The route I ended up doing was :
So got parked easily, opposite the church where there's room for a handful of cars, and went over the stile on the right of way through a field. Thought I'd be able to go straight up the hill facing the village (Owsen Fell). Alas, no ... I've got used to life in Scotland with the freedom to roam, but being back in England reminded me that I can't just see a nice hill and walk up it if the landowner refuses and there's no right of way. Signage made clear that was the case here, so I stayed on the path hoping it would take me round to Cogra Moss reservoir instead. Unfortunately not, and I ended up back on the minor road I'd driven in to Lamplugh on, so had to go along the road past the caravan park instead and head up to Felldyke, where there was a walkers car park. 45 minutes of walking and I was probably just where I should have started from in the first place!
- Parking area opposite the church
- Just a few metres from the parking layby is the stile I took. Owsen Fell is the inviting one on the left (Burnbank Fell adjoins it, hidden out of sight behind it) and Blake Fell the highest peak, on the right.
- At the next gate, there are 3 different signs making clear you are not to go up the hill here! So I followed the right of way to the right ...
- Typican Cumbrian scenes along the path (i.e. sheep) .... Murton Fell is the hill ahead
- Lamplugh Felldyke car park. Head up the track from here for the easy route to Cogra Moss!
Things got a lot more straightforward after that. From the Lamplugh Felldyke car park, it's an easy walk along a signed track up to Cogra Moss, passing by the foot of Murton Fell / Knock Murton (not a Wainwright but a nice looking hill). At the far end of the reservoir I left the main path and took a path branching off on the right up the hill which eventually reached a forestry track - went across this (just to the right) and over a gate into open grassland, then headed up left alongside the fence to Low Pen, onwards to High Pen , then down a bit to reach the worn path which runs between Gavel Fell and Blake Fell (people doing the walk from the east, the Loweswater / Maggies Bridge side, arrive at this point too) .
- Cogra Moss reservoir and Blake Fell
- From Low Pen, looking back west to Knock Murton and Cogra Moss
- Western end of Ennerdale water also visible from here
- Blake Fell from High Pen
- Gavel Fell from High Pen
I headed right first to do the there and back to Gavel Fell, then returned to the same spot and headed the other way up Blake Fell, the more impressive of today's 3 Wainwrights with it's steep cliffs and scree slopes going down to the west.
- Gavel Fell summit - looking SW to the north Ennerdale ridge (Starling Dodd?)
- Gavel Fell summit - looking west to the coast
- Blake Fell summit - view east (Grasmoor)
- Blake Fell summit - view west (Murton Fell on left)
- Looking SW, that must be Buttermere and Fleetwith Pike
Certainly from this side, Burnbank Fell looks fairly non-descript and is a surprise to rank as a Wainwright ...but it's little extra effort to tag that on to the walk, though Carling Knott off to the right looks more interesting. From there, continuing west to descend over Owsen Fell would have been nice, but as that would be going down the fell of "No access to open fell" signage, I made do with heading south west down Burnbank Fell's slopes, crossing the fence at the bottom by a gate, and joining the track taking me back to the initial right of way and the parking spot by the church (turns out this track wasn't a right of way, but there were no "No entry" signs coming from the fell!).
- Nice easy walk down to Burnbank Fell, though not one to set the heart racing..!
- Burnbank Fell summit looking back up to Blake Fell. (Just as well someone has put a cairn on it, it'd be easy to miss you were even at a summit otherwise)
- This is on the very edge of the Lake District - all gets flatter north west from here
- Looking back where I came down off the fell - got over the fence where the wooden slats are, up on the left, then through this gate and followed the track back to Lamplugh
- Church at Lamplugh in sight again, track I'm on meeting up with the proper Right of Way
