Eskdale and Wasdale Summer Mission Part 2
Wasdale
The drive over to Wasdale was a bit of a surprise when I reached Wastwater I just had to find a parking place and stop just to soak this evening view up, the beauty of this valley was fantastic and I was going to spend a couple days exploring this valley.I got back into the car and carried on to Wasdale Head Inn and the campsite, the inn boasts that its the birthplace of rock climbing.
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| Wastwater view |
Scafell Pike part 1 and Lingmell
7 miles, 27/7/2011
Scafell Pike elevation 978 meters (3,209) ft.Lingmell elevation 807 meters (2649) ft
I was up early this morning after my early night so when I got out of the tent this morning to see clear blue skies this made my decision to do Scafell Pike if I can make it to the summit before the weather changes as it usually does in the lakes.
So with breakfast on and then sorting my stuff out for a day’s mission in the mountains to climb the highest mountain in England.
Scafell Pike is the only mountain that I will devote three missions to, the first being from Wasdale the second from Great Langdale and third from Borrowdale.
It was only 730am in the morning as I set off on the path to Lingmell Gill and it was a beautiful sunny morning has I started my assent of the gill, I was so busy with looking at the flora that I missed my path for Brown Tongue, and found a beautiful flower Starry Saxifrage saxifrage stellaris, this flower is one of the most familiar of the mountain plants, for its grows in a wide range of habitats.
I found my way back onto to the path on Brown Tongue and made my way up to Hollow Stones  |
| Starry Saxifrage |
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| From Hollow Stones |
From Hollow stones, it was up to Lingmell col and my first view of Sprinkling Tarn and Borrowdale, such a great view, and now I was heading up Lingmell to the summit and this when I notice the cloud building up and rising up from the valley.
Will I make it to Scafell Pike before the cloud; I had good views from the summit of Lingmell. The view of Great Gable from in Lingmell is incredible.It was time to push on before the clouds had got the better of me, so back down to Lingmell col and the path to Scafell Pike, I remembered walking this route the first time I came to the lakes and climbed Scafell Pike from Borrowdale, and its one route I want to do again, I reached the boulder field of Scafell Pike.
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| Great Gable from Lingmell |
The summit was free of cloud and people, that’s the advantage of being up early, but not for long as I sat there taking in the view I was joined by another solo walker and we sat there watching the clouds gather around the summit looking over to the summit of Scafell it was great and I was happy to achieve my goal for the day I can take a steady walk back down but not the way I came up, so I took the Mickledore route down and onto Hollow Stones to retrace my route back, on the way down I met many walkers on there way up, but I knew I had the best of the weather today and it has been a great walk.
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| The summit |
Scafell Pike's original name 'The Pikes of Sca Fell' , and this term was used to describe Broad Crag and Ill Crag as well as Scafell Pike itself. The change was caused by an error on an Ordnance Survey map and stuck.
Illgill Head and Whin Rigg
8 miles, 27/8/2011
Illgill Head elevation 609 meters (1998) ft
Whin Rigg elevation 53m meters (1755) ft
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| Illgill Head |
The fifth day of my mission and the last day in Wasdale, it was a lovely sunny morning and I had planned a long walk of about 8 miles circular a ridge and valley walk.So as I set off from the valley bottom to start my climb of Illgill Head a four-mile climb to the summit, and what a beautiful climb out of the valley with the views opening up the side of Illgill Head.
On the way up I got to see several Small Heath butterflies Coenonympha pamphilus, they were on the wing in and out of the grasslands and I also got see a bird known as the Wheatear a summer visitor to upland grasslands, this Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe was a male And as I was nearing the summit I noticed another butterfly, I spent some time trying to photograph this species, it was not till I got home that I could identify it properly.
The only British alpine butterfly, the Mountain ringlet Erebia epiphron is found in the Lake District mountains (its only English locality) above 1,800 feet, it flies abundantly in restricted areas stragglers range widely over the neighbourhood. Such colonies tend to shift their quarters every few years. http://www.cumbria-wildlife.org.uk/mringlet.html
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| Mountain ringlet |
From the summit of Illgill Head I started the mile-long walk to Whin Rigg, grassy walk along the ridge, enjoying the views along this easy section of the walk I found a spot for my dinner and sat there enjoying myself wondering why on such beautiful day there were not more people out walking. After my dinner it was on along the ridge and I passed my first walkers of the day, I found a path close the edge so I could see down into the valley, but I started to get vertigo.
