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Yes - on the HBMR FB page Chris calls it the Hodgson 4. Like you I did not go to the cairn on St Raven's edge. I would have liked to do it a bit quicker, but did not want to risk a fall, or blowing up before the end and so not enjoying it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
9.06 miles, 2,550 feet, 2 hours 40 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast, with the clouds just catching some of the high tops. A few minutes of drizzle; a moderate breeze from the south. Terrain dry/damp with good grip. I saw about ten walkers on the fell, and no runners.
I was told off by a farmer - "The path is over there - you should not be here" - it would seem my running causes more harm than the 4-wheel drive they had used to get to where we were.
12.74 miles, 3,210 feet, 3 hours 46 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Loughrigg top - race route descent to the road at High Close - High Close Arboretum - Silver How - High Close Arboretum - up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn - Loughrigg top - past the old golf club - Miller Bridge - Rothay Park - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. A few minutes of drizzle; a few minutes of sunshine. The moderate breeze from the south west was very welcome. Terrain dry/damp/wet and slippery in places. I saw about 2 dozen walkers on the fells, and six runners.
There are lots of tents in Rothay Park for this weekend's Lakeland Trail events.
The Loughrigg Silver How race route is blocked by bracken in places once across the road, so I was mainly on the Kendal Winter League route until the final ascent of Silver How, when the two routes combine. The race descent from Loughrigg top to the road at High Close is nearly blocked as well.
11.82 miles, 3,839 feet, 3 hours 47 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Blue Hill Road/Lane - Wansfell Pike - Wansfell true top - Kirkstone Road to the Inn - St Raven's Edge - Kirkstone Inn - Red Screes - Roundhill Farm - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, very misty in the distance, the cloud base was above the high tops. No rain; a moderate breeze from the south east. Terrain dry with good grip. Not many walkers about. The car park at the Inn was a checkpoint for a Lakeland Trails race - some people were applauded through whilst I was nearby.
This was part of the AAC 40th anniversary route - 23 miles and 9,000 feet if done in one go, but I will be doing it in sections, all from Ambleside, so the totals will be more. Roughly, the route is: Ambleside - Loughrigg - Silver How - Sergeant Man - Calf Crag - Steel Fell - Seat Sandal - Fairfield - Hart and Dove Crags - Red Screes - St Raven's Edge - Wansfell - Wansfell Pike - Ambleside.
19.22 miles, 4,484 feet, 6 hours: Rothay Bridge - Rothay Park - Under Loughrigg - Pelter Bridge - Rydal - Coffin Trail - Dove Cottage - Travellers Rest - Steel Fell - Calf Crag - Sergeant Man - Blea Rigg - Swinescar Pike - Silver How - High Close Arboretum - up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn - Miller Bridge - Rothay Bridge. Sunshine and high clouds; a lovely breeze from the south; no rain. Terrain dry/damp/wet - slippery in places. Lots of walkers about; I saw about a dozen other runners.
This was another section of the AAC 40th anniversary route.
16.94 miles, 5,104 feet, 5 hours 42 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Fairfield Horseshoe anticlockwise with some variations - Rothay Bridge. I went around the rock step; from Fairfield top I descended to Grisedale Hause and went up Seat Sandal, descending to the north then back up to Fairfield top; on the way down I took the 4 grassy trods around the tops to the right/west - on the 4th of these I went straight down to Alcock Tarn, and then picked up the Coffin Trail and finally the track through Rydal Park. Overcast, with the cloud base initially at about 1,500 feet, later above the tops. Hazy/misty in the distance. Intermittent drizzle, totalling perhaps 15 minutes. Terrain dry/damp with good grip. Not many walkers on the fells apart from 2 large school groups; the Coffin Trail however was busy. Three other runners seen.
This was the final section of the AAC anniversary route.
10.01 miles, 3,590 feet, 3 hours 14 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up (twice) and down (once) the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast - initially I was in mist above 1,100 feet, later the cloud base was level with the high tops, and there was some sunshine. Intermittent drizzle. Terrain damp/wet - the rocks in particular were very slippery. Not many walkers about. I came across the AAC Tuesday/Friday group a couple of times - there were about 15 of them.
