells the track splits: bear right, down to the road. Turn left on to the road and head on to the track that cuts down through woodland. At the Tarmac driveway turn right then immediately left, down to the landing stage at Hawse End.

6 7 MILES/11KM All that remains is to wait ‘til your boat comes in. Two cover the lake, one clockwise and one anti-clockwise. The clockwise route will have you back in Keswick in about fifteen minutes but you could opt for the anticlockwise, scenic tour of Derwent Water.

Either way, it’s a great end to a fell day. n

4 3 2 1 START

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 53

Hike: ceNTrAL FeLLS

Ullscarf and Grange Fell LET’S NOT CALL Ullscarf ugly. Let’s say that its windswept grasslands and great empty spaces are attractive in a different way. This is the beauty of bleakness, of vast open views, of soggy old snowfields off-white amid the peaty brown and the grassland’s autumnal beige.

Having enjoyed these admittedly grim delights, descend to Grange Fell, one of the knobby little fells this valley’s so wellequipped with, then walk the sheltered woodlands beside the golden pebbles of River Derwent. For while Ullscarf, in its austerity, is a last taste of winter; we also want Borrowdale below and the first tender green of spring.

1 START From the car park near the village hall, head back east to the B5289 at the north end of Rosthwaite. Cross left, over the stone bridge across Stonethwaite Beck, and at once turn right on a stony-walled footpath next to the river. It follows the valley floor, sometimes beside the river, sometimes a couple of hundred yards away. After about 1.5 miles (2.5km) the valley divides, with Eagle Crag looming overhead.

2 1.7 MILES/2.8KM Keep ahead on the path up the enclosed valley to the left of Eagle Crag. At the valley

54 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Wild woodlands, and even wilder empty fells – Ronald Turnbull investigates the two different beauties of Borrowdale head, the path steepens. It heads up to the left of the rock outcrop of Lining Crag, then slants right to its grassy top, a great viewpoint backwards. The path continues gently uphill, just east-of-south, to the major pass at Greenup Edge.

3 3.4 MILES/5.5KM Turn left, following the northward path and old fence posts to Ullscarf summit with its low cairn. The path continues north for a quarter-mile, to a fence corner. Here follow the fence down to the right (not the apparently more direct one, left). A path runs to the right of the fence, until the fence ends at the top of Standing Crag.

4 5.5 MILES/8.8KM Go down to right of the crag, then head back left below it to the start of a new fence.

Follow this north, then fork left away from it on a peaty trod across the slope above Blea Tarn. The path passes above the outflow of the tarn and contours across moorland, to reach the fell wall high above Watendlath.

The path runs ahead above this wall, crossing a couple of streams. Where the wall turns downhill, the path turns down just beyond it, through a narrow gate, and down in zigzags into Watendlath.

5 8 MILES/12.8KM Head down through the village, then left up the stream to the packhorse bridge. Across that turn left, upstream then briefly alongside the tarn. Then fork uphill on a wide, stony path signed for Rosthwaite. At the path’s high point, ahead is a short cut, if required, straight down to the walk start. But to continue on the main walk, fork right on a small path contouring to a wall. Turn up a path to the right of this wall. At the slope top the wall bends right. Here cross a ladder stile and take a path left, to the summit knoll of Grange Fell.

6 9 MILES/14.3KM Keep going past the summit knoll, descending southwest for about a quarter of a mile. Now a path turns down right, north. It contours to a stout ladder stile over a wall,

Watendlath Tarn and Grange Fell

VITALS Grade: Terrain: hill paths, mostly good, a bit soggy past Blea Tarn and rough/heathery/peaty over Grange Fell

Distance: 13.4 miles/21.5km Time: 7 hours Climb: 2,700ft/800m Start/finish north edge of Rosthwaite village (GR: NY258149)

Maps: Harvey Maps' 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District West and Lake District North (both needed); Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area; OS 1:50,000 Landranger 90, Penrith Transport: bus 78 from Keswick, seven daily (www.travelinenortheast.info, 0871 200 22 33)

Accommodation: YHA Borrowdale at Rosthwaite, year-round, plus camping pods; Dinah Hoggus camping barn, www.lakelandcampingbarns.co.uk Refreshments: cafés at Watendlath, Grange, Rosthwaite then to the col between Woden’s Face and Kings How. There’s a stile over a fence here.

