Braithwaite (Keswick) to Coniston, Cumbria. Thu 13 Apr - Tue 18 Apr 2006

Chorley Bus Station.
All journey have to start somewhere!

Thu 13 Apr 2006

Back-pack Cumbria. Vango TBS Minor 100 tent
7:30am bus from Whittle to Chorley. Still £1.50 single. At the railway station the display screens were still not working. I don't know if they've been out for a month or been fixed and failed again. The 08:23am train to Windermere was only slightly late and arrived on time. I had 30 mins to kill before my bus arrived so went into Booths supermarket to get something to eat. On one stall were Butter Croissants at 25p each. I asked if I could buy and eat one in the cafeteria section and was told I could. However that meant going to another counter and the 25p croissant had gone up to £1. I told the woman I wasn't paying that price and left. The entrance to the railway station was boarded up and covered in plastic.

The timing for the renovation work was questionable as this is the start of Easter, just as people are starting to flood into the Lakes. I caught the 555 bus to Keswick, then the 77, which goes over Honister via Portinscale. I got off at Portinscale and walked a mile to Braithwaite. I took the minor lane towards Newlands valley and as I left the village photographed a CTC (Cycling Tourist Club) metal sign on a barn door. I spoke to the man there and he said he put it up 30 years ago but now its bolted to the door and not just screwed as previous. As I approached Causey Pike I wondered if the path menders I saw last week would still be working on the path. I was in luck; the 'path fairies' were all sat in their parked landrover at the bottom of the path having their lunch. I stopped for a brief chat and told the Irish one how much I'd enjoyed his path fairies website. The weather was changeable and the clouds were blowing overhead, a bit too quick for my liking. Continuing south I left the road at Rigg Beck and headed up the good path up Rigg Beck valley. I hadn't been going long before a squally blast of wind and rain hit and I had to quickly pull on my waterproof over trousers.

CTC sign in Braithwaite.

A family group were coming down and told me of high winds on the top of the pass. Over the top I followed the path high up along the west side of the valley until I came to Addacomb Beck. There was what looked like the ruin of a stone building and it was too well constructed to be just a sheep fold. Being so high up on the fell I couldn't see what it could have been used for. To get to my camp for the night I now had to leave the path and cut straight up the steep fell side. I took my time as there was no path to follow and the ground was uneven. Eventually I arrived at Addacomb Hole, hanging corrie. A substantial spring gushed out of the ground just on the lip of the valley. It's quite an impressive valley and definitely worth the climb. There was also some shelter from the strong westerly wind and I could see the clouds scooting by overhead while it was only slightly blowy where I put the tent up.

Fri 14 Apr 2006 Good Friday

Last night was a full moon but I didn't see it because of cloud. When I woke the cloud level had dropped to cover the summits above and the ridge I had to climb just vanished into the mist above. I was packed up and on my way by 7:30am. I took it steady as I climbed the steep ridge but there was a faint trail which helped. When I reached the top at Wandope I came into the full force of the 35knott wind. I had to use my compass to get my bearings as the visibility was only a few metres.

Crummock Water + Loweswater.

A faint trail met up with the main path along Whiteless Edge. It’s unfortunate that the weather prevented me getting a view. I crossed over Whiteless Pike summit and started the steep descent to Buttermere. I soon dipped below the cloud and at last could see my surroundings. When I reached the road in Buttermere village I could tell it was a bank holiday, at times the traffic was bumper to bumper. I followed the road along the mere side until I came to Gatesgarth Farm. The sign at the private car park said £3 to park, but the older sign was still there saying £2. I know which I'd pay. £3 to park on a bit of spare land with no facilities is over the top. It’s just another case of the visitor only being welcome as long as he pays over the odds. I left the road here and headed up to the head of the valley at Warnscale Bottom. I took a few rests on the diagonal quarry track heading up to Dubs Quarry. Some large excavators were parked up and some work is being done in some areas of the quarry. I took the wet path up by Great Round How heading towards Great Gable. My plan was to camp in Stone Cove but when I got to the old path on the summit of Brin Crag I found a small tarn and some rocky outcrops giving shelter from the wind. I decided that this would be a better pitch as I had a nice view of Great Gable and Kirk Fell.

Great Gable from Lambfoot Dub.

