Some rain early in the night stopped and the rest of the night was mostly clear. There was a picturesque red glow over the horizon above Penrith as I put the water on for a brew at 5am. I had a ferry to catch on Ullswater so wanted an early start as I wasn't sure how long the walk would take. The sun reached the fells opposite as I set off at 6:45am. The first part of the route was steeply down as I needed to cross Longgrain Beck. The grass was sodden with dew and I wondered how long it would be before my feet would get wet. I crossed just below an old sheepfold then started the steep climb up to the wall along the ridge at Red crag. When I got there the only track I could see was the double rut of a quad bike track. I followed it north to Keasgill Head but when I got there could see no sign of a route. It turned out that I was too far to the east and didn't find the correct track until I started the gradual climb up Wether Hill. Because of this I'd missed the path down towards Mere Beck. The map shows two more paths descending in the same direction but starting a little further north. Neither of the paths exists on the ground. I started to descend towards the ruined barn at the head of Fusedale Beck which I could see below. I was doing OK for time and could see Ullswater below. The grass and reeds were very wet and even though there were patches of sun my feet were now soaking.

At the barn I followed another quad track to the north. I soon heard an engine noise approaching. It turned out to be a quad bike coming up the valley. At first I thought it was the farmer but he didn't have a dog with him. The route was now easy to follow and I was soon on the green track descending Fusedale. I came to another ruined barn but this one had a welcoming bench seat at the front, which I used for a short rest. When I reached the farm access road there was a parked pickup with double planks at the back. The vehicle side had 'wallbuilding' lettering on the side so I presume the man I saw earlier was on his way to do some wall maintenance. I reached the Howtown pier in plenty of time for the ferry so I wandered around for a while. A party of teenagers arrived along with rucksacks and waited on the end of the pier. I thought they were waiting for the ferry but then a large inflatable boat arrived and picked them up. The ferry arrived at 10:15 and I paid the £4.60 fare for a one way ticket to Glenridding.I

A pleasant sit down on the ferry.

The Lady Dorothy ferry on Ullswater.

By now the weather was overcast but it was a pleasant half hour sail to the jetty. Once off the ferry I headed to Glenridding, clutching some of my rubbish in my hand looking for a rubbish bin. I couldn't find one anywhere and had to use one of the large refuse bins at the side of one of the hotels. There were plenty of people about as I walked through the village and plenty walking as I headed up Greenside Road.

I stopped for a well earned rest at the end of the road before starting the steep climb up to Sticks Gill and the old Greenside Mines. There was a nice view up Sticks Pass and part way up I came to a couple of older walkers sat by a stream and eating biscuits and tinned sardines. I was envious as it would be a while before I had anything to eat. I reached the pass summit and looked for a flat area nearby and off the main path. I found one with a nice view down towards Keswick.

Distant view of Great Gable, Kirk Fell & Pillar.