A Sunset Walk from Upton to Bude

Thursday 30th July 2015 

A pleasant evening circuit from Bude combining the canal towpath and the coast path 

Distance: 6.5km; Ascent: 150m; Dry, but cool for the time of year; Solo

At around half-past eight I set off walking along the canal towpath heading out of Bude, before cutting up to the coast by way of the road to Upton from Rodd's Bridge.  I arrived at the coast just as the sun was setting, and enjoyed a most pleasant walk north along the coast path at dusk.

The trig point on Efford Beacon beckoned, followed by the tower on Compass Point, before I dropped back down to the canal at the sea locks by the light of a full moon.

A lovely evening coastal walk :-)

Rishworth Moor and Blackstone Edge

Saturday 27th June 2015

An evening walk in the South Pennine moors 

Distance: 13km; Ascent: 280m; Dry, mostly overcast with a fresh breeze; Solo

See tracked route in new window

Somehow I'd not yet been out on an evening walk this spring or summer, so I decided to rectify that this evening.  Blackstone Edge was somewhere I'd not been to for a while, and a quick look at a map suggested a possible circular route taking in Rishworth Moor too, so a plan was formed.  So after a quick journey along the M62, I set off walking soon after 7:30pm and followed the track up to Green Withins Reservoir.

Green Withins Reservoir

Drainage ditch near Green Withins Reservoir

A path then led me alongside a drainage ditch, before beginning to ascend up through the bracken, heading for Blackwood Edge.  As this wasn't where I wanted to be heading this evening, I soon left the path and headed across the moor to reach the trigpoint on Dog Hill, the highest part of Rishworth Moor (TuMP).

Trig point on Dog Hill

The ground 50m or so to the east looked to be slightly higher so I headed over there to ensure I visited the highest point.  There was a lot of cotton grass blowing around in the wind up here this evening!

Cotton Grass on Dog Hill

I followed a faint path across the moorland, past Cat Stones and Warm Withins Hill to reach Rishworth Drain and another track.  It was now decision time: I could either turn left along a reasonable track back to the car, or turn right and continue with my planned route up Blackstone Edge.  The weather was reasonable, sunset was still half an hour away and I had two torches with me, so I opted to continue.  Therefore I picked up the Old Packhorse Road, which was quite peaty in places.  This lead me to the Aiggin Stone, where I joined the Pennine Way.

Aiggin Stone Information Sign

The Aiggin Stone at Dusk

Sunset at the Aiggin Stone

After watching sunset from the Aiggin Stone, and using the nearby fenceposts as a support for my camera, I headed south up to the rocky outcrops of Blackstone Edge.  Soon I reached the trigpoint, which I'd last visited back in 2008 when I walked this bit of the Pennine Way.

Trig Point on Blackstone Edge

I'd heard that the trigpoint wasn't actually on the highest point of the hill, so I headed south-east to reach the boulder that marked the summit of Blackstone Edge (HuMP), which had an OS benchmark symbol carved into it.

Blackstone Edge Summit Boulder

By now it was 10pm and the light was fading, so I donned my headtorch and headed south along the Pennine Way towards the traffic noise from the M62.  I crossed the footbridge over the motorway and headed back along the A672 to reach my car shortly before 11pm after a pleasant moorland walk.

The M62 from the Pennine Way Footbridge

Along Derwent Edge

Thursday 5th March 2015 

A four hour circuit along Derwent Edge, returning via the east side of Ladybower Reservoir 

Distance: 14km; Ascent: 450m; Dry with a bitter westerly wind; Solo

See tracked route in new window

I had taken the day off today with the aim of getting out for my first hill walk of the year.  The forecast suggested that the eastern Peak District would have the best weather out of my nearby hills so I planned an ascent of Back Tor from the south via Derwent Edge.  It had been almost three years since I last climbed Back Tor, but many more years since I had walked along Derwent Edge so it would be nice to return there.

After parking the car up between the two road viaducts, I set off walking shortly before half-past ten and ascended up through the woods and out onto the moorland.  Twenty minutes or so of ascent brought me up to Whinstone Lee Tor, from where there were good views down to Ladybower Reservoir and up the upper Derwent valley.

Ladybower Reservoir from just below Whinstone Lee Tor

Things had changed up here since my last visit some years ago, with ongoing path improvement work clearly taking place.  However there didn't appear to be any work taking place on the path on this windy morning, although there were plenty of bags of rocks and soil around that had clearly been dropped by helicopter.  I also spotted lots of little signs, which presumably indicated the planned route of the path.