Yet another of my favourite paths from the Pike is blocked by bracken - the race route is still OK.
11.02 miles, 2,441 feet, 3 hours 10 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including Fishgarths Wood, Todd Crag, Lily Tarn, up the steps opposite Grasmere, down the race route to the road at High Close, and up the steps opposite Loughrigg Tarn. Sunshine, brief light showers, and clouds just catching some of the high tops. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places. Not many walkers about, though there was a couple of large groups. One other runner seen.
I was hoping that people doing or recce-ing the race route descent for the AAC 40th Anniversary route would have made a bit of a path through the bracken - nope.
11.04 miles, 4,050 feet, 4 hours 11 minutes: Travellers Rest - Helm Crag - Calf Crag - Steel Fell - Steel End - Dunmail Raise - Seat Sandal - south ridge - Travellers Rest. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds. No rain. A lovely refreshing breeze from the south west. Terrain dry/damp/wet with surprisingly good grip. Not many walkers about; no other runners seen.
I had a look at the direct descent from Steel Fell to Dunmail - I have come up it several times, but I have yet to be brave enough to go down it.
9.37 miles, 2,134 feet, 2 hours 46 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Under Loughrigg - Pelter Bridge - Rydal Water - Loughrigg Terrace - Loughrigg top - down to Grasmere shore and back up to the top via Deerbolt Woods - down past the old golf club - Miller Bridge - Rothay Park - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. A few minutes of light rain. A moderate breeze from the south. Terrain damp/wet but grip was OK. Not many walkers about. I saw about a dozen runners, including a large group coming through Rothay Park.
Given all the bracken, the best route to Loughrigg top from the north at the moment is the tourist route up/down opposite Grasmere. It is 0.6 of a mile with 600 feet of up/down. The path through Deerbolts Woods is runnable both ways - 0.6 miles and 220 feet of up/down.
10.22 miles, 2,476 feet, 3 hours 11 minutes: Loughrigg trails from and back to Rothay Bridge, ascending via Fishgarths Wood, and going down to Grasmere shore via Deerbolts Woods and back up again. Overcast, though the sun broke through occasionally. Frequent showers, some of them heavy; I heard thunder once. A moderate breeze from the south. Terrain saturated and slippery. Not many walkers about. A group of 5 AAC members came past me - they were doing the 23 mile 40th Anniversary route.
Today was the wettest day for a long time, but I did not use my waterproof - at no stage was I cold.
10.2 miles, 3,098 feet, 3 hours 3 minutes: Wansfell Pike, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. Drizzle/light rain on and off, a few minutes of sunshine, a moderately strong wind from the south west. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Lots of walkers about, especially given the weather. No other runners seen.
There has been lots of rain - parts of the meadows near the Roman Ruins are under several inches of water.
The race descent from the Pike is becoming unpleasant - the combination of the wind and the rain has knocked some of the bracken over blocking the path in places.
12.04 miles, 1,291 feet, 2 hours 37 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Wray Castle - Coffin Trail - High Wray - Wray Castle - Bog Lane - Brathay Church Bridge - Rothay Bridge. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds. A moderate breeze from the north. No rain. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Lots of walkers near the castle; one other runner seen.
I ran all but the half mile after the start of the Coffin Trail. Luckily there are lots of gates!
10.39 miles, 1,608 feet, 2 hours 43 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including Under Loughrigg, Loughrigg Terrace, Deerbolts Woods, White Moss, and up the steps opposite Grasmere. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. No sunshine, a few minutes of drizzle, a moderate breeze from the south west. Terrain damp/wet/saturated and slippery in places. Not many walkers about; 2 other runners seen.
12.31 miles, 3,318 feet, 3 hours 51 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe clockwise from Ambleside, taking the 1st, 2nd and 4th trods to the left/west on the way up, staying on the race side of the wall between Dove Crag and High Pike, then changing to the other side; I went down the rock step. Sunshine and high clouds, no rain, no significant wind, terrain damp/wet and slippery in places. Lots of walkers on the fells; one fellow runner seen - he was coming down the race side of the wall - I just got to the rock step ahead of him.
