Carrock Fell & High Pike

Thursday 3rd January 2008

After 11 hour's sleep my cold was a lot better, which was fortunate as I had a full day's walking planned. I started at Scales where the bus dropped me off to climb up the fell behind the hamlet into Mousthwaite Comb. With hindsight a better path would have been the one that starts at the bottom of the comb and climbs up to the col, instead I had a very rough and steep climb around disused levels that required a descent from the path back down to the col. Beyond the col I climbed up to and across the top of Souther Fell, where the freezing weather ensured that the bogs were not a problem.

Opposite the impressive Bannerdale Crags was a cairn that marked a great viewpoint of the crags, if only the sun was out. After taking a few photos the sun did come out, and only at that particular time, which was amazing. Continuing along the top of the fell I passed over the summit and followed a clear path along the descending ridge. I already knew there was no way off the end of the fell, but I was curious to see where the people who had trodden out the path I was following had gone. When I got to the bottom of the admittedly excitingly narrow, rocky and steep path I discovered a sign that told me there was no right of way. Well, I knew that! I had to walk south beside the fell wall until I reached a minor road, which is the only way out. You could say that I should have done what I knew to be the right way down rather than following the crowd, but I enjoyed the descent.

Walking along the road I passed through Mungrisdale and on to Mosedale where I turned left onto a minor road, and broke out onto the fell as soon as I could. I was now on Carrock Fell, but it took me a long time to get to the summit as this is a very wide fell with a lot of distance to cover over very rough ground. it was difficult to follow a path as what paths there are were faint and often ended abruptly. The bracken at the bottom was quickly replaced by prickly gorse bushes where any paths seemed to go through the densest patches. This was replaced by loose stones that, although easier to climb, seemed only to lead into more gorse bushes or into my final adversary: thick heather.

When the gradient eased I found a narrow path through the heather that passed by a sheepfold and on across the never ending fellside along what should have been a very muddy and wet path. Fortunately, this was not a problem on this walk as despite the earlier sunshine the mud was frozen, though there were frequent ice patches that had to be avoided. My walking pole was able to stand on the ice, but if I did I would slip onto my back side, fortunately the ice could easily be spotted and avoided. When I eventually reached the summit the weather had darkened and as I sat having my lunch in a shelter it started snowing .

Emerging from my shelter I found that not only did everything now have a thin covering of snow but mist had descended and was obscuring my view of the summit cairn that I had been clearly able to see before lunch. Walking to the summit cairn I continued along the top of the ridge trying to follow the path in the still falling snow. If the snow got heavier or didn't stop soon I was going to have problems with a situation known as 'White-out' where navigation is nigh on impossible in a completely white environment. Fortunately it stopped when I reached the insignificant top of Miton Hill, and the sun briefly came out, but as I rounded the top of Drygill Beck, I was back in a pea-souper and climbing up to the highest point on the walk: High Pike.

Few fells boast a seat at the summit, but this one not had only had a seat but the redundant trig point has been put to good use as it now sports a view finder, so it was a pity that I had no view. Descending the way I had ascended, I followed the Cumbria Way over Hare Stones and beside Great Lingy Hill, with the path becoming increasingly icy. This hadn't been a problem earlier but now with a thin covering of snow it was difficult to spot the icy patches, and consequently at one point I fell on my back side (or I would have done if my rucksack hadn't broken the fall). At the top of Grainsgill Beck the Way turns left along the beck but I thought it would be more interesting to climb over Comb Height and descend over Pike. The valley bottom route probably would have been easier and this route certainly wasn't better, especially during the rough descent from Pike through dense heather until eventually I reached the footbridge over Wiley Gill and rejoined the Cumbria Way on it's course towards Skiddaw House.

When I originally planned this walk I had decided to end by bagging Lonscale Fell, but once I reached Skiddaw House (which I had never been to before and it's bigger than I imagined) I had second thoughts. It was four o'clock, I was tired after a long day's walk and the sun had just set (at least according to my GPS, I hadn't seen the sun since Miton Hill). It was getting dark and I was still a long way from Keswick. Besides all this I didn't have a map of this area because I had stupidly left it at the hostel so eventually I decided that without a map to follow, whether it was light or dark, it would be stupid to attempt Lonscale Fell. Staying on the Cumbria Way I passed the Lonscale Crags where I seriously thought I ought to get a torch out, but once I was past the crags a good path surface made this unnecessary, for the time being.

On reaching the ford over Whit Beck I realised that the time had now come, so I got out my new headtorch and strapped it on and what a wonder, it was amazing! I was able to see the path clearly and if I kept it on the lowest setting I wouldn't have to sacrifice my night-vision. Using the headtorch I was able to get to the Gale Gill car park and continue along the Cumbria Way below Latrigg all the way into Keswick. This was another great walk in the Lake District, and this time in an area I had barely ventured in before, besides Blencathra. The Northern Fells are not typical Lakeland fells being more Pennines in character but the snowy weather made them just as challenging as anywhere else in the Lake District.