Spring Has Sprung ….

Finally, after it was beginning to feel like we’d never see the back of winter, spring appears to have arrived. OK, so there’s been the odd cold, wet back-slip-to-February kind of day here and there, but increasingly the sun has shone and temperatures have been creeping up – first into double figures, then breaking the 20°C barrier.

Along with the obvious signs of spring, May has also heralded the beginning of a busy summer season of walking, and the trips we have been planning throughout the long, dark winter months are getting steadily nearer. Routes have been researched, plans have been made, and gear has been bought: all of which will bear fruit in the months to come.

Besides this, we have stepped up the walking, coped with a draining time at work and been involved in several family-and-friend commitments, the result of which has been a busy few weeks – hence this summary rather than detailed posts on a route-by-route basis.

Since Easter, we have concentrated in topping up our walking fitness in readiness for the treks to come – 8 to 12 miles every other weekend (a typical winter schedule) is not the same as the 15 to 20 miles per day on consecutive days that we will need to be doing. Mostly, this has taken the form of some local circuits to get some miles in our legs, coupled with a few longer ‘training’ walks to add time on our feet and a few hills to the mix.

The good thing is that the effort seems to have paid off. Last weekend we did the second of two jaunts over the Long Mynd and back again (about 13.25 miles each time, and the source of the accompanying photographs) with no discernable difficulty, even though we felt a bit tired and our energy levels seemed low right from the outset.

Easter In Dentdale – Day 3

Upper Dentdale & The PBW – approx 14.35 miles

Sunday March 31st 2013

Map: OS Explorer OL2 – Yorkshire Dales Southern & Western Areas

Dentdale – Ewegales Bridge – Lea Yeat – Stonehouse – Cowgill – Dent Head – Newby Head – Pennine Bridleway (N) – Dent Fell – Coal Road – Dent Station – Lea Yeat – Ewegales Bridge – Dentdale

Another chilly morning dawned, this time without the mitigating warmth of the sun. So it was under slate grey skies that we set off up the dale.

Suffering no ill effects from yesterday’s outing, we felt we were beginning to get back to something like proper fitness again. Considering what we have coming later in the year, this is good news! But we wanted another reasonably testing outing – one with a mix of distance and difficulty – to satisfy ourselves we are close to being ready for consecutive full days on the trail.

The first part of the walk was a trundle up the dale – essentially following the Dales Way via Ewegales Bridge, Lea Yeat and Cowgill to Dent Head viaduct. Some Dales Way-ers decry this part of the route, claiming that the lengthy road walk detracts from the experience as a whole, and instead take a higher route via the Craven Way from Ribblehead across the flanks of Whernside. But we (and others, happily) are of the opinion that Upper Dentdale is a unique place with a special atmosphere, and worthy of its place on the route.

Anyway, I digress.

Pottering up the dale is easy enough going. In compensation there is plenty of “countryside” in evidence to add interest to the journey – including some of the more arcane practices.

Later in the walk, we came across Crows tied similarly to the fence. Presumably, they are killed because of a perceived threat to young lambs, but I must admit I thought this type of practice – at least as far as Crows are concerned – had pretty much died out?

As if we needed any reminding, winter is still proving hard to shrug off: what little water there is still subject to its icy grip.

Just below Dent Head viaduct we paused for a quick break, glad of the chance for a hot drink and a quick bite. A bite of a different kind came as we passed under the viaduct and out on to the more open ground of Blea Moor – a powerful, icy wind nipping at any uncovered skin. Jackets were donned.

At the junction with the Pennine Bridleway we turned for home. Climbing away from the road along the stony track, with snow-capped Pen-y-Ghent and frozen Ingleborough visible away to the south, it was as if we had suddenly been transported to Narnia or the arctic tundra of the far North.

Soon, though, the hard work of the day was to begin in earnest. As we rose higher, the snow became deeper and the going more energy sapping. By the time we reached the top of Arten Gill we were ready for another break, so we found as sheltered a spot as we could, made more hot drinks and ate our lunch.

The next section – below Great Knoutberry Hill, as far as the Coal Road – made for a real wintry experience. The prevailing winds, funnelled along the dale, had driven the snow into sizeable drifts.

Plenty of fun was had floundering through the drifts. For some reason we found the gates easier to negotiate than usual, and the low-level signage provided a different perspective.

On reaching the Coal Road we found the way over to Garsdale completely blocked to traffic by the drifts. How long this might take to clear is anyone’s guess, but it’ll be a while if the temperatures stay as low as they have been.

We turned the other way. A trundle down the road, past Dent Station, and down the steep incline brought us into Lea Yeat. Sitting on a handy wall, we took another break for food and drink – and mobile phone retrieval: fortunately snow prevented a wetter or more inelastic landing.

From Lea Yeat it was a straightforward potter back along the Dales Way.

With miles in our legs and time on our feet in the bank, and some great time in the great outdoors, it had been the perfect weekend - if a bit on the cold side!

Easter In Dentdale – Day 2

Deepdale, The Occupation Road & Dent – approx 13.10 miles

Saturday March 30th 2013

Map: OS Explorer OL2 – Yorkshire Dales Southern & Western Areas

Dentdale – Dyke Hall Lane – Deepdale – Mire Garth – White Shaw – The Occupation Road Blea Gills – Ralph’s Moss – South Lord’s Land – Barbondale Road – Gawthrop – Dent – Dentdale

After yesterday’s relatively easy trundle we wanted something a bit meatier to get our teeth into today, so we chose this circuit linking Dentdale, Deepdale and Barbondale by the Occupation Road.

The sun was already shining as we set off, and last night’s bitter cold and frost had all but dissipated as we made our way along Dyke Hall Lane and on into Deepdale. Even at busy times, this route below the western flank of Whernside is usually quiet, and today proved no exception – apart from a couple of chaps staying at Mire Garth Farm we saw no one at all.

