During this hike I managed to experience pretty much every type of weather from a beautiful sunrise, some sleet, rain and snow, some sections got pretty windy and icy cold whilst others felt warm in the winter sun.
Parking in Braithwaite, well, in the school playground which opens up on weekends and holidays as a public car park. The little village was very picturesque with views of the fells in all directions.
The Route
It was a beautiful start to the day with an amazing sunrise peaking out over the mountains tops, and it wasn’t long into this hike that the ascent started.
I have to admit from a distance the path up Grisedale Pike looked a little intimating, I knew that it had a bit of a scramble but it wasn’t until I reached the path that I realised it was mostly scree. It wasn’t too bad though it was pretty easy to follow the path and before I knew it I had reached the top. Where I was greeted by the sun bursting through the clouds and painting shadows over the mountains to the south of the peak.
Weather change
After hitting the first summit of the circular route the weather did turn a little. It got pretty foggy, pretty quickly. This has become common on a lot of my mountain adventures but I’ll be honest I do quite like it. If others are on the trail they’re hidden by the clouds and it adds a little mystery to hike.
Clearing slightly from the trig point
The clouds did clear slightly from the trig point on Crag Hill. As you can see in the picture below it was pretty icy and the winds did make it feel pretty cold. Still it made for a nice shot with the sun trying to break through the clouds.
The rest of the hike was much clearer. The ridge like paths had some slightly interesting little scramble sections and looked pretty awesome.
I love looking back and being able to see a lot of the route I’ve taken that day. This view of Grisedale Pike just made me feel all good inside. Just knowing that I had had a successful day of Wainright and Nuttall bagging.
From the summit of Sail I could see a mountain that is high on my list. The summit of Hellvellyn was slightly hidden by the clouds but I am excited to explore this part of the Lake District in the near future.
Almost there…
I was almost at the end of my day of hiking, but then, this amazing view of Skiddaw and the surrounding mountains was clear and right in front of me.
I think I know what might be included in one of my next Lake District adventure too!
