Wainwrights Coast to Coast 2013

St Bees 13 May 2013
Me and my mate decided we would do the coast to coast walk before we got any older and the task of organising it was pretty much left to me.
I had heard there was a company that would carry a suitcase for you and i decided to use the Sherpa Van Project..Their website allows you to choose the accommodation you want in each of your stops and they book it all for you..We decided to stay in the same places Wainwright stayed in with an extra day in Richmond in case we needed a rest..Sherpa charged us 200 pounds each for booking and transport.


The next thing I had to decide was what to take with me..I'm not a gear buff and  the only thing I bought special was a dry bag and 16 pairs of cheap Karrimor socks from ebay at a pound a pair.The rest of my gear is what I wear when out walking in the lakes..This includes wetlegs,jacket,fleece,long johns,leather walking boots and a pair of walking sticks.All this was either worn or stuffed in my MacPac 40 litrre sack.

In my suitcase I had enough clothing to dress an army along every conceivable lotion potion and patent medicine you can think of..The only one I ended up using was sun cream factor 15..

One thing that everyone worrys about is "will I get lost"? I'm not brill at navigating so I took the Harvey Coast to Coast maps, my compass, a guide book and my Iphone with Viewranger with a GPX route loaded..


Last look at the Irish sea before we set off.

The first bit of the walk goes up the cliffs toward the light house.On the way you pas the RSPB bird cliffs where you will see Guillemots Cormorants and Fulmars soaring over the cliffs to their nests..Once you reach the light house you turn inland..
We had our packed lunch at Moor Row.We sat on a bench along side the disused rail lines with an elderly lady who had lived there since she was a 'Lal Lass'.
If you reach Cleator then your navigating is holding up and you then get to climb your first hill Dent,If your not hill fit then you will be found out here and when you get to the top you can have a bit of a rest and admire the view of Sellafield nuclear plant..Building a place like Seallfield on the west coast was a bit daft but fortunately its never gone up in smoke more than once..Turn round and look East and you will see the distant hills of the lake district and soon after leaving Dent you will be in Ennerdale where we spent our first night..

This is the view from our digs in Ennerdale..

By this time you will have most likely have walked on paths you never knew existed and probably the walk down Ennerdale will be new to you too..
After a good nights sleep you will be ready for another days walking and if you got a packed lunch its simply a case of saying thanks to your hosts for the night..
As you start down the side of Ennerdale water you will experience the closeness of the surrounding hills and if its all new to you then theres hours of fun to be had guessing the  name of the hills from looking at the map..

We reckoned there was  Brandreth,Green Gable,Pillar and Steeple in this pic..
When you get the end of Ennerdale water you come to Black Sail hut..Its a good place to stop and devour your packed lunch and look all experienced like with your compass around your neck..

We met a guy here that had carried his mountain bike all the way from the Honnister Pass with the hope of cycling up Black Sail Pass!! He asked me if it was possible and I said I never saw anyone do it and he said well theres a first time for everything and set off looking ever so keen..
As you leave Black Sail hut be careful of your route as lots of folk go wrong here..The correct way is to head up the stream (Loft Beck) which is on your left heading North East after 600 metres..The path starts on the left of the stream and then crosses over to the righthand side after about 400 metres..
At the bottom of this stream we met our mountain biking friend studying his map and after a brief hello he said would we mind if he joined us.I think he was what is known as temporally confused as to his where abouts..The path up Loft Beck is quite steep and the poor guy carrying his bike was knackered when we got  to the top..
If you've done right you will come to a barbed wire fence with a  Stile crossing over it and on a fine day you should be able to glimpse Innominate Tarn where Mr Wainwright's ashes are scattered..
By now our mountain bike friend was flat out on the ground but thanked us for setting him on the right path..

Innominate Tarn just over my Right shoulder!! Honest!..

