Date & Time: Sunday 19th November 2006. 12 noon start.

Location of Start : The top road above Wythop Mill village, Cumbria, Uk. ( NY 183 291 )

Places visited : Ling Fell and Sale Fell.

Walk details : 3.2 mls, 1200 ft of ascent , 2 hrs 10 mins.

Walked with : Ann and the dogs.

Weather : A strong, cold wind and cloudy skies. Looks more like Winter than Autumn.

Ling Fell from Keiswick Farm

 

It was a wintery day in Cumbria as we drove down the valley for today's walk.

Two nights of wintery showers have left the high fells with a covering of snow. It has been wet down here in the valley and the forecast is for a window of reasonable weather before the next front blows in at the end of the afternoon. Time to get out while it is is still dry.

We parked above Eskin Farm, up the valley from Wythop Mill.

Sale Fell is the one on the corner, as the A66 reaches the top of Bassenthwaite Lake and turns for Cockermouth,

but today we're climbing Ling Fell, it's close neighbour.

Over the other side of the unseen Bassenthwaite Lake is the high summit of Skiddaw.

Overnight snow gives it a wintery look and makes the ridge of Ullock Pike and Longside Edge stand out clearly.

Snow on the tops also means another thing - I didn't win the Fishers staff competition - guess the date of the first snow - not Dec 4th obviously :o(

Coincidentally these are called Fisher Woods, fine Autumnal colours, in Wythop Valley.

Pity there's no sun to show them at their best.

Ann climbs the wide footpath that gradually curves around and up the hillside towards the summit.

The old Grouse Butts, now reduced to piles of stones.

Harry and Bethan reach the summit trig point.

Behind are Grisedale Pike and Hopegill Head, above the dark trees of Widow Hause on the next ridge over.

Ann reaches the trig point too.

 

The weather, apart from one brief shower, is being reasonable

but we left out waterproof trousers on

for no other reason than to cut down the wind chill.

 

Looking at the pool of water, you can see the wind

causing significant ripples on its surface

even at ground level.

 

A telephoto shot, and a bit blurred due to camera shake in the wind.

In the distance you may be able to make out snow on the southern uplands of Scotland.

   
Leaving Ling Summit for the track on it's eastern side.
Delightful Burnthwaite Cottage's cheerful red paint.

We decided to extend the walk by including Sale Fell as the weather was still reasonable.

Eskin Farm, looking back at Burnthwaite Cottage which is the smaller cottage half hidden in the trees, up and to the right.

Climbing Sale Fell, with Embleton, Watch Hill and it's forestry plantation in the distance.

Keiswick Farm and Wythop Valley, with snow in the Helvellyn Ridge in the far distance.

Harry's ears blowing in the strong wind as we reach Sale summit.

Turning for home, we push our way into the on-comming wind.

Ling Fell, where we started our walk today, is ahead of us as we descend.

Down to Keiswick Farm and back onto the farm road at the end of a delightful but windy walk.

 

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Technical note: Pictures taken with a Canon IXUS 400 Digital camera.

Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder.

This site best viewed with . . . proven windproof gear and a spare anchor.

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Previous walk - 15th November 2006 A Cold Front will bring rain and high winds

A previous time up here - 28th May 2003 Sale Fell with Gareth, without getting lost