"Russ and Jane complete Lake District Peaks 2008" - 9^th June 2008

Following the success of last years Hadrian's Wall Path walk, doughty elexa Consultant Russ Gallagher and his intrepid missus Jane have dusted off their walking boots with the intention of conquering at least 8 of the 11 highest peaks in the Lake District plus some lesser ones along the way. This will take place over seven days starting Saturday 31st May 2008 using three 'definite' routes that will cover 11 peaks with a total height of 9730 metres, a total of 3345 metres of ascent, 30 miles in distance and a 'Wainwright' count of 9. All 11 highest peaks may be conquered if weather and legs permit in which case one to three more 'optional' routes will be added. Russ and Jane will be based in the village of Rosthwaite in Borrowdale and will venture out daily to tackle each route. The 'definite' and 'maybe' routes with distances etc. are contained in the table below.

Once more the beneficiary of all of this effort is the British Heart Foundation (BHF) where Jane has set up a fund in memory of her father, Geoff who died on 9th August 2004. Last years Hadrian's Wall Path walk raised just over £1500 in total. Russ's employers, elexa Consultants, have again agreed to be sponsors and make a substantial donation to this fund but the BHF require as much financial support as they can to continue supporting research into heart disease. So please, once again, support Russ and Jane by donating as much as you can to the BHF by clicking here.

Russ and Jane rounded off their weeks walking in the Lake District on Friday 6th June 2008 by climbing to the summit of Scafell Pike, the highest peak in England. The week was affected by weather early on and by injury later so the intended schedule was disrupted somewhat. However, they still managed to successfully climb 9 peaks in total that included 7 of the 10 highest peaks in the Lake District plus the 11th and 36th. Russ has written a summary of the week in a daily diary form and included some images from the week.

Left home at 10am for the drive to the Lake District. Weather bright and sunny, traffic light and arrived shortly after 12. Today's walk is a 'warm up' and involves parking at the slate mine on the Honister Pass and legging it up High Knott, across Brandreth to Green Gable and then over Windy Gap and up to the summit of Great Gable. We decided to choose which route to take back when we'd reached the summit and could assess how we felt as Jane had aggravated an old back problem earlier in the week, hence using this shorter route rather than the one intended. The summit was reached in good order so we decided on a scenic route back rather than back the way we came. I don't think we'll do that again as it involved a tricky descent on a steepish, very loose path before we could join our path back to the slate mine. Walk accomplished OK with no ill effects. Distance 5.75 miles, time 4 hours.

The weather forecast was for light rain and low cloud later in the day. Today's route was another shortened version and involved driving to Greater Langdale, walking to the end of the valley and climbing up by Rossett Ghyll to Angle Tarn. From there to Esk Hause, Esk Pike, Bow Fell and descend again to Langdale via Three Tarns and the Band. The walk started well enough and we arrived at Angle Tarn for lunch. However, the cloud descended earlier than expected. We weren't familiar with area and in the low cloud couldn't find Esk Hause. We decided that discretion was the better part of valour and, not that we'd be able to see much if we made it to Bow Fell, gave up for the day descending back down to Langdale by the way we came up. Nice pint in the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel before the drive back to Rosthwaite. Distance 10 miles, time 8 hours.

The weather forecast was grimmer than yesterday, light rain and low cloud all day. We decided to walk up and down Skiddaw via the tried and tested Tourist Path rather than our more challenging original choice via Ullock Pike. The Tourist Path is a walker's highway being at least two metres wide for most of the way and after a steep start we too disappeared into the cloud. Visibility was about 10 metres so as long as you didn't stray from the path there should be no problem. The gloomy summit plateau was reached after passing just two other walkers and we lunched in the shelter cairn next to the summit trig point. We didn't see another person until we started to make our way back down and then the floodgates opened and we passed loads of walkers trudging to the top. We were back at the pub by 3 by which time the summit of Skiddaw was clearly visible! Distance 6 miles, time 4 hours.

Yesterday's weather forecast looked spot on while driving to Glenridding however on arrival low cloud swirled about and a hint of rain was present. The steep start up Birkhouse Moor soon distracted us and it was looking brighter with the low cloud gone when we reached the Hole in the Wall where we took in the views of the summit and Red Tarn. The light wind made the traverse of Striding Edge and the scramble up to the summit plateau easier. Lunch was eaten in the summit shelter cairn enjoying the fabulous views all around. We made our way south to Nethermost Pike and then north to Lower Man. The descent was via Swirral Edge followed by a steep pull up to Catstye Cam. The descent from there was going nicely when Jane stumbled and twisted her ankle not once but twice. We made it back to the car but the omens weren't good as nasty looking swelling and bruising appeared on her ankle once she'd taken her boot off. We decided to wait until morning before deciding what to do. Distance 9.75 miles, time 8 hours.

Jane's ankle hadn't gotten worse overnight but we felt it would be better to rest it today in the hope that we'd manage the Scafells on our last walking day tomorrow. Jane reckoned her ankle was strong enough to try an easy walk today so we drove to the twee village of Elterwater with the intention of walking an easy 2 miles or so to Skelwith Bridge following the Cumbria Way. The weather was warm and sunny which lifted the mood and we arrived at Skelwith Bridge in just less than an hour. We stopped for coffee and buns before heading back to Elterwater where Jane announced that she'd be fit to walk tomorrow. We drove on to Ambleside and mooched around the shops there but couldn't find anything worth the prices being charged. From there on to Grasmere that turned out to be more twee than Elterwater. We spent an hour wandering around and then decided to head back to Rosthwaite and prepare for tomorrow and the Scafells.

The forecast was for high cloud and bright intervals with light winds. The plan today was to get as far as we could bearing in mind Jane's ankle. So the target remained the same of Scafell Pike, Sca Fell and Great End but whether all or some were achieved depended on Jane's fitness. We drove the ten minutes to Seathwaite Farm and made our way over Stockley Bridge to follow Grains Gill up to below Great End. From there it was short walk to Esk Hause where we could see what we missed on day 2. From there we began the climb up to the broad, boulder strewn ridge that would take us to Scafell Pike. We reached Green Crag where we got our first close up view of the summit before scrambling up to it. The cloud swirled in and out but provided plenty of windows to take in the views. Not wanting to take any more risks with Jane's ankle, we decided that once we'd eaten our sandwiches we'd head back the way we came only deviating to take the spur up to Great End. Distance 9.5 miles, time 8 hours.
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