Quote Originally Posted by alwaysinjured View Post
I doubt it, because it is on the wrong line for the descent from Skiddaw -
the stream path is pretty good these days for ascent:but it might be worth trying. Also, whilst the path is good on the way down, the lower part is difficult to see from below. You will see what I mean when you try it.
Again I think that the route from the track crossing to the ridge is quicker than taking the path by the beck. Jo Stoat did the latter while I went via the ridge and despite him being near the head of the beck when I left the track crossing I was at the summit before him. There is a path from the first bend in the beck that leads to the ridge. It fades away about 100m short of a solitary fence post (something to do with the Cumbria Way apparently) and then you are on the grassy path on the ridge.

I'd like to see the line you mention going from Great Calva to Blencathra. I have always reckoned on something approximating to your route B to be as efficient as is possible: Head down the S ridge of GC for a couple of hundred metres then drop into a vague reentrant to gain the track then a little bit of heather bashing to get to the river before taking a direct line to the summit of Mungrisedale Common from where a good path leads to the final slopes of Blencathra whence you traverse across the screes to gain the saddle and then the summit. When traced on a map it is very close to the straight line between the two summits. I reckon it is about 10mins quicker than your route A.