23-24/08/14 - Coniston Old Man, Dow Crag - (me, Luca)

Luca and I went out for a trek with our tents etc in back packs, our first wild camp in the hills. The first objective was Coniston Old Man. The was surprisingly hard with our packs on - far harder than other recent walks in the hills. But the weather was good and views were excellent. There was also a lot of interest (and excuses to stop), in the old quarries which the path meanders through.
Once we'd reached the first peak we carried on to Dow Crag where the number of people reduced significantly and an enjoyable scramble was required to reach the top (we ditched our bags to make things a bit easier and more pleasurable).

The plan was then to go to Seathwaite Tarn, hide our gear and carry on to Wetherlam and then return later to Seathwaite Tarn to camp. However, were were pretty tired and it was quite a bit later than planned. On our way we stopped for some hot soup (heated on my new stove), at which point we had about 15 minutes of rain (the only rain of the whole weekend).

We located a decent spot to camp, it was level, but very stony - not sure if it was natural or mad made. We hid our gear and trekked about half way up Grey Carrs before tiring and going back for more soup. We then get more energy and got about half way up the steep incline to Grey Friar - before running out of day light.

It was a cold, but very starry night and we were completely alone in a beautiful valley - except for a lot of sheep.

I woke up before Luca. I walked 50 yards up the hill to the point where the sun was reaching and the walked down as it gradually lit the valley. When the sun hit the tent I woke Luca, burnt some beans for breakfast and set off. The second day didn't involve any large hills, but instead went through and round them. We tried to take a few shot cuts - which may or may not have been successful, but they did start to get Luca feeling comfortable making decisions about direction and route.

We stopped at a stream to fill our water bottles (we were making good use of some water purifying tablets), and I realised why you're always advised to carry 2 compasses - mine slipped out of my bag and into the stream. Luckily, I'd heeded the advice and did actually have 2 compasses!

I made some poor assessments along the way and I was unsure about our location and correct route for some time. I was a bit concerned that we would struggle to get back without running out of food and good humour, but Luca remained focussed and kept me going (not being patronising here, it's true!)

Eventually we found a good path and arrived in Coniston. Had a beer,crisps and a scone (to top the cost up so that I could pay with my card!).

GPX File

02/08/14 - Snowdon, Ranger Path - (me, Luca, Steve, Hayley, Conners, Rachel)

This was a dry run for the "boys trip"to Scotland in September (with Conners and Steve), but their wives came too (Dani was packing for the holiday), as did Luca (which made me very proud).
The path surprisingly quiet, but visibility was very poor and progressively cold and windy. Luca was storming ahead - no-one else could keep up.

The wind was really howling as we reached the level section before the final ascent. We saw a dark shape through the mist and heard a bizarre whirring, howl. We were allquizzing over what it was - a tornado was a popular choice - when we realised it was the train!

We got to the top and went for a coffee (!!!). Met a guy in the shop, he had a massive scar on his face and seemed friendly, but a bit off-centre. He claimed to the park warden. He also claimed to be on the from of OL6 map. I checked when I got home and he was, so I felt guilty for doubting him.
We were turfed out of the shop after just a few minutes because it was so windy they were "evacuating".

Weather cleared on the way down. Completed the walk in a fairly swift 4 hours. Went to a pub for a pint on the way back - Luca was quiet but uncomplaining (outwardly at least)

GPX File