Day 3 Borrowdale to Patterdale 17 ¾ Miles

Despite reports on trip advisor of the late breakfast at Yew Tree Farm of 8:45am, we asked for an early breakfast for 7:45am which they provided no problems. After our cereal and toast, along with our packed lunch we bought at Yew Tree we were back on the trail for 8:30am.

The water proofs were on from the start, it was a typical Lake District morning, the kind were the fell tops are shrouded in low cloud, with the backs and gills rushing down in to the valleys below. As we left the Borrowdale valley heading up Greenup edge we met Orange and Green coat again, (now known as Dave and Val from here on in), they were heading to Patterdale also. We also met an Australian bloke who was walking the Coast to Coast on his own; who said he was “surprised how hilly the route was”.

As we climbed Green up edge the becks which crossed the paths were becoming wilder and wider the rain fell, and becoming more difficult to cross, it wasn’t long before Sarah got a wet boot whilst attempting to cross. Fortunately we’d experienced this type of day before and packed some spare socks in the backpack, so after a quick change of socks we were happy again.

Once we got to the top of Greenup edge we were faced with the really steep climb up Lining Crag, which today also had a number of rivers flowing down it!  After the long climb up Lining Crag we were plunged into mist with heavy wind and rain, with zero visibility & poor weather we took a compass bearing and followed this until we could recognise Helm Crag in the distance, with the Lion and the Lamb summit stones standing guard over Grasmere, this gave us an unmistakable landmark to resume confidence in our position. 

After taking shelter behind some crags, and a quick chocolate bar we headed off towards Grasmere Common, we could just make out orange and green coat, sorry...Dave and Val in the distance further confirming we were on track.

Once we dropped down from Grasmere Common we fired up the stove for a cup of coffee and a hot chocolate, along with our packed lunch from Yew Tree Farm, very nice. I’d decided to bring my Jet boil stove instead of a flask, which I was now smugly congratulating myself on as I drank my fresh coffee and Sarah had a hot chocolate.  As we sat having lunch the Australian passed us, he told us he’d been to Grasmere to buy some new boots “ouch £££” as his were full of water, welcome to the Lakes!

The walk up to Grisdale tarn then down towards Patterdale is a further 3  - 4 hours, so we headed off after our lunch for about 14:15, we climbed up great tongue, choosing to take the north path rather than the more obvious and walked south path, again this turned out to be a good option as whilst steep, height seems to be more quickly gained. We were soon looking down on other walkers, and looking back towards Helm Crag the views were simply stunning, Helm Crag had a spot light of sun shining down through the clouds which made for fantastic scenery, with views stretching as far as the Langdale Pikes & the Conniston Fells, even on a cloudy day like today stopped us in our tracks to stare.  

Once at Grisdale tarn we had the final (but always long) walk down the valley towards Patterdale, it rained on and off as we trudged the final few miles, and I had some Kendal mint cake to give me a needed boost!

We arrive in Patterdale wet, windswept and dishevelled at 17:30, we were booked to stay at the White Lion Inn and so walked straight into the bar area, avoiding the temptation of a pint we headed to get changed and showered, as well as what now seemed the routine of placing our gear on various radiators to dry out. 

We soon headed down for dinner, I had a huge burger, topped with bacon and cheese along with chips, whilst Sarah enjoyed more chicken!, and a side of onion rings for good measure. After a couple of beers, and a quick call from my dad we headed up to bed for 9:30pm, well and truly knackered!

We watched telly and had a quick brew, having no trouble at all falling asleep instantly, this was despite the general pub noise of laughter and glasses clinking echoing up from the bar below.

And that was day 3, we’d conquered one of Coast to Coasts toughest days!

Day 2 Ennerdale Bridge to Borrowdale 14 ½ Miles:

I woke early and sat reading my Wainwright Coast to Coast book about today’s section, before waking Sarah with a brew at 6:30am. We had a lovely breakfast at Low Cock Farm of porridge and brown toast whilst chatting to other walkers (Derrick and his wife) and wondering how the two guys who become lost on Dent were going to tackle today’s walk. They actually seemed in high spirits after their disastrous first day, seemingly determined to press on with limited (very limited) map reading skills, poor weather forecast and no accommodation booked in Borrowdale!!, we never saw them again incidentally.......

We headed off at 8:15 after an optimistic debate as to whether we would need water proofs or not today. The walk along Ennerdale water is a fine one, and regardless of the weather is blessed with dramatic views, often referred to as the “gateway to the Lakes” and living up to its name today, it’s also one filled with excitement of the views and places that await us over the next few days.