Last time we came this way – unbelievably Whitsun 2010, if I recall correctly – the sun was shining and the fields full of meadow flowers. But today the ground was wet and marshy: despite the cold and lack of rain, too wet to be mud free, not frozen enough to make for easier going.

The climb out of the dale across White Shaw is always steep. With snowy patches and part-frozen ground underfoot purchase was sometimes difficult to come by, but we made the road without incident. Behind us, Aye Gill Pike and the distant Howgills were topped with the merest sprinkle of snow.

Ahead, though, was a different story. Here, winter was still holding sway, snowdrifts were very much in evidence, and the whole walk took on a new, more interesting dimension.

The Occupation Road wends its way around the flanks of Great Coum, Crag Hill and Towns Fell, until it reaches Barbondale Road some 5½ miles later. In days of yore, it was a smooth, green packhorse track, allowing the movement of goods such as peat and coal from the high fells. Now, apart from the first mile or so (which has been repaired), it is quite badly damaged, deeply rutted and eroded, and prone to being wet and muddy for much of the time.

So the deep snow was a help to progress, at least in parts where the crust was firm and the snow compact. Admittedly, it was possible to break through to the puddles beneath and get an unpleasant boot full of cold, muddy water, but this happened to only one foot and didn’t detract too much from the sense of enjoyment.

After a couple of miles, we found a slightly sheltered spot for lunch. On a day such as this, a mug of hot soup is a real spirit lifter – as are the views, which are always a real highlight of this path.

We continued along the track, past the turn-off to Slack, and on to reach the top of Flintergill – the direct route down to Dent. We had initially intended to make our way back from here, but the day was yet young and we were keen for more, so we modified our plans and carried on.

On reaching Barbondale Road we passed a couple of farmhands sorting sheep. With snowy patches at higher levels and bitterly cold nights, bringing the expectant ewes off the fells to lamb in lower, more sheltered fields makes a lot of sense.

Finally, in the late afternoon sunshine, we wandered home – through Gawthrop and on towards Dent, where the lure of a pot of tea was too much to resist. Cake also appeared, consumed with no guilt whatsoever as we looked back on a good day’s walking.

A Grassington Weekend – Day 2

Buckden Pike From Kettlewell – 12.25 miles

Sunday 3rd March 2013

Map: OS Explorer OL30 Yorkshire Dales Northern & Central Areas

Kettlewell – Top Mere Road – Starbotton Road – Starbotton Peat Ground – Tor Mere Top – Memorial Cross – Buckden Pike – Cow Close – Buckden Rake – Buckden – Dales Way (S) – Kettlewell

A very different sort of day greeted us this morning: overcast and cooler, with yesterday’s sunshine a mere memory. And, as if to reinforce the asymmetry, we had a very different sort of walk planned, too.

For those not overly familiar with the area, Buckden Pike might be something of an unknown quantity. But at 702m it ranks as 7th highest in the Yorkshire Dales (higher, in fact, than Pen-y-Ghent, one of the classic Yorkshire 3 Peaks) although it is a rather more pudding-shaped summit than the designation “Pike” might infer.

We left Kettlewell by Top Mere Road, a clear, walled track that ascends steadily to the north. Though the rise is steady the gradient is substantial, and soon views have opened out over Wharfedale and the village. As we climbed, we saw two Stoats chasing each other across the path – but whether fighting or frolicking we were unable to determine. Away to our right sat the bulk of Great Whernside, fringed with a smattering of late, lingering snow.

Eventually the gradient eased, the path levelled out and we left the track for more open moorland. On reaching Starbotton Road, the track took a long swing to the northeast whilst our route turned sharp left. We lost the path amid a jumble of hillocks and tussocky grass, and ended up striking a line across the bog. That it was wet underfoot came as no surprise – after all, there was a clue in the name: Starbotton Peat Ground. But we could see the wall that we needed to handrail towards the summit and, after a short, wet plodge, we were back on track again.

We kept the wall to our left as we turned northwards once more. Remnants of recent drifts lay at the base, and we found that keeping to the edge provided the easiest going, neither too slippery nor too boggy.

Before long we passed a memorial cross, dedicated to the memory of five Polish airmen whose Wellington bomber crashed here in January 1942 with just one survivor.

Even less-well-known peaks like Buckden Pike can be busy, and today was no exception despite the conditions. The last stretch between the memorial and the summit had been (officially) diverted to the west side of the wall to prevent further erosion of the original path, and soon we were on the summit – a flattish expanse marked by a trig point and a cairn – hunkered down against the strengthening wind and tucking into our lunch. Even on a dull day the views are worthwhile, with many of the area’s highest peaks visible from here.

The route down to Buckden is far more direct. The initial steep descent was made trickier by further snowdrifts, but soon we were making way across the fell side towards Buckden Rake.

On a previous version of this walk we took a longer route from here – to Cray, along the fell side and down to Hubberholme before heading home – adding a couple more miles to the distance. But today we turned directly for Buckden where we took a short tea break before picking up the Dales Way southwards for the return to Kettlewell.

It’s a pleasant stroll in comparison to the more strenuous morning’s walking and an easy way to notch up a few miles. There was plenty of bird life to be seen along the riverbank (possibly an indication spring is on its way, and that the sap is rising) in particular a large group of Oystercatchers – birds we normally associate with groups of 2 or 3 individuals together.

It was around 5.00pm when we got back to the near-empty car park, almost everyone else having already left. As we loaded our mucky gear into the boot, we reflected on a good walk, a great day out and a thoroughly enjoyable weekend, and we certainly felt as if we had made the most of this unexpected opportunity to spend some much-needed quality time in the Dales.