Path work on Derwent Edge

Lots of markings for the path work on Derwent Edge

Continuing northwards along the new path along the edge, there were good views down to Ladybower Reservoir and over towards Bleaklow in the distance.  At a path junction I came across an informative sign advising me that the footpath work was taking place over the couple of kilometres of path from Whinstone Lee Tor to the Salt Cellar.

Ladybower Reservoir from Derwent Edge

By now I was getting a little cold due to being exposed to the full force of the bitter wind whilst walking along Derwent Edge.  Therefore I stopped in the lee of the Wheel Stones to don a hat and an extra layer!

The Wheel Stones

I continued to follow the improved path NW along the edge past White Tor, before detouring to ensure that I didn't miss the impressive gritstone rock known as the Salt Cellar.

The Salt Cellar

Holey rock on Derwent Edge

I continued on past Dovestone Tor and the Cakes of Bread to reach the summit of Back Tor (Dewey) soon after midday.  After having a quick lunch in the lee of the tor, I took a quick scramble up to the windy trigpoint on the top of the gritstone tor.  There were good views from up here today and there was even a glimpse of blue sky out to the east!

Summit of Back Tor

Summit of Back Tor

Once I was suitably refreshed I headed NW along the slabbed path towards Lost Lad, with good views back towards the impressive gritstone tors.

Back Tor

I followed a succession of grassy paths W, SW and S to eventually pick up a reasonable track below Pike Low near a small forest plantation.

Looking east across the moorland to Derwent Edge

Derwent Edge from the track below Pike Low

There were good views down to Ladybower Reservoir as I followed the track downhill.  Once past a lone house, the path became a sunken track lined with some lovely gnarled trees.

Ladybower Reservoir

Trees along the sunken path

Eventually I reached the road along the NE bank of the reservoir near its end close to the lost village of Derwent.  The road soon turned into a vehicle track, which I followed SSE past plenty of snowdrops and through some pleasant woodland.

Snowdrops

Woodland track alongside Ladybower Reservoir

Near the end of my walk I came across a robin sat on a old fencepost, which I enjoyed watching for a few minutes before it flew into the nearby trees.

A robin by Ladybower Reservoir

A robin by Ladybower Reservoir

Shortly after 2pm I returned to the A57 and my car after a pleasant few hours out in the hills.  I was looking forward to my next walk already, which would be the TGOC Spring Gathering walk around the northern parts of Kinder Scout in just a couple of days time :-).

An Afternoon Walk up Thack Moor

Friday 26th September 2014 

An afternoon walk in the North Pennines up England's shortest 2000ft peak 

Distance: 8km; Ascent: 390m; Dry, sunny and windy; Solo

See tracked route in new window

After my lunchtime walk up Cold Fell earlier, I drove around the western side of the Pennines to reach the village of Renwick, where I parked on the road near the church.  I set off walking again at around twenty past three this afternoon, and headed up the steep little minor road towards Outhwaite.

Trees on way up from Renwick

A few hundred metres up the road, where the road takes a sharp right, I continued straight on along a reasonable stony vehicle track heading straight for Thack Moor, with good views SE towards Melmerby Fell.  The track allowed me to reach an altitude of around 500m pretty quickly, where the track ended.  From here a faint path led onwards up the steep grassy slopes to reach the moorland ridge above.

Track heading for Thack Moor

Melmerby Fell from southern slopes of Thack Moor

At twenty past four, around an hour after I set off walking, I reached the the trigpoint on summit of Thack Moor (Nuttall), where it was quite cold and exposed to the still bitter wind.  I nipped over the wall to visit the true summit of the hill, which is an unmarked area of grass on the north side of the wall.

Thack Moor trigpoint

Grassy summit of Thack Moor

On this side of the wall I was able to shelter from the wind and hence stopped for a short break to admire the excellent expansive views out over the North Pennines and the Lake District, although the sky was pretty hazy in the direction of the latter so it was hard to pick much out.  I also spotted what looked like a wooden nesting box in the base of the wall, which seemed like a strange spot for it - I wondered what it was for?

Nesting box? on Thack Moor

Returning to the southern side of the wall, I headed SE along the wall with excellent views towards Watch Hill and Black Fell.  The ridge onwards over these moorland hills looked quite enticing this afternoon, but it would have to wait for another day as it was now late in the afternoon and I doubted there would be enough daylight to complete the circuit!  Plus I'd already arranged to give Andrew a lift from Penrith down to Stockport.