The bracken is partially blocking the path on Nab Scar as well as the paths after the rock step. Hopefully those doing reccies for the Rydal Round will get rid of most of it.
9.05 miles, 2,538 feet, 2 hours 59 minutes: Wansfell Pike from/to Ambleside, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Sunshine and high clouds, a moderate breeze from the south, no rain. Terrain anything from dry to saturated and everything in-between; slippery in places. Not many walkers about; no other runners seen.
The bracken continues to collapse across the race route descent, but it is still a reasonable way down.
10.52 miles, 2,328 feet, 3 hours 11 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the steps and through Deerbolts Woods to Grasmere shore and back up again. Initially overcast, misty and drizzling; later it cleared leaving sunshine and high clouds. A moderate breeze from the south west. Terrain damp/wet/saturated; the rocks in particular were slippery. Not many walkers on the fell; two other runners seen.
From Loughrigg top to Grasmere shore and back up is 2.4 miles; to the new bridge at White Moss and back to the shore adds another mile, so a nice 3.4 mile circuit with 800 odd feet of down/up.
9 miles, 874 feet, 99 minutes: Rothay Bridge to the Drunken Duck and back, with a few short out and back sections to add distance. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 500 feet. Constant drizzle. No wind at this level. All on tarmac, so traction not an issue. I saw perhaps a couple of dozen walkers, and two other runners.
For the first time in months I wore waterproofs - top and bottom - not really needed, in fact I became quite warm. If I could have taken them off by clicking my fingers I would have.
This route is of course all runnable, so quite hard work.
11.03 miles, 1,683 feet, 2 hours 48 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Under Loughrigg - Rydal - Coffin Trail - Grasmere - Grasmere shore - Deerbolts Woods - Loughrigg top - down past the old golf club - Rydal Park - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet; misty in the distance. Constant drizzle/light rain. No wind at this level. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Lots of walkers on the minor roads near Grasmere, very few on the fell. Four other runners seen.
Wore my Shake-dry waterproof top, but not waterproof trousers - just right.
9.2 miles, 2,521 feet, 2 hours 56 minutes: Wanfell Pike and Wansfell true top. Overcast, with high fluffy clouds and occasional patches of blue sky. No rain. A moderate breeze from the east. Terrain wet/saturated/streaming and slippery in places. Not many walkers about, apart from the top of the Pike, which was busy. No other runners seen.
10.67 miles, 2,737 feet, 3 hours 24 minutes: Ambleside - Rydal Park - Low Sweden bridge - rock step - Low Pike - High Pike - Dove Crag - back the same way. Overcast with high fluffy clouds, a few minutes of sunshine, no significant wind, no rain. Terrain dry/damp with good grip. Not many walkers on the fells; five other runners seen.
I stayed on the race/east side of the wall both ways. The often boggy sections were drier than I was expecting - it may of course be different by Thursday. The mainly grassy path below the rock step is still viable if you take the turn off to the left when it flattens out, rather than continuing along the path closer to the wall.
12.9 miles, 3,367 feet, 4 hours 16 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe clockwise from Ambleside. Overcast, with high fluffy clouds and higher streaky clouds. Sunshine at times. A few minutes of drizzle. A strong cold wind from the south west. Terrain dry/damp with mainly good grip. Not many walkers on the fells. No other runners seen.
On the way up I took the 1st, 2nd, and 4th trods to the left/west of the tops, and I took the grassy trod that cuts the corner where Dove Crag top is. It would seem that all of these short cuts are acceptable in the Rydal Round race - with respect to the last one it is necessary to cross to the east of the wall within "a few hundred metres" of Dow Crag top.
From the AAC webpage: "Runners must stay to the east (left) of the wall after the final wall gap a few hundred metres beyond Dove Crag. Climbing walls after this point is not allowed."
10.93 miles, 3,193 feet, 3 hours 49 minutes: Rydal Round race route, except that I started in Ambleside, and I ran along the road to Rydal, rather than going through Rydal Park. Overcast with the cloud base initially at about 1,000 feet, a bit higher later. A few minutes of drizzle, some brief sunny spells. A moderate wind from the west. Terrain wet/saturated and slippery. Very few walkers on the fells; four other runners seen.
