Name of walk	Steeple from Ennerdale
Date of walk	2012-06-02
Distance walked (miles)	14
Duration of walk	8 hours 10 minutes
Weather	sunny but hazy
Peaks on walk	Steeple, Scoat Fell, Haycock, Caw, Iron Crag, Crag Fell

A walk of 14 miles. The living legend, Joss Naylor, now aged 76, is running the Wasdale Parish Boundary starting with Caw, Haycock and Scoat Fell going over the Scafells and ending up at Whin Rigg, a mere 26 miles, to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. We were doing six fells, one for every decade to celebrate the Jubilee!…… (Not!) Unfortunately by the time we were on those fells Joss would have been at home with his feet up having his dinner!

We parked at Bowness Knott.

Looking up at Crag Fell where we would be in seven hours time!

Steeple is the small cone-shaped fell on the left horizon....a long way off!

Crossing the bridge over the River Liza....

Then we would cross the bridge over Woundell Beck, heading off left around a bend until you come to a break in the trees where we would start the upwards trudge.

Looking back down the gap in the forest.

View back down Ennerdale as we head out over the heather of Lingmell.

The Steeple ridge ahead. Pillar behind. Unfortunately first we have to descend to Low Beck before gaining the ridge

The way ahead.

It is thataway!

Nearing the top of the ridge. It is easier than expected.

View out across Mirklin Cove and Tewit How to our next set of fells. Haycock on the left, then Little Gowder Crag and Caw. Then the long ridge of Iron Crag and Crag Fell just above Ennerdale on the right.

Pillar Rock, Pillar and Wind Gap and Mirk Cove behind me.

View from Steeple summit. It had taken us three hours to reach it.

Me on the summit cairn.

Looking across the valley to Red Pike and High Stile.

The route up to Scoat Fell.

From Scoat Fell the view over Yewbarrow to Wast Water and a glimpse of Burnmoor Tarn on the right.

Heading for Haycock.

From the route up to Haycock looking back to Scoat Fell with Steeple on the left.

Scoat Tarn and the Scafells.

View from Haycock. We had lunch in the summit shelter with a fell race marshall. There was a 23 mile fell race today around the Ennerdale Horseshoe, starting at Great Borne and along the ridge to Haystacks and skirting Great Gable, over Pillar and then over fells we were doing back to the scout base in the trees at the head of Ennerdale water. There were 117 runners from all over the country. Quite an undertaking! For us it would be a two day walk with a wildcamp! The race marshall had not seen Joss Naylor on his run today, but we already knew he would have made an early start, but he knew him well. Joss had done the Ennerdale Horseshoe fell race before. He also said that his next door neighbour used to be married to Joss Naylor`s daughter! Small world! Everyone is interconnected!

Middle Fell, Greendale Tarn and Seatallan. With Illgill Head and Whin Rigg behind

The way ahead to Little Gowder Crag then left to Caw and right over Iron Crag and peeking out at the back is Crag Fell.

View to Iron Crag from Caw.

View into Ennerdale.

Heading down from Caw to Iron Crag and on the right looking down into Silver Cove. It was here that the first of the fell runners overtook us.

Looking back up to Caw.

In a hollow of Iron Crag's summit cairn are pieces of fuselage from a Canadian F86 Sabre Jet that clipped the fell-top and crashed into Bleaberry Hill on 29th of June 1959.

From Iron Crag summit cairn looking back at the ridge up to Steeple, Scoat Fell and Haycock.

About eight elite fell runners had overtaken us so far as we head for Crag Fell.

Heading up to Crag Fell with larger groups of fell runners.

View from the ascent.

View from Crag Fell summit cairn down to our starting point in the trees below. Some very nice race marshalls offered us refreshments, but we still had plenty.

We still need to get down and traverse the north end of the lake.

We head for the trees.

View back.

The scout base and our route around the lake on the right, the fell runner car park on the left.

The way through the woods......a Kipling poem?

On the bridge.

The wind is picking up as we look back to Steeple.

A close up view of our route up through the break in the trees and along to the Steeple ridge.

We got back to the car in eight hours and ten minutes. If only we were fell runners! We drove home listening to England V Belgium having missed the first 20 minutes! It was a dull match to listen to! But at least we won.....better make the most of it! Next week's Euros will end in tears! We stopped off near Kinniside Stone Circle as the fell ponies were in residence.