Yewbarrow and Red Pike, 4th May 2015

Pillar continues to elude me, in that I’m not yet ready for it, or at least I have to reconsider how to get to the west side of the Lake District, do big, long walks and get home. The answer is not to try to do it all in one day. I spent as long driving the car as I did up the hill.

So despite getting up at 6 a.m. I didn’t start walking until 10.35 from the National Trust car park at Overbeck on Wast Water. I’d stopped for a very express espresso at Lancaster services and once to send a text. As I put my boots on the lace broke but I had the emergency laces to hand (probably the most essential of the emergency kit). My original plan had been to walk the Mosedale horseshoe which is a very big walk and so I cut it back to climb Yewbarrow and then decide how much further to go. I chatted to a Dutch family in the car park. They had 2 small children and it was their first ever mountain.

The climb up Yewbarrow is quite stiff and quickly reaches scrambling territory. I had to think out my moves but at least with scrambling you get to cover a lot of height quite quickly. I met up with the Dutch family at the top of the gully and they had wisely (the children were only about 5 or 6) decided to retrace their steps. They seemed to have had quite an adventure. It took me 2 hours to get to the top of Yewbarrow. I then whizzed along the top ridge and scrambled down to Dore Head and stopped for lunch on the col.

I decided to climb Red Pike as it seemed a straightforward climb and would notch up another Wainwright. And it was and it did. On the descent there appeared to be a rescue taking place on the side of Great Gable, the Sea King helicopter spent a lot of time going back and forth and eventually went away without apparently having rescued anyone. A rescue did take place, see Wasdale MR for more info.

Back down the valley along a wet path on the western flank of Yewbarrow and down to the car. And then 3 hours and 20 minutes to get home.

Pillar still on the To Do list!

Apart from the first one, photos are in reverse order.

Yewbarrow looking very pointy
Yewbarrow looking very pointy
U shaped valley along Over Beck
U shaped valley along Over Beck
And with Herdwicks
And with Herdwicks
Great Gable looking very mysterious
Great Gable looking very mysterious
Pillar and companions in the background
Pillar and companions in the background
Such poise
Such poise
Stirrup Crag on Yewbarrow's north end
Stirrup Crag on Yewbarrow’s north end
Dore Head col looking to Red Pike
Dore Head col looking to Red Pike
Yewbarrow ridge to Stirrup Crag
Yewbarrow ridge to Stirrup Crag
Great Door (and so it is)
Great Door (and so it is)
Wast Water
Wast Water

 

Please visit Map and Compass and learn how to interpret a map and use a compass with me and my navigation partner, Cath.

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