Author Topic: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.  (Read 2663 times)

NewWalkerMark

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Hi All,

We're considering climbing the Newlands Round tomorrow, well a variation of some of the excellent advice I've had on here, as it'll be our best day to do it time wise etc, but a lot of the information I've found online is a bit contradictory, so I was wondering what we should expect really, best to be prepared I think.

I was thinking of walking from Keswick, or parking somewhere in town, and then walking the path from Keswick up to Cat Bells, then follow the path to Maiden Moore, High Spy, Dale Head, Hindscarth and maybe, just maybe, Robinson, come back round to the car and then home, but I saw quite a few people stating it as a 'Strenuous' or 'Hard' climb.

I then saw someone saying that Cat Bells from Little Town was an 'easy walk', so maybe it'd be good to consider going from Little Town up to Cat Bells, do the above route and come back to Little Town to pick up the car.

Is one route worse than the other, is it really that different? If we go we;d like to get a few done, but the information I've seen is all a bit confusing, especially given that we're aching from doing Scafell Pike yesterday (will put a TR up soon when I work out how to do photos  :D )

Skip

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #1 on: 18:09:28, 27/09/16 »
It's two-and-a-half miles from Keswick to the foot of Skelgill Bank (the easiest start point for Catbells).

There is a small parking area at approx NY 247 211 which is a good place to leave the car.

In terms of steepness and effort, if you've done the Pike you should have no trouble with Newlands IMO.
Skip

NewWalkerMark

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #2 on: 18:15:32, 27/09/16 »
It's two-and-a-half miles from Keswick to the foot of Skelgill Bank (the easiest start point for Catbells).

There is a small parking area at approx NY 247 211 which is a good place to leave the car.

In terms of steepness and effort, if you've done the Pike you should have no trouble with Newlands IMO.

Hi Skip, thanks for the reply! I saw that car park, also saw one on GMaps in Little Town, free (I think) that if I followed the right path, would come up inbetween Cat Bells and Maiden Moore, so we could cut across to Cat Bells, back to Maiden, then continue down to High Spy, etc.

Legs are slowing recovering from the Pike after doing an 'easy' walk to Latrigg today from Keswick and back, so should be okayish for tomorrow. The only concern really now appears to be the weather, mainly the wind and fog... Apparently it's chances of it at 500m for the morning, then dropping to 400m persistently in the afternoon.

We want to start early (7am) but have no idea how long the walk takes and as such, whether we'll have any problems with the weather. I saw someone say their guidebook gave it an 8 hour time that was over-estimated...


The pictures I've seen online look very nice though!

henryb

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #3 on: 19:10:24, 27/09/16 »
Littletown is a lot closer than Keswick to Cat Bells; you could get the honister rambler to shorten the route. The full round of Catbells to Ard crags is very strenous; I did that in three walks: Dale Head to Maiden Moor, Grange to Buttermere over Ard Crags and Knott Rigg and Dale Head to Buttermere via Robinson. The latter is a half day walk. Dale Head to Cat Bells is a great walk.  

domtheone

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #4 on: 19:48:07, 27/09/16 »
From the car park that Skip mentioned, it's a great walk doing the round.

Not the hardest horseshoe by all means but allow several hours.

The pull up onto Dale Head is pretty steep from memory mind.  Worth it though as the views from the summit are superb.
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NewWalkerMark

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #5 on: 19:58:30, 27/09/16 »
From the car park that Skip mentioned, it's a great walk doing the round.

Not the hardest horseshoe by all means but allow several hours.

The pull up onto Dale Head is pretty steep from memory mind.  Worth it though as the views from the summit are superb.

Thanks for the reply dom, I appreciate it. I hope its not more than 6 hours to do that horseshoe, we want to start early and get down before the vis drops (some sites said very poor visibility in the afternoon)

Henry has given me some excellent info and weather sites to use in PM, so will be checking them tomorrow before setting off early!

Ridge

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #6 on: 20:32:58, 27/09/16 »
I would agree about parking closer than Keswick. It is a long walk with some steep ascents I don't know when that classes as strenuous. I would allow 8 hours if it was me.

NewWalkerMark

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #7 on: 20:38:03, 27/09/16 »
I would agree about parking closer than Keswick. It is a long walk with some steep ascents I don't know when that classes as strenuous. I would allow 8 hours if it was me.

8 hours  :o and then  :(
Good to know though, best to be prepared in advance! The weather doesn't seem horrendous on the sites henryb sent in, so we're gonna get up there and see what happens!

Ridge

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #8 on: 20:49:39, 27/09/16 »
8 hours  :o and then  :(
I am at work so don't have any maps/books to hand but it feels like a full day out. I tend to do 1.5mph in the hills including breaks and I am thinking it is about 11 miles or so. If you crack on and the weather doesn't encourage you to linger over lunch then you may be quicker.

domtheone

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #9 on: 21:04:02, 27/09/16 »
When we did this last year, I clocked it at around 12.5 miles (Runkeeper on iphone so not mega accurate).

Timewise I clocked it at just over 7 hours.  We stopped a few times but we don't exactly walk slow.


I don't doubt it can be done in 6 hours but you'll need to be pretty fit and no half hour lunch stops ;D


Views are quite lovely on a nice day


« Last Edit: 21:08:17, 27/09/16 by domtheone »
If they don't like you going out, they'll love you coming in!

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Mark674

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #10 on: 21:49:23, 27/09/16 »
Catch the honister rambler to the foot of Cat Bells or Skellgill
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NewWalkerMark

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #11 on: 22:04:44, 27/09/16 »
Thanks for all the replies with help and information, this site is a mine of information  O0

We're going to drive to Little Town tomorrow as we want to start as it's getting late. Based on the time-scales people have given, we'll probably do Catbells, MM and HS, then see where we're at, how we feel and what the weather is doing, especially as Dale Head's ascent can be a pain apparently!

I'll need to put some photo's up soon (although mine are pretty pants compared to what i've seen others put up  ;D )

Mark674

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #12 on: 22:09:58, 27/09/16 »
I did Dale Head about three weeks ago from Buttermere up Robinson that's brutal across Hindscarth then down to Honister,missed the bus then walked down to Seatoller
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Innominate Man

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Re: Your experience of Cat Bells, Maiden Moore, etc.
« Reply #13 on: 23:47:57, 28/09/16 »
Sorry NWM, I've missed this post and you've probably been and done it by now.
I June I did a big Newlands loop that I tracked on Viewranger at just over 20 miles and to help in training, two weeks before, we did almost what Henry describes.
The idea was that it was about 2/3 - 3/4 the length of the bigger circuit and gave opportunity to walk half of the peaks and to see the others. This shorter was Cat Bells to Ard Crags. We parked in the small car park at the foot of Cat Bells and my Viewranger tracked that at just over 15 miles.
I can't remember how long it took but it was a fabulous walk with stunning views, although until Dale Head the weather was poor. Thereafter it gradually improved.
I'm sure you'll have enjoyed it. Hopefully the pull up from the tarn to Dale Head didn't hurt too much (it killed me).




This photo was taken on the bigger walk two week later - on the ridge up from Whiteless Pike to Wandope. A fabulous days walking that took us 12hours with too many stops to admire the view/lunch etc.
Only a hill but all of life to me, up there between the sunset and the sea. 
Geoffrey Winthrop Young

 

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