Sat 15 Apr 2006

A very calm night with hardly a breath of wind. The temperature dropped to 2degC. It was just past full moon and its hazy outline was visible over Great Gable. I was on my way by 7:30 and headed for Stone Cove. I stopped briefly to check out the original pitch I'd intended using last night then carried on up the climb to Windy Gap. Then followed a long and careful descent down the loose scree of Aaron Slack. Styhead Tarn was below and several tents were pitched around its shore. There was only one person up as I passed but some walkers were out on Styhead Pass summit. I took the branch path up the Corridore Route and left that above Stand Crag to climb directly up to Lambfoot Dub. It was a very short day but this is the planned pitch. A short while later I looked down on the path below and counted 24 people on it. By now all the main paths were milling with people which is to be expected for an Easter Saturday with reasonable weather. There were even some patches of sunshine during the afternoon. The cloud increased and the picturesque sunset didn't happen.

Sun 16 Apr 2006

It rained on and off during the night, sometimes quite heavy. Thick cloud and no view greeted me as I peered out of the tent while I sipped my morning tea. By the time I'd packed the tent up the cloud had lifted but a little rain was still around. I headed for the saddle below Great End and climbed the gully to its summit. A short detour was needed near the top because of a lingering plug of snow. Over the top I could see a party of walkers coming up from Esk Hause. They must have started early to get so high by this time. Below Esk Hause I stopped briefly at the shelter and as I left a couple of walkers arrived. I descended to Angle Tarn and half expected to see tents there, but there were none. The steep winding path down to Mickledene was entertaining as there were a considerable mix of people at various degrees of fitness, and unfitness, coming up. A few patches of blue sky had started to appear and also bits of sun.

Descending into Mickledene

I crossed Mickledene Beck by walking across the lip of the weir. The water was only half way up my boots so I kept them on and my feet dry. The bridge shown on the map is still missing, except for the original end fixings. Passing though Stool End Farm a very full washing line was blowing in the breeze. I then headed up Oxendale and looked up the long climb up Brown Howe. The last time I was here I was suffering from food poisoning and suffered all the way up. This time I set a steady pace, kept to it, and reached the summit without problems. Passing Red Tarn I stopped to ponder where to head for. I'd half thought of heading up Little Carrs but the wind was getting up and there was no shelter up there. So I decided to find a pitch above Wrynose Pass summit.

Mon 17 Apr 2006

A very windy night with intermittent rain. I don't have a long day planned for today so decide to delay my start to see if the rain would stop. It didn't but by 8:10 it was much less so that’s when I set off. I descended to the road summit of the Wrynose Pass and crossed over. I'd hoped to photograph the Three Shire Stone but the wind and rain stopped me getting my camera out of its protective plastic bag. I took an easily climbing track up Wetside Edge and climbed up towards Great Carrs. It was very windy and soon I was in cloud. My camping spot would depend on the weather, visibility, shelter from the wind and water supply. Before the summit I followed a side trail towards the saddle between Grey Friar. It was still windy but the weather cleared, revealing a magnificent view of most of the big mountains and also out to sea in two directions. Small springs were dotted about so the only problem was finding some shelter to pitch the tent. I had a bit of difficulty getting it pitched behind a low rock outcrop. The wind was far from constant and gave the tent quite a buffeting. I placed some large boulders over the most critical pegs to make sure they didn't work loose. I'm using my Vango TBS minor 100 which is an excellent tent but not very aerodynamically suited to high winds because of it's singe pole ridgeback shape. My Aztec Esquina Solo would probably have been better because of its 3 pole dome shape. Never mind, the tent is still secure at 17:30 as I write this note.

Evening view of Scafell from Great Carrs. 

Memorial to the crashed
Halifax Bomber LL505

Tue 18 Apr 2006

Quite a bit of rain during the night but the wind wasn't too bad. I got up a bit earlier than normal as I needed to catch the bus. I left the pitch at 6:10am and there was plenty of light to walk by. The cloud level was only just above me and soon the visibility had gone as I approached the crashed bomber memorial on Great Carrs I noticed that a name plaque had been added since my last visit.
For more information on the crew and aircraft click here.

I continued through the mist to Swirl How then descended very cautiously down Prison Band. The temperature was just above 2deg C and there was light snow blowing about. The rocks were wet and slippery so extra care needed. I reached the flat at Swirl Hawse and started on the easier trail down to Levers Water. By now I was well below the cloud and could see my way.

New plaque to commemorate the
crew of Halifax LL505

An old bogey from the mines

Adjacent to the Youth Hostel are some old mining bogeys that had been restored and painted. I took a few photos and continued into Coniston village. The 505 bus left at 9:10 (£3.30 one way) to Ambleside where I caught the 555 to Windermere (£2.55 one way). I had 2 minutes to spare to catch the 10:40am train which always leaves on time.