Carlisle & District Rambling & Fellwalking Club

Walk & Event Reports

Sunday 30th July 2017

A Walk

Coniston Old Man - Dow Crag

8 Miles Grade 1

Leader: Pete Rutland

Report by Peter Flynn

Photos by Chris McKay, Pete Rutland, Peter Flynn

If someone were to invent a device that somehow measured brain cell activity and rang a psychological bell to tell the recipient NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TO GET UP THAT DAY then Lesley Bruce would be first in line to buy one.  It started about 20 minutes into the walk.  The tip of her new walking pole went adrift and a search of the path to the last known spot where she definitely had it produced zilch.  Then in about an hour the sole on her (fairly new) climbing boots came adrift and started flapping about.  We managed the Old Man without further mishap and took  the path round to Dow.  By this time it was misty and quite wet with persistent rain.  About half a mile past the summit,  with conditions where one had to be very careful (one or two people were slipping about) she suddenly took a nose dive, and landed face down catching her glasses and cutting her eyebrow.  It was not only amazing,  but also very encouraging to see how many first aid packages were suddenly produced.  Also,  Pete and Chris, both qualified first aiders, sorted out the injury with no problem.  Apart from that, it was a day of glimpses.  Going up was fairly clear – glimpses of all the surrounding countryside,  Morecambe Bay,  Duddon Estuary,  Esthwaite Water,  Coniston, Windermere and all the surrounding peaks.  We passed Low Water,  we could see Levers Water and, when we reached the summit ridge,  Goats Water.  Grey Friar and Wetherlam looked very inviting.  After Dow Crag, (which only 4 bothered to climb whilst the rest skirted round it), with its superb and scary rock formations, (treacherous today), we headed down the Walna Scar Path,  and had fortunately taken a short break when half a dozen suicidal cyclists raced past us at a high rate of knots (no doubt looking to finish off Leslie for good).  A warm welcome to Fiona who joined us for the first and hopefully not the last time.  Many thanks to Pete, the anonymous retired ex police person for leading the walk so efficiently.

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Peter