Mellbreak & Hen Comb

Thursday 31st December 2009

Despite better weather during this walk than the day before I still didn’t want to do anything too tricky in the wintry conditions, though I still up ended doing a walk that was both long and tiring. I set off from Buttermere first thing in the morning and crossed the fields between the lakes of Buttermere and Crummock Water along icy tracks. After crossing the Buttermere Beck I followed an icy path across an area that is often regarded as the wettest in the Lake District. This wasn't the case on this occasion however, as most of the mud was frozen but it still required a bit of bog-hopping despite the cold temperatures. When I reached Scale Beck I found that it had severely flooded recently to such an extent that it has changed its course. The new route parallels the old which has been reduced to a trickle and there is now much debris of stones and wood that litters the area all the way down to the lake.
After crossing the stream I started to climb the steep hill opposite, Scale Knott, following a fence up. This route was not recommended by Wainwright as the best views are always behind but that just gave me an excuse to stop frequently and turn around so I could admire the stunning views across Buttermere. At the top of Scale Knott I reached the ridge of Mellbreak where I continued climbing past the snow line and up the southern slopes of Mellbreak until I reached the broad summit. This was quite a nice, quiet climb and it was curiously refreshing after my nerve-breaking walk of the day before. After a rest beside the small cairn at the summit I crossed the snow covered fell to Mellbreak's prettier, heather-covered northern top. Once this pleasurable traverse had been accomplished I turned around and retraced my steps until I'd reached the bottom of the saddle between the two tops where I took a steep path down the western slopes.

With care I successfully reached the bottom of the path, in Mosedale, where I followed a path across the wet valley to the foot of Hen Comb. Leaving the clear valley path I followed a faint path beside a fence that climbs up the steep slopes of Hen Comb to the point where the fence turns north. This climb was quite exhausting so I stopped at this point and had my lunch while gazing across Mosedale towards the massive bulk of Mellbreak with its two radically different tops before me. The top of the northern ridge of Hen Comb was now not too far away from me so I easily climbed up to the top of the snowy ridge where I turned towards the summit and followed a path that led me all the way up to the top of Hen Comb, my second new Wainwright of the day. Despite persistent low cloud, I was fortunate as both the hills I’d climbed on this walk were no higher than cloud level so I was almost always below the clouds and able to enjoy stunning views of the snow covered fells.

Soon I left the summit behind and descended the southern slopes of Hen Comb into the vast expanse of the Mosedale marsh. After a great deal of map searching and horizon gazing I eventually managed to locate the path that crosses the marsh on its way to Scale Force. After a tedious, though mostly dry, crossing I eventually reached the waterfall, which I'd never visited before, despite Scale Force being the tallest waterfall in the Lake District, as I had never previously been able to incorporate it into a walk. I’d planned on visiting Scale Force on my first trip to the Lake District but I was unable to, and now I found that I could hardly see it as it is hidden at the back of a long, deep, narrow ravine. I suppose it would be worse in summer as heavy vegetation would further impede the view. It’s a fabulous waterfall but I couldn’t help being somewhat disappointed by it and feeling as if it hadn’t been worth the wait. Finally I crossed the slopes high above Crummock Water and dropped down into Buttermere. This supposedly simple walk eventually took me all day as it was getting dark by the time I reached the youth hostel, but it was still an enjoyable walk to end the year. I had some pretty lousy weather in 2009, so I hope in 2010 I will be a little more fortunate.

Barrow, Outerside and over Coledale Hause

Wednesday 30th December 2009

The weather continued to deteriorate for this walk and subjected me to exceptionally high winds that made the walk very difficult and tricky. I was travelling from Keswick to Buttermere where I would be spending the New Year, but I chose a route that with hindsight I would not have chosen due to the high winds. The walk didn't start too badly as I went from Keswick to the village of Braithwaite using the old road through Portinscale. From Braithwaite I climbed the north ridge of Barrow on a path that had become exceptionally icy due to the popularity of the fell over the Christmas period which had made it difficult to walk up though my walking poles helped enormously. The wind though, could not be helped but endured, and became exceptionally strong as I neared the top. This was the second time that I had been up Barrow and Outerside, and on that earlier occasion I also had poor weather, though it wasn’t as bad as this. Going up Barrow and Outerside on this walk was unnecessary, but I had wanted to be able to say that I had been up at least one fell during my walk.
Eventually I reached the top of Barrow and instantly gained a respite from the wind as I dropped down the other side of the fell to Barrow Door and climbed up to the top opposite, Stile End, even though it was very steep and not a Wainwright. Passing over the top I continued across the snow-covered terrain of Low Moss to Outerside. Except for the deep snow this wasn't too bad until I started climbing the steep slope of Outerside where I was again hit by the ferocious winds. The climb up Outerside was really tough and I often collapsed into the snow just to get away from the harsh wind. Somehow I managed to get to the top of Outerside and passed into almost white-out conditions on the other side. Following a compass bearing I crossed High Moss and started descending into Coledale. This was a long, unnecessary descent that became really tricky when I refused to descend any further but crossed the steep snow laden slopes above the valley until eventually I reached the Coledale path.

After struggling across the steep slopes of Coledale it was a relief to be on a proper path and for a while I merrily followed it up the valley past Low Force and up to High Force, marvelling at what scenery I could see in a valley that I’d never visited before. Soon however the wind picked up again and became violent with snow whipping fiercely into my face. I wished I could have turned back but all I could think was that I was booked into Buttermere and I had to keep going over the pass. I reasoned that once I got over the pass it would become easier, but it didn't. After battling against the strongest winds I had yet encountered that made every step an achievement I eventually reached the top of the pass. Once I realised I had actually made it to Coledale Hause I saw that the path hadn’t brought me to the bottom of the saddle. My mistake was now to head across the col where I promptly lost all sense of direction, but when I tried to look at my map, which would have clearly shown my mistake, it flew out of my hand and skidded down the steep snow covered slope disappearing over the edge accompanied by my cries of “No!”

Now I was really worried that I was far out of my league, so I followed Wainwright’s advice to fall on my knees and cry out to God for “safe deliverance” while desperately looked for a way down. Eventually I retraced my steps and found the top of Gasgale Gill where I gingerly took the path, carefully making my way down while thanking God that I had gotten off the windswept top of Coledale Hause safely. The descent took me a long time with a lot of care required in many places. Once below the snow line the path became quite fun as I walked down a narrow gorge with a path that was never far from the stream, but towards the end I found that the path had been washed away during the recent floods. This made the final stages of the descent also rather tricky but it was nothing compared with what I had just been through. At the bottom of the path, near Lanthwaite, I joined a path that crosses the slopes below Grasmoor slowly making my way towards Buttermere via Rannerdale and finally along the road.

Eventually I arrived in Buttermere in the dark and very tired. This was a really tiring walk in very poor weather conditions. It was interesting to hear the reports of the adventures of others in the youth hostel who had also ventured onto the fells in those conditions; I had certainly not been the only idiot that day, but I never should have dismissed the weather forecast so casually. I knew that it would be exceptionally windy with a forecast of gusts up to 80mph, but I still planned a complicated and tricky walk. I thought that Coledale Pass would be safe, but under the circumstance a lower pass would have been better as my biggest problem on this walk was not the snow and ice, but the wind that made the walking tiring and almost impossible. Thanks to this walk I have gained an appreciation of the value of the weather forecast and an enormous respect for winter weather. Thankfully all I lost was a worn out map. If you have found a map near Coledale Hause I hope you needed it more than I.