Todays permitted exercise!

10.8 miles, 3,134 feet, 3 hours 42 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Rydal Park - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Hodgson relay route - Scandale - High Sweden Bridge - Sweden bridge Lane - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. Intermittent drizzle. A moderately strong wind from the north west. I ascended on the east side of the wall to stay out of the wind. Terrain wet/saturated/streaming and slippery. Not many walkers on the fells; 2 runners seen as well as some park run tail-enders.

Today, thankfully, was just an "ordinary" windy day.

Town is quite busy, as one would expect.

10.09 miles, 4,056 feet, 3 hours 17 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and down to Troutbeck via Nanny Lane and back up again. Initially very overcast and drizzly, but it gradually cleared, resulting in sunshine/blue sky, and a mixture of cloud types mainly above the high tops. That extremely strong wind is back - from the west. Terrain wet/saturated/streaming and slippery. I saw perhaps a dozen walkers on the fell, and 3 runners.

On my first visit to the Pike the wind was so strong I decided to play safe and approached it from the south east rather than up the very last set of steps. On my second visit it had eased to an extent, but was still very strong until I was below 1,000 feet.

Just over 2 miles. I think it's my = shortest Xmas day run, something I've done since our family started running in 2003. My other one was with a calf strain - a 2 miler on the canal.
Been struggling with the right hamstring the last 5-6 weeks, so just a slow test out and back towards Tockholes, but it beats nothing :D

Have a great Xmas everyone.

I usually post in the other thread, but i got in 12 miles this morning....

Just over a mile warmup to my parents house... then some hard work on the treadmill.... 7 miles hard and flat, followed immediately by 4 miles at an increasingly steeper gradient.


Despite the time of year i was shirtless by the last 15mins, it was hard work.

Happy xmas everyone!

12.06 miles, 4,096 feet, 4 hours 11 minutes: Rothay Bridge to Silver How and back, going over Loughrigg top both ways. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,000 feet. Intermittent drizzle/light rain. A strong wind from the south west. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. I must have seen about 50 walkers on the fells, and 2 runners.

Merry Xmas all!

12.53 miles, 3,894 feet, 4 hours 36 minutes: Ambleside - Rydal Park - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - trod south west of Dove Crag - Hart Crag - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Sunshine through thin high clouds, with some fluffy clouds just catching the high tops. A few minutes of snow/sleet. No significant wind, just a moderate breeze from the west. Terrain firm/crunchy/icy above 1,600 feet; saturated below that; slippery in places. A very thin sprinkling of white on the distant tops above about 2,500 feet. Quite a few walkers on the fells; 4 runners seen.

As suggested on another thread, a litter-picking (and trespassing) walk. Burleigh Wood, then across a fence and round the edge of a field to pick up the public footpath to Longcliffe Golf Course. Through the golf course on the PRoW, but where it goes right, I went left, back onto the golf course for a short distance before crossing the fence to Longcliffe Quarry. This is where the litter picking started in earnest.

Drinks cans can be stamped on to compress them, but this doesn't really work with plastic bottles. I had a fairly small rucksack, and somewhere on the footpath out of the quarry, I gave up trying to pack any more cans and bottles into it; there are plenty left for another walk.

Back home via the permissive path over Whittle Hill to the Outwoods. I was out for 3 hours and 4 minutes, but not for a commensurate distance, given the time taken to stuff litter into my rucksack and stamp on cans.

7.49 miles, 3,182 feet, 2 hours 48 minutes: Wansfell Pike 3 times, including twice up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and down to the upper part of Nanny Lane and back up again. Overcast/misty, with the cloud base at about 1,000 feet. Constant light/moderate rain. A moderately strong wind from the south east. Terrain streaming - puddles and rivulets everywhere. Very slippery. Lots on the fell watching the race, and some of the runners in the race came down past me on my second descent - so fast, so brave.

It is good the race went ahead. There was lots of rain, but the wind was benign and it was not cold.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mike T

7.49 miles, 3,182 feet, 2 hours 48 minutes: Wansfell Pike 3 times, including twice up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and down to the upper part of Nanny Lane and back up again. Overcast/misty, with the cloud base at about 1,000 feet. Constant light/moderate rain. A moderately strong wind from the south east. Terrain streaming - puddles and rivulets everywhere. Very slippery. Lots on the fell watching the race, and some of the runners in the race came down past me on my second descent - so fast, so brave.

