Causey Pike and Five Other Fells on a Blue Sky Day

Name of walk Causey Pike and Five Other Fells on a Blue Sky Day
Date of walk 2010-08-16
Distance walked (miles) 8
Duration of walk 6 hours 0 minutes
Weather Blue skies and sunshine
Peaks on walk Causey Pike, Scar Crags, Sail, Eel Crag (Crag Hill), Outerside and Barrow
Walked with On own
Parking Stoneycroft roadside

Monday was a dream day for walkers. I arrived at Stoneycroft ready to walk for 8.55am. It was blue skies and sunshine, just as predicted, and not another soul around. Brendan and Tom were still in Ireland so it was another solitary walk. I had planned to do Causey Pike (2035ft), Scar Crags (2205ft), Sail (2530ft), Eel Crag (Crag Hill on Ordnance survey maps) (2749ft), Outerside (1863ft) and Barrow (1494ft). A walk of about 8 miles. But I had at the back of my mind the thought that if the weather stayed clear and my knee was holding out I might just do Grasmoor too…..as I`d done both Grasmoor and Crag Hill on Saturday and seen nowt! But the forecast was for it to cloud over by lunch and to become hazy, so I`ll decide on the top of Crag Hill.

1

Stoneycroft Bridge with Rowling End above it.....my first destination and a steep, scrambly accent. There is an easier way shown by the black-dashed line on the map.....but that`s just for wimps and their grandparents! The starting point for the walk is a small track about 30 yds to the left of the bridge.

2

Causey Pike summit on the right as I wade along the track through the bracken looking for the turn off to Rowling End.

3

There was mist in the valley and all over Derwent Water. My return route back to the car is on the far left, I parked opposite the end of the track. Not daft, me!

4

5

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Mist still over Derwent Water as I climb higher. Cat Bells on the right. Blencathra left.

7

Looking up the valley towards Grisedale Pike.

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Excellent views all around from Rowling End. Ahead is the view to the summit of Causey Pike, with Scar Crags, Sail and Crag Hill beyond.

10

Left to right is Maiden Moor, Dale Head, Hindscarth and Robinson.

11

Looking down on Derwent Water.

12

Across to Ullock Pike, Dodd, Carlside and Skiddaw. The valley mist has almost disappeared.

13

Looking up the valley towards Ard Crags. High Stile and Red Pike in the distance.

14

Shorts are not the best item of clothing for walking along an eight inch wide track throught knee-high heather! A bit scratchy! Just the last bit to do now....a bit of a scramble, but nothing difficult.

15

View down from the summit back along the track to Rowling End. The "wimp" path is on the left.

16

Looking over Outerside to Bassenthwaite Lake.

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Looking along Scar Crags. Coledale Hause on the right.

19

Looking back from Scar Crags summit to Causey Pike.

20

One man and his digger! What a great job! And a great journey to work each day. He was creating some new raised paths across the peat bog section. Having done the whole route down from Sail and up to Scar Crags.

21

New zig zags up Sail. It was much easier to walk up but three times the distance!

22

The view back down from the top of the new Sail path. I`ll be returning this way later to climb Outerside and Barrow, on the left. So far today I`d only met a dog walker on Rowling End who was only going as far as the wimp path; the digger driver and a guy at the Sail Pass coming up from the Ard Crag Valley who was from Preston....that's him only half way up the path, slow but sure, I`d meet him again on my descent down Crag Hill. Everyone else must be having a lie-in!

23

The route up to Crag Hill. Not as easy as the route up in mist from Grasmoor on Saturday. I came upon the trig point without realising we were on the top! The new path up was very good! This one wasn`t, and would be too craggy for a new path.

24

View down the valley to Buttermere and the Red Pike range. It was at this point last year that the mist came in and I saw nothing from the summit. Today I would finally see the view!

25

Hopegill Head left, Grizedale Pike right.

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Black clouds in the distance! Trig point of Crag Hill (Eel Crag) with the Whiteside to Hopegill Head ridge beyond......the one I did on Saturday for the second time in mist and saw nothing!

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Looking down the Coledale Valley. Force Crag Mine below.

28

..and back to my route up on the right and my two remaining fells to the left. I sat here in the very small shelter and had an early lunch, for it wasn`t quite midday yet. A cheese panini with lashings of the chili jam I bought at the Chilifest on Sunday.....yummy!

29

Grasmoor. It is definitely getting cloudier and hazier out west........I think I`ll save Grasmoor for when I repeat Saturday`s walk.

30

I headed back down Crag Hill and towards the bottom of Sail and I meet up with Ged, Kas and John (former landlord of The General Burgoyne Inn in Great Urswick) who were only on their first fell of the day. The one thing you will never, EVER see me write are the words "Ged" and "early start" in the same sentence! They were on their way over to Grasmoor. There were looming black clouds overhead so I headed for Outerside and Barrow. The last time I did these was in rain and mist and I was determined to see them in sunshine!

31

Heading down Sail Pass to Outerside.

32

Crag Hill and Coledale Hause.

33

Outerside summit looking back at the Sail Pass on the left and Sail and Crag Hill.

34

Looking over Stile End to Barrow.

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Looking back across the heather to Outerside.

36

View down to Braithwaite from Barrow.

37

I retraced my steps to Barrow Door and took the path down to the track by Stoneycroft Gill that would lead me back to my car. The gill below was busy with groups of junior gill scramblers from Keswick OE centres. Their many transits were parked next to my car and across in all the spaces.

I arrived back at the car at 2.50pm and was back home at 4.40pm. Enough time to get a few jobs done, cook tea……fish cakes with even more lashings of chilli jam; and to put my feet up for the return of Monday Night Footy on Sky Sports….Man Utd v Newcastle…..great stuff…..now, is that a good day or what? 🙂
Jo.
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