Based in Borrowdale

Five days of fine walks, centred around Longthwaite, Borrowdale, July 1999

Walks with a Camera © Geoff’s Pages 2011

This being our travelling day, we decided on a short walk on the way to our ultimate destination. Many years ago, I had "done" Jack's Rake on Pavey Ark, Great Langdale, and fancied another attempt.

Alas, the dry weather changed to a steady rain at Dungeon Gill. We donned waterproofs and made our way beside Stickle Beck to the tarn, then round to the foot of the rake. It looked dangerously wet and greasy, He's more suited to this kind of weather so we turned instead to Easy Gully - which we found to be easy in name only, an overhanging chock stone nearly proving to be our downfall, literally.... We bypassed it, squelched our way to the summit, then returned to the car and drove on to Longthwaite, in Borrowdale, our destination for four nights.

Day 1: Pavey Ark

He's more suited to this kind of weather

Day 2: Derwentwater and back

We left Longthwaite and followed the Derwent downstream to Grange, there (after a quick ice-cream) taking the path along the western shore of the Lake to Hause End. Time for Lunch!

Turning southwards, we ascended the ridge which starts with the fine peak of Catbells and continues via Maiden Moor to High Spy. As we climbed, the view opened up on the beautiful Newlands valley. Heading downhill now, our route took us via the long-disused Rigg Head slate mines, back to the path beside the Derwent and finally to our starting point

A fine view of Derwentwater from the slopes of Catbells

Newlands and the view towards the Buttermere fells

Day 3: Great Gable

We left Longthwaite once again by taking the riverside path, this time upstream, past the Youth Hostel, then took the path up the east side of the Seathwaite valley (thus avoiding the road). Climbing beside Taylorgill Force, it was clear that it would be far from clear if we gained much more height, so, after a quick lunch above the fall, we headed for Sty Head and sought the South Traverse path around Great Gable. There is so much foreground interest to this path that the lack of a distant view hardly matters!

Joining Moses' Trod at the end of the traverse, we picked our way towards Honister when, without warning, great holes blew into the mist and we were standing in bright sunshine, watching an amazing wall of white come tumbling over the slopes of Kirk Fell and Pillar, while ragged scraps blew past us. Time for a few snaps.... Eventually, we left our viewpoint and continued on our way, at Honister taking the old road, now a rough track, back to Borrowdale. It had been an excellent day, and, most oddly, we seemed to have done far more descending than ascending - perhaps a reflection on the interesting routes we had followed.

Mist swirls around the head of Ennerdale

Seatoller, seen from the old road to Honister

Day 4: Glaramara and the rain

I had long intended to have a look at Glaramara and the ridge to Allen Crags, and today's blue sky held great promise.... We followed the previous day's route for the first mile or so, before taking the path to Thornythwaite Fell and, eventually, the superb rocky peak of Glaramara. The mists were beginning to

form as we approached the summit; by the time we had eaten lunch and re-started on the ridge, a fine rain had begun, which quickly became a heavy, soaking rain. We soon passed the rain-soaked summit of Allen Crags, before turning left to Angle tarn, and left again down into the (very appropriately named) Long Strath. The heavy rain (not in the forecast) became lighter as we descended - hardly a drop had fallen in Longthwaite.

Day 5: Buttermere, Ullswater and home

Into the car and away, for a lazy morning's photography in the warm sunshine at Buttermere. Later, heading back towards to M6 at Penrith, we stopped at Pooley Bridge, for lunch and an hour's gentle exercise - a row on the lake, in a boat which had seen better days, and a pair of oars which had simply seen too many!