I was in cloud with very poor visibility from Nab Scar to just above the rock step - those doing the Rydal Round may need their navigation skills!
Despite it being wet wet I went down the rock step - I was so glad I could take my time.
I was allowed to enter the sports field free of charge to pick up some socks from Pete Bland. The standard charge is £10 - ouch.
9.52 miles, 2,662 feet, 3 hours 5 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up the steps from the kissing gate, along the ridge to the true top, and down to the top of Nanny Lane and back up again. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. Occasional glimpses of blue sky. A few minutes of drizzle. A moderate wind from the south west. Terrain damp/wet and slippery. Not many walkers about; 4 other runners seen.
12.57 miles, 3,510 feet, 3 hours 53 minutes: Rydal Round race route, but starting/finishing in Ambleside, and going along Under Loughrigg to Rydal, rather than going through the park. Overcast, with almost confluent high fluffy clouds; intermittent sunshine, a few minutes of drizzle, a very strong wind from the south west on the tops. Terrain dry/damp with mainly good grip. I saw a couple of dozen walkers on the fells, and one other runner.
I took the 1st, 2nd and 4th trods to the left on the way up, and the trod to the south west of Dove Crag; I stayed on the race side of the wall from just below Dove Crag, and went down the rock step.
The trod "short cuts" took me 3, 5, 6 and 6 minutes; I need to time the non trod routes to see if the trods save time.
12.6 miles, 3,691 feet, 4 hours 11 minutes: the same route as yesterday, except I went over the three tops on the way up, and over Dove Crag on the way down. Overcast, with confluent fluffy clouds just catching some of the high tops. Intermittent drizzle. That strong wind from the south west was still there. Terrain wet/saturated and slippery. I saw perhaps 50 walkers on the fells, and 7 other runners.
Going over each top took longer: 1 minute, 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 2 minutes respectively. Even if they took the same amount of time I would still take the trods - grass is always nicer than rocks.
10.58 miles, 2,004 feet, 2 hours 53 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including around Loughrigg Tarn, down and up through Deerbolts Woods, from Grasmere shore to White Moss and back, and up the steps to the top. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 800 feet. A moderate breeze from the west. Virtually constant drizzle. Terrain saturated and slippery. Given the weather I was surprised how many walkers were up and about. One other runner seen - I saw him twice, at about 2 miles, and again at about 6 miles.
9.4 miles, 2,619 feet, 2 hours 59 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up the steps from the kissing gate, along the ridge to the true top, down to Nanny Lane and back up again. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet. Intermittent drizzle. No significant wind. Terrain wet/saturated and slippery. Not many walkers on the fell. I came across the AAC Tuesday/Friday runners - about a dozen of them.
10.1 miles, 2,034 feet, 2 hours 58 minutes: Loughrigg trails, ascending and descending via Fishgarths Wood, and taking in Todd Crag, Lily Tarn, and Loughrigg top. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet, and patches of mist below that. Virtually constant drizzle. A moderate breeze from the north. Terrain saturated and slippery. Very few people on the fell - I saw perhaps 6 walkers and 3 runners.
9.66 miles, 2,845 feet, 3 hours 7 minutes: Wansfell pike from 2 sides, including the loop along the ridge to the true top, down to Nanny lane and back up to the Pike; and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds. No rain. A moderate breeze from the west. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places. Lots of walkers on the Wansfell steps; 2 other runners seen - in the valley.
This was the first significant blue sky we have seen for weeks.
The race route descent is still more than viable despite the height of the bracken.
11.3 miles, 3,081 feet, 3 hours 38 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including from the top down the steps through Deerbolts Woods along Grasmere shore to White Moss and back up again. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds, no rain, no significant wind. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. Lots of walkers on the fell; one other runner seen.
This is the second day in a row that we have had real sunshine - spoilt!
My X-talon 260 V2s have started to split - grrrrr!
