Rambling Pete

Date: 24-Nov-2012

Map: Landranger 89

Weather: Cold with winter sunshine, clouding over later

 

From Honister slate mine, Bell Crags, Honister Crag (Black Star), Fleetwith Pike, Dub Quarry, Green Crag, Haystacks, past Seavy Knott, C2C path beneath Grey Knotts, Tramway, Honister : 7 miles with 2300ft of ascent

Another Lakeland summit revisited to get clear views from the top. Last time I was here I was plagued with low cloud just obscuring the tops which was frustrating to say the least. This time I knew it would be clear as the forecast couldn’t really be wrong 12 hrs in advance – could it? I hadn’t set out this early for a long time and gave myself an extra 15 minutes driving time so I wouldn’t arrive too late at Honister Slate Mine. Clear skies accompanied us up towards the lakes but there were still some fluffy stuff floating around the southern fells. The temperature gauge hovered around the freezing mark and I don’t think it climbed much throughout the day. Imagine my surprise when we arrived before Stuart, he who is usually flashing his lights at Lewis Hamilton to move over. The daily charge for the car park is 5 pound, but there wasn’t anyone willing to give us a ticket at such an early hour as the mine works slowly woke. But we promised to pay as you go, and off we set up the quarry road, a steady incline to start the day. I was walking with Stefan and Stuart today and it was the first time I’d seen Stuart since meeting up on the Skye Walk in May this year. Between the three of us we did an awful lot of chatting, and stood taking in the views from the summits – it was a slow walk considering it was only 7 miles. We had the best of the weather in the morning with the sun rising behind us as we walked up the Honister Slate mine track. The Helvellyn range had a snow covered top and mist clinging to its lower slopes, but despite looking clear it was a little bit cloudy and not a great day for photographs – which means another visit up here to fit in Brandreth and Grey Knotts. We missed those out today as the weather closed in on the tops and we all wanted a nice hot brew back at the slate mine café. The track took us up to the mine entrance, where we veered left up the hillside and decided to avoid following the edge over to Black Star as it looked a little slick with icy patches. There’s an interesting looking path following the edge, with big views down to the pass below – it’s really a long way down, but the views across the valley to Dale Head, Hindscarth et al are worth it. The via ferrata is down there somewhere as well, but I’ve always resisted the temptation of getting too close to the edge. We wobbled around a bit passing by a meteorological station, and the sun rose above the Borrowdale Fells – weak and watery. All traces of water up here were frozen solid, which made the walk a bit tricky now and again, but it also made the boggy bits easier to walk on. Once we were up on Black Star the views to the north open up and it’s always a delight to gaze down over Buttermere and beyond, with the magnificent High Stile ridge up to the left and the Newlands Fells up to the right. Fleetwith Pike is but a short haul from here and up by the summit I was happy to see clear views down the valley and up into Scotland beyond the Solway Firth. We drank in the scenery and fed our faces a bit, always a good spot to dawdle along, and gawp we did - over to Haystacks, and the High Stile ridge with the bulk of Pillar beyond. I had tried to walk the Shamrock Traverse over to Pillar a few months ago, but that was another misty traverse and I ended up scrambling a little which I know I shouldn’t have done. I gulped a bit when I realized my route up that day, and I won’t be doing that again. We turned from the summit and headed down across the slopes towards Dub Quarry, following the odd sheep trod, but mostly on well-trodden paths. You take your pick and then just head off down. Evidence of all the slate mining that used to take place on these slopes lies all around, and a large slate spoil and small tramway marks the site of Dubs Hut. Intriguingly it has a sign saying bookings taken at Honister Slate Mine – I think they’d have to pay me to stay here - but it does have splendid views down over Buttermere, Haystacks, High Stile and Pillar. It also has the beck close by and this demanded some attention to cross dry shod, walking poles as stabilisers worked well. A steady climb up past Little Round How towards Green Crag followed, with Steph and self, opting out of the Dewey bagging of Green Crag – we sat down for some more eats and left Stuart to it. We sat and looked over Blackbeck Tarn and soon enough Stuart joined us once more – so we ate even more stuff, and yapped a bit more. No wonder we were slow today, but there wasn’t a need for speed, and I’m not built for it anymore. I quite like the path up to Haystacks from Honister, a little bit of a roller coaster but nothing too strenuous to cope with. Next stop along the way was Innominate Tarn which was almost glass like today, but had a few wind ripples on its surface. Pillar across the valley was reflected on the surface as was a milky sun obscured by misty cloud, but it produced a few good shots. It was very peaceful here and no wonder AW chose it as his favourite spot, albeit with a lot less traffic than it gets nowadays. A short uphill section followed to the summit of Haystacks where there is an unnamed tarn and magnificent views down Ennerdale and Buttermere, with High Crag prominent to the north. Behind us Great Gable and the valley below dominate the views – very atmospheric. We paused here again and had a good chat about the way ahead, with Stuart wanting to bag more Dewey / Birkett type tops – I must admit to be glad I’m free of anymore tick lists, although they do take you to places you wouldn’t normally bother with. After leaving the summit we headed south on a feint path that would lead us along a fenceline towards Stuarts next target of Seavy Knott – but we, should I say he missed it – a good excuse to come back up here. We walked down to Loft Beck, part of the Coast to Coast route that I haven’t yet done – I’m saving it up for one day in the future – maybe to walk with Grandchildren – I think I would enjoy that. Crossing over the beck we walked up towards a cairn which marked the turning point for the old tramway back to Honister. We’d had the best of the weather now and as the cloud rolled over Brandreth we decided against walking up to the top as we wouldn’t see anything form up there anyway. It was easy walking back to the slate mine on a wide path and steadily downhill. We stopped to gawp over to the Fox Fold Levels on the side of Dale Head across the valley and pondered if that could be a good route – i.e. catch the bus out from Keswick and walk back over the tops – a clear day would make for great views over there. Back at the car park we noted a sign that said parking was free if we visited the café, so we did – and drank some lovely hot tea. A cracking walk with good company and a place I could return to in many years to come – health permitting of course.

Where now:                                                Home        :        Day Walks Menu        :       Lake District Menu