Meet Report: 13-15 August at the Agnes Spencer Memorial Hut, Grisedale.

The Agnes Spencer hut is situated just off the A592 at Grisedale Bridge. Most members found it without difficulty, some had more trouble. This was attributed to the hut sign blending in with the stone of the cottage. There were 10 people at the meet and with a bit of mutual cooperation,we managed to get all the cars parked. The hut was comfortable and well equipped.

Alan Hinkes joined us for Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning.

On the way up on Tuesday Michael, Helen and Christine did a short round from Bleasdale near Garstang in Lancashire. This was a spontaneous decision as the weather forecast further north was for rain. They parked by the church which was reached via a road signed PRIVATE but they were assured by a small child that it was, indeed, accessible to all.

The walk took them through the private estate of Bleasdale, passing an old packhorse bridge and further on  Bleasdale Tower, a modest stately home that has a programme of open garden days. The path then ascended steadily through the pheasant rearing areas to Oakenclough fell. Although overcast, the views were good. They carried on to Hazelhurst Fell and the trig point at 429 metres. The heather was starting to show colour on the moorland as they got higher. There were several mammal traps placed on logs spanning ditches and a couple of dead hares which could have died naturally or by accident. A descent was made to the east, crossing the river Brock and passing Vicarage Farm and back to the car just as it started to rain.

Tim set off from the hut to climb Place Fell but faced with low cloud and rain, walked the shore path to Sandwick Bay and returned up Boredale, thus circumnavigating the mountain.

Steve and Wendy Richards arrived early pm for a late lunch at the hut. Rain persisted so they settled for cups of tea and a trip to the White Lion with Kim and Toby.

In the evening Steve and Wendy kindly provided us all with a superb meal of home made potato and leek soup, plus a few magic ingredients, fresh bread followed by homemade scones and jam

Wednesday was beautiful, warm and sunny. Breakfast, provided by the Smiths included bacon and egg butties plus the usual staples. Mike Smith, Steve Richards and Alan Hinkes were observed huddled together no doubt hatching a cunning plan – perhaps for a future adventure.

Helen, Mike, Christine and Robert, a prospective member, set out for Hartsop, the starting point of their planned route. they walked by Hayeswater Gill for a short stretch then turned 90 degrees  to the south west to start the steep climb up to Hartsop Dodd, 618m. They continued on to Stoney Cove Pike where a well earned refreshment stop was cut short by pesky flies. But they did see a small froglet and some beautiful and vociferous ravens.

The descent of Threshwaite Crag was rather tricky in places and slow going for some.  The ascent up to The Beacon, 784m was a very steep scree path. The views throughout had been splendid but at the Beacon, almost all of the Lake District mountains were visible. Also great views of Windermere below.

From The Beacon the path levelled out somewhat as they reached High Street. From then on it was easy going. They climbed up to the cairn on the Knott, rested a while and started the descent. Hayeswater looked glorious, sparkling in the sunshine. On reaching the beck, Mike crossed over without  incident but, hoping for a footbridge the others walked  downstream to find it. Unfortunately it had been washed away.

Robert decided to walk straight through the beck, Christine picked her way across some large stones and Helen thought a paddle would be nice. Half way over she felt a bit encumbered by carrying her boots so threw them over to the bankside.  The boots landed safely but one of her socks didn’t. At least it didn’t get washed away. A very pleasant walk beside Hayeswater Gill led them back to Hartsop. A great day on the hills. 15k and 1000 metres of ascent.

Mick set off eastwards from Patterdale heading for Side Farm and followed the old cart track towards Hartsop as far as Angle Tarn Beck. This valley was ascended on a thin trod and proved to be a good viewpoint for a flypast of a pair of F15 fighters down the valley. Cat Crag, Brock Crags and Angletarn Pikes followed and each gave different views over Angle Tarn under blue skies. The long ridge between Bannerdale and Boredale was traversed northeast over Beda Fell and down to Garth Heads with its pretty clapper bridge over Boredale Beck. A climb up through the bracken eventually led to flatter ground and the trig point on Place Fell. A descent was then made north to Hare Shaw and the path down to Side Farm provided another view of the RAF’s low-level flying. He stopped for a welcome ice cream at the farm café and ambled back to the cottage to complete an excellent day on the hill.

Tim drove the short way to Matterdale End and cycled the Old Coach Road over to Threlkeld and its excellent coffee shop. Then up Glenderaterra Beck on singletrack to Skiddaw House which now boasts an honesty cafe with the most magnificent views. The track deteriorated for the next 7km but remained rideable until things improved at the head of Mosedale. The Mosedale community teashop comes highly recommended although despite arguments on both sides, the relative merits of Cumbrian tea bread and bara brith remain unresolved. Tim blames this discussion for his distraction and it was not until some miles later that he noticed the lack of a rucksack. Never mind, “I’ll carry on to the car and drive back to collect it.” On arrival at the car, Tim realised the keys were in the sack. His planned 45km route ended up at 70km and the battery was totally exhausted.

Having already spent two days at the Fell & Rock’s Salving House in Borrowdale, Kim and Toby spent Wednesday morning exploring the eastern side of Ullswater before heading across to Thornhow Crag in Grizedale to climb in the afternoon. The crag notes in the guidebook haven’t been updated since 1969, making route-finding more challenging than is desirable.

Steve and Wendy headed into Grisedale in warm sunshine to tackle Pinnacle Ridge on St Sunday Crag – a 3*, Grade 3 scramble described as ‘one of Lakeland’s best scrambles’ and so it turned out to be. Armed with some ‘top tips’ from Alan Hinkes, Steve and Wendy roped up for the exciting ascent. Emerging from the shadows half way up, they were rewarded by superb scrambling on dry rock, with the pinnacles a real treat. After lunch on the summit of St Sunday Crag, a pleasant descent took them down the north ridge into Glenridding, meeting up with Toby and Kim below Thornhow Crag to return for tea and scones.

After a quick pit stop at the hut, Kim, Wendy, Christine and Helen walked round to the shore on Ullswater where three of them went in for a dip. The other was the photographer.

After tea and nibbles all enjoyed a delicious vegetable chili followed by a scrumptious apple and blackberry crumble and custard. A very convivial evening followed with not a little raucous laughter. Unfortunately Robert missed the fun as he went home after the walk.

Overnight heavy rain was joined by increasing winds on Sunday morning so most headed home.  Wendy and Steve, and Kim and Toby had each booked a hotel room for another night in even more luxurious accommodation so departed seeking the driest available activities. Kim and Toby went to the Inn on the Lake in Glenridding while Steve and Wendy took a short walk along the shores of Ullswater between showers at Pooley Bridge. They ventured down to the end of Haweswater but the rain intensified, so they scuttled back to Patterdale for an extra night of luxury at the hotel before a day in Grasmere on Friday.

A big thank you to Alan Linford for arranging the meet, to Steve and Wendy for the evening meals and to Mike and Helen for the breakfasts.

Attendees:

Stephen and Wendy Richards, Mick Borroff, Tim Josephy, Michael and Helen Smith, Toby Dickinson, Kim Randall [PM], Christine Harrison, Robert Parker [PM]