12.42 miles, 3,491 feet, 4 hours 6 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe clockwise from/to Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. A few minutes of sunshine. Intermittent precipitation, anything from drizzle to heavy rain. A moderately strong wind from the north west. Terrain damp/wet/saturated/streaming and slippery in places. I saw about 15 walkers on the fells, and 2 other runners.
The heaviest rain was whilst I was on the Fairfield plateau - it is a long time since I have been so wet. The Inov-8 smock I had with me helped a lot once on, though it is a shame the zip would not close.
I went on the 1st, 2nd and 4th trods to the left/west on the ascent, to the south west of Dove Crag, and stayed on the non race side of the wall, going down the rock step. An extra rock has been added at the bottom of the longest and steepest drop and it really helps.
10.4 miles, 3,013 feet, 3 hours 18 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast, with high fluffy clouds; some glimpses of blue sky. No rain, no significant wind. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places. Lots of walkers on the fell - there must have been 50 people on the Pike on my second visit. One other runner seen.
The race route descent from the Pike is still enjoyable, unlike many bracken blocked paths elsewhere.
12.12 miles, 3,589 feet, 4 hours: Ambleside - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Roundhill farm - Ambleside. Overcast, with confluent high fluffy clouds. A few minutes of drizzle. A lovely cool breeze from the south west. Terrain damp/wet/saturated and slippery in places. I saw 11 walkers on the fells, and 1 runner.
Not far down from the top of Red Screes a highland cow had just given birth - the calf was on its feet so presumably it was fine. A farmer was nearby on his quad bike making sure people did not get too close.
Lots of blackberries near Roundhill Farm, but they are nowhere near ready.
9.1 miles, 2,495 feet, 2 hours 38 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, down to Nanny Lane and back up again, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds. No rain, no significant wind. Terrain dry/damp with mainly good grip. Quite a lot of walkers on the fell; I came across the AAC Tuesday/Friday group - there were about 10 of them - they were well below me on the descent from the Pike, and for some reason crossed from the race descent to the steps - I almost caught them at the kissing gate.
9.07 miles, 3,090 feet, 3 hours 3 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 3 sides, including the true top, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Sunshine and high fluffy clouds; no rain, no significant wind. Terrain dry/damp with good grip. Not many walkers on the fell; 3 other runners seen.
12.87 miles, 3,448 feet, 4 hours 4 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe clockwise from/to Ambleside, going over the tops on the way up, and over Dove Crag rather than bypassing it to the south west; then I stayed on the non race side of the wall, and went down the rock step. Overcast - I was in cloud/mist above 2,500 feet. Some patches of blue sky below this. No rain; a lovely breeze from the south which helped to combat the humidity. Terrain mainly dry with good grip. I saw about 50 walkers on the fells - yes, I was counting them - and 5 runners.
10.94 miles, 3,057 feet, 3 hours 25 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the race route to the road at Hight Close, down through Deerbolts Woods to Grasmere shore, along the river to White Moss, back along the other side of the river, through Deerbolts Woods again and up the steps. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet. A moderately strong wind from the south west. About 30 seconds of drizzle. Terrain damp/wet and slippery in places. Not many walkers about; 2 other runners seen.
I was expecting the race descent to High Close to be blocked by bracken, and that I would have to retreat, but no, it was quite reasonable.
8.43 miles, 2,429 feet, 2 hours 35 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including down the other side to Nanny Lane and back up again, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,200 feet. Constant drizzle/light to moderate rain. A strong wind from the south when on the top. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery in places. I saw 3 walkers and 2 runners on the fell.
10.03 miles, 2,253 feet, 2 hours 54 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Bog Lane - Skelwith Bridge - Neum Crag - Loughrigg Tarn - up the steps overlooking the tarn - down the race route from the top to the road at High Close - up the steps overlooking Grasmere to the top - Lily Tarn - Fishgarths Wood - Clappersgate - Rothay Bridge. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. Some patches of blue sky. Intermittent drizzle/light rain. No significant wind at this level. Terrain wet/saturated and slippery in places. I saw perhaps 40 walkers on the fell; 7 other runners seen.