Whittle Wanderers

Robinson, Dale Head and High Spy nr. Keswick, Cumbria. Wed 25 Aug 2004
Once again the weather report was bad. Eric and I drove to Grange-in-Borrowdale, Keswick and waited for the Borrowdale Rambler 77a bus. It arrived bang on time at 9am as we waited in torrential rain. The bus ride is worth it just for the drive over Honnister Pass. There's something about bus rides that I enjoy, especially in the country and even when it's raining. It was nice to see quite a few other walkers taking advantage of the service. It certainly increases the itinerary options as a circular route can be dispensed with.
	The Honister Rambler 77a bus reaching the summit of Honnister Pass.

Looking west from Robinson, across to Crummock Water, Loweswater and the coast.
By the time we reached Buttermere the rain had just about stopped and we set off towards Robinson. We passed the old School House that has long since stopped being a school. The most recent school group photo inside the building is 1948. The climb up the west side of Robinson is quite enjoyable as there is a well-engineered track that zig zags all the way to the flat ground at Buttermere Moss. With no evidence of mining or quarrying by the track I wondered why someone had gone to so much trouble. Perhaps it was for cutting and recovering the peat? Buttermere Moss is aptly names, soggy moss being the main theme. But by the time we started up the final climb to Robinson we were on a good solid trail again. The weather continued to improve and by the time we reached the summit we had nice views across Crummock Water with clouds scudding by in the foreground. On the way up we'd passed a young lady walking up. She seemed to keep a constant distance behind us so we waited a bit on the summit to check she got up all right. But she was nowhere to be seen. With good weather the walk SE along Littledale Edge and Hindscarth was a delight. Now it was our turn to be overtaken. Another young lady came over Robinson from the NE and was soon vanishing into the distance towards Dale Head. The solo walkers we usually meet are grizzled old blokes, so it made a pleasant change to see Ladies on the fells. We stopped briefly by the impressive circular cairn on Robinson then continued swiftly on down the steep trail towards Dalehead Tarn. The reason for the haste was that that's where our lunch stop was to be. On the way down we passed the young lady who sped off into the distance. At the bottom we chatted briefly as we unpacked our sandwiches but she continued on towards High Spy while we sat by the idyllic tarn, dry stonewalls and vivid green grass. As we were finishing lunch a couple arrived to have their lunch. They knew of the spot as well and declared it one of the best places to dine. As we left the other young lady we'd passed earlier in the day arrived. She was returning to the Youth Hostel near Rosthwaite and was descending by a different route. So we said our goodbyes and continued on the climb of High Spy. By now the weather had improved even more and the wonderful cloud-scapes opened up a little to allow some sun through.
	A view of Causey Pike from the climb on High Spy.
Boyd and Eric above Derwent Water.
North of High Spy summit we turned east to descent the wonderful path down to Grange-in-Borrowdale. This is the route via Nitting Haws. What a wonderful name? The path gives incredible views across Derwent Water. With all the ups and downs we'd done quite a walk. The GPS meter showed a total climb of: 1125m (3690ft) and a total descent of: 1163m (3815ft) Fortunately the weather forecast had been very wrong.