Dockray Double - Photo Gallery before it got too wet
Movie clip of Aira Beck
I had to drive through some very heavy rain but by the time I reached Dockray it had settled down to a fine drizzle, not as heavy but definitely just as wet. I had planned a route that included climbing Gowbarrow Fell at the end of the day but I decided to climb it first in case I couldn't be bothered later on. I had parked by the side of the bridge across Aira Beck and walked over it before turning right up the track signposted “Ulcat Row and Aira Force”. After walking along the track for a few minutes you come to signposts for Gowbarrow Fell; the second of them points uphill to a Permissive Path.
On one of the farm buildings there is a weather vane in the shape of a Curlew, the conditions on the path were well-suited to a wading bird. The muddy path wasn't too steep but it was running with water making it slippery enough to have to take care, especially when stepping over the frequent small rock steps. The fells are at their most colourful in October, some of the vegetation stays green all through the year whilst the stuff that dies down turns to every possible variation from yellow to brown. Unfortunately the view down to Ullswater was rather hidden by the next wave of heavy rain heading my way.
The path dried out a little bit as I gained height until I reached the wall; the wall took me almost all of the way to the summit but the path by the side of it was a stream at best and a muddy swamp at worst. As the wall moved away from the path the rain joined me for the final muddy climb up to the summit of Gowbarrow Fell; there was a strong breeze too that would make sure the rain got through all of my defences. The rain did pause for a couple of minutes as I stood at the summit; the only view I had though comprised Great Mell, Little Mell and a colourful but overcast view of Ullswater.
From the summit, looking west, you can see three watery paths including the one I had climbed; I decided to use a different path to descend and chose the middle one. The faint path crossed the colourful fellside and I splashed through water avoiding the most slippery sections of mud until after a short descent through bracken I came across a substantial path. It was obviously one of several paths built to accommodate large numbers of visitors to Aira Force coming up from one of several car parks. I turned right to go upstream and it soon became obvious that there were lots of visitors around; I descended a rough constructed path to where a footbridge is perched across a narrow ravine.
There was a lot of water in Aira Beck and it gave the impression of being in quite an angry lather having had to squeeze through a narrow gap in the rocks. I crossed the bridge and followed the path upstream to High Force; it had stopped raining but the air was filled with spray created by the large amount of water throwing itself over the rocky cataract. I was hoping that the path would continue all the way to Dockray but it ended in ankle deep soft mud and a barbed-wire fence. It wasn't too far to have to retrace my steps before finding a path back to one of the Aira Force car parks and then walk back along the road to Dockray.
I wanted to find the route of the Miners Path around Glencoyne Head from its starting point at Dockray, and follow it all the way to Greenside. The starting point is easy to find at the phone box across the road from where I had parked the car; there is a good track for a short while until you reach the gate giving you access to Watermillock Common. The path disappeared almost immediately after that; I was already doubting that I was in the right place, but on the basis that not many miners use the path these days and it might not be visible, I took a compass bearing and carried on.
I walked for a while uphill, through rough grass with occasional signs of quad bike tracks; it became apparent that I was not going in the right direction. I should have been going towards the other side of Common Fell but I was still too close to Dowthwaitehead. It took me a while to work out where I was; the heavy rain was being driven by a strong breeze and the plain green hills all around looked the same as each other. I eventually decided I was going to have to go across open ground, risking swamps and gullies, towards Common Fell.
As I was plodding across the rough ground, something caught my eye; had other walkers been this way and dropped some litter? It was the remnants of a balloon and a ticket with the address of a balloon race asking the finder to return it; was this the furthest journey made by a balloon from Ballyshannon in Ireland? I could see ahead that there were signs of a path slanting uphill near a shallow gully; I think I was at Blake Sike on the north west flank of Common Fell. I followed the path upwards but as the gradient eased it was much less obvious; I think the barely visible tracks I see sometimes are probably sheep tracks or just my imagination.
I was fairly sure that the Miners Path was on the other side of the ridge, all I had to do was keep following the contours until I found somewhere to cross over without having to do too much unnecessary climbing. The things working against my confidence were the poor visibility and the relentless rain driven by the constant, strength-sapping wind. Eventually I climbed up to a shallow col on the ridge and sure enough I could see a wall across the other side of it and I knew the Miners Path was there. Walking across open ground through tough grass and swamp is strenuous enough but walking on wet and muddy footpaths is even more difficult.
As I passed around the subsidiary summit of Swineside Knott and started walking up to Glencoyne Head it was still raining mercilessly; the flatter ground of Brown Hills was completely waterlogged and the exposed peaty areas were treacherously muddy. My enthusiasm was being severely tested; the wind and rain were trying to beat me into submission and I was close to accepting that I might turn back. There is no shelter until you reach a wall that cuts across the path heading uphill to a place where I haven't been before. While I sat beside the wall, sheltering from the wind and rain, I had a major review of my planned route; a compromise between not wanting to be defeated by the weather but accepting that it was going to defeat me anyway.
Instead of walking on to Glencoyne Head, I followed the wall uphill after crossing it; it wasn't too steep and it was less exposed than the Miners Path. I was surprised to find that there was a faint path by the side of the wall; I just hoped that I wouldn't get lost once I got into the mist at the top. The gradient eased as I expected it to do; not only could I see the cairn that is marked on the map but the path turns left to reach it. I presumed that it was the summit of Birkett Fell, all I had to do then was navigate to the summit of Hart Side; there was a faint path that was too faint to trust without the reassurance of a compass bearing.
After plodding across wet ground where the course of the path wasn't clear at all I came to a much more obvious path on drier ground; there are no clues on the map that such a path exists. Anyway, I followed the more obvious path half-right for the final slightly steeper climb to the summit of Hart Side. For a plain, flat summit there are some intriguing objects; I counted three cairns and I think there may be more and there is also a small earthwork-like depression indicated by a small blue line on the map. One day I'll get here when it isn't raining and explore it properly.
All I had to then was get down; easier said that done in poor visibility on a big flat summit with crags and quarries all around. To be perfectly honest the presence of steep ground nearby is an aid to navigation, if you keep close to the edge without falling off it you can't go far wrong. I would have been more confident in my direction finding if I had the slightest hint of a path or other indication that people had been this way before. I was heading generally south, keeping away from the edge on the left and heading towards higher ground bearing right a little; as I got to an area of waterlogged peat hags I was beginning to worry a little bit that I wasn't in the right place.
Shortly after I got past the peat hags I found the path and started to descend. The descent was reasonably easy; on good, short grass until I got to wetter ground and longer grass and I could see the grey outline of Sheffield Pike ahead. I knew I had got too far so I walked back uphill for a short distance to where another path crossed the one I was on; I don't know how I missed it on the way down. This other path was the Miners Path again, I turned right and soon I was contouring the steep slopes around Glencoyne Head.
The path is obvious from here, a little eroded at times, wet in places and with the occasional slippery rocks to step over. The small gills coming downhill weren't quite so small but only a couple of them were awkward to get across, although one did require a leap of faith onto wet rocks to get across the torrent of water. By this time the rain had eased to drizzle, maybe I was just in a sheltered spot because I could see mist being driven quickly down the valley. After I reached the Birkett Fell wall it was just a case of following the path back to Dockray; I could see where I went wrong on the way up but the turn off I should have taken really isn't obvious, anybody would have missed it - honest!
That day was as wet as it gets; when I got back to the car I was wet through to the skin, it is a good job my gear is wind-proof otherwise I might have got cold enough to be in trouble up on the ridge. I probably wouldn't have wanted to be bothered with Gowbarrow Fell once I got back to the car.
Andy Wallace 28th October 2006