It is good the race went ahead. There was lots of rain, but the wind was benign and it was not cold.

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Well done Mike - that's intrepid (again!)

I woke up to driving curtains of sleet against the windows and the remnants of the night's snow on the cars, lawn and garden, with it still covering the fell tops here at about 1500 feet. I decided to keep yesterday's sunny run on the fells fresh in my mind and read the morning newspaper instead !

10.01 miles, 3,482 feet, 3 hours 17 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the race route to the road at High Close, down through Deerbolts Woods to Grasmere shore, the back up to the top via Loughrigg Terrace and the steps overlooking Grasmere. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. A few minutes of sunshine. Intermittent light/moderate rain. A very strong and blustery wind from the south west - rather stronger than yesterday. Terrain saturated/streaming/slippery. Lots of walkers on the fells; 6 runners seen.

10.03 miles, 3,302 feet, 3 hours 9 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and along the ridge to the true top. Overcast and misty; the cloud base was at about 2,500 feet. Intermittent drizzle/light rain. A strong wind from the south west. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Quite a few walkers on the fell, some very under dressed for the conditions. 2 runners seen.

I was pleasantly surprised at how little wear and tear the race has caused on the fell.

10.09 miles, 1,038 feet, 2 hours 6 minutes: Rothay Bridge to The Drunken Duck and back, taking in Clappersgate, Bog Lane, Skelwith Fold, Skelwith Bridge, and Rothay Park. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet, and misty below that. Constant light/moderate rain. No wind at this level. This run was all on tarmac so grip was not an issue. Lots of puddles, and widespread streams of water across the roads. Quite a few walkers with dogs. No runners seen.

11.03 miles, 3,334 feet, 3 hours 58 minutes: Ambleside - Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Rydal Park - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - High Bakestones - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,750 feet, and misty below that. Almost constant drizzle/light rain. A cold moderately strong wind from the south east. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Not many walkers about, though, given the weather, I was surprised to see any. 2 runners seen on the fells, and several near Rothay Park were getting ready to set off when I went past.

10.04 miles, 3,952 feet, 3 hours 50 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including twice up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, and down Nanny Lane to Troutbeck and back up again. Initially overcast and drizzly, with the cloud base at about 2,500 feet. Later, it cleared up considerably, with most welcome sunshine and patches of blue sky. A thin sprinkling of white stuff was visible on some tops above about 2,000 feet. A moderate wind from the south west. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Lots of walkers on the fell; 2 runners seen.

Town and car parks busy.

10.16 miles, 3,124 feet, 3 hours 15 minutes: Ambleside - Blue Hill Road/Lane - Wansfell Pike, going up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate - Ambleside - Rothay Park - Miller Bridge - Rothay Bridge - Clappersgate - Todd Crag - Lily Tarn - Loughrigg top - down past the golf club - Ambleside. Overcast and drizzly, the cloud base was at about 1,100 feet, with some banks of fog/mist below that. A moderate breeze from the south west. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Not many walkers about. I came across the AAC Tuesday/Friday group - there were about 10 of them - and a couple of other runners.

10.04 miles, 2,519 feet, 3 hours 2 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Borrans Road - Stagshaw Gardens - Skelghyll Lane - Troutbeck - Nanny Lane - Wansfell true top - Wansfell Pike - race descent down through the kissing gate - Ambleside. Overcast and drizzly, the cloud base was mostly about 600 feet, but in places it was down to the valley floor. A few minutes of sunshine and blue sky when I was just above Troutbeck. No wind. Terrain saturated/streaming/slippery. Very few walkers about; no runners seen.

10.15 miles, 2,915 feet, 3 hours 35 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, and down the race route to the kissing gate. Initially overcast and drizzly, with the cloud base at about 800 feet; later it cleared up somewhat, resulting in some patches of sunshine/blue sky. No significant wind. Terrain saturated/streaming/slippery. Not many walkers on the fell; 2 runners see.

10.24 miles, 3,054 feet, 3 hours 35 minutes: Loughrigg trails, taking in Fox Ghyll, the path to the top via the caves, down the race route to the road at High Close, then back up the steps overlooking Loughrigg Tarn. Overcast, with banks of cloud/mist at multiple levels. Intermittent drizzle/light rain. A few minutes of sunshine/blue sky. No wind. Terrain saturated/streaming slippery. Not many walkers on the fell; 4 runners seen.

