Ennerdale Bridge to Rosthwaite – 16 miles
As expected from last night’s weather forecast, I woke to the patter of rain on my bedroom window. Looking outside it didn’t appear too bad, but the forecast was that it would rain for most of the day.
After our early breakfast and a chat of the day ahead, nerves and apprehension put aside, we discussed what the owner of the Manor House had suggested for Ennerdale Lake which was to take the north shore in bad weather as an alternative. The route should follow the south shore on a fine day but, as advised, the path sometimes get washed away in rain, plus there had been a small rock fall near Robin Hoods Chair, so the decision was the north shore as a matter of safety.
Cases aside for the carrier, packed lunches away, it was time to don our waterproofs and step outside.
Bidding our host a fond farewell, we were off heading towards the village of Ennerdale and the lake about a mile away. On the way we passed two girls who were camping and having a soggy breakfast; they looked a sorrowful sight. As we looked back we could see two other walkers following and assumed they were on the C2C. We arrived at the lake, mist hiding our view; the torrential rain continued as we turned left for the north shore line. This turned out to be a good decision as the path was good and reasonably flat with just a few puddles. Half way round there was a scramble over some small rocks for about ten minutes, then back on a decent path, big enough for a car to travel along. At times, as the mist cleared, we could see across the lake the two walkers who had been following us; they had taken the south shore route. Our path was heading towards Black Sail Youth Hostel some six miles further on. Along the lonely path we passed an outdoor activity centre and one family. The mist had now lifted a little to give us some views.
After a brief stop for a hot chocolate break
it was on to Black Sail Hostel. The thing about this hostel is that it’s very remote and also, after having seen the DVD of the C2C and watching it on You Tube, this is where I knew we had to climb Loft Beck at 534m.
It looked steep and to add to this it was raining, plus the mist was rolling in again. When we arrived I suggested
we go in to see if we could have our lunch and dry out a little – as we entered there were others doing the same thing. As we were having lunch (damp), in came the other walkers we had seen on the south side of the lake. They told us that they thought we had taken the wrong way but now realised they should have followed us, their path was horrible muddy and difficult. Thank you Manor House manager. Now nourished, and another hot chocolate inside us, it was back outside to find Loft Beck. We headed in the general direction of the beck which wasn’t difficult to find. You could see a torrent of water cascading from the misty hillside above, our path was on the opposite side. After crossing the beck carefully, gathering together to check everyone was OK, a quick look at the map, it was onwards and upwards.
With the wind and rain blowing in our faces, and the rain finding gaps in our waterproofs, it was a tough ascent; a slow steady pace was all we could muster.
The good thing was the path wasn’t just a dirt track, it turned out to be a series of steps, provided by a conservation group I guess. (Thank you people.) The ascent was over in no time. Altough steep and strenuous in the conditions, it helped by having 2-3 minutes stops to come together as we were now in mist. As we neared the top
the winds seemed to be clearing the mist
and as the rain eased we could see cairns to guide us over the mountain top. As we followed the line of cairns the mist cleared enough for us to see Buttermere Lake and valley in the distance.
This clearance lasted about a minute each time and as it cleared we were able to take photos before the mist rolled in again. We continued
towards the old tramway leading to Honister Quarry. In the distance we could see a couple from Black Sail Hostel, they were also looking for the tramway. We met up and had a chat, only to discover they were from Oswestry in Shropshire, a place not far from home in the West Midalnds.
We found the tramway, turned right and headed down towards the quarry with the Shropshire couple now ahead of us. The path was tiring which didn’t help the legs, ankles and feet as they had been taking a pounding all day. We reached the quarry and saw it had a coffee shop so we stopped for refreshments – a well deserved pot of tea & cake. Refreshed, we set off again to Seatoller & Rosthwaite where we were due to met our taxi to take us to Keswick because there were not any vacancies in Rosthwaite at the time of booking. As we arrived in Seatoller we had to follow the river, scrambling over wet rocks and tree roots. At one section there was a wire rope attached to rocks to assist you along a narrow ledge above the river. Lynn and Steve went high as they didn’t see it, but I took the wire route which was fun. Having cleared the scramble area, and passing a youth hostel, we followed a track on to the road leading to Seatoller & Rosthwaite. As we were walking to Rosthwaite our transport appeared. Throwing our wet gear in to the taxi we were driven to our next overnight stay in Keswick.
At our accommodation we phoned home to report our safe arrival. Time for a shower before a well deserved drink and meal. The accommodation and meals were good, along with the beer. The downside for me was that my room overlooked the entrance to a nightclub, which I found out to my dissatisfaction just after midnight. Hence my beauty sleep was affected big time, the noise didn’t stop until 3.30am. I did manage to get a couple of hours sleep, but that was it.