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" Remembrance at Castle Crag 2016 " Date & start time: Sunday 13th November 2016, 9.15 am start. Location of Start : Grange in Borrowdale, Cumbria, Uk ( NY 252 175 ) Places visited : Grange, Broadslack Gill, Castle Crag returning via the riverside. Walk details : 3.9 mls, 850 feet of ascent, 4 hour 15 mins including the ceremony. Highest point : Castle Crag 951ft - 290m Walked with : Sherran and Bill, Neil, Ann and our dogs, Harry and Dylan. Weather : Overcast but dry though there were showers about after 11am. |
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On Sunday we joined approximately 200 others on a walk to the War Memorial on Castle Crag on Remembrance Sunday. People travelled from all directions and met on the summit at 11am, including our group of 5 who started from Grange. Before you complain that I can't count, Trevor and Finlay on the right couldn't join us today but did kindly offer a parking space outside their home. Neil, Sherran and Bill are in the centre in this picture kindly taken by Gill. We're down here, passing this and going there . . . sums up the route I think ! The track alongside Hollows Farm campsite passes close to the summer picnic spot on the River Derwent. The stream coming in from the right has brought down a lot of stone, but it is always possible to cross the stream by a bridge. The valley up between Castle Crag and High Spy is known as Broadslack Gill valley. It is better known for the old high level valley road that brought down slate from Honister Mine in times past. The valley is also renowned for the view back to Derwent Water and the Skiddaw Fells behind. Unfortunately the trees are growing taller and starting to obscure the view, as they do at Ashness Bridge. The scree slopes are waste slate from the Castle Crag slate quarry high up on the left. Skiddaw again showing a residual cornice of snow from last week . . . the first Lake District snow fell this year on November 5th.
A spiral round the back of the summit and we are climbing the zig-zag path that ascends the last section of this lovely fell. Below is the valley of Upper Borrowdale with Rosthwaite and Eagle Crag in the distance. Bright autumnal colours on the larch and now we can see that full view of Derwent Water. There is already a crowd gathering on the summit crag. The war memorial, to those men of the valley who died in the First World War, is mounted on the rock to the right.
We had arranged to see Syd Cornwell on the summit. Due to ill health last year he couldn't make the climb so on that occasion I carried up his Remembrance poppies. This year he made it himself and so was able to lay his own Remembrance dedications. The crosses represent his family members and a Jewish family friend who died in the Second World War.
Syd had researched the internet and War Graves Commission records over the last year and discovered that Joseph Beck, the son of the pre-war Loweswater blacksmith also died in the war. Our cottage used to be known as Smithy Cottage and the triangle of gravel opposite was the site of the Loweswater Smithy itself. To bring remembrance up to date and more relevant to the present generation the day is also dedicated to all those that have died or been injured in service of their country since that time. Here a family group remember Dean Dobbie who died relatively recently in Afghanistan. Before the service I climbed to the summit for a wider view. There are about 150 or more people here, possibly two hundred counting those not in the photo. Click here or on the photo above for a larger Loweswatercam annotated panorama. Final wreaths and poppies were placed before the start of proceedings. Mr Miles Jessop, Church Warden and owner of the local Scafell Hotel in Rosthwaite led the 11am ceremony in much more pleasant weather conditions than last year, when it was raining heavily. He mentioned the 100 year anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, listed the names of those of the valley that had lost their lives in the war, mentioned those who have died in more recent conflicts and offered up a prayer before the two minute silence.
Afterwards a war poem, the Listening Post, was read by Margaret Braithwaite. After the ceremony was over we had time to stay and chat to friends and acquaintances. Here were Eric and Liz from Norfolk with their friends Richard and Janet. Mike and Barbara and friends (sorry no names). These two you already know . . . Bill and Neil. A contingent from the 16th Harrogate Scout group . . . others of their group have climbed Great Gable today. The full group . . . by the look of the weather behind, their friends will be a little colder and wetter ! - - - o o o - - - Time to be heading down . . . The small cairn that was here for a while seems to have grown to a mini-shelter. I think the builders lost the plot somewhere near the final cap stones . . . either that or the strong winds have dislodged the slates. Lovely coloured larch to look at as we stop to allow others to pass. Another group of youngsters makes for the summit . . . Dylan greets them all. Coloured jackets of the walkers outline the way up and down the slate path. We cross the ladder stile and head down in the direction of the river. Harry prefers the softer grass rather than the pitched stones, so he walks down alongside the path. Back through High How Woods . . . the colours of the trees are superb today. Neil and Sherran walk ahead on the leaf covered path. Beautiful reflections in the pools on the river. The water is clear and you can see every pebble on the river bed.
Retracing our steps along the path to Hollows Farm . . . looking up at Nitting Haws. The road to Hollows Farm starts alongside the second cafe in the village. Conveniently, if you back-track, it ends up there as well . . . We were planning to show you a picture of the delightful soup and bread . . . but that is so Facebook but as it happens, we'd eaten it all up before the camera was remembered. Thanks to everyone for a nice walk once again. - - - o o - - Loweswatercam viewer Mike Higlett wrote to me in advance of the weekend and said he would be up in the Lakes. Apparently 16th Harrogate Scouts Mountain Weekend coincided with Remembrance Sunday this year and he would be leading one of three groups up to Gable. A fourth group (which we met) were headed for Castle Crag. He would send me a picture or two. [ The following photographs received this week are credited to Mike and Will ] " Moses Trodd - this is my group looking at Gable as we joined onto Moses Trod" [ It would be a three hour walk for them from their start point at Honister to the summit of Great Gable.] Gable Summit - always a popular place on Remembrance Sunday. Before the silence the member of the Fell & Rock Club read out their names, the date they were killed in battle, where they were died and where they are now buried. As the silence finished a lone bugler played the last post, followed by a pause, then reveille.
Mikes Group - these are the 3 boys and one other adult from my group . . . more of Mike's pictures on his site here
Will's group at the summit . . . the girl sat at the right hand end is my (Mike's) daughter.
- - - o o o - - -
These were the photos of his uncles that were mentioned on the crosses of Remembrance that Syd Cornwell took up this year.
John ‘Syd’ Cornwell - - o o o - - - |
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Technical note: Pictures taken with either Ann's new Panasonic Lumix TZ60, or my Panasonic Lumix Gx8a Compact System Camera. Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder. This site best viewed with . . . time to appreciate what it all means. Go to Top . . . © RmH . . . Email me here Previous walk - 11/12th November 2016 - Bowness Knott and a Party A previous Remembrance Walk - 11th November 2012 Great Carrs Remembrance Next walk - November 2016 - Autumn and First Snow
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