From here the way takes you down to Honnister mine and then downhill all the way to Seatoller where we spent our second night..
             Seatoller may as well be on the dark side of the moon as far as mobile signals go and you will have to do without the internet for a night..
We ate at the Scafell Hotel which was full of other walkers and were served by the only gay in the village.
As we walked back to the digs we crossed a chain assisted  rocky bit by the side of the river..

Don't rely on your electronic stuff

When ever I go walking on my own i always carry with me as many aids to navigating as I have.
These include map and compass, sighting compass,guide book,and I phone. Over the years I have come to rely on my i phone with an App called 'Maps.me'. You don't need a mobile signal to use it and it has all the paths and hilltops in its data base. You can also import GPX files into it and use it it to check that your still on the route.Also when ever i get in the mist i will place a few stones on a prominent place so I can always retrace my steps.
However things can go wrong and i have learned the hard way and that using the map is the best..
First off use the map to make sure you set off in the right direction. Setting off the wrong way at the start is common and if you discover that you are going the wrong way you should return to your last known position.
Secondly check the map ahead and tick off things as you pass them. Look on the map for well defined locations that you can head for. If you can get to a known spot like a trig point or a sheep fold or even a point where a wall changes a sharp angle then you can take a bearing to another defined spot. Staying on a bearing can only be done by sighting something on the ground along the bearing and walking to it. Once you do this you can take another bearing to some other spot along the bearing.
Walking in mist can be worrying and the more things you can identify the more confident you will be. I once came over Bleaklow in thick mist and even though i was sure where i was i looked at the map and saw that a farm was the next location i would pass.The farm was about one and a half miles away but eventually i started to hear a dog barking and as I got closer another dog joined in. As i came down out of the mist i could see the farm ahead with the two dogs still barking.

Also learn what things on the map actually mean.On the OSGB maps there are green dotted lines all over and it can come as a surprise to find that sometimes theres nothing on the ground when you get there. Sometimes when route finding you may see a wooden footpath sign in the distance and when you get there it only says footpath and not where to.Pretty useless really!.
If you do manage to find a footpath sign with a destination on it then make sure you actually walk in the direction its pointing. I saw two guys on the Pennine Way using a GPS. I was stopped next to a PW sign and it pointed across some ground where there was no path visible on the ground. The two guys ignored it and set off the wrong way along a slender path. I watched them for a few hundred yards then they veered off across open ground to rejoin the proper path.
If your walking in a group its a good idea to let one person navigate. I walk regularly with a guy who loves to use his maps. I call him half man half GPS. He may not always be right with his decisions but I never interfere and we always get to the pub.

If you use your experience and keep your eyes open then you wont be worried when faced with a view like this..

Walking socks.

Just a quick blog about socks. When I took up walking twenty five years ago I bought all the gear I needed in one one go. Over time it all either wore out or started leaking. The only thing that stood the test of time were my walking socks. I never gave them a second thought and wore them on every walk I did.
After about fifteen years my wife said I should look for a new pair of socks as they were getting done. Then began a long quest to find  a pair that were as good. I bought all the leading brands Bridgedale,Falke,Thousand mile,superwool,thorlo and even an American brand called ' Darn tough socks'. Not one pair of these lasted more than a few months and in desperation I bought some sock wool and had two pair knitted for me. Alas I washed the hand made ones at too high a temperate and now they are baby socks.
I gave up ever finding good socks again.

Three years ago I bought some Altberg boots and at the same time I bought some cheap Karrimor socks that cost £1.25p. Now three years later I have bought another pair of Altberg boots as the soles wore out on the original ones,but the Karrimor socks are still going strong. In their time the socks have done the rocky Wainwrights completed the coast to coast,walked the soggy  pennine way,trod the GR70 in France,been close to ten thousand feet up in the baking hot Pyrenees and they have took it all in their stride.

Blackburn to the Pyrenees and back again

My mate asked me if I wanted to join him on a visit to see his sister in the South west of France. It was just the thing I was looking for and jumped at the chance. My mate lives in Burgess Hill and so he booked a couple of Ryan air flights from Stanstead for a hundred quid return to Perpignan. I just had to get my self to his house and we would be all set. I decided against driving because its a long journey and petrol is so expensive so I booked with Virgin trains return for ninety three quid.

