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BB2417
: Confusion Caused By Mushroom
Thursday
23rd May 2024
The
Wakefield family made their first fortune
out of the local gunpowder works, established
1764, and then multiplied it by becoming
bankers in 1788. This perhaps helps
explain why one of the grandest buildings
near Kendal is Sedgwick House. Some
might recognise the family name thanks to
the Mary Wakefield Music Festival.
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Others
through the exploits of Wavell
Wakefield who, though not born
here, became the 1st Baron Wakefield
of Kendal.
Leaving
aside his military and political
activities, he is possibly best
known as the England Ruby captain
who led the team to back-to-back
grand slams in the 1920s.
He
is buried in Kendal and at least
one of our outings, BB1229,
has visited his grave.
Sedgwick
House would be one of the sights
to be seen today.
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Circumstances
forced a late start upon us so I devised
what I thought would be fairly uneventful
circuit over terrain that was well familiar
to at least Tony and Robert, maybe not so
much for John. It turned out that
despite their long familiarity with the
area (probably over 100 years collectively)
I introduced them to paths they had never
travelled.
They
had never walked the old canal path from
Natland to Sedgwick.
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We
should perhaps have done it three weeks
ago when the bluebells were in full bloom
as the path up through the higher part of
the wood would have been intense blue. Too
late, so we continued onward to Sedgwick,
crossing the angled canal bridge (or aqueduct
as it is more properly described).
To
our right was Sedgwick House.
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The
Wakefield family had moved out before the
Second World War and it became used as a
school for children with special needs.
When that closed in 1987, Stan and
I had a look round to see if it were suitable
for adapting to be our new head office but
we decided it was too much of a rabbit warren
for that purpose. Subsequently it was converted
into rather up-market apartments. Very
nice!
We
left the line of the canal by turning uphill
to a well-placed seat, big enough for the
four of us to have a brew and enjoy the
views of the Helm....
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..... the Kentmere hills.....
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.....
and the Coniston fells.
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Contrary
what the forecasts had suggested, it was
starting to rain a little.
The
footbridge over the railway could have been
a great place for trainspotters to view
the passing steam locomotives (yes, we still
get them) but sadly the walls were built
high to prevent such activity. Spoil
sports.
Our
route continued alongside fields, too early
for the Maize Maze yet to be created. The
plants were just starting to break through
their protective sheeting.
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We
passed by the Crosscrake school where the
teacher was remonstrating with the young
children for running on the wet grass. I
don’t know about them but she frightened
me. Of course, no photographs of the
incident were taken.
Peace
was to be found at St Thomas’ Church where
I am afraid we left some muddy footprints.
Sorry vicar.
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Just
before the main road from Kendal to Kirkby
Lonsdale we passed what used to be a field.
I remembered, from many years ago,
it being sparsely and rather regimentally
planted with trees. It looked strange.
Now it is a quite magnificent, huge
garden. We noticed that a public footpath
runs through it. Unfortunately it
went in the wrong direction so exploration
will have to wait.
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Our
target was the Helm summit which we approached
from the south.
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Perhaps
unwisely, I took the boys up what I thought
was going to be a gentle climb on the east
side of the hill emerging beyond the summit.
Somehow it turned into a rather more
challenging foray through a forest of bracken,
culminating in a short but distinctly steep
struggle to emerge at the very top, close
to the trig point. Sorry boys.
The
Kentmere fells were looking quite dramatic.....
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.....
whereas the Coniston range still had their
tops enshrouded.
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It
was here, at the trig point, that things
nearly went wrong. We had arranged
to meet Stephen at the Station Inn and I
had told him that I would send a text when
we were at the top. I did, but unfortunately
my text talked about the "mushroom".
This
led to great confusion. Stephen wasn’t
sure if I meant we had consumed some magic
mushrooms, in which case anything might
happen, or if I meant that we were at the
Mushroom on Scout Scar, in which case he
was at the wrong pub.
Fortunately
he realised that it was just my brain not
working properly so he stayed put and we
were able to join him a few minutes later.
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Traditionally
we have finished our walks at a pub but
there seems increasingly a tendency to visit
one part way through the activity. For
me, that is sure thing to guarantee that
the final effort needs to be downhill, which
fortunately today was the case. We
followed the Helm road then dropped down
into Natland and home.
Margaret
asked me what had I had for lunch. Mushrooms,
I told her. No mistake or hallucination
this time but a rather tasty Mushroom Bruschetta.
That was for real!
Don,
Thursday 23rd May 2024
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