Bleaberry Fell

Wednesday 2nd January 2013

I had not planned anything in advance for the last day of my holiday in the Lake District except for a requirement to catch a bus from Keswick mid-afternoon. I spent much of the evening of New Year’s Eve pouring over maps trying to decide what walks I was going to do for the next two days, but it wasn’t until I was part way through my walk of New Year’s Day on the western side of Derwent Water that I got the idea to walk up Bleaberry Fell, which is near to Keswick on the eastern side of Derwent Water. My original idea for New Year’s Day had been to walk all the way around Derwent Water, but a lack of a good through route on the eastern side of the lake prompted me to stay on the western side on New Year’s Day. Now the eastern side beckoned with a desire to climb alongside Cat Gill on an ascent of Bleaberry Fell that became my sole target for this last day. Wainwright’s “Ascent from the Borrowdale Road” fitted the bill, but first I needed to get to the Borrowdale Road.

My walk started with a stroll down to the popular viewpoint of Friar’s Crag for a look at the stunning view across Derwent Water, the most beautiful lake in the Lake District, even when the weather is awful. On this last day it was just as lousy as it had been throughout my holiday with rain falling more often than not but with lighter winds than I had endured over the previous couple of days. Fortunately the poor weather had driven away all the tourists and allowed me to enjoy the stunning views across the lake all on my own. Following the lake-shore path I walked around Strandshag Bay and through the Ings Wood to Calfclose Bay. Slowly, I made my way along the pleasant path to the Borrowdale Road and the start of the “Ascent from the Borrowdale Road” at the mouth of Cat Gill. After crossing the road I climbed a muddy path below the imposing Falcon Crag that I would have loved to have been able to explore.

Crossing Cat Gill by a footbridge I took an thrilling path that climbs steeply up the hillside beside the ravine created by Cat Gill on the edge of Great Wood. I loved this gorgeous stone-flagged path that cleverly climbs the steep hillside while on the edge of a stunning ravine and was thankful that I’d made the effort to climb Bleaberry Fell by this route; I am only disappointed that I hadn’t been up this path earlier. I was sheltered from the wind in the ravine and as I got hot from the effort of the climb I was actually wishing for a breath of wind, which is ironic after the savage cross-winds that I’d endured the day before on Maiden Moor. On this holiday I had been wearing two waterproofs, which is not something I’ve ever done before but it’s worked out quite well. As well as my usual waterproof (which is very light), I have added the old cagoule that I’ve had for years (and wore on my first ever holiday in the Lake District) and was now being used as an overcoat. In the very wet conditions I found on this holiday it worked very well, but on this ascent the non-breathable nature of the cagoule made me a bit warm, but through judicious use of rolling up the sleeves of my two waterproofs I managed to reach the top of Cat Gills without melting into a pool of sweat.

A clear path took me around the top of the various streams that combine at the top of the ravine until after I’d crossed the last stream I set off across the fell on relatively firm ground to the clear path that heads towards Bleaberry Fell. After passing a sheepfold, a heavily constructed path emerged that led me all the way up to the top of the fell, and was a welcome help as soon after joining this path it started raining heavily with no sign that it would end. This is not the sort of weather that you would want when climbing a fell. I resolutely made my way through the rain, up the steep paved path and past the many cairns that litter the top until I reached the summit of Bleaberry Fell where I found a small shelter from the wind and rain and had my lunch.

I returned back down the heavily made path and after passing the sheepfold I made a direct course for Walla Crag across very boggy ground. This was the route that I had taken the last time I was in this area, in 2006, but it’s not a good route. The route I’d taken in ascent from Cat Gill is much drier and much better than this usual route across the ridiculously boggy ground of Low Moss. Eventually I reached the tremendous views across Derwent Water that can seen from the popular top of Walla Crag, and from the top I took a fabulous path that skirts the edge of the crags and provided me with excellent views throughout the all-too-short walk. A delightful descent beside Brockle Beck followed and led me all the way down into Keswick, where since I still had a bit of time left before my bus I decided to nip up to the top of the wooded viewpoint of Castlehead, which Wainwright describes as having the most beautiful of all the views of Derwent Water. The extra height of Castlehead possibly gives it an edge over the lakeshore viewpoint from Friar’s Crag. This was a great end to a fabulous six days in the Lake District that shows that bad weather doesn’t necessarily stop you having a great walking holiday over the fells; you just have to be prepared.

