Camping in Borrowdale (Day 1)
The Borrowdale valley is stunning. After coming off the A66 near Keswick, I journeyed south alongside Derwent Water before entering Borrowdale. The craggy wooded slopes of Grange appeared on my left and the bare crags of the High Spy ridge on the right. Between the high ground the river Derwent flows through flat pasturelands then between woodlands toward the Lake of the same name. The river is fed by several becks, some of which start in the Scafell range several miles south.
I had booked a pitch on Hollows Campsite, which is nestled below the crags of the High Spy ridge, less than a mile from Castle Crag, the smallest of the Wainwright fells. The cut off for pitching was 9pm. That'll be fine I thought. I even had plans of an early pitch before sauntering up Castle Crag on the evening. Things did not pan out that way. In fact, making it to the campsite in time was a little close for comfort.
I parked on the roadside in Stonethwaite opposite the school. My original plan was to bag Eagle Crag, Sergeant Crag, then get up onto Greenup Edge for Ullock Pike, before descending to Great Crag. The idea was then to descend the fell and drive to Seatoller, from which I would bag Rosthwaite and Glaramara. Suffice it now to say I did not adhere to this plan, but more on that later.
I continued following the road that runs alongside Stonethwaite. Eagle Crag dominates the landscape ahead. This steep, craggy fell stands proud in a central position with Rosthwaite and Glaramara to the west and Ullock Pike to the east, separated from the fell by Langstrath and Greenup gill respectively. The rock face of Eagle Crag looks almost impenetrable from this position, but there is a route up through the crags. I crossed a bridge to get to the other side of the beck. From here a pleasant walk follows the beck until we reach the confluence of Greenup Gill and Langstrath. Here there is a footbridge which takes you onto the open fell. From here, it was a rather steep climb up to the summit of Eagle Crag. It was a very enjoyable, albeit taxing walk, requiring navigating rough crag in parts. An impressive view over Borrowdale await those who reach the summit.
Having summitted Eagle Crag, it is thereafter a straightforward walk up to the next summit of Sergeant Crag. My initial plan was to head west to climb up to Greenup Edge, a key ridge route on the central fells that would have led me to Ullock Pike. But I am afraid to say that I succumbed to the close-by fell fallacy. Up on the high ground, features on the landscape can appear deceptively close. At some point after summitting sergeant crag, I became fixated on the ridge in the background which I saw led to the Scafell range. It wouldn't be too much of a hardship to get up to Esk Pike would it? Then I could bag Allen Crags, Glaramara and Rosthwaite on the return journey.
So with my mind made up, I ploughed ahead walking awkwardly along the slope. I also had to cross several gills that flow down into Langstrath. I do like going off the beaten track to do things like this. That is what Open Access is all about, exploring the fells and seeing things that are inaccessible by the main paths. It also gave the walk a greater sense of adventure. Having said that, I did struggle getting over some of the gills and slipped a couple of times on the stones I was using to cross them. But I eventually managed it. After what seemed like an age, I approached Angle Tarn which sits just beneath Rossett Pike, with dramatic views opposite up to Bowfell and Esk Pike.
By this point, I was getting rather tired. To add to my woes, the weather, which hitherto had been mild, took a turn. The rain set in and mist had engulfed the surrounding fells. I was now starting to have concerns about getting back on time, knowing that I still had several hours of hard walking ahead of me. I was also conscious of the fact that I was only two fells in and I was starting to question my decision to visit the Scafell range. In any case, I ploughed on. After passing Angle Tarn I took a path on my left to the Ore Gap that lies between Bowfell and Esk Pike. I summitted Bowfell on a previous occasion so instead made my way up to the top of Esk Pike, quite a difficult walk in the wet mist as it requires navigating rocky terrain. Having bagged Esk Pike, I descended down to Esk Hause, a key mountain pass connecting paths from Borrowdale, Wasdale, Langdale and Esk Dale.
By this point, the rain was starting to penetrate my waterproof clothing. The tumble I took into the gill hadn't helped things either, and my socks were beginning to soak. Just as I started walking toward Allen Crags, a group of sodden young gentlemen approached me with clothing completely unsuited to fellwalking: trainers, joggers, and no waterproofs. None of them had a map and I wouldn't be surprised if they were using Google maps. "Excuse me mate, how far is it to Scafell Top?" "You are going to Scafell Pike?" somewhat surprised and concerned due the poor weather, impending darkness and their lack of preparedness. I said that it could take a couple of hours and if I were them, I'd reconsider.
They asked if any of the fells ahead were worth visiting. Yes I said, whilst internally rolling my eyes as these lads didn't have any understanding of what was around them, other than that Scafell Pike was somewhere within the vicinity. It is no wonder why mountain rescue are overwhelmed by call outs when people do not take the basic steps to keep themselves safe, such as learning to read a map and taking appropriate clothing. I suggested they go up Esk Pike instead, which from where we were was much more manageable. They then asked me how long it would take to get down from scafell. I said it depends on where "down" is. They said they came from Langdale, but that was not the direction they approach me from. I said I wasn't sure as I had only walked up Scafell from Wasdale and the last thing you want to do in this situation is to provide inaccurate information, given the possible risks involved. I hope these young men heeded my advice and returned home promptly after this as I had grave concerns that they would have required the services of Mountain Rescue.
From Esk Hause, I made my way up to Allen Craggs passing a shelter on the way. From here it was a long and quite arduous trek up to Glaramara. The conditions meant I was unable to appreciate the views. It was also quite difficult to see the path, but fortunately there was a hiker following behind who seemed more familiar with the route and the fact she kept following me suggested I was going in the right direction. I was getting seriously soaked by this point. Even the best equipment struggles against hours of sustained downpour. I was starving, but I also was reluctant to stop as the 9pm deadline was drawing ever closer. I briefly stopped and wolfed down a cold Wayfarers ration pack, then somehow summoned the energy to get up to Glaramara. My initial plan was to tick off Rosthwaite, but I made the sensible decision of bypassing it. There are several Nuttalls on Rosthwaite, as well as the Wainwright which is "Bessyboot". I didn't really have the time or energy to locate these different summits. So after some initial confusion locating the path off the fell, I made my way down the mountain to Combe Gill. I tried to cut the route shorter by crossing the gill early (luckily not taking a tumble this time). Thereafter followed an easy walk along the lower slopes of Rosthwaite fell back into Stonethwaite.
I arrived at the car sodden, tired and hungry at around 8pm. I was so soaked that I needed to change my clothes in the car before heading to the campsite in the dark. I was in the wooded part of the campsite and to reach this you need to drive down a narrow lane. I was using my new tent, a three man OEX Jackal. Thankfully I did a practice pitch in the garden the week before as the conditions were not ideal for a debut pitch. Once inside and out of the rain, I settled for the night. There are different types of experiences to be had on the fells, each rewarding in their own right. There are those days when everything comes together perfectly, the fitness, the weather, the scenery. There are others where you are put to the test. This was definitely the latter, but despite it all, it was still a great day.
Comments
Post a Comment