Waterworld

I followed the stone path on the east side of Langstrath Beck. It became immediately clear there was a lot of water around. The path was more a interconnected ponds. In fact it was a fast flowing stream in places. Mini waterfalls cascaded down the hillside and flooded the path. I was grateful that I'd got new boots on and that they were watertight, otherwise I'd have got wet feet for the day in the first 5 minutes. I worked my way up the valley heading towards that huge slab of rock that is Eagle Crag. This craggy rock face would bisect my outgoing and incoming routes.

Gordon Hallworth

A wooden footbridge took me across the roaring Stonethwaite Beck just beyond where the Langstrath Becks joins it. Beck seemed a poor description when there was so much water cascading down them. A plaque on the bridge said that it was rebuilt after a tragic incident on the 7th of January 1939, when Gordon Hallworth, a member of the Manchester Mountaineering Club ;..died here from exhaustion, despite the efforts of his two companions and those of a relief party.' It seemed odd to me that somebody would die of exhaustion and so a little internet research revealed the following account, based on the inquest of the incident.

Gordon had set off from Rosthwaite with two friends and had walked over Ullscarf and Allan Crags to Esk Hause. They then returned down the Langstrath valley and ended up on the east side of Langstrath beck. Unknown to them the bridge had been washed away three years earlier. Curiously, they had recently walked past a footbridge that would have taken them to the west side of Langstrath beck and given them a safe passage to Stonethwaite, and to Rosthwaite further on. It had been late in the day and dark, and so I guess they may have not seen it. The bridge was marked on the map of the time though. They took the fateful decision to walk upstream, heading towards Greenup Gill. Their torch had failed by this point and that side of the gill isn't a place I'd like to wander in the dark. As they made their way upstream Gordon started showing signs of hypothermia. Much higher up the gill they forded it, but Gordon unfortunately fell into the water and became soaked. By the time they got to the other side, Gordon wasn't in a state to continue back down to Rosthwaite. His companions decided to shelter Gordon behind a boulder and then they started the journey down the valley to get help. One of them also succumbed to the cold and had to stop and shelter whilst the remaining one continued to Rosthwaite. It was 01:30 a.m. when he got there and a rescue party was formed and sent out. Unfortunately, by the time they got to Gordon he had died from '...an exposure to exhaustion and cold' as recorded by the Coroner.

Langstrath Valley

Gordon's story was indeed tragic and a reminder of how unforgiving these fells can be. I started making my way up the Langstrath Valley. I'd been down this valley three times before but my memories of it were around four decades old and I'd forgotten how beautiful it was. The sun was trying to make an appearance and patches of sunlight appeared and disappeared on the flanks of the fells on the other side of the valley. At one point, massive boulders had fallen down from Sergeant's crag and littered the valley. A huge one know as Blea Rock, perched on the hillside and looked like a small castle. I soon reached Blackmoss Pot where the beck narrows into a spectacular rocky gorge and waterfall. I questioned why it had taken me four decades to return down this incredible valley. I knew I needed to turn off at some point and head off up the fell to Stake Pass. I took my OS map out to check how far I needed to walk to the junction. Bugger...I'd brought the wrong map. No problem, I'd downloaded the map on to my phone. I started up my phone. Bugger...I couldn't get any reception. It looked like I'd be relying on my four decades old memories for my navigation today.

Sticks Pass

To be honest, I wasn't too worried. I remembered that the track down from Sakes Pass was quite good and unmissable. My memory served me well; it is a well made track that zig-zags upwards alongside the stunning waterfall of Stake Beck. On my ascent, I occasionally turned around to get a stunning view down the Langstrath valley. The track eventually flattened out and the edge of High Raise came into view, over to my left. I continued along the track and eventually came to Stake Pass Tarn, a tick on my Lakeland Tarns Venture. I remembered that the OS map showed a footpath going from here directly up to High Raise. I've tried to follow it a few times and found it an unsatisfactory and boggy affair. After the recent rain, I decided that I'd opt for a drier, but longer route around the head of the valley. I started using the good track over Martcrag Moor and I went off piste to visit its tarns (more ticks). Back on the track again, I was soon off it again, making my own way up the fell to Thurnacar Knott. A strong wind was blowing across the fell and it took a while before I could find a suitably sheltered place on its rocky summit to have my lunch.

High Raise

It's a bleak old path from Thurnacar Knott to High Raise. The rocky crag of Sergeant Man was visible over to my right, but apart from that there wasn't much to attract my attention. Given the time of day I thought there might be other walkers hunkered down in the stone shelter at the summit of High Raise, but it was all deserted. I walked to the edge and got a bird's eye view down to Stakes Pass Tarn. I was surprised how tiny it looked. Some hail started battering me with the wind and so I made a quick descent over White Stones, down to Greenup Edge. By the time I got down to the pass, the hail storm had passed and was on its way to Keswick. The Coast To Coast path would now take me back to Rosthwaite, and I started making way along it. After 10 minutes I was at the spectacular vantage point of Lining Crag with a dramatic view down into the Greenup Gill valley. I lingered for a while, savouring the view, since I wasn't looking forward much to the next bit of the walk.

Greenup Gill

'It's not a path to rush, is it?' I'd posed the question to a woman who was climbing up the steep, slippery track alongside Lining Crag. It was more of a waterfall than a path and I was having difficulty getting down it. There was then an uncomfortable few seconds when I had to repeat the question a couple of times. The woman had a foreign accent and was obviously struggling to understand mine. 'I'm trying to keep my heart rate down to below 120 beats per minute' she eventually offered. I wasn't sure how to interpret that. Had she some sort of medical condition? Was she on some sort of fitness regime? In the end, I didn't respond and I continued my struggle downwards.

I was grateful to get to the bottom of the crag and the path became much easier. I made good progress down the valley. I crossed multiple waterfalls that tumbled down the hillside and across the path. Apparently, there is another plaque further down the valley in memory of Gordon Hallworth. I didn't see it, but it can be found at NY279125. This is the spot where poor Mr Hallworth drew his last breath. I finally reached the footbridge that I'd crossed this morning; I'd completed a large loop. Further along the path I started seeing more walkers about, but they were all on the other side of Stonethwaite Beck. The sun started to make a reappearance as I approached Rosthwaite. Better late, than never. There were half a dozen cars in the National Trust carpark; the Village Hall carpark must have been full.

It'd been a delightful walk with dramatic and wonderful views. The Langstrath valley is a stunning place. High Raise gave the walk a high and worthy focal point. After the wettest February on record, the waterfalls were the best I've seen in the Lake District.