Over and Under Scandale

Low Pike, High Pike, Dove Crag and Scandale

Unlike our other walks, we set off without going through the churchyard and Rothay Park. We started from Smithy Brow (start of the Kirkstone Rd in middle of Ambleside)and headed along Nook Lane to Low Sweden Bridge, where we took our first waterfall pictures of the day. From here we climbed steadily along a track, pausing to take photos of the view of Ambleside and lake Windermere behind us. As we climbed higher we could see more and more of the lake, and then other lakes too, and finally the sea to the South and South West. We walked upwards to Sweden Crag, inadvertently managing to avoid the bad step, taking a cowardly path around the bottom of the crag.

We continued through High Brock Crags to Low Pike(508m), our first top of the day. This was a good spot to stop for lunch and look at Pinch Crags on the other side of the valley, and, of course, gaze back at Windermere. After more photos, we continued up the delightfully craggy ridge to High Pike (656m) where we had even more magnificent views, all the way over to Lake Coniston and Morecambe Bay. It was very still and peaceful, so we sat and listened to birdsong and the wind rushing through a crow's wings until we felt too cold and had to set off walking again.

Tired and footsore by now, we still couldn't resist carrying on up the ridge to Dove Crag. Here the vista was absolutely breathtaking, with a whole host of Lakeland peaks arrayed around us. Fairfield dominates the view to the west, but High Stile and High Crag can be seen beyond it to the NW. Turning towards the south you can pick out Scafell and The Old Man of Coniston. The Westmoreland Hills and Yorkshire Moors are even visible in the distance. Great views to the NE of Brothers Water and the Far Eastern Fells. Our new fell walking book was very useful in helping us identify all the surrounding tops.

From Dove Crags we descended to Bakestones Moss, passing the natural slate fields on the slops of the crags, then proceeded down on past Black Brow and Scandale Tarn into Scandale. The stroll along the valley in the walled lane was very pleasant, and we were very pleased with ourselves when we looked up to see how far we had climbed earlier in the day. We found lots of tadpoles in the puddles and pools along the lane, but didn't feel that we could rescue them all, and hoped that they had had wise parents who knew which pools didn't dry out and had checked the iodine content of the water before spawning (A-level biology has a lot to answer for).

The walled lane continued past the very pretty High Sweden Bridge and a series of waterfalls. By this time we were feeling fairly trudgey and we were glad to get back to our B+B and get our boots off. Having had them on all day long, in addition to the usual heel blisters, we noticed a new phenomenon: internally itchy feet. Most bizarre.