Author Topic: Wainwrights  (Read 2338 times)

Islandplodder

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Wainwrights
« on: 13:02:52, 25/11/15 »
I seem to have passed a few of the milestones of the aging process lately, and feel the need of a challenge to prove I'm not past it yet.  I wondered about seeing if I could do the Wainwrights before I hang up my boots.  As it happens I did five this summer.  I also did a few 40 odd years ago, and a few more (or the same ones again, Helvellyn and High Street seem to figure a lot) since.
I was looking at the thread about how many Wainwrights people had done, and wondered how you count.  Do you just go walking in the Lakes, realise you are half way through them and decide to finish the round off?  Or do you decide at the start to 'do the lot', and not count the ones you did years ago because you don't have dates etc, so reckon you have to climb them again?
I live in Scotland, so I suppose it would make more sense to do the Munros, but I think it might be too much of a challenge.  Also, I don't have a good head for heights, and it wouldn't just be the InnPinn I couldn't get up!  So I won't be teetering on that rock at the top of Helm Crag, I hope it isn't an absolute requirement?

Ridge

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #1 on: 13:56:01, 25/11/15 »
How you count them us up to you, it is a personal challenge not a competition.


I have counted very one I have done from the beginning though there are probably very few of the early ones that I have not done more than once.


AW himself never climbed the rock on the top of Helm Crag, again it is your choice. I have climbed Helm Crag's rock but I'm sure there are other fells which I am counting where I did not stand on the absolute summit, sometimes it is more obvious than others and I definitely never check with a GPS.

ninthace

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #2 on: 13:56:30, 25/11/15 »
Some folk are "baggers" and chase them systematically, some folk suddenly realise they have done 214-x and become "baggers" and some folk just let it happen.  Personally, I have done over half but I don't think I will ever do them all, I am not that much of a bagger being more interested in devising new routes than claiming hills so I bag them as and when they get in the way.  Hill bagging feels a bit like train spotting or stamp collecting to me, both laudable hobbies but not my cup of tea.  However, whatever gets you out there - it's all good  O0
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Islandplodder

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #3 on: 16:55:59, 25/11/15 »
I think it was the getting me out there I was thinking of, Ninthace.  Especially the getting me climbing upwards instead of taking the path of least resistance.....

jontea

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #4 on: 18:02:00, 25/11/15 »
I must admit I do like ticking the Wainwright's off. Planning a walk with these summits as targets is the basis for a route.
The beauty of ticking these hills off, is it draws you to parts of the Lake District  you might not go to without these targets, and then be rewarded by seeing yet another new stunning area.

As for when I started counting them, it was from the first summit climbed.
I think personally once a summit is climbed, that's a Wainwright done, regardless of how long ago. Many people take a life time to visit all 214 which I'm probably one of them O0
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Rhino

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #5 on: 18:40:23, 25/11/15 »
I did my first and only 3 Wainwrights when I was at school 28 odd years ago and for my current round which I started in October 2013 I counted them in the total but bagged them again to say ive bagged them as part of this round  :)


I agree with Jontea in that I wouldn't have seen parts of the lakes without doing them all  :)
Wainwrights Completed 12/12/15

Boothy

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #6 on: 14:26:39, 26/11/15 »
I started ticking them off on my very first one on my first visit to the lakes which was only 6 years ago.  I am now on 171 and looking at completing in Summer 2017.
 
As previously stated Wainwright didn't climb the howitzer so I don't see that as a necessity.
 
At one stage I was trying to get photos of myself on every summit but the weather on occasion has led to me not getting a camera out of the bag.  I'm happy I've been there - don't see the need for hard evidence to prove to anybody else.
 
And another agreement on the fact that doing the Wainwrights will take you to places you would never have previously considered.
134/214

Theo Frum

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #7 on: 15:34:29, 26/11/15 »
When I first decided to start ticking I counted everything, including the ones I did as a kid with my father, but once I'd done them all I went back and did the older ones, and the ones that felt a bit like cheating. Early on, I had cherry picked odd easy ones, or ones that I could do from the top of a pass, but a lot of them got repeated in the process of bagging other adjacent ones. By the end I was sitting at home through the winter months planning walks so that I could fit as many into a day as possible.

Ridge

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #8 on: 23:17:16, 26/11/15 »
At one stage I was trying to get photos of myself on every summit but the weather on occasion has led to me not getting a camera out of the bag.  I'm happy I've been there - don't see the need for hard evidence to prove to anybody else.
I have photos of my son on 159 of his 160 Wainwrights. The only one I didn't take him on was Brock Crag where a recently dead sheep was decomposing on the top.

Rhino

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #9 on: 20:49:00, 27/11/15 »
I used the go4awalk website to walk the Wainwrights in 59 walks and ended up combining a few of the rounds into one round as well and some multi single summit bagging days. Now I have almost finished iam really looking forward to planning my own rounds of the ones and areas I want to revisit  :)
Wainwrights Completed 12/12/15

Highs and Lows

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Re: Wainwrights
« Reply #10 on: 21:24:54, 27/11/15 »
The books are a great read, and the ascent descriptions and ridge routes are very useful for planning your walk. Also, the summit view indicators are superb.
I'd also agree that The Wainwright's take you to hills you might not normally consider...last weekend I did a nice route on Skiddaw via Ullcock Pike and Longside Edge.
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