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We meet up with Trevor and Gill on this Wednesday afternoon.

The weather for our walk is not the best because visibility is poor, but nevertheless it's warm and dry for our outing.

Harry stretches out on a longer walk across the top of High Rigg Fell, perhaps encouraged on by his friend, Finlay of Borrowdale.

The round trip of High Rigg is something like five miles, too much for Harry at his advanced age

so we take two cars to St Johns in the Vale and aim for a linear walk along the ridge.

Our starting point is the Church and Youth Centre at the end of the tarmac road up on the northern end of the fell.

Our walking companions are Gill and Trevor.

Three retrievers means we are in the company of their dog Finlay (of Borrowdale).

Finlay is now fast approaching four years old, Dylan three and a half and Harry, who is ten years older than both, turned thirteen last January.

It's late July and the bracken is up, often obscuring the other vegetation on the fells.

Our path is still open because it is well trodden, but climbing is warm and humid through the thick, cloying vegetation.

Higher up the climate is different and we are above the 'bracken line'.

Behind Trevor and Ann we can see Lonscale Fell with Tewet Tarn in the middle distance on the right.

The summit cairn is on this end of the fell and is reached reasonably quickly.

Behind is Clough Head at the northern end of the Helvellyn Ridge, clear of cloud but not clear of mistiness today.

Looking south along the ridge of the fell towards Thirlmere . . . from the same summit cairn.

Harry rests after his climb but he can count this as another Wainwright peak bagged for him because he did it under his own steam !

With Helvellyn hidden in mist, Browncove Crags on the left assumes the mantle of highest peak.

It's downhill all the way now . . . apart from the occasional up . . . but we're back into bracken on the south facing slopes.

There's a location on the map called Paper Moss . . . Moss implies damp and boggy . . . damp and boggy implies muddy dogs !

Today was no exception.   Let's hope there's somewhere cleaner to wash them off later.

Finlay wins the accolade for muckiest dog !

Sensible humans given the boggy ground a wider berth

. . . successfully persuading Harry not get involved in the same muddy game.

The damp ground is home to the suitably named bog asphodel

Keeping Harry clean has paid off as he needed to be lifted over the stile. . . I successfully complete the maneuver, clean and dry !

Bog Asphodel again in the foreground, but the main water plant here is Bog Bean.

It looks like Finlay and Dylan have found somewhere better to swim and also to clean away the peat from their coats.

Thirlmere is getting closer now, as is the wooded fellside of Great How along side it.

Rests are becoming more frequent for Harry . . . but that might just be because he's hot and thirsty.

Ann fills the green fabric dog bowl we carry and offers all three dogs a welcome drink.

Their eye has been caught by the different vegetation on this drier part of the fell

You can spot several different varieties of heather and the more obvious yellow tormentil

Looking down into St Johns in the Vale . . . with Bram Crag Farm at the bend in the road.

At the end of Long Crag we pass a lone pine tree

as we drop down and cross through a gap in the wall.

A slow climb back up onto Wren Crag . . . it really is downhill from here Harry . . . I promise.

Late addition :- Hi Roger Here is a picture taken by those pine trees, in very different weather conditions, at least 15 years ago ! Cheers, Gill and Trevor.   Thanks for the photo . . . Roger and Ann.

The path continues down amongst more of the pines . . . it seems further than expected to walk off this southern end of the fell.

The stark skeleton of an old tree stands out amongst the summer greenery.

Beyond it and viewed with the longer lens, is Bridge End Farm.

It has a busy little caravan and chalet site but is still a working farm, its yard full of penned sheep awaiting attention.

Glimpsed through the trees . . . our friend's house at Thirlmere Green.

A little further on, a viewpoint allows us to see all the buildings of the community and also Castle Rock behind.

Back down to the A 591 road at the southern end of the fell.

The dogs are on the lead now for the short, roadside walk to where we parked the second car earlier in the day.

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We returned to Trevor and Gill's house in Borrowdale for the evening.

It has been  a very active day for the youngsters Finlay and Dylan and a good steady walk for Harry too.

Surely Harry deserves Finlay's soft bed Dylan ?

. . . but then he's found the slate floor is nice and cool after a hot and humid day on the fells.

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