Black Fell from Thack Moor

Watch Hill & Black Hill

I followed a fence SSE down the slopes of Renwick Fell to pick up a wet and muddy footpath, which gradually improved as it headed SW back towards Renwick.  Around two kilometres after joining this path, I rejoined my outward route and retraced my steps back towards Renwick.  I arrived back at the car at around half past five, a little over two hours after I left it and headed for Penrith station to pick Andrew up.  It had been a pleasant day's walking in the North Pennines, and I now had only 12 English 2000ft peaks left to climb!

Black Fell

A Lunchtime Ascent of Cold Fell

Friday 26th September 2014 

A short circular walk up the most northerly 2000ft peak in the Pennines 

Distance: 9km; Ascent: 430m; Dry, sunny and windy; Solo

See tracked route in new window

I had booked the day off work today, with the intention of going out hill-walking so I was quite pleased to discover that the weather wasn't forecast to be too bad :-)  I therefore decided to return to the North Pennines for the day to climb another couple of my outstanding 2000ft peaks in that area.  This entailed a drive north up the M6, stopping at Tebay for coffee and a Cumberland sausage roll, to reach the RSPB's Geltsdale car park at Clesketts, from where I set off walking at around quarter to midday.

The track up through the bracken above Howgill Beck

It was warm and sunny as I headed along the vehicle track towards the hills, and I soon reached Howgill from where the ascent proper began.  A grassy track aided my progress up the bracken covered slopes of the NE side of the Howgill Beck valley, past the RSPB's Bruthwaite viewpoint and on towards the moorland above.

Ruined building above the Howgill Beck valley

The track became fainter and wetter as I ascended further, and soon I reached a broad col to the north of Cold Fell itself.  From here I headed up the slopes to the south, whilst trying to avoid the worst of the peat hags!  At 1pm I reached the the trigpoint on summit of Cold Fell (Nuttall, Marilyn), where it was lovely and sunny but quite cold in the biting wind.

Summit of Cold Fell

I stopped for lunch in the windshelter, whilst admiring the expansive views out over the northern Pennines, Northumberland and southern Scotland.  I could also make out the Lakeland Fells to the SW, but they were quite hazy in the September sunshine.

Currick on Tindale Fell

After ten or fifteen minutes on the summit, I decided that I'd better get a move on as I still had a second walk planned for today, up Thack Moor to the south of here.  To vary my route I decided to head to the prominent tall currick on Tindale Fell that's pretty much due north from Cold Fell.  From here I began to descend steeply northwards, with excellent views down to Tindale Tarn and on over Hadrian's Wall country.

Looking down to Tindale Tarn

Tindale Tarn from the northern slopes of Tindale Fell

After a steep descent, in places through tall grass and bracken, I reached the valley floor at a vehicle track junction near the SW corner of Tindale Tarn.  A short ascent NW along the track lead to Thorn and then back to the car at Clesketts, where I arrived shortly after half past two after a pleasant few hours walking.

TGOC 2014 - Day 1: Glenelg to Glen Arnisdale

Friday 9th May 2014

An excellent walk up Beinn Sgritheall to start my TGO Challenge walk for 2014 

Distance: 23.5km; Ascent: 1340m; Mostly dry with occasional showers and cloud above 800m; Solo

See tracked route in new window

After yesterday's long journey it was nice to wake up this morning on the west coast :-)  I chatted to Bob Tucker over breakfast in our B&B, which also happened to be the sign-out point for Glenelg (and hence why I decided to stay there).  It was raining heavily at breakfast-time, but the forecast was for the weather to improve during the day.  Therefore I saw little point it rushing off and instead opted to have a leisurely first half of the morning before repacking my bag and signing out at 10am.

Ready to set off at Glenelg

I wandered down to the sea near to the village war memorial, where some passing Corbett bagging walkers kindly took a photo of me on the west coast.  I nipped down onto the beach to dip my boots in the sea before heading SSW along the coast road with intermittent rain showers.

Glenelg war memorial

Boots in the sea at the west coast

Soon I reached the road junction at the foot of Gleann Beag where I had to make a decision on which route to take: my planned high level route or my foul weather option up the glen.  The weather seemed to have improved significantly since breakfast so I opted to head up into the hills :-)

Decision time: high or low level route?

