Carlisle & District Rambling & Fellwalking Club

Walk & Event Reports

Sunday 29th May 2016

70th Birthday Walks & Dinner

Helvellyn - Striding Edge, Place Fell, Grisedale Valley

Walk Leaders:Pete Rutland, Graham Bell, Madge Hamilton

Reports by Peter Flynn & John McKay

Photos by  Pete Rutland, Peter Flynn, Lauren Sarasini, Ann Kin-Cleaves, John McKay, Gill Thompson

 

Peter's Report

 

For those on it for the first time,  Striding Edge was amazing.  I do wonder how many of the original bus passengers 70 years ago,  whose ascent we were repeating had ever been there before.  As John mentioned in his speech last night,  conditions would have been very very different.  Clothing and footwear came from the Army Navy stores.  Maps were much less detailed.  No clear paths.  Even less accurate weather forecasts than we have now. No sign posts to help you at every twist and turn.  No GPS if you were lost.  Mainly,  except for the Millican Daltons of this world,  no knowledge of the destination.   First of all,  from the only negative point of view,  the crowds.  There were a lot of folk there but nobody really held us up and there was a great spirit,  everyone chatting to each other,  even offering help and guidance as to which foothold to go for,  that sort of thing.  The inevitable comparisons with Sharp Edge and other ridges further afield cropped up,  but to my mind, comparisons are as unimportant as lists – Corbetts,  Wainwrights,  Munros etc. etc.  The important thing is you and the mountain in whatever shape or form it is in,  and on a day like yesterday, Striding Edge and the whole of the ascent to Helvellyn was at its best and most enjoyable.  Hard work,  granted,  but brilliant.  15 of us set off from Glenridding with several of the ladies committing a heinous crime in the village – between them they did not have a 20p for the toilets,  so climbed over the turnstile!!  (The men would never have stooped so low – not with loads of trees,  rocks etc. offering a free service.)  En route up,  Samaya and I were at the back chatting when suddenly we caught sight of a lizard,  sunning itself on the rocks off the path.  I took several photos but could not focus them properly,  though one of them does indicate what it was like.  After Striding Edge we climbed up to the summit and down via Swirral Edge – to my mind much trickier and needing more care.  After that it was an easy walk back to Glenridding,  with a stop for a glass of Ginger wine to toast the hardy pioneers from 1946.  From Glenridding we had the excellent meal at the Blue Rare with several of the older members sharing it with us.  Thanks to Pete Rutland for a superb piece of leading and to John for organising the 70th birthday celebrations.  A memorable day.

 

Peter
 
John's Report
 
What a wonderful day we had to-day. Forty five on the coach and absolutely glorious weather. We dropped the A party in Glennridding and they headed off to tackle Striding Edge and Helvellyn. The rest of us carried on to Paterdale, dropping off the B party on the way, who were heading for Place Fell. The C party led by Madge strolled gently up the Grisedale Valley. Along the way there was lots of evidence of the devastation caused by the recent floods. The party split at the lunch stop with five of the more energetic members deciding to carry on to Grisedale Tarn. The rest of us carried on down the other side of the valley and finally reached  Lanty’s Tarn. It was time for a short stop, not a tea or coffee stop but a champagne stop, to celebrate our 70th birthday. Madge, being the walk leader, was given the honour of opening the bottle, which she did in dramatic style. With a loud pop the cork soared high in the air and plopped down gently in the middle of the tarn. We toasted the club, wished it happy birthday and sipped our champagne in glorious sunshine. It was then back down to Glenridding for refreshment before heading back to Carlisle. We ended the evening in style with a birthday dinner in the Bluerare and what a dinner it was, did anyone manage to finish all three courses?  A fantastic day, thank you to the walk leaders and everyone who came along for the walks and the dinner for making it such a memorable day.
 
John
 
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