" Rannerdale with Maggie "

Date & start time: Thursday 13th October 2011, 3.45 pm start.

Location of Start : Hause Point, Crummock, Cumbria, Uk ( NY 164 184 )

Places visited : Rannerdale Knotts, Low Bank, Hause Point.

Walk details : 1.9 mls, 975 ft of ascent, 2 hours.

Highest point : Rannerdale Knotts 1153 ft - 355 m.

Walked with : Maggie Allen, Ann and the dogs, Harry and Bethan.

Weather : Sunshine after a damp, cloudy morning.

Time for an afternoon walk and a friend joins us for a local outing on a favourite fell.

Maggie hasn't walked Rannerdale for a while, and neither have we. The last time was in August.

To make a change we climbed the steep front of the fell but returned to the car a different way.

No visit to Rannerdale is complete without a trip to the beach.

No need for 'cossies for Harry . . . but a towel could be good to avoid him shaking water all over us afterwards.

There's room to park for half a dozen cars at the foot of the climb.

One of the old hawthorn trees has finally succumbed to the elements and has rolled down the bank onto the stones.

The grey clouds of earlier have moved away to the north and it is quite a nice day now.

Can you spot a big white house at the other end of the lake . . . that's not ours !

The path is running with water after recent rain . . .	. . . and it starts as a spring beneath the rock part way up.

A pause to admire the view.

The top end of the Buttermere Valley . . . the high fells are just about clear of cloud.

Wood House nestling in the trees, offers guest house and bed and breakfast accommodation.

Maggie leads the way up the pitched steps . . .	. . . the view down improves as we climb.

Nearing the top we regain our view of Grasmoor, Whiteless and the one in between known as Third Gill Man Head.

The main mountain stream behind Rannerdale Knotts divides and ends up as Squat Beck and Rowantree Beck. The real Rannerdale Beck dives off north and heads away from us towards Wandope and Crag Hill (out of sight).

It was simple alignments like this that I remember from my junior school art lessons . . . drawing classic folds of valleys climbing away into the distance. Must have enjoyed this sort of view from an early age . . . thanks Mum and Dad !

Maggie enjoying the view from the end rock of Rannerdale . . .

. . . while Harry enjoys a summit pool of rainwater that he remembers from last time.

Ann relaxes at the true summit.

Is she laughing or is she wincing at the weight of all that rock on her toes ?

The village of Buttermere, seen as we walk along the ridge.

The small rocky bank below goes by the name of High House Crags.

We vary the route today by cutting down the front of the fell.

There's no path but the bracken is dying off and there's more sunshine on this side.

The old road and the new road.

Bethan and Harry look down on the 1930's tarmac road . . . and the green track that would have been the old Buttermere road.

We found a useful sheep track that took us the last section of the way

and thus we avoided having to push our way through the thicker bracken lower down.

" No charge for using the oldest tracks of all " . . . thanks guys.

Following the bridle way over Hause Point.

With imagination you can work the route and see where the rock has been worn away by the long-gone cart wheels.

The footpath takes a direct line down from here and has been pitched in recent years.

Keep an eye out for the zig-zag pony track next time you are climbing up, especially if the bracken is clear.

Oh no . . . pass the towel from the back of the car !

- - - o o o - - -

Technical note: Pictures taken with either Ann's Canon 75 or my Canon G10 digital camera.

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

This site best viewed with . . . an estate car with a separate back section for wet dogs.

Go to Top . . . © RmH.2011 . . . Email me here

Previous walk - Thurs 6th October 2011 Raven Crag between the showers

A previous time up here - 19th May 2008 Rannerdale Bluebells visit

Next walk - Sat 15th October 2011 Fangs Brow with Jo