There were a couple more showers as I continued SSW along the coast road, which climbed up to a height of around 200m over the next few kilometres.  There were excellent views out over the Sound of Sleat towards Skye on the other side, as well as further afield towards Eigg.  I was offered at least two lifts along this section of road, which I naturally declined!

Looking SW along the Sound of Sleat

Looking down the Sound of Sleat towards Eigg

Around a kilometre beyond Upper Sandaig I stopped for lunch with excellent views out over the sound.  A friendly pickup driver stopped for a chat before I set off walking eastwards along a good forest track.  After a kilometre or two it began to deteriorate to a grassy, muddy track, which led to open country at Loch na Lochain.

Loch na Lochain

I picked a way through the damp ground near the loch to reach a very pleasant looking green grassy area by the Allt Gorm; if it wasn't so early in the afternoon I might have been tempted to camp here!  I ascended up to reach a small lochain at the foot of the west ridge of Beinn Sgritheall, from where there were excellent views over to the peaks of the Knoydart peninsula.

Loch na Lochain from the SE

The peaks of Knoydart over Lochan Bhealach Rarsaidh

Soon I reached the Munro baggers' path and began to ascend up Beinn Sgrithreall's west ridge.  By now it was quite a warm afternoon so I opted for shorts in an attempt to stay cool whilst lugging my heavy back up the hill!  I took frequent rests to admire the absolutely stunning views out over Loch Hourn and the Sound of Sleat towards Knoydart, Eigg and Skye :-)

Eigg, Loch Hourn, Sleat and Beinn Mhialairigh

Looking west to Beinn Mhialairigh and Skye from the west ridge of Beinn Sgritheall

Looking across Loch Hourn to Ladhar Bheinn from the west ridge of Beinn Sgritheall

The cloud base seemed to be varying at around 800m to 1000m, which meant that I was occasionally able to pick out the summit of Ladhar Beinn across the loch, which had been the first hill I climbed on my previous TGO Challenge back in 2010.  Unfortunately the cloud stubbornly refused to lift off Beinn Sgritheall, so at around 750m I ascended into the cloud and the stunning views are replaced with the familiar view of the inside of a cloud!  Nevertheless I continued my ascent and reached the summit of Beinn Sgritheall (Munro, Marilyn) at around quarter to four.  I took a break here near the toppled remains of a trigpoint near the summit cairn.

Broken trigpoint on the summit of Beinn Sgritheall

On the summit of Beinn Sgritheall

Once I felt suitably refreshed I continued on through the mist to visit the cairn on the summit of the East Top (Corbett Top).  From here I descended steeply down towards the Bealach Arnisdale.  I had been toying with the idea of staying high and continuing on over the two Corbetts of Beinn na h-Eaglaise and Beinn nan Caorach, but it transpired that the cloud base had dropped significantly in the last hour, which meant that it could be tricky to pick a safe way up the steep slopes of Beinn na h-Eaglaise past the crags; instead I decided to stick with my original plan and descend down to Arnisdale.

Summit cairn of the East Top of Beinn Sgritheall

The descent SSW from Bealach Arnisdale was very steep; at around 500m I dropped back out of the cloud, to find I once more had excellent views down to Loch Hourn.  I soon picked up a Munro baggers' path, which I followed steeply down near the Allt a'Mhuilinn past a waterfall.

The steep descent SW from Bealach Arnisdale

The Allt a'Mhuilinn

Lower down the angle eased and I was able to enjoy the views across to Knoydart, which were still stunning even though the cloud now covered the summits.  I continued to descend down towards Loch Hourn to reach the road at the western end of Arnisdale village.  It was now early evening on my first day of the TGO Challenge and I was once again back on the west coast, hence I concluded it was probably time to leave the sea behind and start heading east!

Arnisdale and Loch Hourn

Loch Hourn at Arnisdale

After kilometre or so of road walking I picked up the track up Glen Arnisdale and began to look for somewhere to camp for the night.  After a brief detour to take a look at the building named on the map as Achadh a'Ghlinne, where I had been considering camping, I continued another kilometre up the glen in the lovely evening sunlight to find a spot to pitch my tent near the River Arnisdale.

Achadh a'Ghlinne

Evening Light in Glen Arnisdale

I pitched at around half-past eight after a ten and a half hour day of walking, much of it dry with excellent views :-)  It was nice to be backpacking again and I enjoyed dinner followed by a wee dram of Jura before getting some well earned rest!

Camp in Glen Arnisdale