I left Preston at one o'clock and after changing in London I arrived at Burgess Hill at four thirty.

My mate picked me up and we went to his house where we enjoyed an evening of wine drinking catching up and generally bullshitting each other.
We rose early the day after so we could miss the traffic on the motorway. The flights were at eleven o'clock and we arrived at Stanstead with plenty of time to worry about whether our suitcases would pass the carry on test..
To save space in our luggage we had to wear our heavy overcoats and walking boots. This was the only way to avoid a forty quid surcharge for checking in a bag,

After hanging around the airport for about one and a half hours we got fed up of giving other people advice about where their flight was leaving from and set off to board our flight to Perpignan.Flying with Ryan air may not be the most luxurious flight you ever take but they certainly are good value and the staff were really good.
The flight was about 2 hours and we arrived in Perpignan one hour ahead at about three o'clock. I always love it when they open the aircraft doors and the fresh warm air hits you and you can leave deary old England behind in your thoughts.

It had been arranged for someone to meet us at the airport and neither of us knew what the other looked like,but we must have looked so obviously English that very soon we met the lady who was there to pick us up,
You can't beat a holiday that someone else has arranged on your behalf. There is nothing to do except sit back and watch the world go by and occasionally dip into your wallet for some spondoodlys.
We were staying in an eleventh century hill fort sort of town called Laroque des Alberes. It is only about 40 minutes from perpignan and were soon there.

 Driving through Laroque is difficult so we had to park at the foot of the tower and walk up a very steep road to get to the house.

My mates sister was still at work when we arrived but we knew where she kept the door key. When we opened the front door we were confronted by a barking dog that didn't look too friendly.My mate said we had better wait till his sis arrived home but me being a bit daft said "its ok I'l go in and make Friends with it".

Once we had unpacked I started to get itchy feet so we took the dog for a walk and I rather stupidly let it off the lead..It quickly ran off !! After much shouting and getting lost in the narrow streets we eventually found 'Eddie' back on the terrace of the house looking pleased with itself.
By now I was in my shorts that I was to wear all week and having a quite beer on the terrace trying to shelter from the hot sun so as not to get too burnt on the first day.
The view from the terrace was lovely and in the distance we could see the Massif Canigou. At over two thousand five hundred  metres it was going to be a bit beyond us this trip.

I hadn't seen my mates sister for forty years but we soon got reacquainted after a litre or so of the local wine. Later that day we had a quick walk and saw this sign.We decided this would be our first walk..

In the morning the sun was shining so we packed our butties and water.

 Unfortunately we were told not to take the dog as there would be no water for him to drink on the hill..So we had to leave little Eddie behind as we set off compass in hand on my first Pyrenees adventure.

Thats where we are heading. Doesn't look much but its 1241 metres and we started at sea level so it took us almost four hours.. Along the way we stopped at a little cafe at about 3500 feet and had a brew.

The walk to the summit from this cafe is about half an hour and it follows the border between France and Spain. The border itself is just a barbed wire fence designed more to keep the cows in than keep smugglers out..

At the summit we posed for a picture and despite being so high up it was still quiet warm especially only being the end of March.

From the summit you can see the long distance path that passes through here from Spain and onto the coast at Collioure in France.
The path back to Laroque from here passes through a forest. As you lose height the trees change quite dramatically.. At the top the trees are almost all Beech, then further down they change to Pine tree and then as you get lower they become Oak trees and then as you approach the bottom the Bark Oak are more abundant.
 The walk statistics are :  13 miles 8 hours 5300 feet ascent.
Our evenings were usually spent sitting on the terrace drinking the local Muscat and admiring the views

 On another walk we visited the village of Castelnou and walked up to the Chapelle Saint Martin de Camélas.

This lonely hilltop Ermitage overlooks the surrounding valleys and is a peaceful place to reflect on things gone by.

