Captain's Log

Weather Window

I couldn’t remember the last time we’d had a sunny day. There’d been the odd day when the sun had made a fleeting appearance, but overall we had seemed to have had months of greyness and rain. The weather forecasters had predicted wall to wall sunshine for today though. Not that I intended to stay within the walls of our digs. I’d decided to make the most of the day. An early start would take me to Cow Bridge carpark near Brothers Water where I’d climb up to Thornthwaite Beacon. From there, I’d make my way across the summit of High Street, The Knott and then down to Angle Tarn, before making my way back to the carpark. 

It was still quite dark when I left Cow Bridge carpark, although I could see from the colour in the few clouds that it wouldn’t be long before the sun popped its head above the ridges. There were plenty of other walkers making an early start too. I made my way across to the pretty village of Hartsop. I’m not sure whether most of the houses there are holiday cottages, but I never seem to see any of the residents pottering about. At the end of the village, I crossed the bridge over Pasture Beck. A couple of walkers were making slow progress up the lower slopes of Hartsop Dodd. That’s a steep, tough path and I was glad that I’d chosen an easier route to gain height. I followed Pasture Beck upstream. . 

Thornthwaite Beacon

I’ve walked the valley, overlooked by Gray Crag and Hartsop Dodd, at least a trio of times. I have to confess, it had not been one of my favourite routes. I’d always come down the valley, back towards Hartsop. Two of the times had been under heavy rain and the third was after a drop of snow. The problem I’ve found with the route was due to the path being slippery due to the rocks on the path. Some of the route has actually been built with rocks and it is easy to lose your footing. There is also a slippery section over a boulder field caused by fallen rocks from the mighty Raven Crag. I’d been a little bit reluctant to come back to the valley, but I’d half an idea that the path might be easier to climb up, than to drop down. 

There was no denying that it was a spectacular valley. It felt quite narrow with Gray Crag looming large on my left and the impressive Raven Crag protruding into the valley on the right. It was too deep for the sun to reach its base and it felt chilly. Looking above the valley, I could see white clouds scudding across a blue ceiling. It looked as though it could be quite windy up on the tops. The boulder field didn’t present any problems and the going was a lot easier than I thought it would be. The valley levelled out just before the final, steep section up to the pass. I looked back down the valley and saw another lone walker making his way across the boulder section. I’d got a quarter of a mile start, but I wasn’t going to let him beat me to the top of the pass.

Given my head start, it wasn’t that surprising that I won the race to the top of the pass. My chaser was still a couple of hundred metres behind and so I decided to extend the finish line to Thornthwaite Beacon. I set off up the scree path at a fair pace. Half way up, I looked back and saw my friend reach the top of the pass. He didn’t even stop for a rest and dashed towards me at a gallop. This fellow meant business. The higher elevation had brought me face to face with a gale force wind and it buffeted me as I walked along the path. A couple of times I had to brace myself against the wind in order not to be blown over. The last 100 metres to Thornthwaite Beacon was probably the slowest sprint that anybody would ever witness. The wind contrived to blow me backwards as I hunkered down and dragged my tired legs over those last few metres to the finish line. Breathless, I turned around to see my competitor at least 50 metres behind. I won. I would have stayed to get a view of the disappointed reaction on his face, but there only seemed to be one place nearby that provided shelter out of the wind, and I wanted to make sure I got the spot. I waved to the approaching figure as I made my way to the sheltered spot. He didn’t wave back. 

High Street

I followed a young couple from Thornthwaite Beacon after my rest stop. They’d approached from Froswick and were now heading towards High Street. They were about 30 metres in front when the lad suddenly stopped and started having a pee. The dog decided to get involved and started having a pee too. How odd, he knew I was only a stone's throw behind him. His girlfriend stood there watching him. I wasn’t sure what to do since I didn’t want to walk past him. I decided to pretend to take some photos of Hayeswater until he’d finished. I heard a roar and saw a jet fly over Kirkstone Pass and then head down the valley towards Ullswater. Three others followed it closely. They repeated the exercise about 20 minutes later. For the rest of the morning I could see them having dog fights in the Eden Valley. I headed up to the lonely trig on the top of High Street. Despite the sun, it was bitterly cold. I had four layers on and it still felt chilly. I had so many hats, headbands, hoods, and bandanas on my head, I must have looked more like a mummy than a walker. I managed to find some shelter behind a stone wall at the col between High Street and The Knott and so I took the opportunity to grab some lunch. It had a wonderful view of Kidsty Pike, Riggindale and Haweswater at the bottom of the valley. 

The Knott And Angle Tarn

I’m not sure why they use the definite article with The Knott. I can’t see any other nearby Knotts on the OS map that might cause confusion. It is definitely worth traversing though since it is only a short diversion off the main path and it has a fine view down to Hayeswater. I descended down the other side and rejoined the main path. When planning the walk I had given myself the option of dropping down to Hayeswater and then following Hayeswater Gill back to Hartsop, but the weather was so good, that it was inevitable that I’d take the longer walk over to Angle Tarn. I was meeting quite a few people out walking now. One young couple was carrying a baby in one of those specially designed baby carrying backpacks. I just hoped it was wrapped up well for such a cold day. I normally spot deer on this section of the walk, but couldn’t see any today. I scanned the fell sides but it looked deserted. They’d be there somewhere; they are just so well camouflaged. I was surprised that there were no wildcampers pitched around Angle Tarn. Having said that, the recent rain would have no doubt deterred all but the most determined. 

Already the sun was creeping down to the ridges of the Red Screes and Fairfield range, casting strong beams of light across the Kirkstone valley. I set my camera to the appropriate settings for fast objects in the hope that the jets would make their way down the valley again. They never did. This was a shame since the descent route down into the valley would have provided the opportunity for some excellent photos. As I reached the valley bottom, I met the couple with the baby carrier rucksack. After I’d seen them earlier on, they must have dropped down to Hayeswater and made their way back to Hartsop. I was glad that they’d not taken their bairn up on to the freezing high tops. The sun dipped below the ridge to the west and the day got very cold again. The restored wetland at Goldrill Beck looked well established now. I thought I might have seen some wildlife around there, but there was nothing stirring. The last rays of the sun were still hitting Gray Crag as I made my way back to the carpark. 

It had been an excellent day. There had been some tremendous views. I’d beat another walker to the top of Thornthwaite Beacon, admittedly after having given myself half a mile start on him. It had been very cold and windy, but debatably those conditions can be the best days to be out walking. .