The weekend did not start promisingly, with Storm Lilian threatening to do her worst. Dave Wilson and I arrived just after 9pm on Friday, to find Nigel and Susan, Cathy and Janette already there. James came by train. Mags, Judith and Dave Bibby arrived not long after. The bunkhouse supposedly sleeps 16, but it had been decided to limit the weekend to 10, as you couldn’t fit more than 10 round the table for meals. One of the toilets featured some interesting wallpaper made up of adverts from hiking magazines from the 1960’s. Down jackets were £19 19s, and boots were £16 6s 6d. Some things don’t change though – the Wasdale Head Hotel was looking for live-in staff!
Both walks on Saturday started from Old Dungeon Ghyll. James led a 17km walk via Oxendale, Crinkle Crags, Bow Fell, Esk Hause, Angle Tarn and Rossett Gill, while Cathy’s walk went via Stickle Tarn, Harrison Stickle, Pike of Stickle, Langdale Combe and Rossett Gill, back via the Cumbria Way. The walk was supposed to be 13km, but we think it ended up more like 17km – not Cathy’s fault, as OS mapping does seem to consistently underestimate distance! Dave Bibby did his own walk, round Lingmoor Fell and what looked like a lengthy pause in the Old Dungeon Ghyll! Back at the hut, we had an excellent chocolate and beetroot cake, supplied courtesy of Natalia, before a three course meal including starter, spag bol. and chocolate torte. I was glad of walking the extra distance to justify the calories.
On Sunday the weather forecast was 70% chance of heavy rain from 11am onwards, with 10% chance of a cloud free summit not to mention high winds, and sadly it lived up to this! Dave Wilson and I both changed our walks – Dave, James, Janette, Dave Bibby and Cathy did a walk from Grasmere. I chickened out completely as my boots were suffering terminal boot decay (!) and the rest of us opted instead for walking to Chesters by the River Cafe, where we met up with Jen and Dan Fisher (former Ibex members) and their twin daughters, and had an enjoyable lunch while waiting for the rain to subside. We made a short detour on the way back to visit the Cathedral Cave (Cathedral Quarry), which dates to the sixteenth century and where green slate was mined until the 1950’s. At the hut, the drying room was working overtime to accommodate all our wet gear. Tea and cookies, stuffed peppers, lentil and chorizo stew and orange polenta cake helped to restore our spirits. The whisky connoisseurs also restored their spirits with post prandial drinks. A discussion about common sayings followed, and Dave Bibby revealed his aversion to the saying “Keep your eyes peeled!” (it’s horrible when you think about it, peeling your eyes!). I hadn’t ever thought about it, but he’s right!
On Monday morning, six of us tackled Holme Fell. It was very squidgy underfoot, but not as wet as Sunday and we did get a view from the summit. On the way we passed some lads who had been camping out. I didn’t envy them, I have to say!
Many thanks to Nigel and Susan for organising an excellent weekend, despite the weather!
Comments