Memories from two walking trips in the winter of 2008-09
A couple of visits to the Lakes were made, Sean and Jon in Dec 08 and
a larger 'team' descended on the Britannia flat in Feb 09.
DEC 2008 - Sean, Jon and Geraint
At last! - good old fashioned winter weather, the tops were covered in snow
and the visibility was great. We had planned a three night stay in Keswick
with Geraint staying over on the Saturday night.
The plan for Saturday was to tackle Green Gable and Great Gable from
Seathwaite - via Gillercomb. The weather was fantastic so Jon was hoping to
give his newly purchased crampons a good seeing to. He was also looking
forward to using Terry's ice axe - thanks Tez!
Jon ascends Sourmilk gill on the way to Gillercomb. He's dying to use
his crampons.
The ascent of Sourmilk gill is always a nice start to the morning as it
provides no time for a 'walk in' which results in a steep 800ft climb. Just
what you want after a few beers and a biggish breakfast.
It was during the ascent of the gill that Geraint decided to tell us that
he'd lost two stone in order to reach maximum physical fitness for an alpine
climbing course. He was moving at a noticeably quicker pace than me and Jon
and at one point was almost running. To be fair he hadn't had a gallon of
ale the night before - that's our excuse anyway.
Jon and Geraint on the summit of Green Gable. Geraint had been waiting
for us for just over two hours hence the look of annoyance.
Jon wanted to use his crampons. This was evident throughout the morning as
every ten minutes we heard 'should we be using our crampons here?'. Geraint
informed Jon that the snow was too deep for crampons and that they would be
nothing more than a pain in the arse. Jon chuntered and moved on.
The view over to Gable and down into Ennerdale was superb. Jon however was
slightly concerned about the ascent of Great Gable as he'd not walked in
mountainous terrain in snow before and the initial climb from Windy Gap
looked rather steep. We told him to stop being a big poof and get on with
it.
Great Gable, Kirk Fell and Pillar from the summit of Green Gable.
We descended to Windy Gap and began the initially steep ascent of Gable. Jon
was dying to use his crampons and was convinced it was the right thing to do
when another walker, who was descending the steep slope, asked if we were
carrying crampons as it was, as he called it, 'a bit dodgy'. The look on
Geraint's face was a picture - he couldn't decide whether to call the guy a
'condescending twat', hit him with a gloved fist or bite his lip and carry
on. He decided that the latter was the best option but decided to use a few
expletives as he moved away.
Jon asked if he could use his crampons. Geraint said no.
To be fair the use of crampons would have made the lower slopes a bit easier
to manage but the fun of seeing Jon wasting £80 was well worth the odd
slippy moment.
The view westwards from the summit of Great Gable looking over Wast
Water.
The summit was reached and lunch taken. We decided to descend directly to
Styhead Tarn and did so with little fuss - and no crampons!
The descent to Seathwaite slowed somewhat as the snow turned to ice but we
eventually reached the car and headed back to Keswick where curry and beer
was waiting.
An excellent day was had by all. Where to tomorrow?
The weather on the Sunday wasn't as clear and the previous day but was still
great for walking. It was however noticeably colder so we decided to have a
smaller walk over High Spy and Maiden Moor. Geraint left us and headed back
to St Bees so it was just me and Jon.
We decided to park in Newlands and walk along the Castlenook Mine road
before ascending to Dalehead Tarn. As we gained height the ice on the path
became more problematic and Jon wondered whether or not he should use his
crampons.
It was decided that we should soldier on but Jon, probably in an attempt to
highlight the fact that crampons were a valid option, took his time over the
ice.
Oooh it's icy - can I put my crampons on?
We braved the snow and ice and eventually reached Dalehead Tarn.
The temperature dropped significantly on the gradual climb to High Spy and
Jon asked if wearing crampons would make him any warmer.
Looking back over to Dale Head from just below the summit of High Spy.
We continued over Maiden Moor and contemplated going up to Cat Bells but it
was decided that a descent down Yewthwaite Gill into Newlands was the better
option so down we went.
We returned to Keswick where more food and beer was enjoyed. Jon hadn't used
his crampons and wondered whether he should take them back - he decided that
maybe one day they would be useful so he packed them into his rucsac.
The weekend's walking was over - would Jon ever get the chance to use his
new foot toys?
