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9.33 miles, 2,667 feet, 2 hours 43 minutes: Wansfell Pike and Wansfell true top, ascending via the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park, Blue Hill Road and the steps, and descending via High Skelghyll and Skelghyll Lane. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. No wind nor rain. Terrain dry/wet/damp and slippery in places. Not many walkers about; 3 fellow runners seen.
10.43 miles, 1,717 feet, 2 hours 35 minutes: Loughrigg trails, taking in the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park, Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag, Lily and Loughrigg Tarns, High Close Arboretum, and Loughrigg top. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet; no wind; a few minutes of drizzle. Terrain dry/damp/wet and slippery in places, particularly the rocks. Lots of walkers on the steps up from Grasmere and on the path up past the old golf club. 4 other runners seen.
10.3 miles, 3,057 feet, 3 hours 7 minutes: Wansfell Pike, and along the ridge to the true top, ascending via the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park and Blue Hill Road, and descending via High Skelghyll and Skelghyll Lane. Initially overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet; intermittent drizzle. Sunny later, with the remaining clouds being above the high tops. No wind. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places, particularly the rocks. Quite a few walkers on the fell. Only 1 other runner seen.
15.1 miles, 4,352 feet, 4 hours 26 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Under Loughrigg - Rydal - Fairfield Horseshoe c/w to Dove Crag, going over the tops and keeping to the left on the Fairfield plateau - High Bakestones - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Sunshine and high clouds, a moderate breeze from the south, no rain. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Quite a few walkers on the fell; 4 other runners seen.
Descending the south ridge of Red Screes, having crossed the first wall, there is a choice between the main path on the left, and the more subtle runner's trod slightly to the right. For a change I tried the main path - it is distinctly inferior, with several boggy drops; the runner's trod is 100% runnable, though it takes several recces before being able to reliably stay on it.
8.04 miles, 2,726 feet, 2 hours 33 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 3 sides (W, E, S/E) and along the ridge to the true top, ascending via Blue Hill Road, and descending via High Skelghyll and Skelghyll Lane. Sunshine and clouds, with the cloud base just catching some of the high tops. No wind; a few minutes of drizzle. Terrain dry/damp with mainly good grip. Lots of walkers about; no other runners seen.
10 miles, 2,231 feet, 3 hours: Loughrigg trails, taking in the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park, Fishgarths Wood, Lilly Tarn, Loughrigg top, and part of the up and coming juniors' race descent. Sunshine and high clouds, one or two of the latter just catching the highest tops. A gentle breeze from the south. No rain. Terrain dry with good grip. Lots of walkers on all routes. 3 other runners seen - they were in the valley, not on the fell.
The race descent for the U17 and U20 age groups was bashed through the bracken a few days ago; the section I went on follows the wall on the right of the fell gate to the little wooden footbridge halfway down to Miller Bridge - ideally lots of people will use it in the next week to bed it in.
12.04 miles, 3,311 feet, 3 hours 35 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Stoney Lane - Low Sweden Bridge - around the rock step - Low/High Pikes - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Overcast with some patches of blue sky; the clouds were above the high tops. No wind nor rain. Terrain dry with good grip. Surprisingly few walkers on the fells, given the good forecast and the fact that it is a long weekend. $ fellow runners seen.
10.06 miles, 2,245 feet, 2 hours 55 minutes: Loughrigg trails, ascending via Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag, Lily and Loughrigg Tarns, and High Close Arboretum; and taking in part of the junior race route on the descent. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. No rain nor wind. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places, particularly the rocks. Lots of walkers on the fell; no other runners seen.
7.7 miles, 1,067 feet, 1 hour 55 minutes: Ings - Brant Fell - School Knott - Ings. Sunshine and high clouds; no wind nor rain. Terrain dry with good grip. Not many walkers about.
This was an AAC club run on a route I have done many times over the years, but would still get lost on if by myself - there were about 15 of us. Again, my lack of speed showed, both on tarmac and on technical terrain.
10.3 miles, 3,074 feet, 3 hours 17 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides (E,W) and along the ridge to the true top. Overcast, with the cloud base above the tops; no rain; a moderate wind from the east. Terrain dry with good grip. Not many walkers about; no other runners seen.
12.06 miles, 2,123 feet, 3 hours 11 minutes: Loughrigg trails, taking in the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park, Clappersgate, Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag, Lily and Loughrigg Tarns, High Close Arboretum, Loughrigg top, and descending via the trod bashed out through the bracken for Saturday's junior races. Sunshine and high clouds; no wind nor rain, terrain dry with good grip. Lots of walkers about; only 1 other runner seen.