12.02 miles, 3,624 feet, 4 hours 9 minutes: Ambleside - Rydal Park - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Pile of Stone - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Lots of sunshine/blue sky. Initially there was some cloud in the valley, but it soon melted away. No rain. A moderately strong quite cold breeze from the north west. Terrain widely frozen/frosty/icy - some wet/saturated areas - slippery in places. Lots of walkers on the fells; I saw about 10 runners.

10.3 miles, 3,333 feet, 3 hours 44 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including along the ridge to the true top, down to the third wall north of the true top and back up again, and down the race route to the kissing gate. Lots of lovely sunshine, a few high fluffy clouds, and a large inversion like cloud over Windermere that took some hours to dissipate. No wind, no rain. Where it had not seen the sun the terrain was frozen/icy/frosty; otherwise it was wet/saturated/streaming. Slippery in many places, particularly the ice covered rocks. Microspikes carried but not used. Lots of walkers on the fell - on one of my visits to the Pike I counted 30 people. 2 runners seen.

12.08 miles, 3,108 feet, 3 hours 49 minutes: Loughrigg trails, going through Borrans Park and past the Roman Ruins to start with, and then once at the top going down the race route to the road at High Close, down through Deerbolts Woods to Grasmere shore, then back up to the top via Loughrigg Terrace and the steps overlooking Grasmere. A fairly even mixture of sunshine/blue sky and clouds - the cloud base was initially at about 2,500 feet, later it was above the high tops. A few minutes of drizzle. A very cold moderately strong wind from the south east. Terrain widely frozen though there was less frost and ice than yesterday. Where not frozen it was damp/wet rather than saturated/streaming. Slippery in places. Above about 1,500 feet there was a sprinkling of white stuff on some of the fells. Very few walkers about; no runners seen.

11.28 miles, 3,424 feet, 3 hours 52 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Rydal - Nab Scar - Heron Pike - Alcock Tarn - White Moss - Loughrigg Terrace - up the steps overlooking Grasmere to Loughrigg top - Miller Bridge - Rothay Bridge. Mainly sunshine and blue sky; a few fluffy clouds above the high tops. No precipitation. A very strong cold wind from the north east. The ground was frozen hard with stretches of ice above 800 feet; below that it was mainly dry. Grip was good as long as the ice was avoided. Not many walkers about; 1 runner seen.

I had planned to do the horseshoe, but that wind was really quite unpleasant, so I undertook what had been my backup plan from the start.

New word for the day - from the fell top assessors - pipkrake - needle ice - lost of it about today.

10.34 miles, 3,071 feet, 3 hours 40 minutes: Ambleside - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - High Sweden Bridge - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet. Intermittent drizzle/light sleet; intermittent weak sunshine. A moderately strong very cold wind from the north. The ground was frozen hard above 600 feet, with extensive ice sheets on drainage areas - above 1,700 feet there was up to a couple of centimetres of fresh snow. Grip good as long as the ice was avoided - microspikes carried but not needed. I saw 7 people on the fells, none of them runners.

The rock step was covered in ice, so I went around it to get above it before descending, again around it, to High Sweden Bridge.

10.22 miles, 3,252 feet, 3 hours 27 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, down to the the upper part of Nanny Lane, up to the true top and back along the ridge to the Pike. Sunshine and blue sky; some clouds at about 2,500 feet and above. A cold breeze from the north. No precipitation. Terrain above 800 feet increasingly firm with height, with some icy patches; below 800 feet it was dry/damp; grip good except on the ice. Not many walkers on the fell; 1 runner seen.

12.61 miles, 3,064 feet, 3 hours 49 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the race route to the road at High Close, down through Deerbolts Woods, then back up to the top via Loughrigg Terrace and the steps overlooking Grasmere. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet. No precipitation; no significant wind. The ground was firm/hard above 900 feet, with ice on puddles/tarns; below that level it was mainly dry. Grip was good - the ice was easily avoided. Not many walkers on the fell; 2 runners seen.

11.63 miles, 3,453 feet, 3 hours 44 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller bridge - Low Sweden bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Initially very overcast, with the cloud base at about 1,500 feet. The sun came out when I was well down the south ridge of Red Screes. A few minutes of drizzle. A moderate breeze from the south west. Terrain firm/hard with icy patches above 1,200 feet - damp/wet below that; a scattering of snow above 2,200 feet. Grip was OK as long as ice and wet rocks were avoided. Not many walkers on the fells; 6 runners seen.