FEB 2009 - Sean, Alison, Dave S, Macca, Ratboy, Mike
and Jon
The Britannia flat was ours for the week or in Macca's case, a couple
of nights. For some reason Macca had decided, at late notice, that he
wouldn't be staying the week and refused to tell us why. If you know why
Macca decided to come home early please email me.
As is now customary we decided to split into two teams for the first walk.
Team 1 would contain me, Jon, Ratboy and Mike whilst Team 2 comprised of
Alison, Macca and Dave. Team 1 were to head to Seathwaite and tackle Allen
Crags and Glaramara with Team 2 aiming for the summit of Bleaberry Fell.
The weather was cloudy with the tops covered in snow.
I'd forgotten to bring my gaiters which was annoying and Jon had forgotten
his camera.
Team 1 ascended via Grains Gill which, considering the icy conditions, was
surprisingly good underfoot. That was until Mike and Jon decided that
crampons were required so a short fifteen minute 'break' was enjoyed whilst
they donned their virgin spikes. Mike had purchased a pair of crampons the
day before so, like Jon, was itching to wear them.
Ratboy fitted his crampons in around two minutes and joined me higher up the
gill. I decided to leave the crampons off as the going was fine.
Looking down Grains Gill. Mike and Jon can be seen in the middle
distance pissing about with their crampons. Another group of walkers had
decided to don their crampons based on the fact that Mike and Jon were
wearing theirs.
Forty minutes later, using my new super camera zoom, I was able to take
this shot of Mike and Jon. This was taken from the same position as the
previous shot.
After what seemed like an age Mike and Jon finally caught up with me and
Ratboy. They were both wearing crampons and big cheesey grins. For Jon it
was a dream that had finally come true.
We reached Ruddy Gill and continued up to Esk Hause. Ratboy took his
crampons off as the route became rockier whilst Mike and Jon were told to
keep theirs on as any attempt to take them off\on again would increase the
risk of us dying on the mountain overnight.
As we reached Esk Hause the situation changed - for the worse! Ice was
becoming the norm but luckily for me, who still refused to wear crampons,
there was a couple of inches of give which was more than adequate for
keeping up a reasonable pace. The reasonable pace horizontally was quickly
replaced by a more than reasonable pace vertically as the ice suddenly
turned to glass. I fell at an awkward angle and bent my knee sideways in an
attempt to stay upright - it failed to have the desired effect so down I
went.
It was finally time to me to don the crampons except their was a minor
problem - they didn't fit my new boots. Various attempts were made to
shoehorn the crampons on but they wouldn't fit due to my new boots being too
wide. I decided to march on without them in the hope that the slopes of
Allen Crags would see a return to snow and the end of the ice - it wasn't to
be.
Without crampons, any form of movement was nigh on impossible - the ice was
simply too thick and no grip was available, even with the assistance of an
ice axe. My C3PO-type movements were captured on video for all to see -
VIDEO1.
Emergency crampon fitting session at Esk Hause. I'd also managed to cut
my hand on the ice when falling.
A couple of attempts to fit the crampons failed so I resorted to sliding
down the ice on my backside which, at times, was rather uncomfortable. This
too was captured on video -
VIDEO2.
After 'arsing' about for a few hundred yards I decided that enough was
enough. The terrain wasn't improving and I was now traversing steeper slopes
and running the risk of crashing into rocks. Also, the raucous laughter from
my team mates was threatening to cause an avalanche so one final attempt to
fit the 'bastard' crampons was made. Shortly after leaving the summit of
Allen Crags I eventually managed to fit the crampons with a reasonably
amount of stability even though they were at an awkward angle.
We could now finally move at a normal pace. As we approached the summit of
Glaramara the weather began to close in and low cloud and snow was now the
order of the day.
The descent from Glaramara towards Hind Gill would have been nigh on
impossible without crampons. The ice was as smooth as ever and at such an
angle that any fall would have resulted in the need for an ice axe arrest.
This was no place for 'bumming'. As we descended another group of walkers
were struggling on the slopes to the extent that the single member that was
wearing crampons was forced to cut holes in the ice for the others. Their
progress was painfully slow and with a few hundred yards of ice to negotiate
it looked like being a long afternoon. If I hadn't have been able to fit my
crampons I honestly believe that my team members would have killed me and
buried my body rather than work tirelessly to get me down safely.