Maiden Moor and Cat Bells

Tuesday 1st January 2013

At midnight before this walk I was standing in the centre of Keswick with several hundred other people watching the New Year clock on the side of the Skiddaw Hotel countdown to zero so that we could welcome in the New Year. I have never welcomed in the New Year with so many people before and it was a fabulous experience. My walk the following morning, starting later than usual, was through the glorious scenery west of the most beautiful lake in the Lake District, Derwent Water, with weather that was the best that I was to enjoy in the whole of this holiday: clear views in all directions and even occasionally flashes of sunlight. I started on a great route that I have taken many times before from Keswick through the village of Portinscale and Fawe Park to the northern tip of Cat Bells. I’ve walked around the western slopes of Cat Bells several times before but never taken the wide track on the Derwent Water side of the fell, so rather than climb this popular fell I joined this and found an excellent path that was a pleasure to stroll along.

This thoroughly relaxing path is well-graded and well-laid with stunning views across Derwent Water towards Bleaberry Fell and through the Jaws of Borrowdale, and took me all the way down to the road at Manesty where the path south deteriorated. With hindsight it would have been best to have walked along the road as far as the Borrowdale Gates Hotel and then taken the path through Peace How. Instead I took a rough, muddy path around Manesty and above a small wood to Ellers Beck. My plan for this walk was to climb Maiden Moor using Wainwright’s ‘Ascent from Grange via Peace How,’ because in the past I’d always walked along the ridge from High Spy to Maiden Moor and never climbed just this fell. However I got a bit sidetracked by an excellent path that climbs High Spy on a drove road between High and Low White Rakes. While climbing the steep grassy slopes beside Ellers Beck the crags to my left kept attracting my attention including the path that climbs between these formidable barriers.

Spurning the tiring trudge up the grassy slopes to Maiden Moor, I climbed the path to the foot of High White Rake and walked along the thrilling drove road that crosses the foot of the crags to the top of Low White Rake. This is a fabulous path high above the fellside with excellent views across Derwent Water; it is just the sort of path that I absolutely adore. Some years ago I tried to take this path from Castle Crag but I was coming from the wrong direction and ended up climbing through Nitting Haws. The drove road had brought me to the bottom of a vast and wild upland area east of the top of High Spy, filled with heather, bracken and moss set amongst rocks, and is a long way away from the popular path that runs along the top of the fell. When I reached this natural amphitheatre it started to rain as the good weather of the morning failed to last very long, and it continued to rain while I had my lunch and while I battled all the way up to the top of the ridge through the wind and rain.

My target was still Maiden Moor, however I was at Blea Crag on the northern edge of High Spy, and actually higher than the top of Maiden Moor. I’m not sure if this counts as an ascent of Maiden Moor even though I never actually visited the summit of High Spy. I had to battle against unbelievably strong winds, hail and rain while on the exposed ridge over to the top of Maiden Moor. The main path across the fell doesn’t go to the summit but actually descends the eastern slopes and would have sheltered me from the winds, but since I was trying to climb Maiden Moor I had to take the exposed path to the summit. The weather eased after I passed over the top of Maiden Moor and from there I descended the craggy path down the broad northern slopes of the fell to Hause Gate and from there up to Cat Bells. Cat Bells is always a pleasure to climb as it is like a miniature version of the big fells. Half their height but with everything the bigger fells have got except for height. It is a real family favourite. The excellent northern ridge of Cat Bells took me back onto my outward route through Fawe Park and Portinscale in dwindling daylight to Keswick. This was not a long walk since there I had started late and a long approach had been necessary at the start and end from Keswick, but it was a good walk on a great day through fabulous scenery and with some enjoyable weather in the morning. It was a great way to start the year.