Renwick, the obvious starting point for climbing Thack Moor, is a pretty farming village with few of the accoutrements that suggest a walkers' hub, and plenty of parking. For the first mile or so up there's a clear and easy track, good walking with wide views back over the Eden Valley to a Lakes skyline, and even when that peters out in a spongy flat area, you can head for a clear enough tread climbing the final slopes ahead. Nothing's very difficult and even into the teeth of a fierce wind I was at the pleasant little peak in less than an hour.
- Church of All Saints, Renwick
- Eden Valley from the track up
- Looking west from Thack Moor trig
From there, the very broad and flat 'ridge' east to Black Fell is harder going, not too exciting and pretty damp almost everywhere. The target hill looks really wide and flat, and the parts away from guiding walls wouldn't pass Wainwright's test of 'possible to follow in mist'. No dangers on a clear day, but it's still a relief each time the ground steepens and firms up a little, and especially to reach the summit and some new views east.
- Watch Hill & Grey Nag
- Back to Thack Moor
- Black Fell from Watch Hill
- Croglin Fell
- Better ground
- Thack Moor & Croglin Fell
- Grey Nag
- Black Fell summit
- Fence to Grey Nag, Tynedale in distance
The shortish stretch south to Hartside Cross (presumably trodden twice by most people bagging this hill the shortest way) is proper upland bog. Experience tells you the colours of grass you can tread on without getting a bootful of slop, but it's still a very zigzag route around the deeper hags needing some athletic tussock-jumping. Probably rather more fun than the unvarying wetness of the earlier ridge, but quite an effort and I don't think many of the queue in the summit cafe looked like they had come the same way rather than on wheels! The food there was far better than expected, excellent bacon and enormous cakes, and probably rather more so than it needs to be for its captive crowds miles from anywhere – well recommended.
- Wet going...
- Black Fell
- Route down to Loo Gill from Hartside Cross
After taking in the vista from the top with everyone else, the bridleway heading west is pretty rough in its early reaches after crossing the road – ambitiously and prominently signed as a cycle route, it probably isn't without some sort of amphibious kit, there are watery holes and ruts that would swallow much of a wheel without care… It improves further down though into a typically-Yorkshire walled lane, and there were impressive views in the sun back to the two hills climbed; Black Fell definitely looking better from this side with becks cutting its slopes.
- Thack Moor
- Ricker Gill bridge & Loo Gill
- Black Fell
- Thack Moor over Loo Gill
- Black Fell & Hartside Cross
- Haresceugh
It's a slow mission, but I'll probably get through all the Pennine summits in the end (doing it relentlessly for a few weeks to finish the list would be a bit much). The ups and downs of this route were good walking, the high plateau rather less so, and that's possibly the key to designing routes around here, but this was a nice day out on new terrain.
some fine pics there on a stunning day for a walk 
Similar day to when E and I did it from Renwick though maybe not as wet as you found it as we went earlier in the year 