 On our way up here a liitle lost hunters dog "chien chasseurs" joined our party and he followed us all the way back to Castelnou where we rang the number on his collar and the hunter came by and picked him up.

If you ever visit this area and are blessed with nice weather like we were then this is the sort of walking you can expect to enjoy.

Inominate Tarn

Fleetwith Pike to Red Pike via Haystacks
This was a walk I had  wanted to do ever since glimpsing Fleetwith Pike through the mist coming down Melbreak  this winter.

Who could fail to be intrigued by this view?

I did the walk on my own mid week and parked at Gatescarth cottages right at the foot of Fleetwith Pike.The farmer charges you 3 quid for the pleasure..

I confidently set off in the wrong direction as usual and soon had to turn round. Once on the right track you will be able to see this monument.

The inscription reads"Erected by Friends of Fanny Mercer, accidentally killed 1887" Presumably she fell from the rocks above..

The path is quite steep and as you stop for a breather you can admire the views down Buttermere and Crummock water.

From the summit the path leads down through a disused quarry and there are some interesting things to explore along the way.

 This house is built entirely of slate and looks a bit odd out here on it's own.The view from the kitchen window however is pretty impressive...From here the path leads past Black Beck tarn and on up the side of Haystacks.

Haystacks was Wainwrights favorite fell " Lift your eyes to Haystacks" is what he says in his book about it.

Half way up Haystacks you will come to Innominate Tarn. "Without a name"

 Wainwright loved this place so much his ashes were scattered here by his wife in 1991.

"All I ask for, at the end, is a last long resting place by the side of Innominate Tarn, on Haystacks, where the water gently laps the gravelly shore and the heather blooms and Pillar and Gable keep unfailing watch. A quiet place, a lonely place. I shall go to it, for the last time, and be carried: someone who knew me in life will take me and empty me out of a little box and leave me there alone. And if you, dear reader, should get a bit of grit in your boot as you are crossing Haystacks in the years to come, please treat it with respect. It might be me."

From here it is a short walk to the summit of Haystacks where it started snowing and I saw this strange plane shaped snow flake..

The path from Haystacks to High Crag goes over Seat and is dead straight forward. Somehow I missed it and started heading in the direction of the lake. I realised my mistake but instead of turning back I decided to skirt round the edge of Seat and get back on the proper path round the other side. Big Mistake on my part....I came to a bit where the only way was vertical up or vertical down.. I decided on vertical down and soon slipped and went crashing down about six foot or so.All i remember was seeing the heather and rocks flashing past me before landing with a thud at the bottom of narrow crag.

I came to my senses and turned around to look for lassie  and there she was staring down at me from above..There was nobody around so I didn't feel such a fool but my arm and leg were very sore and my knee was bleeding a bit too..

I had to decide whether  to head back to the car which was only two miles away or whether to complete the walk of another 6 miles..

There was only this small bit in the way so I decided to carry on

I strapped my arm under my rucksack strap to hold it still and figured my knee would either hold out or not and carried on..

I must have looked a sorry sight as I limped up High Crag but I made good progress and reached the top in time for lunch. 

The view from High Crag across Ennerdale towards Great Gable,Scafells and Pillar

From here the path is straight ahead over High Style and on to Red Pike 

 Now I was faced with coming all the way down Red Pike with a very sore knee,so I took some pain killers and limped and staggered to the bottom..The view down the lake from the bottom of Red Pike is excellent..

All in all an excellent walk and one I will definitely do again.....

Scafell to Scafell Pike

I planned this trip for my niece who has recently returned from her studies in New York..She has climbed some high peaks in Nepal,Chile and Iceland and also on the Appalachian trail but she has never been in the lakes before...
We parked up near Boot and immediately set off on the wrong track. After consulting the map we convinced ourselves that we were somewhere that we weren't and carried on regardless..Eventually Slightside came into view in the distance and  some bog trotting became necessary to get back on our intended course...
My wife had lent my Niece some gaiters and she was amazed how good they are as she had never found it necessary to wear them before...It was about now that I set off confidently across country and completely ignoring the warning signs I went up to my calf in cold wet boggy stuff...My Niece thought better of my route and skirted the bog with ease..
As we approached the summit of Slightside it became very misty which is what was forecast on MWIS and I had to rely on my GPS to get us to the top of Sca fell.

