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BB1644 : Dear
Tony; Dear Bryan
Thursday
22nd December 2016
Email
from Bryan to Tony
20th December
Dear
Tony,
When
I told Don I was doing the 13 tarns recce today he said
you'd be interested as you were disappointed to miss
the 8 tarns version last week.
I
forgot to follow up, remembering part way round today.
You
missed a grand day. 15 miles / 5,000 ft. In the clag
for most of the day. Challenging navigation - almost
walked past one tarn that was less than 20 feet from me!
Lunch was taken in the drizzle near the top of Ullscarf
- a 10 minute stop and the only one of the day. Never
saw anyone all day. Got back to the car at 16:10 just
as it was getting dark.
Sorry
I didn't let you know. You missed a treat! Still
I'm sure Gummers How will be a challenge in the gale.
Cheers,
Bryan
Tuesday 20th December
Email
from Tony to Bryan
22nd December
Dear
Bryan.
I
am very surprised that you let a little matter like
a gale stop you from joining us today.
Actually
we were more worried about rain. There had been
torrential downpours through the night and the roads
were flooded.
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However, Don was convinced that all would
be well as long as we delayed our start and I must say
that I really enjoyed that extra hour in bed.
It
was like old times when we parked at the Hare &
Hounds in Bowland Bridge.
Mike produced sausages.
He did bring an extra one in case you had decided
to join us but as you hadn't, I ate it.
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It
was still a bit showery when we set off walking but
that was not the problem. Don's route took us
across a stream (by footbridge) and then across a field.
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Only it was impassable.
It was a quagmire
as Terry discovered when he sank to his knees in what
we hope was just mud.
Try as we might, we couldn't
find a way through.
Robin saved the day by sounding
the retreat.
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Back to the road we went and along
to the next footpath. That one worked. We reached
a road where both ends of the rainbow could be seen.
Sadly we hadn't brought a spade to dig for treasure.
z.jpg)
However,
we before long did find treasure.
First,
though, we crossed Lobby Bridge on the old county boundary
line.....
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.....
took the Comitibus photo.....
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Comitibus: Near
Lobby Bridge
.....and
walked the wet lanes up to the ancient Hodge Hill Hall.
We
were heading for St
Anthony's Church
at Cartmel Fell. What a cracking little gem this
is. 500 years old and still with its boxed pews
and triple decker pulpit.
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By
now we could see that Don was right about the weather
if not about the route. The sun was shining.
Our
next target was the "monument" at Raven's
Barrow (Cartmel Fell).
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This was new to all of
us except Mike who knew the way. It's a short
steepish climb but worth it for the views.
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The "monument"
itself is a little strange- it has a sort of in-built
seat.
We
carried on west across the fields. I think Don
would have had us plodding on all day but it had gone
past noon and you know what that means. At Heights
Cottage I went on strike and ate my butties in the sun.
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The
section past Sow How Tarn and on to the farm was really
nice. Gentle rolling countryside. Sunshine.
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Next
was the ascent of Gummers How. Refuelled and re-energised
by my pit stop whilst the others had starved themselves,
all of a sudden I was full of energy and led the charge
to the summit.
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That is where it was windy. Very
windy. In fact Don was almost blown over.
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We
were glad to get off the top and head down past the
Reservoir and through the woods to meet the road.
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It
was a bit of a slog along here. It's a pity there isn't
an off-road way back to Bowland Bridge but the views
are good.
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We resisted the temptations of the Mason's
Arms, mainly because we had a treat lined up at the
Hare & Hounds. The kitchen was by now closed
but they had plated up some rather tasty meat and cheese
butties for us.
They had made an extra one in
case you had decided to join us but as you haven't,
I ate it.
Must
end now; I am about to get stuck into my third pint.
Don't you just wish you had been with us? You
missed a treat.
Cheers,
Tony
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The
above report has stimulated further correspondence.
Email
from Bryan to Don
24th December
Dear
Don,
I must admit to harbouring some doubts about the veracity
of Tony’s contribution to this report.
Tony
as we know is a busy man and so likes to make the maximum
use of any free time he has. This can be seen
in his e-mail correspondence, which rarely exceeds two
sentences in length. Typical examples are...
- Any
Pub!
- Agreed!
- Sounds
like a plan, see you in the morning
- All
my boxes ticked - surprise me!
- Put
me down for the burger and chips!!
- Happy
to go with whatever democracy (or you) dictates!
Indeed
his initial response to my apology for not remembering
to invite him along was....
I
have searched my inbox and junk e-mail folder and can
find no evidence of receiving the missive. So
I’m sure you can understand my doubt when confronted
with an alleged epistle on the delights of windy walking.
Happy
Xmas, Bryan
Email
from Tony to Bryan
24th December
I'm
so hurt that you'd think I'd claim another's work as
my own!! I was up till 3 a.m. composing it! That's
the last time I'm doing it.
Antonio
Pinocchio
Email
from Don to Bryan
24th December
Dear
Bryan,
I understand your doubts about the veracity of Tony’s
contribution to the report. It is true that Tony’s
normal mode of communication by email is brief and to
the point. Normally when writing he is sober and
succinct. Pour a couple of beers down his throat
and all of a sudden he becomes highly lockwayshus. At
that point, as the use of his vocal cords flourishes,
his ability to type diminishes so it was left to
me to take the dictation.
I
am sorry if the original email did not reach you. Mea
Culpa.
Happy
Christmas, Don
Email
from Tony to All
24th December
Dear
All, I've
already told Don I'm up for the Nobel literary award!!
Best
wishes to everyone, Tony
If you would like to comment on this report, please
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We look forward to hearing from you. If you do NOT want your comments to appear on this
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| STATISTICS
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BB1644
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| Date:
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Thursday
22nd December 2016
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| Distance
in miles:
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10.0
miles
(Garmin)
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| Height
climbed in feet:
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1,479
(Anquet
Harvey)
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| Features:
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Raven's
Barrow, Gummers How
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| Comitibus:
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Don,
Mike, Robin, Terry, Tony
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Map
shown: OS 1:25k
BOOTboys
routes are put online in gpx format which
should work with most mapping software. You can follow
our route in detail by downloading bb1644 .
To
discover which Wainwright top was visited on which BB outing
- although it may not be that up to date - or for the totals of the mileages and heights (ditto) see the Excel
file: BB Log.
You
can navigate to the required report via the Home
Page
Photos
have been gleaned from many sources
although mostly
from me and other BOOTboys. Likewise written comment.
I apologise if I have
failed to acknowledge properly the source or infringed
copyright. Please let me
know and I will do my best to put things right.
Unless stated
otherwise, please feel free to download the material
if you wish.
A reference back to this website
would be appreciated.
Wainwrights
To
see which Wainwright top was visited on which BB outing
see Which
Wainwright When?
This
may or may not be up to date!
For the latest totals
of the mileages, heights and Lakeland Fells Books Wainwrights see: Wainwrights.
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2016
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