The mist cleared during the night and before first light the constellations shone but a little haze hung over the horizon. There had hardly been any wind during the night so my exposed pitch hadn't been a problem. I hung around for the 7:46am sunrise but the haze over the horizon meant I didn't see the sun. The distant views were also partly obscured by the haze. I left at 8 and set off west over Caudale Moor and the cairn.

Sunrise.

In the Slate Quarries.

My descent was down the steep ridge of Rough Edge above Caudale Beck. I had to be careful on the slippery grass. The old slate quarry workings appeared. They are not on a regular path so the remaining buildings have not been demolished by generations of marauding tourists. One of the collapsed shafts is only protected by an old gate over the top. A black void can be seen below with the echoing sound of falling water bouncing of the shaft sides. The descent continued down the old quarry access track, but that was very steep and slippery in places. I was glad to leave it and reach the Kirkstone Pass road at Sykeside.

Being a sunny Saturday morning there were a lot of cars and even the short walk along the pathless road was difficult. I took the path through the campsite and followed it to Hartsop Hall Farm.

Welcome to Cumbria.

Brothers Water

I was now on familiar ground and joined the track to the right and along the side of Brothers Water. It was a delight to walk along as the sun shone through the trees and the far trees were reflected in the water. I reached the car park and followed the permissive path which runs parallel to the road. It isn't looked after and is quite bad in places but is still better than risking life and limb against the Saturday motorists. I rejoined the road near Bridgend but by now there was a pavement to follow. I reached Patterdale and sat on the bench opposite the car park. There were plenty of people about and I was glad to be on my way again heading along the path behind the hotel. It wasn't any shorter than following the road into Grisedale but it was much more picturesque and the trees were starting to show their autumn colours.

A few walkers were also on the path but I left it above Thornhow and they continued. I was back on the road for a short way then followed the main track up Grisedale. The sun was still out but was too low to reach the valley bottom. I was in sight of Ruthwaite Lodge before I reached the warmth of the sun. I paused briefly at the lodge to notice the bag of slated that was sat next to the building. The last time I was here part of the roof had been blown off and as I climbed up behind the Lodge I noticed the slates were still missing. It was a pleasant climb into Nethermost Cove as the sun was still out, though it was still a bit chilly. I kept on up until I was level with Hard Tarn then turned right to meet the Tarn. It is small, fairly shallow and probably one of the clearest tarns in Cumbria. I climbed a little higher to find a flat spot to pitch my tent.

Hard Tarn.