Date 6 oct, the day after the Blencathra walk.
Time only 25 minutes late this time.
Location: lay by at the foot of Hardknott pass.
The attendees: Micky, RamblingPete, Cogstar et moi.
Distance: it was too far
ascent: it was too much
. about 12.6 miles and 4600? feet.
We (reluctantly) left the White horse Inn as Cogstar was flying up the M6 to join us for tea (dinner for those posh folk) at the wainwright inn. Once showered and changed it was off to aforementioned pub in Chapel Stile.
Langdale has at least 4 top top notch establishments, the old and new dungeon ghyll's the stickle barn tavern and the one we were inn (see what i did there). Plan was have a couple of beers some scoff (Lamb shoulder yummy yummy) and decide on a walk.
The plan went a bit off piste and we left very much on the way to being piste after having somewhere between another 6 to 8 pints of the best beer in the world (IMHO) Jennings Cumberland. There was also a quiz night which we didnt win because non of us drink bacardi and dont know the difference between Charles Dickens and Charles Darwin.
So up we got the following morning after a fitful sleep as it decided to toss it down overnight and blow a hoolie for the second night in succesion (both in and outside the tentage). Several oatcakes with bacon were prepared and scoffed whilst we waited for Coggy and Pete who were annoyingly on time and we were still in the process of breaking camp.
The best cure for a hangover is to drive over wyrenose and hardknott pass' NOT.
We got ready after a period of contemplation at the layby, the plan was to walk up Eskdale, see how we were then head up on to "The Great Moss" as we like to call it.
Now I hadnt been up Eskdale before so I was a bit excited and it didnt dissapoint. Beautiful it was in the morning sunshine:
My comrades in beer following on:
One of the locals, he wanted to know where Max was
:
There has been a lot of rain. I think its the Crinkles and Bowfell up top, it could be Esk Hause though - someone correct that if i am wrong
We took loads of photos. it had nothing to do with the amount of beer the night before.
It was a glorious day and morale was on the increase after the excesses of the night before, plenty of drink was on the cards as the sun was hot. There was plenty of water to go at.
We got to Lingcove bridge and it was time to get serious and gain some height, leaving behind the gorgeous valley of Eskdale..
It was a hard slog up and the field soon spread out.
Climb over and we entered Great moss: The top of England, dead ahead...not for us today though.
Great moss is an amphitheatre and holding court are the Scafells, Bowfell Crinkle Crag, Esk Hause,Slight side, Great End Ill and Broad Crag. everwhere you turn is a view to die for, giants stand above you on 3 sides. This is Cam spout and our route was to take us round to the right and up just out of view. We had to go that way cos we couldnt get across the bloody river, which added at least a mile and a half extra of very very boggy bog trotting.
So plan A was out of the window as we had walked too far up to ascend Slight Side so it was Scafell all the way. Pete and I were off up foxes Gully and Micky and Coggy were off up Lords rake, although we didnt know that at this point.
The view looking back down whilst I rediscovered the art of blowing out of my [censored]...If you need perspective spot Pete bringing up the rear, just before he fell in the bog thigh deep.
If the truth be known I wanted to go home at this point, I was shot..What a sight the southern flank of Scafell is. That is one serious lump of rock. As a reminder if you look hard enough you can see the (often used) MRT stretcher box just to the right of the lowest point of the coll as the accident blackspot of Broad Stand is just out of sight up there.
Micky and Cogstar can tell you of their derring do as Me and Pete went a different route by hanging a left up what looks like an impossible climb but is remarkably easy, ladies and gentlemen i present Foxs gulley:
That leads you out in to the bowl that houses the ridiculously titled Foxes Tarn.. Yes, its that puddle around the rock.
There was just one more climb to go, the Foxes Tarn path..its a [censored]...
just at the top of the path you get a great view of Scafell Pike
The weather then did its usual and closed right in on us. rain sleet hail and a biting northerly (ish) wind slammed up from wasdale.
Pete wasnt liking the weather.
The second highest man in England:
Who says we pose for these pictures: The two chaps behind me had just completed the wainwrights, congatulations. It's such a shame they were verbally abused shortly after this picture was taken by another small group of individuals who think its funny to sneak upon people and scream obscenities at them, only to realise it isn't your mates after all
. i'll let Micky tell you the rest..........
Now it was full steam ahead to Slight Side, mostly all downhill from here.
Now it was full steam ahead to Slight Side, mostly all downhill from here.
We then had the mother of hailstorms, OUCH. This is it coming to meet us.
We did Slight Side and here is a picture of it from down below. We had no view from the top.
The final throes of the walk: You can just make ut the walls of Hardknott fort.
I think these may be Dibble miles
Cheers Micky and Pete for a fantastic two days and to Cogstar for dragging us round. Scafell after a gallon. who would have believed it.
