Walkhighlands

On Saturday, we drove down from the Orkney islands.
It was dark when we got to Keswick. In the morning, I opened the curtains in our apartment and there was Skiddaw in the sunshine, the summit capped with snow.

I grabbed my stuff and went for it - who knew when the weather would be like this again? I wasn't feeling too energetic after a solid day travelling, but I knew the route was easy and it was a good forecast.

I packed my ice spikes which I put on pretty much straight away as the paths were icy and very slippery - they were FAB and no problems until I took them off near the bottom on my return and had a spectacular near-fall on the tarmac in a car park

My boots for this walk were a pair of old crappy leather Hi-Tecs, £3 from a charity shop - I'm in the market for a new pair I think!! However they did the job.

It is a very simple route but a long uphill slog. Thankfully the views made up for any aches and I felt really exhilarated up there. The snow made it feel magical although it wasn't deep, and I was so glad I'd brought the ice spikes as it meant I was completely secure and didn't slip once!

When I got back down and back to base I had a long hot bath to get warm again.

Glad I dragged the "big" camera up there - it was spectacular!

Great photos!

looks like you had plenty of company up there - and I'm not surprised looking at those conditions!

I have done a lot of walking in this area , I usually camp at Castle rig campsite , I did Skidaw during the summer a bout 15 years ago , just followed the crowd , it was like 5 buses had tipped everyone out at the same time , great pictures by the way

Yep - loads of people, and I do prefer it quieter but the weather was superb.
Even worse was Scafell Pike 3 years ago on Easter weekend - must have been a thousand inappropriately dressed people up there, with bored kids and sandals.....

I was in the Central fells on the same day and it was a cracker. Some lovely pics, Skiddaw has some great views. As for the crowds I last climbed Skiddaw from the back in September setting off at about 8 in the morning and only crossed paths with about 6 people. It is possible to find solitude in the Lakes.

I was there the day before and the clouds were hanging very low so not much to see Glad that you had a cracking day on Skiddaw with a grand walk and some great photos to look back at on a bad weather day

What fabulous weather - it doesn't get much better than that!

I couldn't suppress a wry smile at your description of the cold - almost a year ago to the day I was up there on a similarly cold day, with similar results .

Don't be too hard on your Hi-Tecs - I find mine perfect for weather like that. They're comfortable, and take crampons if necessary, no problem. I only use "real" boots when it's heavy ice.