Coledale Horseshoe - a walk for all seasons
Posted: Sat Nov 11, 2017 10:11 pm
'The month of the drowned dog' is how Ted Hughes famously describes November in his poem of that name. It's certainly a potent image of the dismal dampness that often characterises the month of armistice and remembrance, when the land can be 'sodden as the bed of an ancient lake, / Treed with iron and birdless'.
But if anything is predictable about British weather, it is its unpredictability. November 2015, with its devastating floods, more than lived up to the imagery of Hughes's poem. Whereas November 2017, so far at least, has been a month of crisp sunshine, golden leaves, happy dogs and happy humans enjoying the glowing embers of the year.
After a disappointing Summer, such weather is an irresistible siren-call to all fell-walkers . And if you're struggling to decide which hills to get out on, then there's always the Coledale Horseshoe, an old favourite that never fails to delight, no matter how many times you've been round it before. And with many options to include or omit, you can do it differently each time, this walk for all seasons.
The Coledale Inn in Braithwaite beckons at the end of the day, named by Stuart Marshall as the best pub in the Lake District. Recently refurbished, it's a decent enough pub for sure. But best in the Lakes? Hmm... If they put on a good range of real ales it might just be a contender - but there's an awful lot of competition!
But if anything is predictable about British weather, it is its unpredictability. November 2015, with its devastating floods, more than lived up to the imagery of Hughes's poem. Whereas November 2017, so far at least, has been a month of crisp sunshine, golden leaves, happy dogs and happy humans enjoying the glowing embers of the year.
After a disappointing Summer, such weather is an irresistible siren-call to all fell-walkers . And if you're struggling to decide which hills to get out on, then there's always the Coledale Horseshoe, an old favourite that never fails to delight, no matter how many times you've been round it before. And with many options to include or omit, you can do it differently each time, this walk for all seasons.
The Coledale Inn in Braithwaite beckons at the end of the day, named by Stuart Marshall as the best pub in the Lake District. Recently refurbished, it's a decent enough pub for sure. But best in the Lakes? Hmm... If they put on a good range of real ales it might just be a contender - but there's an awful lot of competition!