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Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video report)

Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video report)


Postby When Adventure Knox » Fri Feb 05, 2021 6:09 pm

Date walked: 26/08/2019

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I'm afraid the video doesn't quite tell the story of how we ended up in hospital, mostly because my friend would have disowned me had I continued to film. Watch the video first, then read on to find out what happened after the camera finished rolling.

As we descended from Latrigg, along the very gentle, wheelchair accessible path (oh yes, you couldn't write this... yet I am! :lol: ) we were in awe of the view of Skiddaw ahead of us, with its bright purple heather contrasting against the green grass on the lower valley slopes. (see the cover photo on the Youtube video and it happed a few hundred meters on)

My friend grabbed her camera and managed to step on the only uneven part of what was a very well maintained path. As she went down, her knee met the tip of not 1, but 2 sharp pieces of loose shale which resulted in a couple of very deep cuts. I still can't get the image of the shale protruding from her knee, out of my head. *shudders*

Being a bank holiday Monday and a popular trail, we were lucky as a small group of dog walkers passed by, one of whom was a nurse. She was amazing and cleaned the cut on the hillside, but insisted we take my friend to the hospital. The lady used a (clean) dog poo bag to bandage my friend up and the staff at the hospital were most impressed. They said over the years they'd seen all sorts (my favourite was sanitary towels) but the dog poo bag was a first for them! :clap:

About 6 hours and 13 stitches later, we finally left Penrith hospital, so exhausted we ended up grabbing fish and chips take away, because who wants to cook after that?!

Now, as a Londonder, there were 2 fascinating things that I took away from this hospital experience:
1. Most people who came back to the waiting room after seeing a health care professional went on to share with the rest of the A&E waiting room what the deal was. Don't get me wrong, it helped pass the time and it was fascinating. I especially applauded the guy who fell whilst trail running. He had to have his back glued back together amongst many other stitches on multiple parts of his body. I try and picture the same scenario here in London. People just don't talk! :shock: But I loved everyone's friendliness and camaraderie.
2. A girl came back to the waiting room and announced to everyone that she'd need to go to Carlisle as she needed an X-Ray. My immediate thought was THIS HOSPITAL DOESN'T HAVE AN X-RAY FACILITY?! :shock: :shock:

I hope you enjoy the video/write up combo report.
When Adventure Knox
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby past my sell by date » Sat Feb 06, 2021 3:13 pm

The edges of Skiddaw slate are razor sharp as I discovered to my cost on a gentle stroll over Whiteside late last century.
i slipped on a muddy slab, went down like a sack of coal and had cuts all over - the back of one hand was totally lacerated. I didn't need to go to hopital, but sat in shock for at least 15 minutes, while my companion Norm tried to apply pieces of elastoplast - the blood washed most of them off :lol: :lol: though it didn't seem funny at the time :( . Eventually I felt able to get up and continue.
Walking poles would have prevented or at least mittigated this - but flying back from Spain, I'd left them for another friend to bring back by car a few days later :(
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby Pointless Parasite » Sat Feb 06, 2021 9:50 pm

Nice work, congrats. I think Penrith does have x-ray facilities but you need a radiographer as well as just the equipment. The x-ray departments at these 'cottage' hospitals tend to operate with a skeleton staff.
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby When Adventure Knox » Sat Feb 06, 2021 10:03 pm

Oooof, Past My Sell By Date, I winced throughout your whole post there, sounds awful, but please you didn't have to go to hospital too!

Pointless Parasite, that would make a lot of sense as it was a bank holiday Monday so don't expect the radiographer to have been in, especially for a 'cottage' hospital as you say (I like that term!). It makes me grateful for the services I have on my doorstep here in London, despite most of the people being bloomin miserable and not sharing their stories when they return to a waiting room! :lol:
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby nigheandonn » Sat Feb 06, 2021 10:37 pm

I managed to get round the Wainwrights without seeing the inside of Penrith hospital - it sounds like an adventure in its own right! (I did once end up in the minor injuries clinic in Berwick, after falling off a bike in the College Valley.)

Latrigg's a nice wee hill, though, when it doesn't turn vicious.
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby Sgurr » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:22 pm

Latrigg is such a lovely gentle stroll. Your friend was lucky to have had you with her, though on Latrigg, someone (if not so well qualified) would have come along sooner or later.
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby snowgoose » Sat Feb 06, 2021 11:25 pm

Pointless Parasite wrote:. The x-ray departments at these 'cottage' hospitals tend to operate with a skeleton staff.


Scary
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby nigheandonn » Sun Feb 07, 2021 12:37 am

At least they would never need to use their equipment on themselves.
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Re: Latrigg: easy, yet still ended up in hospital (video rep

Postby When Adventure Knox » Sun Feb 07, 2021 11:37 am

snowgoose wrote:
Pointless Parasite wrote:. The x-ray departments at these 'cottage' hospitals tend to operate with a skeleton staff.


Scary


:clap: :clap: :clap:

Oh my goodness, I've only just got that excellent joke :lol: :lol: :lol:

So excellent in fact that it went completely over my intellectually challenged head! *facepalm*

nigheandonn that's very impressive that you've completed all the Wainwrights, and maybe even more so that the hospital was avoided on all of them!

Sgurr, yes, thankfully there were 3 of us so whilst her husband practically threw himself off the hill side to get the car from Keswick, we slowly but surely made our way to Underskiddaw car park that was much closer and of similar elevation to where the fall happened. There were so many fortunate things that happened in our favour on that day. Whilst hiking in solitude certainly has its perks, there's something to be said about the feeling of safety when you see others on a trail!
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