Lake District - The Return

13 Months since the last visit to the Lakes.  13 Months since the last blogable walk.  Disgusting behaviour.  I appear to have become a statuesque uber-fit racing snake of a cyclist instead.  

Not.

Its about mojo, and for a while mine has taken itself off on a retreat.  So about time to try and force it back home and book a mini break to Wasdale with the forever appreciated, N.

So, the plan?  Usual thing, DVD's and beers (Guiness) on Friday night, bimble up to the lakes, walk a minor Wainwright with a 'Big Un' (Great Gable) or 4 on the Sunday.

But, if I'm honest, it wasn't about the hills, it was about the break, Mojo was clearly having an affair with Hill Bagging Addiction on the side.

Anyhoo, this is how it went... 

Day 1

Start of Walk

Buckbarrow was the target, a smallish Wainwright right behind Joss Naylors farm...

Joss Naylors Farmhouse

Joss if you don't know him, is one of the worlds best living athletes.  The king of all fell runners, who has honed his skills over years of chasing sheep around his land on Buckbarrow, Seatallan and beyond.   Massively under-rated, he has completed massive feats of endurance that should be enough to humble us mere mortals.

On the way to Buckbarrow we paid homage to Joss by visiting his very own cairn, which he himself built and then rebuilt when the Queen Mother died..
.

N at the cairn

Me at the cairn

As you can see, I'm looking pretty pleased with myself.  Why?  Well, to get to the cairn there is no marked path, so we decided to handrail Greendale Gill and scoot a left up the fell and left again on a bearing following the contour to the cairn.  Pleased... because we made it!

Next stop was the Birkett of Glade How, which again had us setting off into the gloom on a compass bearing and again found with much satisfaction shortly afterwards.

The compass never lies.

From Glade How, the trusty compass took us across more open country to Buckbarrow...

The dizzy heights of about 1400 feet!

The way down had us circumnavigating Buckbarrow by taking a fairly clear path alongside Gill Beck...

Buckbarrow in the gloom

"Art"

N walking past Joss'

Greendale Gill

All in all a short but very satisfying walk, physically challenging at first (lack of hill time) and mentally challenging thereafter (bearings and timings).  Mojos coming home..... slowly....

Day 2.

First things first, the hostel, a good one, a little chilly in the common room and nuclear hot in the bedrooms but all in all a great building...

Wasdale YHA

Also mention to The Strands pub in Nether Wasdale, its own microbrewery and a frankly magnificent steak and ale pie.

So the walking, well the plan as mentioned was to walk up something, a big hill preferably.  But.  The Weather.  60 mph wind.  Noooooooo chance.  So to Plan C (Plan B was a medium sized hill but in that wind no way).

Plan C was just a circuit of the lake, Wastwater.  Easy peasy.  Talk was even had of runninground it.  Hahahahahahaha.  Err no.  Here's a clue...

Screes <shudders>

Anyway going anti clockwise, starting from the hostel at the bottom of Wasdale, all was very pleasant and pretty...

Southern End of Wastwater

Britains Best View (not today obvs)

Buckbarrow and hostel in foreground

Two miles in and i was beginning to think we would be home for about 2pm.  That is of course until we hit this stuff...

Looking back - done the worst of it.

Basically The Screes on the side of Illgill Head are a series of landslides, and starting South to North (or is West to East?), starts with massive boulders, slowly graduating down to small rocks over a couple of miles.

The big boulders are full on scrambling ground, and I think from a physical point of view, both in terms of technically and distance, are probably harder than a proper rated scramble such as Jacks Rake, Tryfan etc.  Of course there's no exposure, well only to water, so not officially rated. 

Looking to the top of Illgill Head

Easy Scree now

A great whole body workout, but my God, not easy.

Anyway once at the top of the lake, we were relieved to see no-one was attempting Scafell (this is the most popular start point) and after a wee, jelly baby and a reminisce (long story) in the camp site, we set off for the long march down the road on the other side of the lake, with a hooley blowing in our faces.

Tractor rally heading to the Wasdale Inn

Long, boring and wet, great for mental strength. 

More "Art"

Back at the hostel, it was a quick change into dry kit and start the 3 hour drive home in time for the Bahrain GP (what a race!) and to polish off the Guinness of course.

A great weekend.  Mojos nearly home.

When we coming back N? :)




66 Done.

148 To Do.

74 Months until 50th.

Exactly 2 per month.

Hmmm.

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