Geoff Shoults works at one of Paramo’s retailer partners and has written a previous Blog on his 27 Day Expedition through the Norwegian Mountains. This is his story of exploring the beautiful Lake District earlier this year.
The YHA (Youth Hostel Association) has not, I admit, always been my first thought when planning multi day trips. But in the past couple of years I’ve used them a few times, especially in low season – by which I mean those times of the year when you’re probably going to be lying in your tent for 10 hours or more.
Earlier this year I did a short trip in the Lake District, end of winter, unpredictable weather etc and the prospect of a comfy lounge and a full English in the morning combined with an extremely good offer from the YHA, lured me into concocting a 3 day trip using the Grasmere and Ambleside hostels.
The weather was forecast to be ok – cold, bright and without rain – so my choice of clothing was the Páramo Enduro Duology combined with a pair of the new Alta Trek Trousers. I really like the windproofing that the Enduro fleece provides and for this type of 3 season hill walking it is perfect, being remarkably warm for such a low-bulk item. The Alta Trek trousers are fantastic – thoughtfully designed, a great fit and another one of those magical Páramo fabrics which manages to feel so light and comfortable whilst repelling whatever is chucked at it. They are destined to be my first choice year-round mountain trousers.
I started from Glenridding and headed for the tops via Greenside Mine and White Side then up on to Helvellyn for a spot of dinner. Remnants of winter were hanging on and the top of the Red Tarn face had a rim of old snow whilst the northern aspects of Catstycam and Striding Edge were whitened with a dusting of snow and hoar frost. The wind was northerly and cold but the Enduro Duology system on top of a long sleeved base layer kept me at just the right temperature, Torres gilet in reserve.
Heading south, by the time Fairfield was reached the views had gone and the cold wind was carrying with it a thick clag heavy with mizzle – time to zip up all vents in the trousers and jacket. Quickly down to Grasmere, a whizz round the Co-op and up to the Hostel on the edge of the village.
The following day after a couple of servings of breakfast I headed to The Langdale Pikes via Easedale followed by a gentle afternoon’s ramble in the sun to Ambleside YHA by way of Silver Howe and Loughrigg Fell.
The third day started well enough (ie a massive breakfast) but the long plod up Stock Ghyll with a layer of thick cloud obscuring everything above about 1000 feet, didn’t bode well. At the Kirkstone Pass the voice representing my inner slacker was questioning if it was better to stay out of the clag and head straight back to the van on a low level route. But the alternative -that you never know how the day will develop, that there could be magic happening up there – won the day and I headed up towards High Street in what soon went from your average chilly clag to a freezing fog which coated the grasses and rimed the stones on the walls. Soon there was an undeniable brightness coming from where the sun probably was and as I reached the stony plateau of Caudale Moor the mist began to thin, fogbows appeared on the hillside ahead and soon I was onto the broad, bright sunlit uplands. There was not a breath of wind and all the high tops of the Lakes stood proud of a sea of cloud which stretched to the horizon in all directions. Brocken Spectres were projected by the warm sun onto the cloud in the cwms.
The panorama was spectacular – across to Helvellyn and the Scafells to the west, Blencathra to the north, the High Street range heading off to the east and to the south just a vast blanket of cloud over Cumbria and Lancashire. I stayed up there till sunset watching the mist roll in and over the fells, pouring off the high tops and down to Haweswater like dry ice off a stage.
It was well after dark when I dropped into Patterdale and hitched a lift to Glenridding.
Such a magical day from such unpromising beginnings prompts all sorts of metaphorical and metaphysical musings about the rewards of perseverance, striving for uncertain goals etc etc but primarily a day that refreshes the mind, soothes the soul and reminds us of the absolutely stunning beauty that we can find in our modest hills and mountains.