Putting off this walk till the Saturday (18th April) seems to have been a lucky decision (or an ace piece of judgement, perhaps….)
The day dawned windless, clear and blue-skied and we opted to park the car at Brotherilkeld which is a bit nearer to the hills than Wha House.
The walk up Eskdale to Great Moss in warming sunshine was just fab, with increasingly cracking views of the cirque of hills.
There were wild campers beneath Scafell Pike. I was jealous....
Our first objective was the little (not so little!) pointy top of Pen, which sticks out from the side of Scafell Pike, a bit like something sticking out from the side of Scafell Pike, in fact.
There’s around a thousand feet of steepish grass to get up on to this nobble, which is a slog, but a slog with better and better views all the time. So we didn’t rush. (I can’t rush anyway…). Its a fine, craggy, mountain spot for the eating of the banana and the ritual sacrifice of a just-passed-sell-by-date cheese salad butty....
After this we went straight for Scafell Pike’s summit starting with a short scramble and then a lot of boulders and stones to the top – which was heavy with people. In view of the crowds, we decided that Broad Crag would be a better place for a stop, so after a bit of mingling with the masses, we trundled off over the boulders and scree for the little scramble that took us to Broad Crag.
Coming up the hill were a stag party on suits and top hats, a lot of people expressing the view that they’d never make it (although they were nearly there!) and quite a bunch of old scouse chaps heaving and puffing…. A few runners ran off in to the distance…
Broad Crag was almost quiet – just a few people there, and Ill Crag had half a dozen or so – and an indication of an interesting way down.
Finally, we ended up on Great End with its fine views to the North and of Great gable.
To get back to the start, we went to Esk hause and followed the stream all the way back to Brotherilkeld.
Some lads were camping at one point and throwing a Frisbee around. They looked very sheepish at our approach and I think they were expecting us to try to turf them off. But we didn’t, obviously. They had Chuck Berry for music. I mean, be fair… Chuck Berry.....
They’d picked a fine spot for camping too. I’ve made a mental note of the spot.
At Lincove Bridge, we met a bat. It fluttered around a bit and then landed on the bridge parapet, hanging upside down. I’ve never seen a bat flying in bright daylight like that. There didn’t seem to be much in the way of insects….
Fine walk, though. This one will turn out to be a memorable one.
14 miles and 3400 feet of climbing.
The day dawned windless, clear and blue-skied and we opted to park the car at Brotherilkeld which is a bit nearer to the hills than Wha House.
The walk up Eskdale to Great Moss in warming sunshine was just fab, with increasingly cracking views of the cirque of hills.
There were wild campers beneath Scafell Pike. I was jealous....
Our first objective was the little (not so little!) pointy top of Pen, which sticks out from the side of Scafell Pike, a bit like something sticking out from the side of Scafell Pike, in fact.
There’s around a thousand feet of steepish grass to get up on to this nobble, which is a slog, but a slog with better and better views all the time. So we didn’t rush. (I can’t rush anyway…). Its a fine, craggy, mountain spot for the eating of the banana and the ritual sacrifice of a just-passed-sell-by-date cheese salad butty....
After this we went straight for Scafell Pike’s summit starting with a short scramble and then a lot of boulders and stones to the top – which was heavy with people. In view of the crowds, we decided that Broad Crag would be a better place for a stop, so after a bit of mingling with the masses, we trundled off over the boulders and scree for the little scramble that took us to Broad Crag.
Coming up the hill were a stag party on suits and top hats, a lot of people expressing the view that they’d never make it (although they were nearly there!) and quite a bunch of old scouse chaps heaving and puffing…. A few runners ran off in to the distance…
Broad Crag was almost quiet – just a few people there, and Ill Crag had half a dozen or so – and an indication of an interesting way down.
Finally, we ended up on Great End with its fine views to the North and of Great gable.
To get back to the start, we went to Esk hause and followed the stream all the way back to Brotherilkeld.
Some lads were camping at one point and throwing a Frisbee around. They looked very sheepish at our approach and I think they were expecting us to try to turf them off. But we didn’t, obviously. They had Chuck Berry for music. I mean, be fair… Chuck Berry.....
They’d picked a fine spot for camping too. I’ve made a mental note of the spot.
At Lincove Bridge, we met a bat. It fluttered around a bit and then landed on the bridge parapet, hanging upside down. I’ve never seen a bat flying in bright daylight like that. There didn’t seem to be much in the way of insects….
Fine walk, though. This one will turn out to be a memorable one.
14 miles and 3400 feet of climbing.
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