Finally, with crampons, our heroes could descend the slopes of Glaramara
in safety. The sunlit ice is clearly visible.
The descent by the side of Hind Gill was steep but luckily the ice quickly
turned into snow which enabled us to move quicker apart from Mike who
descended slowly yet carefully. Well, it was careful until he lost his
footing and careered face first down the hill - a lucky escape.
Ratboy was sent ahead to check for crevasses and before long was way ahead
of the rest of the team as we waited for Mike. We all eventually reached the
path close to Seathwaite and laughed heartily about the day's comical
exploits.
Meanwhile, Team 2 had aborted their attempt to reach the top of Bleaberry
Fell due to the icy conditions and the fact that neither Al or Dave S were
carrying crampons or axes. Macca had only walked so far before turning back
to Keswick.
Dave on the ascent of Bleaberry Fell shortly before the summit attempt
was aborted due to it 'being a bit slippy'.
Al had to rescue Dave after a fall had resulted in him getting caught
on a barbed wire fence. It could have been far worse - imagine if Dave had
fallen down the hill, hit a school bus and killed numerous children or
demolished a large farmhouse!
The following day (Monday) saw Ratboy and Macca returning home, Al, Dave,
Mike and Jon taking in a quick 6 miler around Latrigg and me searching the
Lakes for a new pair of crampons.
Monday: Dave, Jon and Mike check the route. Jon asks 'is that the Ben?'.
Tuesday arrived and the weather was glorious. Al and Dave decided to
walk around Whinlatter and take in Lords Seat and Barf whereas Mike, Jon and
myself took on the Coledale Round.
The Coledale Round team parked at Braithwaite and marched towards Stair
where the ascent of Causey Pike would begin. Mike had been warned about the
small rocky climb that defended the summit of Causey Pike so we hoped that
it would be free of snow and ice.
Looking up to the summit of Causey Pike. Would the rocky knoll be
ice-free?
Fortunately the scramble to the top was both a trouble and ice free affair
thanks to the warm morning sun. We reached the ridge and admired the view
ahead of us.
Jon laughs as Mike has palpitations on the summit of Causey Pike. Scar
Crag, Sail and Crag Hill can be seen in the background.
We continued along the ridge to Crag Hill which only required the use of an
ice axe for a few yards on the ascent of Sail.
Jon poses on the summit of Crag Hill......
...whilst Mike marches across the summit plateau.
We descended to Coledale Hause before climbing over Sand Hill to reach
Hopegill Head. The views to the west were excellent with the perfect
visibility allowing us a clear view of Scotland and the Isle of Man.
Next on the list was the unnamed summit between Hopegill Head and Grisedale
Pike. An icy slope above Hobcarton Crag required the use of crampons as a
fall could have resulted in a bout of deadness. Thanks to my new crampons
the tomfoolery of Sunday was avoided and all went according to plan. I'd
even remembered to bring my gaiters!
Jon and I on the slopes leading to the unnamed summit before Grisedale
Pike.
We eventually reached the summit of Grisedale Pike and only had to negotiate
the loose descent from the summit to Sleet How to end the day. Luckily the
descent wasn't as icy as it could have been so progress was safe but steady.
Mike however wasn't enjoying the descent at all and struggled to cope with
the conditions with the result that the descent from the Pike to near Lanty
Well spring took nearly 1 hour and 20 minutes!.
Looking back over Outerside to the first peak of the day - Causey Pike.
By the time we'd reached the car the light was fading and we were glad to
reach Keswick and the evening meal in the George Hotel - oh, and the beers!
Meanwhile, Al and Dave had enjoyed a cracking day on Lords Seat and Barf
with the same excellent views that we'd enjoyed on the Coledale Round.
Look at the size of that fucker! Skiddaw can also be seen in the
background.
Grisedale Pike from the climb through the Whinlatter forest. What is now
know as 'Mike's ridge' can be seen to the left.
The remaining two days were spent walking around Seatoller, Castle Crag and
Derwent Water - an easy end to what had been an eventful and excellent week.
Alison, Jon and Dave next to Castle Crag. Jon is looking for the route
to the top.
Alison and Dave descend to Seatoller. Glaramara is the peak in the distance.
Let's hope the Britannia flat will be available for use next year and not
turned into a Co-op funeral parlour!