I was hoping to get above the cloud and witness an inversion but no such luck.

13.05 miles, 3,403 feet, 4 hours 19 minutes: Fairfield Horseshoe clockwise from/to Rothay Bridge. Initially overcast, with banks of cloud/mist at multiple levels - these faded away as the day progressed. Intermittent drizzle/ light snow on the ascent. A cold moderately strong wind from the north. Terrain frozen and icy in places down to the valley floor, consistently so above 1,000 feet. There was a snow line at about 1,500 feet, with 2-3 centimetres on the tops. Grip OK as long as ice/smooth rocks were avoided. Microspikes carried but not used. As I was descending there were quite a few walkers heading up. 2 runners seen.

I took the 1st, 2nd and 4th trods to the left of the tops on the ascent to try to stay out of the wind - without much success. I descended on the non race side/west of the wall, and went down the rock step as luckily it was not icy.

Lovely run round the Harewood Estate this morning with a friend, sunny and frosty underfoot. A few other runners and a lot of walkers. A bit of Deja vu as I did a Trail half marathon there on Saturday.
I love being retired!

10.08 miles, 3,360 feet, 3 hours 23 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, down to the upper sections of Hundreds Road and Nanny Lane, up to the true top, and back along the ridge to the Pike. Lots of sunshine/blue sky; some small high fluffy clouds. No precipitation. A very cold moderately strong wind from the north west. The ground was frozen hard from the valley floor up. Some ice on drainage areas, elsewhere dry despite being frozen. Grip good as long as the ice was avoided. Quite a few walkers on the fell; 1 runner seen.

10.1 miles, 2,698 feet, 3 hours 42 minutes: Wansfell Pike, including up the race route from the kissing gate, and back to Ambleside via Hundreds Road and High Skelghyll. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 700 feet. Constant light to moderate snow. No significant wind. There was a good 20 to 30 centimetres of snow on the Pike, and even in the valley there is 10 centimetres or so. It was of course slippery in places - I did have my microspikes but I decided the snow was too deep for them to be useful. I saw half a dozen walkers on the fell, and 1 runner.

10.25 miles, 2,971 feet, 3 hours 47 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the race route to the road at High Close, down through Deerbolts Woods to Grasmere shore, and back up to the top via Loughrigg Terrace and the steps overlooking Grasmere. Blue sky and sunshine, a few thin streaky clouds on the horizon, very cold in the shade. No precipitation, no significant wind. Terrain frozen solid from the valley floor up - on a lot of the ground this means yesterday's snow/slush is now solid ice, be it in sheets or lumps. Microspikes worn from door to door - they were excellent. Not many walkers on the fell; no runners seen.

Apparently it got down to minus 10 overnight. I have never seen so much ice except in a ski resort.

10.03 miles, 3,340 feet, 3 hours 55 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up the race route from the kissing gate, along the ridge to the true top, down Nanny Lane to Troutbeck and back up to the true top, and back along the ridge to the Pike. Barely a cloud in the sky. No precipitation. A moderate breeze from the north west. Low down the ground is covered in ice and frozen snow; high up there is 10 - 20 centimetres of crunchy snow, with frozen ground/ice underneath it. Not many walkers on the fell; 3 runners seen.

Unfortunately my lightweight Nortec microspikes have a broken cable, so I wore the heavier Kahtoolas - rather blunt now but grip still very good.

I had a go at the race route descent, but the snow was too deep and coming away in slabs with basically no grip, so I took another way down.

10.17 miles, 3,276 feet, 4 hours 2 minutes: Ambleside - Rydal Park - Low Sweden Bridge - around the rock step - Low/High Pikes, going up the west side of the wall until High Pike - High Bakestones - Scandale - High Sweden Bridge - Low Sweden Bridge - Rydal Park - Ambleside. A mixture of sunshine and clouds, more of the latter than the former; most of the clouds were above 2,000 feet. No precipitation. A strong but not cold wind from the south east. There was a centimetre of snow overnight in the valley, and several times that higher up, with lots of drifting in the wind. It was thigh deep in many places, and from above High Pike to Scandale it was mostly pathless. Yesterday's slush was today's ice yet again. Microspikes - worn door to door - provided excellent grip. Not many walkers on the fells; 3 runners seen.

