A Big Walk All To Myself - no photos today

Parked the car at Overbeck Bridge by the side of Wastwater with the intention of completing the walk that I had planned for last week until I was so pleasantly interrupted. The weather is wetter than last week but still not raining and it’s seems quite warm on the walk along the road to Wasdale Head.

Guy has no customers for me this week so I set off for Black Sail Pass, the beck isn’t anywhere as full as last week so at least I get to keep my feet dry today.

There is a lot of mist at the pass and it is getting quite windy, head up towards Pillar and within ten minutes the rain hit me like a train, turned on to the High Level Route and although less windy it is still very wet. I seemed to have stumbled on an alternative High Level Route running higher up the fell than the path I took last week, less used and narrower and slightly more exhilarating in the wet and slippery conditions.

By the time I reached Robinson’s Cairn the rain had stopped but it still isn’t much of a day for taking photographs. Met some other climbers at the scree at the start of the Shamrock Traverse, they had climbed the steep slope up from Ennerdale – ouch! I couldn’t see Pillar Rock at all until I was standing next to it at the start of the final pull up to the summit of Pillar.

From the summit of Pillar go South West and find the eroded footpath down to Wind Gap, proceed upwards and over the rocky intermediate summit of Black Crag and then follow an intermittent path over easy ground. The more obvious path bears left towards Red Pike, the path up to Scoat Fell isn’t visible today but I know it’s there and it takes me to the unmistakeable wall running along the top of Scoat Fell. The summit may be unmistakeable but deciding where the summit is today is impossible, I carry on to the shelter to get my bearings.

From the shelter a cairned path leads off to the right and across a wonderful little arête, the wind rushes up from Mirk Cove and Mirklin Cove. Up to the summit of Steeple, one of the most special places in the Lake District but today it could be back at the car park for all I can see.

Reverse the route back to Scoat Fell, cross over the wall and put my navigation skills to the test. There is no path and no visibility, just myself, a map and a compass – it’s always good (a relief!) when I get to where I want to be. Meet the main path to Red Pike, it follows the edge of the crags and presents some wonderful photo opportunities on a clear day but today I can only see the ghostly outlines of the splintered rocky outcrops.

Eventually reach the summit of Red Pike, a confusing place at the best of times but just to be sure I go and find the Chair, a cairn in the shape of a chair that isn’t really comfortable enough to sit in. Back to the summit cairn and around the side of it to find the path down to Dore Head, half way down the mist clears for the first time today enough for me to anticipate the delicious scramble on Yewbarrow.

How can anybody choose to descend down the scree path from Dore Head when Yewbarrow is there to be climbed? The rocky climb is just superb, safe but with some exposure in places and magnificent views. The walk across the surprisingly wide, flat and long ridge of Yewbarrow is against the wind that comes rushing up from the valley.

Finally, the wonderful views over Wastwater at Great Door and then the awkward loose stony descent. Half way down the descent after a five points of contact rock step is a curious little wall perched on the flat grassy top of Dropping Crag, this is where you should locate the small cairn to the left of the stony gully that seems to be the obvious way down. Follow the gully at your peril, it is horrible, cross the top of the gully to the cairn for a reasonably comfortable descent to the bottom of Dropping Crag and the easy path leading back down to Overbeck. Make sure you cross the wall at the stile for the most comfortable way down.

As much as I have enjoyed the company of the past couple of weeks there is really nothing to match the exhilaration of being the only person on a mountain in conditions that provide a better than average challenge.

Andy Wallace 22nd June 2002