Wednesday, 11th March 2009
| Walk: | Binsey, Orthwaite, Great Cockup, Meal Fell, Great Sca Fell, Little Sca Fell, Brae Fell, Longlands Fell, Chapelhouse Reservoir | ||
| Start Point: | Verge near Binsey Cottage | Grid Ref: | NY 235 351 |
| Distance: | 13 miles | Ascent: | 3,700 feet |
| Weather: | Initially overcast and the mist soon descended, staying for a large part of the walk. | ||
| Accompanied by: |
Marie |
||
| Comments: | It looked a promising start as we climbed Binsey but the mist that we could see hovering over Skiddaw had descended by the time we were climbing Great Cockup. As the paths in this area are not easy to follow, and sometimes non-existent I was glad I had the route loaded on my GPS! As we were approaching a small copse a buzzard took a dislike to our proximity and started to dive repeatedly just above our heads and almost touching the ground in front of us. Eventually it was distracted by a small flock of birds and we were left in peace, much to Marie's relief! We tried some of the existing paths as we climbed Great Cockup and Meal Fell but as they didn't continue in the direction we wanted to go it would be better to follow the route on the GPS the next time I do the walk. On Meal Fell there is a shelter and a cairn. We took the cairn to be the summit point but in his Northern Fells guide Wainwright designates the shelter as the highest point. A long climb then leads up to Great Sca Fell, this being the last major climb of the day. After continuing on to Brae Fell we made our way across to Longlands Fell, traversing the flanks of Lowthwaite Fell. Unfortunately, after passing Chapelhouse Reservoir, it is rather a long road walk back to the car. | ||
Scroll down to see photos of the walk
Heading up to Binsey . . .
where we find a cairn, a trig point and a shelter
We left the backpacks in the car for this brief trek
From Binsey we can see a mist covered Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite to the right
Over Water in the centre with Latrigg (no, not the Wainwright) to its left
A buzzard takes a dislike . . .
to us walking near the trees
Sheltering under a line of trees I zoom in on it hovering over us
Making our way up Great Cockup we come across an unusual cairn/shelter - a complete circle with the centre lower than the surrounding ground
The summit of Great Cockup is a much less impressive affair
Beginning our descent Meal Fell and Great Sca Fell rise ahead of us, with Frozenfell Gill on the right . . .
and we soon see the full descent into Trusmadoor . . .
which makes a good sheltered spot for a break
The mist lifts a little as we reach Meal Fell . . .
and closes in again on Great Sca Fell
The shelter on Little Sca Fell . . .
harbours enough snow for a snowball fight
The cairn on Brae Fell is much more impressive . . .
and there is even the makings of a cornice as we cross towards Broad Moss
We get some shelter when we stop for lunch . . .
looking down Charleton Gill
Longlands Fell, our last summit of the day . . .
and from where the mist has lifted enough for us to see Skiddaw again . . .
but the gloves, hood and backpack cover tell their own story of the day!
Chapelhouse Reservoir
Longlands Fell from our path back to the car
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