Plan A

An advantage of living in the Lakes is that friends are keen to keep in touch, if they like hills.  But the weather, unfortunately, can not been booked to co-operate  in providing those fantastic vistas we all tell them about.

Consequently, driving over Shap to reach Blencathra, the rain lashing against the window and thick mist was making me frantically wonder what we could walk as a plan B.  Then, tantalising, over the hill and along the A66 there was just the hint of blue sky and the rain had stopped.  So plan A survived and we set off up Hall’s Fell to Blencathra.

Inspiration for the route came from this book, and hope of a terrier friendly route.  Having heard so much of the horrors of Sharp Edge I really did not want visitor, dog – or myself, falling off the hill.  Things begin with a deceptively gentle climb up the wooded Gate Gill, with the accompanying calls of the Blencathra Hounds if they are at home. 

The ‘gentle’ imperceptibly merged to ‘acute’ walking up Hall’s Fell ridge.   Not helped by a wrong turn from the ford at the bottom meaning we had to take a sharp left off piste and trudge up such a steep slope I was certain I was about to fall over backwards.  Back on track the ‘dog friendly’ route turned in to a scramble beyond the scope of terrier legs and while Rosie had a to have a push from behind, the human contingent had to resort to quadruped state for the final slate ridge.

Low cloud gave reaching the summit a bit of an anticlimactic feel.  Not even a trig point to lean up against.  But then if I had been able to see down the sides of the ridge I may never have gone up at all.  Lack of view and swirling mist prompted a quick exit from the summit and an unreasonably easy walk down towards Scales Fell and back  to where we parked by Scales Farm.

Shame about the mist, but just means I shall have to go up again on a clear day.

A similar route, starting from Threlkeld and retuning by Dodick Fell here.