7.09 miles, 2,791 feet, 2 hours 25 minutes: Tilberthwaite - Steel Edge - Wetherlam - Black Sails - Black Sails south ridge - Kennel Crag - Hole Rake - Tilberthwaite. Sunshine and high clouds; no wind nor rain. Terrain dry with good grip. Very few walkers about. This was an AAC run - there were 8 of us; 2 other runners seen.
To think Wainwright completely missed Steel Edge - it is such a good way up.
9.55 miles, 2,443 feet, 3 hours 38 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including watching the U17 and U20 races, and ascending/descending part of their routes. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. A moderate breeze from the south; a few minutes of drizzle/light rain. Terrain dry/damp with good grip alert from some rocks. Quite a few walkers on the fell.
There were about 110 juniors in total in the races. Their fitness, skill and bravery is to be envied.
11.65 miles, 3,089 feet, 3 hours 54 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides (E+W) including along the ridge to the true top. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet; hazy below that. A few minutes of drizzle. Terrain damp/wet; rocks slippery. Not many walkers about. 5 other runners seen.
I started with drills and strides in Borrans Park: high knees, bum kicks, straight legs, side to side, skipping, and hopscotch; then 2 miles worth of 120 - 140 yard efforts.
15.13 miles, 4,398 feet, 4 hours 58 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Under Loughrigg - Rydal - Fairfield Horseshoe c\w to Dove Crag - High Bakestones - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Sunshine and clouds; initially the cloud base was at about 1,900 feet, later it was above the high tops. No rain; a moderate wind from the south. Terrain dry/damp/wet and slippery in places. Very few walkers on the fells; 1 other runner seen.
I went over the tops on the Horseshoe, including on the plateau. I found a new path over the top of Hart Crag - it may even be faster than the runners' trod to the south, and is certainly less rocky. Just as the main path starts to descend, opposite a large cairn, on the right, there are steps up in the grass at 90 degrees to the path - it soon flattens out, turns left, and joins up with the runner's trod. Then either join the main path, or, better still, if you know it, continue the runners' trod down to the wall.
9.34 miles, 1,654 feet, 2 hours 31 minutes: Loughrigg trails. Overcast, with the cloud base initially at about 2,000 feet, lower later. Virtually constant drizzle/light rain. No wind. Terrain wet and slippery in places. Very few walkers about; 2 other runners seen.
A few days back I passed some lads who looked like they were packing up after camping the night near Todd Crag. They left a large black scar in the grass, some odd bits of litter, and a large plastic bag full of I don't know what has been thrown into the bracken. It will be hard to retrieve as it is on a very steep slope.
Take only photos, leave only footprints.
9.42 miles, 3,063 feet, 3 hours 4 minutes: Wansfell Pike from the west and the east, and along the ridge to the true top. Sunshine and clouds; the cloud base was initially at about 1,500 feet, later above the tops. No rain. A moderate breeze from the south. Terrain damp/wet/saturated and slippery in places. Quite a few walkers on the fell. 1 other runner seen.
A sign not far from Stagshaw Gardens said "Please keep out - Japanese knotweed". It was not at all clear which piece of land the sign was referring to.
That's intriguing. Is there Japanese knotweed there, and the sign-makers are worried you'll spread it? It's not dangerous or toxic to humans or animals.
From the News and Star back in May:Quote:
Originally Posted by noel
The Cumbria Japanese knotweed hotspots for 2022 are: Carlisle with 33 infestations in a 4km radius, Maryport with 20, Workington with 22, Whitehaven with 17, Ambleside with 53, Windermere with 24, Kendal with 18, Milnthorpe with 22 and Barrow with 16.
13.25 miles, 3,233 feet, 4 hours 3 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe anti-clockwise from Rothay Bridge, going around the rock step and keeping the wall on my left on the ascent, taking the tourist path over Hart Crag, and the trod to the north on the Fairfield plateau. On the descent I took the 4 grassy trods to the right/west around the tops. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. Virtually constant drizzle/light rain, but not cold as there was essentially no wind. Terrain wet/saturated and the rocks in particular were very slippery. A couple of dozen walkers seen on the fell - I did not see any other runners.
Descending Nab Scar from the wall to the kissing gate took me 26 minutes - it usually takes me 27 minutes to ascend this section.
I came across a chap on the Fairfield plateau who had come up over Cofa Pike, and could not find the main path. Luckily he was not far from it, but he still had the challenge of Hart Crag in poor visibility to contend with.
9.49 miles, 3,080 feet, 3 hours 4 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides (west, then east), taking in the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park, the Champion Tree Trail, Stagshaw Gardens, Blue Hill Road, and along the ridge to the true top. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet; a few patches of blue sky. Intermittent drizzle. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places. A few walkers on the fell. No other runners seen.
