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One of the notable outcomes in attempting to tackle all of the English Hewitts in multiple trips over two years is that about 70% into the journey it becomes much more difficult to put groups of four or five tops into nice circular routes. This is probably true of this set of three tops in remote North Pennine territory ...... although I am sure someone can come up with a better alternative to this 'Y' shaped route with its multiple out-and-backs.
However, the route has a lot to recommend it, as long as you are happy with splendid isolation over a 13 mile journey. The first advantage is that starting at the Hartside Cafe lay-by on the A686 means that you start well above the 500m contour and you stay high for the entire walk. The height gain is therefore modest.
I had decided to initially follow the track heading north from the apex in the acute bend in the road in order to skirt the lower slopes of Black Fell on my way to the first clearly visible summit, one of England's most recently designated Hewitts, Thack Moor. Leaving the track I used the 550m contour over quite demanding grassy tussocks, aiming for the sheepfold below Watch Hill. At this point there are some good treads over the ridge to the top of Thack Moor which offers clear views over the Eden Valley to the Northern Lakes. So far so good but, given that I was now at the top end of left hand bit of the 'Y', I now retraced my steps back over the stiles to the sheepfold.
Continuing on the ridge, which ultimately leads to Black Fell, I cut the corner across rough ground to reach the ridge fence about 300 metres before Tom Smith's Stone. At this point I should note that his walk was undertaken (deliberately) during a long dry spell. This meant that both the cut-across and the walk beside the fence was dry, and the exposed peat on the ridge where one would normally have a sinking feeling, was actually firm and provided relatively easy and fast progress. A stile crosses the fence at the stone pillar and Grey Nag is clearly visible to the north east. Again, there are reasonably easy tracks to follow, which disappear across some of the peat sections, but in good visibility this remote and isolated section is really enjoyable, with the route gently rising to reach the clear summit cairn.
Turning back to retrace my steps towards the final summit I now committed a major error in placing my phone in an open pocket in a light top tied around my waist. So as I approached Tom Smith's Stone I discovered that it had jogged itself out of the pocket, meaning a retracing of steps to add what would be a 14th mile onto a 13 mile journey. Never again will I repeat that mistake! The route to Black Fell follows the fence, occasionally across more exposed peat, and gently up to the summit offering a good aspect over Melmerby Fell and Cross Fell. It still feels very isolated at this point, even though I knew that the main road and car park was less than two miles away. Continuing along the ridge to Hartside Height, the car park finally comes into view and the occasional sound of traffic now breaks that sense of splendid isolation.
Approaching the end of the walk I reflected on the fact that at my advanced age I had now firmly turned into a fair weather walker, which ultimately means that I can keep up a pace across challenging terrain of some 3 mph and almost always see the route ahead without troubling my digital OS map. How different this route would be in wet underfoot conditions with the cloud down!
