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A check of the MWIS weather report the previous evening looked promising, zero winds, cloud in the valleys with summits above the cloud. An early start the next morning to take two friends to Newcastle Airport for 06.45 ensured I was on the roads early. I took a stop on the M6 service station for an early breakfast. As always with trips to the lakes because I go that much I tend to end doing the same hills over and over again and then sometimes reversing them, so this time I thought about doing Kirkfell ,a hill I hadn't been on since I was a teenager mainly because its out of the way unless your in Wasdale, which I don't do on a day trip.
To get to Kirkfell I thought I would go from Seathwaite to Styhead and onto the Great Gable girdle path, onto Kirkfell and then return via Great Gable. As with Kirkfell I hadn't been on the girdle path since I was a lad and memories of it were of moving over lots of scree. After doing the girdle path I was pleasantly surprised, its an interesting track and in common with the high level traverse on Pillar still has some grassy paths. Its an excellent mountain path and the proximity to the climbers traverse surprised me. I think all those memories years ago of scree probably meant I was too low.
Got to Seathwaite around 08.30 and I was on my way for 08.45. The weather in the valley was damp and cool with the car temp clock reading 5 degrees. I started off with a windstopper jacket on for the walk to Stockley bridge
Climbed up the path to the left of Taylorgill force and stripped down to a T shirt as it was beginning to warm up. Got to Styhead tarn just as the sun was starting to make an appearance and burn off some cloud
From this height I started to see the extent of the inversion which got better as I walked onto the girdle path. Looking across to Great End shows the amount of cloud hanging on the Wasdale side of Styhead and out towards the west the cloud was as far as I could see. The slopes of Lingmell can be seen on the left with the Wasdale valley totally covered.
Two shots of the girdle path. As I previously stated the track surprised me. It constantly holds your attention as you meander across the slopes.
The girdle path is close to the path to the climbers traverse. At one point the path to the start of the clamber to the base of Napes Needle is only about 75 feet above you. The photographs show Napes Needle, Sphinx rock and Arrowhead buttress, a climb I recall doing in my youth, not just climbing but leading it!
Two shots from the area of the col between Great Gable and Kirkfell looking south
Path up to Kirkfell.
View from the top of Kirkfell showing cloud inversion in Ennerdale and Buttermere
Zoomed shot of Illgill Head taken from Kirkfell.
View back from the shoulder up Great Gable showing Kirkfell, Pillar hills, Buttermere hills
Kirkfell from Great Gable
Got to the top of Great Gable around 1pm and such was the temperature I sat for an hour in the sun. I keep a pair of sunglasses in the rucksack and there has been many opportunities this year so out they came. As I sat the cloud started to move up the valley towards Styhead and thicken as it did so. I kept watching for photographs and on looking back to Kirkfell saw the cloud racing and dropping over Black Sail pass and into Ennerdale. Tried to capture the image, hope I've done it justice
Initially I was going to go onto Green Gable and then drop down over the fells towards the path back to Stockley Bridge but given the amount of cloud hanging in the valley thought I would drop straight down the front path towards Styhead tarn. Passed a couple at 2.30pm repeating a walk from their youth going up and with a fair bit still to do I hope they got back before nightfall.
View up Borrowdale from the path down Great Gable. Blencathra can be seen in the distance on the left.