Across it, turn right, on a path through the col keeping to left of swamp.

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY258149

8

7 9.6 MILES/15.3KM Where the ground dips into a wood, don’t descend ahead but turn right on a crossing path, passing to the right of a small knoll, then rejoining the fence. On the near side of the fence, turn down left on a path of rebuilt pitched stonework. It takes you steeply down to the foot of the wood. At the wood’s foot, turn left on a green path through a broad col.

As it dips into woods, fork right twice to emerge on the Borrowdale road through a small gate. Turn right for 100 yards to Grange Bridge on the left.

9

7

5 6 1

8 10.4 MILES/16.7KM Cross the bridge into Grange. After the second café, turn left on the Tarmac lane to Hollows Farm. Before reaching the farm, keep ahead on the track through its campsite to the River Derwent.

START/ FINISH

4

2

9 11.8 MILES/18.9KM Keep left next to the river, on the wide path into the woods at the foot of Castle Crag. At the path’s high point, the unsignposted path up right would take you to Millican Dalton’s Cave. But for Rosthwaite, turn down left and continue through the wood to join a track beside the river. Keep upstream. In half a mile cross the stone bridge on the left, for the stony track that runs along the river then bends left into Rosthwaite. n

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56 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

rAMbLe: ceNTrAL FeLLS

Looking towards Fairfield from the Helm Crag-Calf Crag ridge

Calf Crag

Vivienne Crow links two gorgeous valleys via a 1,761ft top IN OUR NEVER-ENDING quest for the felltops, many of us hillwalkers forget that the quiet side-valleys hold as many – if not more – delights than the high ground. This route climbs to a high point of 1,761ft (537m) at Calf Crag above Grasmere, but only as a byproduct of a walk that explores the two valleys on either side of the Helm Crag ridge: Greenburn and Far Easedale. These are places that reward attention to detail; places where the bedrock has been smoothed by the passing of glaciers, where waterfalls plummet over the lip of blackened rocks, where trees and juniper cling to the side of gills, and peregrines call from the crags.

Regular hillwalkers will find it a straightforward outing on generally well-used paths, keeping mostly to moderate gradients.

The only annoyances come when you encounter soggy, exposed peat on the ridge.

on your left. Continue upstream through two gates – ignoring a footbridge across the beck – and past some waterfalls.

3 1.25 MILES/2KM About three-quarters of a mile after leaving the sealed lane, crest a small rise to reach a flat, boggy area – Greenburn Bottom – close to the head of the valley. The path swings left here and crosses the beck via stepping stones. Once on the southern side of the water, bear right to continue upstream on a less obvious path. About 350 yards beyond a

sheepfold with large boulders set into its walls, the path makes a decisive swing left.

Climbing steeply at first, you briefly lose the path in a damp area on the fellside. From here, it trends right (west), ascending at an easier angle. Nearing the top of the slope, it swings left to reach the ridge.

4 2.1 MILES/3.4KM With views across to Deer Bields on the other side of Far Easedale, turn right along the clear ridge path. It quickly climbs to Pike of Carrs then continues to Calf Crag. This section of

1 START From the layby, head uphill beside the busy A591 for 160 yards. Take the first lane on the left, soon passing the buildings at Town Head. Immediately after crossing a bridge, turn right up a surfaced lane, signposted “Greenburn”.

2 0.5 MILES/0.8KM At the lane-end, go through the large gate on to National Trust land. Resisting the lure of the path rising on to Steel Fell, keep straight ahead on the valley track, walking with a wall

At the top of Far Easedale

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 57

In Far Easedale the route forms part of Wainwright’s Coast to Coast and, consequently, there are some badly eroded patches where the peat has been exposed. There are stepping stones in places but it still makes for squidgy walking.

5 2.7 MILES/4.4KM From the top of Calf Crag the route heads north-northwest at first, quickly swinging west. It passes a few hundred yards to the left of a tarn at Brownrigg Moss.

6 3.1 MILES/5KM At a junction of paths marked by a cairn and some rusty old fenceposts, turn left to drop into Far Easedale. The initial part of the descent skirts the foot of impressive crags but the valley soon broadens out. Just before it

does so, the beck winds its way through a steep-sided ravine. The path fords the beck at the point at which it emerges from this short gorge and just before it tumbles over a lip of dark rock. From here, the walk along the valley bottom is straightforward.