We walked along the wild Ennerdale valley track towards the Black sail Hut, after failing to get a cup of tea at Gillerthwaite Youth Hostel due to it being closed we were happy to arrive at the remotely located Black Sail Hut YHA, finding it open to passing walkers we made ourselves a brew and had lunch in the common room.

After leaving Black Sail Hut we climbed the very steep loft beck towards Honister, the bottom of my feet were starting to ache somewhat, which caused me some concern so early in the Coast to Coast, however, after a quick inspection which revealed “nothing”, I put it down to being over concerned & pressed on.

Once at the top of the Loft Beck we had a last look back towards Ennerdale Water, we then had fantastic views towards Buttermere, with Red Pike and Haystacks clearly visible. We could also see rain moving towards us from Buttermere and so finally gave in and put the water proofs on, as the rain caught us up I also put my gloves on as the temperature really dropped as the winds picked up.

Even in weather like today, the walk from Loft Beck to Honister is a great high level walk. As we arrived at the remains of Drum House & looked back we were now beginning to see the same coats and figures in the distance we’d seen before “Orange & Green coat” who would turn out to be Dave & Vale were following behind, along with two chaps wearing shorts and t-shirts and seeming a little out of place also followed, all fellow Coast to Coasters it would seem!

We arrived at Honister Slate mine in the rain and took shelter inside over a cup of tea, soon joined by the two guys in shorts who had now donned ponchos as the conditions worsened. Over a brew we discussed the walk route and gave them some advice regarding map reading, in particular tomorrow’s route which can be tricky. Both nice blokes but seemed a little under prepared & overwhelmed by the walk, how remote it was, cold, wet, difficult to navigate and lack of phone signal, yep, welcome to Northern England lads.......but you forgot to mention beautiful landscape and stunning views.

We arrived at the lovely Yew Tree Farm our bed for the night at 4:45pm, a good time we both agreed given the weather and terrain. After showering, changing, washing some clothing and stuffing the boots with paper to dry them again we heading off to the Scafell Hotel bar for something to eat. After chicken burger and chips for Sarah and steak pudding and chips for me, along with what seemed like the nicest three pints of beer I had ever had we headed back to get an early night.

We we’re in bed for 9:30pm, a big day tomorrow, and with the forecast for rain we needed to rest up. And day 2 was over, we fell asleep amongst drying socks on the radiators thinking of tomorrow’s fine but tough walk to Patterdale whilst hoping for good weather.

Day 1 St Bees to Ennerdale Bridge 14 ¼ Miles:

My dad had travelled up to St Bees with us to see us off and take my car back home, so a pleasant evening was had the night before, we had a walk on the beach and selected a stone each in order to keep with the coast to coast tradition of taking a stone from the Irish sea and throwing it in to the North Sea, before heading for a nice meal and a few drinks whilst excitedly chatting about what to expect on our third coast to coast.

After an early breakfast at 7am we said our goodbyes to my dad and set off to the beach to dip our boots in the Irish Sea before officially starting the walk. After a couple of pictures we hit the trail about 7:45 am, the weather was good to begin with overcast conditions, however the sky began to darken as the morning went on. After a fine cliff top walk along St Bee’s head we headed inland and east bound towards Cleator. We stopped at a nice bakery for a Cornish pasty, unfortunately they had no indoor seating area as the heavens opened, still, we sat outside and ate our dinner (very nice it was too!).

As we pressed on towards Dent Hill the weather began to worsen with heavy wind and rain, the top of Dent which had been a visible target for us throughout the morning was now soaked in a low cloud and looking increasingly less pleasant to climb. With the weather in mind we decided to take an alternative route around Dent through the Flat Fell valley to the North, which turned out to be a really nice alternative and kept us away from the worst of the weather.

We arrived at Low Cock Farm in Ennerdale just before 2pm, welcomed by a roaring wood burner, tea and cake! We were also the first walkers to arrive and so could pick our room, selecting the room with the best heating and drying options of course.

After getting showered and changed we stuffed the boots with newspaper placing them next to the wood burner to dry. Other walkers began to arrive throughout the afternoon and evening with the last arriving at 8:30pm having being rescued by the farmer after becoming disoriented and lost on Dent Hill in the poor weather, further confirmation we’d made the correct decision in altering our route earlier that day.

Given the poor weather we decided against going to the pub and ordered a Chinese takeaway for dinner and chatted to other walkers Derrick and his wife about the route and first day’s events. First day complete and feeling pleased with our first days efforts & navigation as we headed to bed, tomorrow we hit the climbs of the Lake District and a good night’s sleep was a must!