10.74 miles, 3,006 feet, 3 hours 24 minutes: Loughrigg trails, ascending/descending via Clappersgate and Fishgarths Wood to avoid the ice on the road above Miller Bridge, and taking in Todd Crag and Lily Tarn both ways. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 800 feet. Constant drizzle/light rain. A strong but not cold wind from the west. Terrain anything from soft and muddy, to frozen hard; icy patches where the snow has been compressed by people's feet. Wet/saturated everywhere; slippery. Not many walkers on the fell; 2 runners seen.

Microspikes carried but not used.

7.54 miles, 2,846 feet, 2 hours 39 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate, down to the top of Hundreds Road and back up again. Overcast - initially the cloud base was at about 2,000 feet, rather lower later. A moderately strong wind from the south west. Almost continuous light/moderate rain. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. There is still the very occasional patch of ice, but these are easy to step over/go around. I saw about a dozen walkers on the fell, and 1 runner.

10.24 miles, 3,957 feet, 3 hours 13 minutes: Loughrigg trails, including down the race route to the road at High Close, down through Deerbolts Woods to Grasmere shore, and back up to the top via Loughrigg Terrace and the steps overlooking Grasmere. Overcast, with the cloud base mainly above the high tops. Transient patches of blue sky. A few minutes of drizzle. A very strong blustery wind from the west. Terrain anything from dry to saturated/streaming - slippery in places, particularly the wet rocks. Not many walkers on the fell; 2 runner seen.

Some of that height gain will be artefactual from the wind.

I was literally jumped on by a dog just as I approached the top the second time - it was hard enough with the wind and the wet rocks - the owners got a piece of my mind and did put it on its leash.

8.01 miles, 2,390 feet, 2 hours 28 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Borrans Road - Blue Hill Road/Lane - up the race route from the kissing gate - Wansfell Pike - along the ridge to the true top - down to the upper part of Nanny Lane and back up to the Pike - down the race descent to the kissing gate - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 800 feet. Constant light to moderate rain, with a strong wind from the south east. Terrain saturated/streaming and slippery. Apart from 4 fix the fell volunteers I saw nobody on the fell.

Whilst my upper half was fine in my Shakedry top, my legs became very wet and cold in my OMM Kamleika trousers. Any suggestions as to a more effective pair of waterproof trousers are most welcome!

12.28 miles, 4,564 feet, 4 hours 22 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Pile of Stones - south west of Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base mainly above the high tops, rather misty generally. No rain. A very strong blustery wind from the south west. Terrain anything from dry to saturated and everything in between; slippery in places. I did not see anybody else on the fells; 1 runner seen in Rothay Park.

I went up on the race side/east of the wall to lessen the effect of the wind. As before, some of that height gain will be artifactual.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mike T

12.28 miles, 4,564 feet, 4 hours 22 minutes: Rothay Bridge - Miller Bridge - Low Sweden Bridge - rock step - Low/High Pikes - Dove Crag - Pile of Stones - south west of Dove Crag - Scandale - Red Screes - south ridge - Golden Rule - Ambleside. Overcast, with the cloud base mainly above the high tops, rather misty generally. No rain. A very strong blustery wind from the south west. Terrain anything from dry to saturated and everything in between; slippery in places. I did not see anybody else on the fells; 1 runner seen in Rothay Park.

I went up on the race side/east of the wall to lessen the effect of the wind. As before, some of that height gain will be artifactual.

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Glad you managed to stay drier today Mike. Looks to be quieter weather for the next week or so at least.

10.16 miles, 3,150 feet, 3 hours 13 minutes: Wansfell Pike from 2 sides, including ascending via High Skelghyll, and up/down the race route from/to the kissing gate. Overcast, with the cloud base at about 300 feet. Constant drizzle/light rain. A moderate breeze from the south. Terrain saturated/streaming/slippery. I saw 3 walkers and 1 runner on the fell - the runner passed my 3 times - down, up, down - as I was going up the race route steps, a strong lad.

Despite the rain I did not become cold today. It helped that there was no significant wind, and that I had my RAB Polartec trousers on under my newest pair of OMM trousers - these supposedly have an extra layer compared to older OMM trousers, though the material looks/feels the same.