DODGE THE SUMMER CROWDS
JUNE The Mosedale Fells Lake District
In come the coaches and minibuses. Out pour their occupants in shiny new kit bought for the occasion. Up they go, a collective throng with a single purpose. A train of boots and backpacks following the tracks to their destination. Chatter. Noise. People. Everywhere.
With daylight hours at their longest, June is when many Three Peak events take place. In Wasdale Head, the quiet valley-end hamlet in the western Lake District, this influx of visitors tramping en masse to the summit of Scafell Pike is particularly intrusive. But Wasdale and the surrounding fells are among Lakeland’s most spectacular; it would be a crime to ignore them all due to the popularity of one. So, turn your back on the crowds and wander into Mosedale, the northern offshoot of Wasdale.
Immediately the atmosphere is different. Cross over the picturesque stone-arch bridge and walk alongside the burbling Mosedale Beck, and the hubbub of the car park is miles away. Onwards, upwards, passing waterfalls and sheepfolds to Black Sail Pass. Here, turn left around the head of Mosedale, pausing for a while at Looking Stead to admire the wide, wild view into neighbouring Ennerdale. And now, a choice is to be made.
Straight up to Pillar is the short and sweet way, and an entirely worthy option. But for a wilder ride, drop into the path traversing the Ennerdale side of the mountain, through Hind Cove and past Robinson’s Cairn into Pillar cove. Then it’s up across the exposed Shamrock Traverse to within a stone’s throw of Pillar Rock, the monolithic sentinel of Ennerdale, before a final clamber to the flat, wide summit of Pillar (Trail 100 No.1) and the views that surround it.
On into the west, the contrary Scoat Fells await – Little being higher than Great. It’s an out and back addition to the round, but bypassing the scintillating Steeple would be a mistake, the airy scramble to its summit every bit as rewarding as the view from the top. Back to the Mosedale fells and it’s up onto Red Pike, with its crags plunging ruggedly east into the valley below. At Dore Head, a respite is in order, for the grand finale is ahead…
A ridge scramble up Stirrup Crag proves nervy, exposed and exciting. The long, drawn-out summit of Yewbarrow (Trail 100 No.2) offers an opportunity for breath to be caught while the panorama is absorbed. This view is one of the best in the Lakes – with the Scafells, Great Gable and Wast Water (England’s deepest lake) all vying for attention. The summit goes on forever, but eventually a descent is inevitable, and the rock-walled gully confines of Great Door closes out the scenery.
The walk back to Wasdale along the single track tarmac gives time to contemplate, and admire, the peaks above. Don’t get too lost in thought – those coaches and minibuses will be heading out along the road to Wales. Still, it means Ritson’s Bar at the Wasdale Head Inn will be all the quieter for their absence. Raise a pint to the Three Peakers – long may they leave the best of the fells to the rest of us.