14.04 miles, 4,085 feet, 4 hours 28 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Hart Crag - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Sunshine and clouds, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. No rain; no significant wind. Terrain damp/wet/saturated and slippery. Lots of walkers on the fells, many in groups of 4 to 8. 2 other runners seen.
On the ascent I went on the west side of the wall from above the rock step to above High Pike - otherwise I was on the east side. I did a loop on Hart Crag, ascending via the rocky tourist path, and descending via the runners' grassy route. They are so close, yet so different in character and, in particular, runnability.
10.42 miles, 2,325 feet, 3 hours 6 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including up the steps from Loughrigg Tarn, and down and back up the race route to/from the road at High Close. Overcast, with some patches of blue sky; the cloud base was at about 2,200 feet. No rain; a moderate breeze from the south. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Lots of walkers on the fell; 3 other runners seen, 1 was collecting arrow signs from one of yesterday's events.
Both the routes mentioned above are now reasonable despite the bracken - I suspect all the walkers have helped to clear the way.
8.26 miles, 2,340 feet, 2 hours 56 minutes: Travellers Rest - Helm Crag - Gibson Knott - Calf Crag - Steel Fell - Travellers Rest. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. No wind; intermittent drizzle/light rain. Terrain saturated and very slippery. I saw a dozen walkers on the fells, and no other runners.
12.69 miles, 3,093 feet, 3 hours 59 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Todd Crag - Lily Tarn - Loughrigg Tarn - High Close Arboretum - Swinescar Pike - Lang How - Silver How - Loughrigg top - Miller Bridge - Rothay Bridge. Sunshine, with scattered clouds, 1 or 2 catching the high tops. No rain nor significant wind. Terrain dry/damp/wet and slippery in places. Lots of walkers on the fells; I bumped into the AAC Tuesday/Friday runners on Swinescar Pike - there about a dozen of them.
8.21 miles, 2,810 feet, 3 hours 28 minutes: NDG - Stickle Tarn - North Rake - Pavey Ark - Thunacar Knott - High Raise - Sergeant Man - Blea Rigg - Stickle Tarn - NDG. Sunshine and clouds; the cloud base was initially at about 2,000 feet, later above most of the high tops. No rain; a moderate wind from the north. Terrain dry/damp/wet and slippery in places. Not many walkers on the fells; 3 other runners seen.
There were some seagulls at Stickle Tarn but I was not swooped today.
Overheard as 2 runners caught a view of Stickle Tarn: "Now I know where I am!"
9.18 miles, 3,904 feet, 4 hours 29 minutes: ODG - The Band - Climber's Traverse - Bowfell - Three Tarns - Crinkle Crags - Red Tarn - Pike o'Blisco - Langdale Horseshoe descent - ODG. Sunshine and high clouds; no rain nor wind. Terrain anything from dry with good grip to wet/saturated and slippery. Not many walkers about; no other runners seen.
It was an amazingly clear day - the Isle of Man was visible.
That descent to Three Tarns is not getting any better.
7.49 miles, 3,096 feet, 3 hours 1 minute: Tilberthwaite - Wetherlam Edge - Wetherlam - Black Sails - just above the cottages - Crook Beck - Tilberthwaite. Sunshine and scattered high clouds. A cold blustery wind from the north east. No rain. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Very few walkers about; no other runners seen.
Unintentionally, I took quite a challenging line up Wetherlam Edge - it was just to the left of the race line, and was very steep - steeper than Steel Edge. I was so glad it was not wet. I think the normal tourist path is further left, though the line I took was clearly a well used route.
PS: Looking at my Garmin trace it would appear I was on the tourist route most of the way up. Some regard it as a grade 1 scramble, which does not surprise me. I did it some years ago, but had forgotten what it was like. 2 people whom I passed on the way up were clearly surprised how steep it was: "We did not realise it was like this - does it get any easier up there?"
7.66 miles, 3,009 feet, 2 hours 55 minutes: Travellers Rest - Winterseeds - Grisedale Hause - Fairfield - descending to Heron Pike, taking the 4 trods to the right/west around the tops - Alcock Tarn - Greenhead Gill Track - Travellers Rest. Sunshine and scattered high clouds, a strong cold wind from the north west, no rain. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Lots of walkers and 2 runners seen. Car parks and town busy.
The buzzard that had swooped me on previous outings when going through Winterseeds was not apparent today.
I had planned on going over Cofa Pike but the wind was too strong for it to be safe.
12.47 miles, 3,624 feet, 3 hours 59 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low /High Pikes - Dove Crag - Hart Crag - Fairfield - back the same way, except finishing at Rattle Ghyll Deli. Overcast, with a few small patches of blue sky; the cloud base was initially at about 2,500 feet, later above the high tops. Intermittent drizzle/light rain; a strong cold wind from the north west. Terrain damp/wet with good grip apart from the rocks. Quite a few walkers and 7 runners seen.
