BB0602  Holme Fell, Black Fell and Electric  Eyes

19th January 2006

With Pete and John both injured and others not available, Boot Boys were down to two. The mist was down also with the threat of driving rain and 50 mph winds on the tops so Bryan and I tested one of his bad weather walks.  And what a cracker it turned out to be, despite hardly breaking 1,000 feet above sea level.

We parked on the road from Skelwith Bridge to Coniston where the stream comes down from Tarn Hows.  Crossing the road, we turned onto the fell by the famous farmhouse with the spinning gallery, to be met by a herd of belted galloways, one of which could rival namesake George for the intensity of its stare.  Click on the the picture below to judge for yourself.  Sorry the quality is not great but the light level was very low - so much so that with all the mist around I took no more photos.  

To start off the path was very easy I was beginning to think that Bryan had gone soft.  And then it turned into a typical Hardaker route in miniature, pretty steep up to the top of Holme Fell where the weather was getting nasty- rain and wind.  Linger we did not but got off fast and headed off past a tarn looking a bit like a miniature Tarn Hows and over to the quarries at Hodge Close- a remarkable massive pit where roofing slate had been mined for 200 years but now is a theme park for lunatic climbers and divers.  You wouldn't catch me going down there.  Although the wind did have a sudden try to make me.

We then had a gentle stroll over to High Oxen Fell and, on reaching the road along which we had travelled, I was utterly confused and would have gone quite the wrong way.  North we headed, ignoring the even more confusing sign to Arnside and just after reaching the Skelwith sign turned right onto a path up the hill.  The path turned into a bridle path, which we followed for some distance before having our lunch stop prior to the second major ascent of the day.  At this point it seemed that the mist was clearing but it wasn't so.  We left the bridle path to tackle what my map calls Black Fell but Bryan thinks is Black Crag.  Whichever, it's a proper peak and a Wainwright (as is Holme Fell).  Not quite as steep as Holme Fell but again, today was not the day to linger.  Indeed we didn't even bother going to the viewpoint- one bit of mist looks pretty much like another.

We retraced our steps to the bridle path and made our way over to Tarn Hows, where the route is remarkably undulating and helped clock up our feet of ascent, and then down the steep path back to the car.

Bryan assures me that, in the right conditions, the views are superb.  I certainly intend to try it again one sunny day.

Don
19th January 2006

STATISTICS

Distance:
7.2 miles

Height climbed:
2,070 feet

Map reference:
See Map

Wainwrights:
 Holme Fell, Black Fell

 

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  • BB0602  Holme Fell, Black Fell and Electric  Eyes
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