Crinkle Crags and Bowfell
Helvellyn
Langdale Pikes
Langdale Pikes
The Route
I once again had the privilege of joining KC Walking in Great Langdale with the view to walk the Langdale Pikes following the route detailed above.
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| KC Walking group |
We started off from the local National Trust camp site and headed up Stickle Ghyll passing the Stickle Barn Tavern to reach Stickle Tarn up a steep ascent traversing some fantastic waterfalls.
Stickle Gyll and the start of the ascent
Looking back over Langdale from Stickle Ghyll
Upon reaching Stickle Tarn and after a short rest, we took a direct route, passing Stickle Tarn and Pavey Ark on our right to the cairn of Harrison Stickle.
Pavey Ark from Stickle Ghyll
Stickle Tarn
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| Harrison Stickle from Stickle Tarn |
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| Taking a rest ascending Harrison Stickle |
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| View of Great Langdale from Harrison Stickle |
From Harrison Stickle we headed towards Loft Crag taking lunch after a descent from Harrison Stickle - The stretch between the two points was steep however not a difficult walk.
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| Loft Crag from Harrison Stickle (Bowfell behind however covered in low cloud) |
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| Harrison Stickle from Loft Crag |
From Loft Crag we could see our third target of the day, Pike of Stickle, which was a short walk to the base of the buttress - A fun scramble to the cairn was rewarded with more wonderful views of Great Langdale and the route to Bowfell
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| Pike of Stickle from Harrison Stickle |
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| Route to the base of Pike of Stickle |
Our intention was to ascend Bowfell, following a well defined footpath (although found to be very eroded) passing Rossett Crag and to descend down The Band back to Stool End Farm, however due to time and weather conditions we began our descent following a steep path at Angle Tarn.
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| Route to Bowfell and the worsening weather conditions |
From Angle Tarn the footpath meets the The Cumbria Way trail at the valley floor which we followed back to the Dungeon Gill Hotel for a well deserved pint.
A fantastic walk with excellent company, although it was extremely disappointing that we could not visit Bowfell on this occasion, however she will be there the next time we're in these parts again.
Further pictures of this walk can be found on my Flicker account or navigate to 'My Photos' tab above.
Crinkle Crags and Bowfell
Start:
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Langdale – Old Dungeon Gill
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Start (OS ref):
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NY285060
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Maps (1:25,000):
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OL6 The
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Parking:
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Public Car Park, pay and display (Old Dungeon Gill)
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Distance:
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7 miles (11.2 km)
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Time:
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7 Hours
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Difficulty:
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Difficult
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Hazards:
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Very steep ascents and descents, scree, rocky summits
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Refreshments:
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Langdale – 2 public houses
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(All photos taken by @MarkConwayUK who accompanied me on this walk)
Map of Route
We started this walk early on an extremely hot Friday morning in May 2012 with a hope that the view from the tops were going to be good. As there was not a cloud in the sky we were not going to be disappointed.
The walk starts from The Old Dungeon Gill and heads towards Stool End Farm towards Oxendale Beck. The ascent starts by heading up the flank of Browney Gill until the path turns right before Red Tarn.
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| View of Crinkle Crags from the start |
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| Path to Stool End Farm |
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| Oxendale Beck - Coming to the start of the main Ascent |
The path levels out for a while, which gives an opportunity to look back over the Langdale valley. Upon reaching the first crinkle the Scafell range can be seen.
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| Path levels off to the first crag |
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| View from Crinkle Crags - looking back over the Langdale valley |
Heading north towards Bowfell the remaining crags are not too difficult to negotiate, taking on a few scrambles, although the difficulty totally depends upon the route chosen. Once the last crag has been conquered Bowfell's rocky summit and ascent can be seen.
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| View of Bowfell for the last crag |
Passing three small tarns at the foot of Bowfell the 'usual' path up to the summit is simple to follow, however is rocky and care is needed. Upon negotiating the route up and passing 'Great Slab' the summit is in sight although another small scramble to the trig point is required.
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| Great Slab |
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| Summit of Bowfell |
From the summit this route retraces itself down Bowfell to the Langdale valley floor following the footpath crossing The Band back to Stool End Farm and The Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel. Please note other routes are available to the finish i.e to Rossett Pike and back to the start by using the Cumbria Way.
If weather and cloud conditions are kind (as it was for me) I have been told it is one of the best walks in the Lake District. All I can say is that this was one of the most spectacular days spent hill walking I have ever done ..... so far!
Helvellyn
Start:
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Glenridding
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Start (OS ref):
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NY389170
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Maps (1:25,000):
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OL6 The
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Parking:
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Public Car Park, pay and display (The Pier, Ullswater)
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Distance:
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7 miles (11.2 km)
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Time:
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6 Hours
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Difficulty:
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Difficult
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Hazards:
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Very steep ascent/descents, Striding Edge
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Refreshments:
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Glenridding
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(All photos taken by @MarkConwayUK who accompanied me on this walk)
The Route
We were hoping that the views from Helvellyn were going to be as good as the ones from Crincle Crags and Bowfell - The weekend weather was still fantastic and therefore we started the walk with hopes high.
From the pier at Ullswater we headed towards Birkhouse Moor and Grisedale Brow with the intention of crossing Striding Edge. Striding Edge can be reached from a number of location (as with ascending Helvellyn) however this seemed to be the most direct route.
The route past Birkhouse Moor is steep, however eventually flattens out with a rewarding view of Helvellyn and Striding Edge. From this point the route to the start of Striding edge is a simple level walk.
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| Looking back at Ullswater from Birkhouse Moor |
Depending upon the weather the crossing of Striding Edge can be extremely dangerous, however the weather was ideal on the day we crossed.
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| First look at Helvellyn |
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| Helvellyn and Red Tarn |
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| Crossing Striding Edge and the view of the the final scramble |
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| Looking back at Strding Edge from Helvellyn |
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| Trig Point - Helvellyn |
A superb walk in fantastic weather and the scenery was breathtaking. The weekend spent in the lakes completing Crinckle Crags, Bowfell and Helvellyn was one I'd never forget and hope to revisit soon.
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| Helvellyn Lower Man |
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| Looking back to Kepple Cove |
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