Wainwrights

Wainright Walk 17 – Castle Crag

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Standing at 290 metres, Castle Crag is the smallest fell in Alfred Wainwright’s pictorial guides.  However, what it lacks in height, it more than makes up for in character.  I’ve walked up Castle Crag a few times, and know how lovely yet interesting it is, so when my Mum decided to join me and Rowan for her first Lakeland hill walk, it seemed like the perfect choice.  And given that the route I’d planned took us to, what Alfred Wainwright described as, the loveliest square mile in Lakeland, we were in for a brilliant day out.

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Wainwright Walk 16 – Bowfell and Rossett Pike

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I love it when someone goes hill walking for the first time and gets the bug.  After walking the Langdale Pikes and the Old Man of Coniston, I was out with Beth again, this time to tackle Bowfell on another hot day.  Nigel also joined us as we set off early from Manchester to arrive at the National Trust car park by the Old Dungeon Ghyll pub (LA22 9JY) by about 10 am.  After toilet stop and a check to ensure plentiful supplies of suntan lotion, we set off towards Stool End (snigger) farm.  Our route would take us along both the valleys we could see, but whilst the tops of Mickleden were clear, clouds shrouded Crinkle Crags at the head of Oxendale.

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Wainwright Walk 15 – Birkhouse Moor and Red Tarn

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You may remember from my first Wainwright walk post, Cold Pike and Pike o’Blisco, we used to get around the Lakes in Old Peg, our brilliant old campervan.  We’ve missed having a van so last year, after much scrolling through eBay, we bought Tormund the Transit.  And our first trip (after the back garden) – the Lake District.  Travelling up on Friday night, we stayed at Sykeside Camping Park and after tea in the pub and a wander down the lane at the back of the site, we settled in for the night.

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Wainwright Walk 13 – Coniston Old Man

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After having such a fab day out in the Langdales, me, Angela and Beth decided another day out in the Lakes was long overdue.  The October weather forecast was pretty changeable, with some strong winds and rain forecast.  We decided that we would go ahead – we’ve got waterproofs!  Given the forecast, we were careful with our choice of walk, opting for Coniston Old Man for a clear route and relatively short day.

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Wainwright Walk 12- The Langdale Pikes

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After listening to me harping on about walking in the Lakes, my friend Beth decided she would like to go hill walking.  As it would be her first walk, we wanted something with not too many miles, but at the same time, managing to satisfy Beth’s motto of “go big or go home”.  The Langdale Pikes with their stunning scenery and little bits of scrambling opportunity were hopefully, going to be the perfect walk.  So, joined by Angela, we set off early one Saturday morning in July.

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Wainwright Walk 10 – Dollywagon Pike to White Side

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Earlier this year, whilst Rowan was off gallivanting with his Anma and Grandpa, Rick and I decided to go for a big walk.  Rick had always fancied climbing Helvellyn, preferably by the edges, but we were taking Rocky and Pebble with us.  A few years back, during a walk by a local canal, they had both fallen in, so Striding Edge was deemed to be just n0t suitable for our giddy furry pair.  Instead, we decided walk the Helvellyn range, south to north for a brilliant high level walk.

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Wainwright Walk 8 – Return to the Kentmere Round

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Around nine months after first walking the Kentmere Round, I found myself back in the South Lakes ready to walk those hills again.  This time, I was with Sarah and her gorgeous rescue staffie, Chester, a.k.a. Chester the Adventure Dog.  On my first wander over the Kentmere Round, Kathryn and I added in High Street (the route of which you can read in more detail here).  Today, we would follow more or less the same paths, except instead of High Street, we would add on Gray Crag instead.

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Wainwright Walk 7 – High Rigg

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After our day out on Cat Bells, we were keen to get back to the Lakes for another walking adventure.  This time, Daddy and the dawgs were coming with us which left us with a dilemma – where to take our reactive Rocky on a bank holiday weekend.  Ideally we needed a fell that was not too high for little legs, and not too far to travel for a day trip.  At 357 metres and just off the A591, High Rigg fit the bill perfectly.

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