The day I forgot everything
Posted by Sam Harrison on January 30, 2011 at 22:18.
Ten minutes after setting off to catch the minibus I realised I'd left my camera sitting on my desk. A bad start to the day, but one that at least pretty much guarantees good weather. The destination today was Buttermere and the walk was pretty much identical to Nuttall's 3.5 (obviously, in the England volume). It follows a diverse ridge from High Crag to Red Pike, consisting of a mixture of rough, craggy sections interspersed with gentle grassy slopes. This is one of those iconic ridge walks boasting good views for the majority of the walk - weather prevailing of course!
Start point: Buttermere, NY 174 170
Summits: High Crag, High Stile, Red Pike, Dodd
Distance: 7.5 miles / 3100 foot
From Buttermere it was a short walk along the lake before the ascent up Scarth Gap. The original path was badly damaged in the floods of winter 2009 and a large portion of it has literally been swept away. A temporary fence has been put in place around the damaged area however, and it can be easily bypassed.
At the top of Scarth Gap we stopped for lunch, where I realised the second item of the day that I'd forgotten. Yes, my lunch! Fortunately I was kindly donated a cereal bar and along with my flask of coffee I managed to keep going until the end. I would normally carry a considerable amount of Kendal Mint Cake in my bag but this all got used up when we got snowed in, in Eskdale, at the end of last year.
From Scarth Gap it is as simple as following the ridge along until you reach Red Pike. The wind was particularly bitter and I think everybody was feeling the cold. I was very glad for my Rab down gillet I got for Christmas. From Red Pike was descended the steep scree slope to Dodd and then Bleaberry Tarn. A small patch of completely frozen snow posed a few problems on the way down but steps had been cut so it wasn't too bad. Bleaberry Tarn itself was coated in a good layer of ice, though not enough to walk upon.
The path down from Bleaberry Tarn is particularly knee-bashing and passes through Burtness Wood before reaching Buttermere. The Fish Hotel was closed and so we ended up in the Bridge Hotel and I wasn't driving this week so I could indulge in a very nice pint of Black Sheep bitter and a well-needed bag of crisps.
Start point: Buttermere, NY 174 170
Summits: High Crag, High Stile, Red Pike, Dodd
Distance: 7.5 miles / 3100 foot
From Buttermere it was a short walk along the lake before the ascent up Scarth Gap. The original path was badly damaged in the floods of winter 2009 and a large portion of it has literally been swept away. A temporary fence has been put in place around the damaged area however, and it can be easily bypassed.
At the top of Scarth Gap we stopped for lunch, where I realised the second item of the day that I'd forgotten. Yes, my lunch! Fortunately I was kindly donated a cereal bar and along with my flask of coffee I managed to keep going until the end. I would normally carry a considerable amount of Kendal Mint Cake in my bag but this all got used up when we got snowed in, in Eskdale, at the end of last year.
From Scarth Gap it is as simple as following the ridge along until you reach Red Pike. The wind was particularly bitter and I think everybody was feeling the cold. I was very glad for my Rab down gillet I got for Christmas. From Red Pike was descended the steep scree slope to Dodd and then Bleaberry Tarn. A small patch of completely frozen snow posed a few problems on the way down but steps had been cut so it wasn't too bad. Bleaberry Tarn itself was coated in a good layer of ice, though not enough to walk upon.
The path down from Bleaberry Tarn is particularly knee-bashing and passes through Burtness Wood before reaching Buttermere. The Fish Hotel was closed and so we ended up in the Bridge Hotel and I wasn't driving this week so I could indulge in a very nice pint of Black Sheep bitter and a well-needed bag of crisps.