7 4.7 MILES/7.6KM Soon after a path comes down from the right, the beck is crossed via a wooden footbridge.

Continue downstream. At a fork close to some small, beautifully clear waterfalls, take either option: they soon reunite. You eventually lose the beck but the way ahead is obvious.

8 5.5 MILES/8.9KM Where a track goes off to the left, keep straight ahead, signposted “Grasmere”. Go

through the gate, walk down the cobbled lane, then swing left along the quiet road.

9 6 MILES/9.7KM About 600 yards after first joining the sealed road, you will see a footpath off to Langdale on your right, next to the Goody Bridge holiday cottages. Continue on the road for now but in just a few yards take the narrow lane on the left.

10 6.7 MILES/10.8KM Turn left on reaching a T-junction close to a bridge over the River Rothay. Following this lane close to the base of Helm Crag, you later rejoin your outward route. Continue past Town Head and up to the main road. Turn right, and the layby where the walk started is 160 yards ahead on the left. n

VITALS

GRID REF START/FINISH: NY335096

Grade: Terrain: valley and fell paths; damp and peaty in places

5 6

START/ FINISH

3 4

Time: 3–4 hours Climb: 1,765ft/538m

2 1 7

10 8

Start/finish: layby set back from the road on the eastern side of the A591, 1.3 miles south of Dunmail Raise (GR: NY335096) Maps: Harvey Maps’ 1:25,000 Superwalker XT25 Lake District West; Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Explorer OL4, English Lakes, North-western area and OL7, English Lakes, Southeastern area Transport: bus 555

9

58 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

Distance: 7.5 miles/12.1km

Refreshments: selection of pubs, restaurants and cafés in nearby Grasmere Accommodation: B&Bs, hotels and hostels in Grasmere

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60 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

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March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 61

LiNeScAPeS by Mark richards

High Street, minus the shops

ExCLUSIVE PRINT OFFER

O

f all the ridge routes in Lakeland none can match High Street when it comes to a sense of history. The grand promenade north from Thornthwaite Crag is especially evocative.

In this Linescape, Peter Savin from Kendal is pictured striding towards the Straits of Riggindale, kitted out against the blazing August sun. “Straits of Riggindale” is the only instance of the use of the nautical term “straits” – implying a narrowing of the ridgeway – in the whole of Lakeland. The Romans adapted this skyline journey from an even more ancient, native highway connecting tribal centres. The pre-Roman objective might well have been the hugely important henges at Eamont Bridge, known as King Arthur’s Round Table, and Mayburgh, ancient emotional gathering points.

Peter and I walked from Troutbeck to Askham on this day and hunted for all hints of the Roman thoroughfare. Behind us, back from this spot, we found signs of the road in the vegetation, untrammeled by contemporary recreational use. The views west are sensational towards the long south– north Helvellyn range and, through the gaps in that mighty range, into the mountainous heart of Lakeland. We were forging ultimately towards Vindolanda, researching a guide to an entirely new walking journey founded upon the Roman road structure, called Hadrian’s High Way, set to be published on May 29. For details visit www.hadrianshighway.co.uk.

MR

62 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017

See the entire series of exclusive Lakeland Walke r Linescapes at Mark Richards’ online gallery at www.markrichards.info .

To purchase this Linescap e as an individually signe d, numbered and mounted print, reproduced on fin e cartridge paper, contact Mark at fellranger1@gma il.com.

Prints cost £35 for A4 an d £45 for A3 (including p&p) and are exclusive to readers of Lakeland Walker.

Mark’s love of pen drawin g reveals a natural connec tion with literary and artistic expression fro m another age. His earlies t guidebooks were handcrafted, in the style of his mentor, fellwa lking doyen Alfred Wainwright, though his influences range eve n further back in time. Having completed his series of Cicerone-pub lished Lakeland Fellranger guides, Mark has delved into his tin of crow quill nibs and bottle of Indian ink to rec ord the iconic landscape s that inspire readers of Lakeland Walker .

March–April 2017 Lakeland Walker 63

64 Lakeland Walker March–April 2017