Great Dodd and Raise

Wednesday 9th May 2018

After a good night’s sleep in the Skiddaw House Hostel and a chance to rest my knee that had been hurting for the previous couple of days, I left the fabulous “Loneliest house in England” and came all the way down off the hills into the village of Threlkeld. The weather was quite lousy with grey, overcast skies that would not improve, but rather worsened during the course of the day becoming windier and eventually ending in rain. This was not the best weather for walking in the Lake District, however at least it would feel like a walk in the Lake District with typical Lake District weather. Despite the inclement conditions I actually enjoyed being out on the fells in the harsh weather. The start of the day was not too bad as I slowly made my way down the track into Threlkeld, hastily across the scarily busy A66 trunk road and up the quiet road to the open fell. I remember when I came up this way in 2015 I followed a faint path beyond a fence, but this time I didn’t cross the fence as I took a fainter path up the hillside until it disappears in a marsh. Although crossing the fence is clearly the better route of the two, the latest Ordnance Survey maps show a path climbing the fell far from the fence aiming directly for Hause Well spring, but I don't if there is any trace of this route on the ground.

On reaching the Old Coach Road I found that it is in a very poor state having been heavily eroded by the heavy rains of the last couple of years. I can’t remember what state this track was in when I came this way in 2015, but of course, that would have been before the notorious storms of December 2015. On that occasion I had planned on climbing Great Dodd from the east, but chose to ascend from the north because I was tired. With no such problem now, and because I didn’t want to repeat my earlier route, I continued along the Old Coach Road until I reached Mariel Bridge where I turned off to climb steep, grassy slopes towards Randerside and Great Dodd. This was not an enjoyable climb as I toiled up a long, unrelenting and utterly featureless slope with thick, tussocky grass underfoot making for slow progress as strong winds persistently blew straight into my face under miserable, leaden skies. After mile after mile of slow, soul-destroying climbing towards a peak that I had identified as Randerside, though I never seemed to get any closer, eventually I reached the outcrop only to find that it was not Randerside, which was further ahead at the top of the north-east ridge coming down from Great Dodd.

The views from Randerside are severely restricted by the huge bulk of Great Dodd and the further swelling of Clough Head on the other side of Mosedale, though it was the grey, overcast skies that really marred the views. Turning my attention to the parent fell I set off along the clear path from Randerside that leads all the way up into the dark recesses of Great Dodd. Surprisingly the top was not covered in cloud and I had clear views towards Skiddaw, across Keswick and south along the ridge towards Helvellyn. The weather always seems to be poor when I am on Great Dodd, so the low cloud and strong winds that I was now encountering seemed almost reassuringly familiar, however the clear views were unusual even though there must have been occasions in the past when I had also had a view. Sheltering from the strong winds I had my lunch before wrapping myself up tight against the cold winds and setting off down the grassy slopes thoroughly enjoying the snug feeling while all around me was blowing a gale. Making my way along the broad ridge I came to the top of Watson’s Dodd where I had another good view towards Skiddaw and Keswick, however now I could see rain falling onto the town and before I had a chance to put on all my waterproofs the rain was falling on me too.

Setting off once more along the path I climbed into the clouds that covered Stybarrow Dodd eventually veering off in order to bag the summit. Returning to the path I headed over the lower summit and down the slopes towards the Sticks Pass descending below the clouds once more to reveal surprising views that lead all the way down to Ullswater. Despite the bad weather I kept going along the path over the pass and up the steep slopes that led me up to the delightfully craggy summit of Raise. After the grassy mounds of the three Dodds, it was great to be at the top of a fell with a proper mountainous feel to it. Coming down and crossing the col I made my way up the slopes to reach the low cairn and shelter that marks the top of White Side, and after circling the summit I headed back down to the saddle. The next High Fell on my schedule was Helvellyn, but I decided that in view of the poor weather it would be better to leave that for the next day, so after returning to the col I took the branch that begins the descent of the Pony Track and leads gracefully all the way down into Glenridding.

The weather may not have been the best for this walk, but aside from a lot of wind it had not been too bad with surprisingly good views from the summits until the rain started. There is something curiously satisfying about being at the top of High Fells in harsh weather, as you brave out the elements that you would not get if the weather was good. It made me feel like a real man who has truly conquered the mountain and beaten the elements, even though all it had really taken was a bit of blind determination to keep going. Since I was prepared with good waterproofs and warm clothing I was able to keep fellwalking even when the weather turned. The skies may have been dark and overcast with strong winds that ultimately brought rain, but I had fun.