Castle Crag

Pic 1 - High Spy from Castle Crag

Pic 2 - On the summit of Castle Crag

Pic 3 - Borrowdale.

I recently paid a visit to Castle Crag up north in Cumbria. Although it is not classed as a mountain with it only being 951 ft in height I have to say that is one of the most beautiful I have climbed in the Lake District . It is quite impressive in appearance displaying forest, rock face and beautiful pasture on its lower slopes, it also has a number of caves with the most famous being Millican Dalton's Cave named after Millican Dalton , the eccentric and self styled "Professor of Adventure" whom used the cave as his summer home from the 1920's until shortly before he died in 1947. It was originally called High Hows Quarry and it lies to the west of the beautiful and crystal clear waters of the River Derwent which winds its way down from Great Gable via Seathwaite Fell. I parked in the lovely hamlet of Stonethwaite and walked the short distance along the river bank with the sheep and cattle until I came to the footpath that leads up the southern slope, it's a fairly easy climb which took me to the top of another hill that afforded wonderful views back into the valley of Borrowdale , such rich and fertile land. From this point I noticed some awesome wild camping spots with cool views to wake up too. As I climbed the sty to make the final approach to the summit, my mate Lee spotted one of our rare native Red Squirrels having his breakfast so we spent some time watching him before eventually climbing to the top of the crag itself. The final approach is through some massive slate scree banks where a zig zag path has been created up to the top, from this point you get a magnificent view looking onto High Spy which appears to be vertical as you face it. Once on top of Castle Crag you are presented with such wonderful views down into Borrowdale and also North over Derwent Water to Keswick and the big lump of Skiddaw at it's rear with some of the higher peaks still holding onto their snow. On top of the crag there is a war memorial dedicated to the men of Borrowdale whom fell in WW1



The day I climbed it was quite pleasant and warm although a tad cloudy so I managed to bag Castle Crag and have a wander down the Langstrath Valley on the other side of Stonethwaite before the weather deteriorated. The highlight of the day however was not Mr Red Squirrel nor the magnificent scenery but a Robin Redbreast on the top of Castle Crag whom flew right up to my feet and allowed me to share my sandwich with him.

Dove Crag & The Priests Hole

1- Looking up to the Stangs.

2- View from the cave to Brothers Water.

3- View from the back of the cave.

4- Looking up to Dove Crag from Hartsop Hall

Dove Crag is a peak situated in the Patterdale area of Cumbria’s Lakeland. It is only 2603 ft high but is blessed with many beautiful features one of which is a cave known as ‘The Priests Hole’ that can be found 2/3 of the way up on it’s north east facing crag. The cave is a popular place for fell walkers to bed down for the night as it provides good shelter with fantastic views towards the Angletarn Pikes, High Raise and many other Lakeland peaks.
To get to the cave however one must scramble up Dove Crag’s north east face but it is well worth the effort. Once in the cave you will find a metal strong box which is generally stocked with goodies that previous climbers have left behind for you , when I arrived I found in the box a bottle of whisky with some candles, raisins, gas canisters and an emergency sleeping blanket wrapped in an emergency bag as well as a bag of self heating food. There is also a visitors book for climbers to leave their signature, reflections & doodles which provides an interesting read.
I ascended Dove Crag from the route Wainwright gives you starting from Hartsop Hall following Hartsop Beck through a very scenic area known as the Stangs , The scenery was of the of lushest green patterned with rock, crag, bracken & a small wood that actually produces Hazelnuts in October. Hartsop Beck provided some wonderful waterfalls and tranquil area’s for one to bed down for the night weather permitting.
Once you reach the area known as Hunsett Cove the ascent becomes quite steep but the National Trust has provided a path using rock & scree as improvised steps, Dove Crag towers above you on your left until you reach a small tarn where you can traverse south along the crag up to the Priest Hole where you can crack open s swift one and take in the magnificent scenery below. Dove Crag remains one of my favourite climbs and I can’t wait to do it again but next time explore a lot more of it’s surrounding area, I may even carry my portable barbeque up there, if your in the vicinity and you get a wiff of honey & mustard sauce climb up and join me. ( Bring a bottle)

Great Gable

Great Gable is a beautiful mountain situated at Wasdale Head in Cumbria opposite the Scafell Masiffs and adacent to Black Sail Pass which nestles between the mighty Pillar and haystacks. I chose to tackle it from Seathwaite rather than from Wasdale Head as I had just recently climbed Scafell Pike from Wasdale Head. The climb started with a scramble up Sour Milk Gill for about 1000 ft followed by a long drawn out climb between Base Brown and Brandreth to ascend Green Gable. Green Gable is to the rear of Great Gable and it gives on a clear day wonderful views of Gable Crag on the back of Great Gable along with a fantastic view down the Black Sail Pass and the River Liza. From Green Gable we dropped slightly to the south and then began the climb up Great Gable. The weather remained unpredictable with cloud and rain followed by sunny spells but I was able to see opposite Sprinkling Tarn and further on the summit of Scafell Pike. Finally reaching the top I was met by a strong wind which denied me being able to boil up some water for a cup of tea. The top of Great Gable indicates that it is a war memorial, and it is in fact the largest memorial in Europe with a large number of climbers grouping on its summit each rememberance Sunday. Down below to the south is Wastwater and Wasdale head with the Wasdale Head Inn, home of the biggest liar competition. http://www.wasdaleheadinn.co.uk/.

Whilst on the top I slipped and twisted my ankle which made it difficult coming down especially in the dark but hopefully I will find the time to visit Great Gable again to check out its world famous needles on the south traverse. Pictures include the sun going down over Wast water, a view down Black Sail Pass , myself on Great Gable & myself on Green Gable with Great Gable crag behind me.