 My natural instinct in thick mist is to always turn round and retrace my route and anyone planning this trip should always keep this in mind...Fortunately my mate Dave is a good planner and he managed to find the way ahead.

There are lots of gulleys and rakes on Scafell  and if you choose the wrong one you are a goner so be warned and always play safe...

There is one  proper path up here but we wanted to go down Lords Rake and we had to stumble around in the mist to find it and even then we were not totally sure if we were in the right place...There is a large high overhang above Lords Rake and I was scared that some rocks may come crashing down on us but luckily nothing did.

Halfway down,the mist cleared a bit and I caught a glimpse of were we were and managed to slither  to a safe spot were I could keep an eye on the rest of the group and lend a hand if needed.. Unfortunately my dog lassie got a bit stuck as she couldn't see a way down and  started whining and looking like she needed help.. 
I managed to get below the ledge she was on and coax her down to where I could grab her

 By now the mist was clearing fast and the way ahead was obvious so we had a great time skiing down the scree dodging the enormous rocks that Dave was sending  down on us..


 

 At the bottom of Lords Rake you come to Broad stand and the way up to the trig point on Scafell pike  is cairned all the way..My two mates decided not to bother with Scafell Pike but my niece was extra keen to go so off we went,

 After all this we trudged our way back to the car and had a pint in the Woolpack

 My two mates having a well earned rest.

I think lassie was also feeling a bit tired.

Ben Cruachan

This walk starts from the cafe at the side of Loch Awe adjacent to the hydro electric power station..Ben Cruachan is apparently the 14th highest spot in the UK..I didn't know this when we set off it just happened to be close by where we were staying..
I would say that the climb up Ben Cruachan is the steepest I have ever done and is pretty much relentless except for a short bit around the Cruachan dam which feeds the power station which is buried deep underground in a hand dug cavern.

Once you negotiate the dam there is a small brook that runs down the mountain side and as there is no path we decided to follow it..The ground is rough and rocky and it's easy to go off in different directions like me and Tony did and soon we were quite a distance apart.. I decided to give in first and made my way across the small stream and rejoined my walking mate.

 Looking across the reservoir you can see Drochard Ghlas..It looks easy from here but my printed instructions said "head for the obvious bealach" Unfortunately neither of us had any idea what a bealach was so we just followed the stream uphill and hoped for the best..

Can you spot the obvious Bealach??
By now the walking was getting tough and we didn't seem to be getting very far either..I'm only used to walking the lakeland fells and this munro stuff is more strenuous and the solitude of the place is very striking..

This the stream and we followed it for ages uphill...
Eventually the route we were following began to get really steep and I was glad when we reached a flat bit where we could get our breath back and admire the view.

Looking back from the "obvious bealach" towards Loch Awe you get some idea of the scale of this hill and we weren't at the top yet!!
The final bit of the ascent is pretty much a hands and knees job gasping for breath and wondering why we didn't stay at home instead..

 This is the final bit that you have to go up and it nearly did for me..My walking mate Tony has done a few marathons and even he went all quiet for a while..
Bloodied and bruised  we finally hit the top and quickly got very cold as well...

My original plan was to make this a bit of a circular walk and maybe bag some more Munros. The obvious route for us to take to achieve this along this ridge..

It's funny how quickly we decided against going down this ridge. The chances  of getting to the other end diminished as we slowly froze up in the cold..

Despite the crappy weather, the views from up here are splendid indeed .

One day I will have another go at this hill and see if I can't complete the circuit.. I reckon it would take at least 9 hours so it will have to be summertime when the days are long enough..