I was mainly on the west side of the wall, except after High Pike on the way up, when I swapped to the other side to get out of the wind - it made a big difference.
14.23 miles, 4,087 feet, 5 hours 12 minutes: Coniston - Walna Scar Road - Brown Pike - Buck Pike - Dow Crag - Goat's Hause - Old Man - Torver descent to Walna Scar Road - Banishead Quarry - Boulder Valley - Kennel Crag - Coniston. Sunshine and high clouds, no rain nor significant wind. Terrain anything from dry to damp/wet/saturated and the rocks in particular were very slippery. Quite a few walkers about; 3 runners seen.
My third pair of 260s only lasted just over 5 weeks. Inov8 want £140 for them - weirdly if I was a woman they would only want £125. Pete Bland prices them at £117, but are out of stock for most sizes. Most other places want £125, if they have them.
9.72 miles, 3,023 feet 3 hours 7 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides (W then E) and along the ridge to the true top. Overcast, with a few patches of blue sky; cloud base initially at about 1,500 feet, later 1,000 feet or so higher. No wind nor rain. Terrain dry with good grip. Quite a few walkers on the fell; no other runners seen.
I have had to go back to an old pair of 255s - studs are well worn, but the grip was OK today.
LSR are currently operating a 6 week turnaround for repairs and resoles! I was hoping for a pair of LSR Talons for the KWL.
10.38 miles, 2,284 feet, 3 hours: Loughrigg trails, taking in the Roman Ruins, Borrans Park, Fishgarths Wood, and Lily and Loughrigg Tarns. The ascent from the road at High Close is 0.5 mile and 600 feet; going up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn is 0.4 mile and 600 feet. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. No wind nor rain. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Not many walkers on the fell; no other runners seen.
9.39 miles, 3,335 feet, 2 hours 56 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides (west, then east) and along the ridge to the true top. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 600 feet. Constant light/moderate rain; a moderate wind from the south west. Terrain saturated/streaming; the rocks were very slippery, though the mud was OK as it did not - yet - have that fine layer of silt on top, and the grass was OK as it is long. Very few walkers about, and only 1 fellow runner seen.
This was the first time I have worn my waterproofs for months.
I came across some fell ponies on the ridge - I clearly spooked them as I appeared out of the dense cloud, and they certainly spooked me.
9.15 miles, 2,171 feet, 2 hours 44 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag, Lily and Loughrigg Tarns, and up both the steps from Loughrigg Tarn and the race route from the road at High Close. Sunshine and high clouds, no rain, no significant wind, terrain anything from dry to damp/wet/saturated and slippery in places, more so than yesterday. Quite a few walkers about; no runners seen
I had my second Covid booster this morning, and started my run from the Lake Road Chemist. It was very slick - in and out in about a minute; I was the only one there - as before painless.
8.29 miles, 3,015 feet, 3 hours 18 minutes: NDG - Stickle Tarn - North Rake - Thunacar Knott - High Raise - Sergeant Man - Blea Rigg - Stickle Tarn - NDG. Sunshine and clouds, some of the latter just catching the high tops. No rain, a cold wind from the north east. Terrain very variable: dry/damp/wet/saturated, and slippery in places. Not many walkers up on the fells, given the good weather and the fact that it is a Saturday; 1 other runner seen. Outdoor cafes busy; the NDG car park was full when I left, though there were signs for an overflow parking field.
8.41 miles, 2,913 feet, 3 hours 10 minutes: Travellers Rest - Winterseeds - Grisedale Hause - Cofa Pike - Fairfield - the 4 grassy trods to the right around the tops to Heron Pike - Greenhead Gill - Travellers Rest. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet; continuous drizzle/light rain after the first hour. A moderate wind from the west. Terrain damp/wet/saturated and slippery in places. Very few walkers about, I saw 4 other runners, 2 near Cofa Pike and 2 in the valley.
The direct descent to the north end of Alcock Tarn from Heron Pike is initially steep grass - it then turns left and splits in 2 - the upper path ends in bracken at the north end of the tarn, the lower path keeps to the left of Butter Crag and is much nicer, though if you want to go to Alcock Tarn it involves a trivial ascent.
12.02 miles, 3,600 feet, 3 hours 44 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - High Bakestones - Scandale - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Ambleside. Sunshine and high clouds, a moderately strong cold wind from the north west. No rain. Terrain anything from dry to wet/saturated/streaming and slippery in places. Very few walkers on the fells; 2 other runners seen.
I wore my pertex trousers today - they certainly helped to keep the wind off. I took the west side of the wall between the rock step and High Pike, swapping to the other side above High Pike to shelter from the wind.