Sponcer a friend

Hi everyone just wanted to share this page with you as a friend we made on our 3rd coast to coast is doing it to reaise some cash for some great charities and its really worth reading his story so please spare a few minuites to have a look thanks

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-web/fundraiser/showFundraiserPage.action?userUrl=CharlesChallenges&pageUrl=2

Nearly there

Only 5 more sleeps to go till we set off for St Bees, then on Wednesday we start our 12 day walk to robin hoods bay, can't wait 

6 weeks to go

In 6 weeks time we will have finished our 2nd days walk. Getting excited now 

weekend in the lakes

sat chilling out in the bower house in Eskdale, looking at a church in the morning for the wedding, then walking up harter fell before heading over to borrowdale youth hostel.

Walk of the Welsh Glyders 11 March 2014.

We we’re up early and away from home for just before 7am, after a short coffee stop we arrived at Ogwen Cottage just after 9am to fantastic weather and scenery to match. The visitors centre and YHA looks to have had a recent facelift with excellent facilities, WC, food and indoor interactive information centre, great for kids and well worth visit, with reasonable parking cost too, just £2 for 4 hours or £4 all day, we went for £4 as we expected the Glyder to live up to Trail magazines reputation as a long, but rewarding climb.  

We headed off up the good path towards Llyn Idwal (“Llyn” translates as tarn I suspect), the path took us in to a huge glacial bowl with the tarn in the middle towards a steep scramble up devils kitchen, it took us around an hour to negotiate the steep path and scramble to Llyn Clyd. After a quick brew we continued to the summit of Glyder Fawr 1001 meters high,  after a tough climb we reached the summit and we’re rewarded by breath taking views over towards the famous (but far too busy) Mount Snowdon and it’s smaller but much tougher neighbour the notorious Crib Goch. It really felt like an alpine experience looking across Wales highest mountains still clinging on to large sections of winter snow.

View of Grib Goch from Glyder Fawr

After stopping for lunch and to take in the views we continued across the fairly straight forward Dwyn Glyder towards Glyder Fach 994 meters, the summit is quite a technical climb to achieve, so Sarah waited at a ledge and I scrambled the final few meters to take a couple of pictures. After managing to climb off the shattered summit rocks we headed down south east to pick up the path towards Llyn Bochlwyd, whilst this is marked as a path on the OS map it was nothing more than a shattered scree slope and a very steep one at that, after much sliding, tripping and falling we eventually made it to the valley path, and after a well earned flap jack and brew we continued back to Ogwen Cottage via Llyn Bochlwyd. As we headed back to the car fighter jets roared through the valley on training exercise as the sun began to set. We got back to the car for just after 5pm to reflect on this  fantastic walk, made perfect by the weather conditions, and a real test of the legs and shoulders carrying the rucksack ahead of Coast to Coast 2014!

Practice walk

Tomorrow morning we are Wales to walk a mountain in the Snodonia national park called Glyder Fawr it is the 5th highest mountain in Wales standing at 1001m (3,284ft) Looking forward to some amazing views and giving you all an update and showing you some pictures

There are a number of important closures and variations to the Coast to Coast route in 2014.

If you are planning on walking the coast to coast in 2014 there are some closures and variations on route due to road works ect, check out the wainwright society website for full details and make sure to make a note of these on your maps so you have no surprises on route

http://www.wainwright.org.uk/coasttocoast.html

Catch Up

Hi everyone sorry not updated in a while been really busy the last two months but got lots of photos to upload and will try to update more regular as our 3rd coast to coast gets closer

Updates

Hi everyone just to let you know i will be updating in the next few days about the rest of our holiday in the lakes and our wild camp last week :)

Old Man Coniston via Swirl How & Savin Hill

Today we started our walk at Coniston with Sean navigating we headed towards Wetherlam through Bolder Valley across the Prison Band to the summit of Swirl How. From there we made our way over to the summit of Savin Hill towards Old Man Coniston, we then dropped back down to Coniston village via the disused quarries, We had blue skies and clouds all day so it was really humid and not a bit of wind even on the summits, we were very happy to get back to Conister for ice cream and beer

Me at the top of Old Man Coniston

Lakeland holiday :)

Set off for our week in the lakes in the morning, starting our holiday with a walk up old man conister, will update with photos tomorrow evening

Mam Tor

On Saturday 22/6/13 we did a smaller walk than planned as i wasn't very well, but still a great walk. We walked Mam Tor 517 m (1,696 ft) hill near Castleton in the High Peak of Derbyshire. The Name Mam Tor means Mother Hill, it was named this because of landslips on its eastern face that have created many mini hills beneath it. We had glorious weather with views of Edale Valley, Winnats Pass, Rushup Edge, Losehill Pike, Lords Seat & Jacobs Ladder.