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| Cliff edge view |
I got back to the main path and carried on to the summit of Whin Rigg and then it was downhill, the rest of this ridge of high ground carries on to terminates at Irton Pike, but I was not going that far. I found the path I wanted and what a joy it was on this path back into the valley, with great views of Wast Water as I descended, I was in no rush to reach the valley bottom, each section of descent was for me a photographer's dream on such a beautiful day as this, I reached the valley bottom and it was hot and sweltering so I had a short break sat there staring up the valley with a sandwich one hand.
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| Whin Rigg |
The last section of the walk was along the quiet road with views across to Wastwater screes, these screes was formed as a result of ice and weathering erosion on the rocks of the Borrowdale Volcanic Group, they are approximately 2,000 feet, from top to bottom, the bottom being about 200 feet below the surface of the lake. Wast water Lake is a ribbon lake; it’s a deep lake with steep sides with an elongated trough and is the deepest lake at 76m in the Lake District.
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| Wastwater Screes |
While I was enjoying my last section of the walk I spotted another flower of interest White Stonecrop sedum album, the stonecrop species are succulent plants, with fleshy leaves; there are six native species of this family.
.And that’s it for another interesting walk and the end of the Wasdale mission with only a day left to my holiday I took the car back to Eskdale and I stayed at the youth hostel for the rest of the evening relaxing around the grounds of the youth hostel.
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| White Stonecrop |
Hardknott and Harter Fell
9 miles, 28/8/2011
Hardknott elevation 549 m (1,289) ft
Harter Fell elevation 649 m (2128) ft
My last day of my holidays and with my rucksack packed for days fell walking,I left the youth hostel behind and headed down to Doctor’s Bridge and picked up a footpath what took me along the valley to Jubilee Bridge passing through fields and woodland on this nice sunny morning, at Jubilee Bridge I took to the road for the climb of Hard Knott Pass, visiting the Roman fort on my up to the summit of the pass. The views as I climb was just great, more I climbed more they opened up of the Esk Valley at the road summit I stopped for a break and got talking to a cyclist who had also just come up the pass on the bike without getting off once, he was on his way to Blackpool.
Now at the summit of the road, I got my first view of the Duddon Valley, this valley was the future missions to come. now where is that path up Hardknott fell, has usually there was no sign of one, but I made my way up using my map reading skills off in right direction working my around rocks it was easy going.
Once on the summit of many undulations it was difficult to find the summit cairn, I thought I found it, but no but I could see from this vantage point a cairn, so I climbed back down and headed for the cairn, once there I knew I was in the right place the view of the Scafells was just wonderful.
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| Scarfells |
From the summit, I retraced my route back down to the road and now route to Harter Fell. To begin this next walk my way forward was not very clear, I went through an area of Forestry Commission's deforestation finding only faint paths here of sheep tracks. In AW day this area on the Duddon side was covered in conifer trees, but recent clear felling with the attempt to restore the area. I found a path up to a grassy shelf and on I went on towards the summit.
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| Harter Fell summit |
I arrived at the summit and it was time for a long break and to take in the great view from the summit.this is my second visit to this Fell, the last time I was here I did not get a view, but now I have 360 clear view, I must have spent a good 30 minutes at the summit as I sat there trying to name the fells, but over to a distant fell, Black Combe was covered in a rain cloud and it looks like it was heading this way so it was time to move on and take the path down into Eskdale.
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| Hardknott Roman Fort |
I stopped for a break once of the fell and on more level ground, I looked up at Harter Fell now covered in cloud, but the rain never came, I moved on and met a family on their way up to Harter Fell, shame they would not get the views I had. One last view of the head of Eskdale before I dropped down into the wooded valley of the Esk and the end of the walk.
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| Eskdale Head |
Wasdale is such a gem of a valley two memorable walks will be the Scafell walk and the Illgill Head and Whin Rigg walk, not just for the great views but for such things as Starry Saxifrage and the Mountain ringlet butterfly.
What I like to do is to come back and explore the Wasdale screes and Piers Gill to look at the flora of these sites.
The prehistory sites of Barnscar, area has so much to give, this area is so rich in history, that there is a bigger story to tell about this area and lots more sites to visit that on this mission I have not used much of my time in exploration of these sites and are best left to when the vegetation has died back to see these sites better.
Eskdale has lots more to offer in walks yet, this beautiful valley is a walkers paradise and while I have the use of the youth hostel I will be back soon and now for my favourite view from this mission.
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| Wastwater |
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