Boyd's walks

Red Screes to Thirlspot, Cumbria. Mon 20 Mar - Fri 24 Mar 2006
Mon 20 Mar 2006 By bus to Chorley, still £1.50 one way. At the railway the display boards weren't working but the 8:23 to Windermere train managed to arrive on time. At the Windermere end the 555 bus was a bit late but I was in Ambleside by 10:25 so that gave me plenty of time to play with. I briefly called in to a good bike shop that had a good selection of panniers. Then I set off on the Kirkstone Road in reasonable weather, still cold and snow on the tops but no rain. I continued up until I reached the path up the south ridge of Red Screes. The grass was very wet and when I reached the snow that was very wet too. But as I got higher the snow improved. It was deeper but more firm and able to take my weight, mostly. I'd planned to try and use the pitch I did the last time I was here but when I arrived it was completely snowed up behind the wall. Even the spring I'd used for water was lost somewhere under the snow. With the NE wind I didn't think there'd be much shelter on the summit so decided to look for a pitch nearby. I soon found an apparently sheltered spot behind some rocks and proceeded to trample down a level platform. I wasn't too concerned as there was plenty of snow about and I could always melt snow. Once the tent was up I set off with my pan as a scoop and a bin liner to hold the snow. But before long I found a marshy patch amongst the snow and dug down to find a spring which I reasoned would be a better way of getting water as it saved on cooking gas.
The RAF rescue helicopter practices by Dove Crag.	Tue 21 Mar 2006 Windy and cold in the night. Coldest minus 4.5 deg C. A lot of spindrift kept blowing inside and I should have zipped up the inner as my sleeping bag was wet on the outside. It took ages to pack away in the morning as everything was covered in snow. There hadn't been fresh snow outside, just lots blowing about. It was 8:15 when I got underway and I set off for the summit of Red Screes. It was a whiteout on the top and it’s a good job I camped where I did because there was no shelter or water to be had. The snow was hard and easy to walk on. I descended to Scandale Pass and put on my new mini instep crampons. The fixing straps are rubbish but the extra grip is good on mixed ground.
As I climbed to High Bakestones the snow hardened and the going was easier. There was still total cloud but it was high enough to give me views ahead. I stopped briefly at the cairn then took a more direct line to Dove Crag and not follow the main path that takes a long way round. The snow was much deeper than a month ago when I was here last. Over the summit I Had a good view down Houndshope Cove and followed a descent line which is higher than the usual route. Everything was covered in snow and I was hoping to get up to Priest Hole cave to spend the night. As I began to climb I crossed some avalanche debris and decided that the exposure was not safe so descended and crossed the valley to find a pitch near the main Hart Crag footpath. An RAF helicopter flew overhead which seemed to be practicing manoeuvres. I pitched my tent and while unpacking my Berghause rucksack the harness stitching began to come apart.
Wed 22 Mar 2006 The sky remained clear all night and my new Silva recorded -9.5deg C. I packed up very leisurely as the sun was out and it was too nice to rush. There was still no wind making packing the tent easy.	Early morning view.
Climbing up to Hart Crag.	It was 8:45am when I set off up the snowfields taking the direct route up Hart Crag. The hard snow and instep crampons made the going relatively easy. I had a very enjoyable wander over to Fairfield summit and it's hard to imagine the terrible conditions I had the last time I was here a month ago.

The descent to Grisedale Tarn was tricky in places due to steep hard snow. I met two separate couples climbing up as I descended. The rescue helicopter was out again, practicing landing approaches in the area by the tarn outlet. Near the tarn I met a solo walker heading up Fairfield. He'd been up Dove Crag yesterday hoping to spend the night in the Priest Hole cave but turned back at the steep snow. Climbing over Dollywaggon Pike the weather remained very good. All the summits were frozen snowfields and I wondered where I could get water to camp. There were a lot of people about and I gave the summit shelter on Helvellyn a wide berth because of the crowds.	Hart Crag from Fairfield.
Grizedale Tarn	A steep descent down Helvellyn
I headed for Brownrigg Well but the well and stream were totally covered in deep snow. I found a snow-less patch nearby and pitched my tent. The ground was frozen solid and I had to hammer all the pegs in. Cooking had to be with snow and it took ages to get it thawed on the stove. Thu 23 Mar 2006 Last night temp dropped to -6.7 C. The sky was clear at midnight but by the time I'd woken to get ready for the day at 5am it was blowing and cloudy outside. It took ages to melt the snow for my brew and breakfast. I decided to descend to Brown Crag where the chance of water and a none snow pitch would be good. The tent was frozen solid and made an untidy bundle on top of my pack when I set off at 8:10am. The mist had blown away and some views could be seen. It was still bitterly cold as I reached Lower Man to the north. I stopped to photograph the cornices along the rim of Helvellyn but my tripod was frozen and I couldn't extend all the legs.	Camp by Brownrigg Well
I did my best hand holding the camera in the blustery wind. I picked my way down the sharp ridge to the north then descended easily into Helvellyn Gill on the extensive snowfield. I could see tracks where somebody had been skiing. I'd left most of the snow behind now but the path along the west side of Whiteside still had snow fields on it. Approaching Brown Crag I was crossing tussocky moor but where I chose a spot to pitch the ground was still frozen hard under the grass and the pegs still needed hammering in. Fri 24 Mar 2006 It was windy as I packed up the tent with 40mph gusts. I took my time descending to the road and arrived for the bus quite early. As light rain started I asked if I could shelter in the entrance lobby of the Kings Head Hotel at Thirlspot, and thankfully was allowed to. The bus arrived late but I managed to get my train connection at Windermere OK.