Sean @ the top of Mam Tor with a view of Lords Seat behind him

 

update for our week in the lakes

we have decided to walk Haystacks while we are on our week away in the lakes, although it is not the biggest at only 597 m, 1,958 ft it was one of Alfred Wainwright's favorites and the place he wanted his ashes scattered, it is a must that we walk it :)

330 days

Only 330 days till we set off on our 3rd coast to coast :)

A week in the lake district

Setting off to the Lakes for a week on the 8th of July to do some mountain walking, one of the fells we will be walking is Old Man Coniston, which lies to the west of the village of Coniston and is 2,634 feet (803 m) high another we will be walking is Skiddaw which lies just north of the town of Keswick With a summit at 931 m (3,054 ft) above sea level it is the fourth highest mountain in England. Neither me or Sean have walked these yet so really excited. We will be walking more but not certain which yet so will keep you informed.

This Saturdays circular walk

Again we will be doing a circular walk in the peak district this Saturday the walk i have chosen is Monsal Head, Cressbrook Dale & Foolow.We start the walk at Monsal Head car park-Viaduct and Monsal Trail - Cressbrook Dale -Wardlow Mires -Stanley House - Grindlow - Longstone Moor - Little Longstone back to Monsal Head. The walk is 9.5 miles and should take about 4.5 hours. The start is a famous view point overlooking the spectacular Monsal Head & viaduct along the way we walk through woodland, wide grassy sections in the upper part of the dale, through pretty villages, the open moorland of Longstone Moore where we will see views of Kinder behind and the rolling hills of the white peak ahead. Cant wait but if the weather is bad i may leave Sean to do the Navigation

Sarah's email

Hi everyone, just to let you know if you need to email me its redtink@live.co.uk, it can get a bit confusing on here :)

Practice walk plans

Got a new circular walk book yesterday for the Yorkshire dales and found a perfect practise walk for C2C 10.5 miles (17km) starting in Gunnerside going through Muker & Keld and past the desolate ruins of Crackpot Hall, this walk includes part of the Pennine Way and more important part of the C2C This walk has a little bit of everything from field walking, river walking, high level walking, waterfalls, views of all the dales, woodland, Mining remains, strenuous climbs, Moorland and Valley walking, i cant think of anything more you could want for a days walking 

Bakewell circular walk

Had an amazing walk today, was very pleased that i did the navigating for the first time and didn't get us lost, might have to finally learn how to read a map! As we left the car park on moor lane (a very narrow very quiet road) we made our way over to the first field of the day, walking past a little ice cream vendor i was very tempted but was a bit early in the walk, but it looked really nice. Heading through the first field looking over a never ending view of fields i started to panic as the only thing i could see was fields of cows, I'm not good with cows, but as i saw the calf's my heart melted and felt more comfortable.

We soon approached Low Moor Wood and back onto fields all along we had amazing views above the dales.We then hit the steep lime stone steps down into Cale Dale (was glad it wasn't wet, would have been a bit tricky if it had been) we walked back up the steep and rocky path on the other side which took us below the limestone cliffs where again the views were amazing, under the cliffs you feel very small.

Limestone Cliffs

We then head on through some farms passing a cave that may have been used for cooling cheese (it now has a statue of the baby Jesus, Mary & Joseph inside) we then pass medieval piggeries, in this little area there is a barn with a freezer that has ice cream in and an honesty box, which is a very welcome little surprise on a hot day like today. we then enter The National trust fern dale area and head towards Monyash, where there is a lovely little cafe Sean had a chip muffin and coffee and i had a bowl of what seemed like a never ending chips and a tea, i was very pleased to see a public toilet there as well as about 10 Min's down the route. As we carry on with the walk we were back on the fields as we head for Lathkill Dale we start off this part of the walk on a wide grass path, then becoming a narrow rocky path with steep limestone cliffs, we passed a large cavern from which the river Lathkill flows after periods of heavy rain, the path gets wider from here and moor wooded, walking by the river for 3 miles was very peaceful and beautiful. we walked past an interesting building (part of anyway) called Bateman's house a lead mine,home to James Bateman, the agent for Lathkill Mines in the 1840s. Its most unusual feature is that it is built directly over a deep lead mineshaft. the building has been made safe and will not suffer further deterioration and visitors can safely explore it.

Bateman's House

At the end of the river we start to follow a steep track up towards Meadow Place Grange and carry on through the fields back towards the car park, unfortunately the ice cream vendor was no longer near the car park, but i know that next time i should either get one at the start or set off earlier :)