Stuart Marshall suggests tackling
Scafell Pike from Wasdale, but I like the approach from Borrowdale and
this also allowed us to include Rossett and Esk Pikes, left over from
our Langdale excursions. It meant a long day, which became even
longer when we lost ourselves in the cloud - the top 4-500 feet were in
the clouds, which meant all the way from just above Esk Hause to
Scafell Pike and down to the Corridor Route level. And it rained
at both ends of the walk, all un-forecast, but all in all an
interesting and satisfying day. Both Sophie and I were glad to
get home, after 15 miles and 4000 feet ascent.
Although this was not the day for
photography, here are the pictures (click
on any
picture for a larger version):
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Our plan was to ascend via
Grains Gill and come back via the Corridor Route and Styhead
Tarn. Here is the rather murky view up Grains Gill from near
Seathwaite. |
| Ahead is Seathwaite
Fell, which we were very glad to be by-passing, and over to the right a
rather full Taylor Gill Force. It was even fuller when we
returned about 8 hours later... |
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One
of the many impressive waterfalls on Ruddy Gill as we approached Great
End looming up in front of us. |
| More
looming... |
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Looking back down Ruddy
Gill, north to Borrowdale. |
| Great
End. These are the South-east and Central Gullies. Click here for the way we took to get to
the top earlier this year. |
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At the top of Ruddy Gill
you turn left up to Esk Hause, the highest pass in the Lake
District. From there we could see our first objective, Rossett
Pike, in the centre of this picture. I had forgotten about the
drop down to Angle Tarn, which we would have to negotiate on the way
back... |
| .Here
is the tarn, with Esk Pike in the background. |
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The summit of
Rossett Pike, looking across at the Langdale Pikes. |
| This
is the way back up to Esk Hause, via Angle Tarn. The clouds were
beginning to descend... |
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Over to the right, Bowfell,
with a good view of the Great Slab, down the side of which we had
descended a few days ago. At the bottom of the Great Slab you can
(?) discern the Climbers' Traverse, which is used mainly to access
Cambridge Crag, next to it, and Bowfell Buttress, further round to the
right. Needless to say, we turned left at that point... |
| Here is Sophie
at the top of Esk Pike. |
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The higher part of Eskdale,
with Ill Crag dominating the heights on the right. |
| This is quite
a long time later, at the top of England, together with much of its
population. The trek from Esk Hause was almost all in the clouds,
with visibility about 70 yards, a situation in which cairns assume huge
significance. There were plenty of them - but we must have
followed the wrong set, and finished up high on the Ill Crag side of
the path. So did about 20 other people, who turned out to be
following us! Fortunately we espied a group below us, who pointed
us in the right direction. Today there was absolutely no chance
of anyone getting lost - someone in the hordes had to be a good
navigator... |
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That down
there is Styhead Tarn, and a very welcome sight, since it confirmed
that we were at least on the right path back. Unfortunately that
view disappeared in the clouds a few seconds later, and I failed to
remember that the right turn at Lingmell Col onto the Corridor Route is
quite easy to miss (no cairn), and in the cloud we meandered on down -
until we dropped down below the clouds, and I saw Wastwater before
us! That cost us about 45 minutes... |
| Nobody can say
we don't persevere! Here is Sophie at the top of Lingmell, just
after we found the Corridor Route. It was of course enveloped in
cloud, which was a great pity, since we missed some spectacular views. |
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Not the way to
descend Lingmell... |
| The great
cleft of Piers Gill, as seen from the Corridor Route (yes, we got there
in the end...) |
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Below the
cloud level: Wastwater to the west. |
| Up to the east
of the Corridor Route is the ridge between Great End and Scafell
Pike. This col is another way up onto the ridge - if you like
steep scree, that is... |
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Greta Gill,
the other great gash in the fellside which you need to negotiate on the
Corridor Route. |
| Great Gable wreathed in cloud. |  |
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Looking back up at Lingmell. |
| If you get
this view of Great Gable, you are approaching Styhead Tarn.
Wasdale is down to the left. It was about here that it started raining,
so I forgot about the camera and concentrated on getting us back the 3
miles to Seathwaite |
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