The initial walk took us by a river, in a few different directions at first (lol) and then onto the track that would lead us to the base of Eagle Crag. The river was fast flowing and there were a few canoeists parked up ready to tackle the water.
We could hear it before we saw it. Looking for a bridge to cross the river to keep us on the path we could hear a roaring sound that meant only 1 thing. Waterfall. Not just the one waterfall but a series of many different falls all flowing into the river from 3 different sources. Cascading over rocks and creating a spectacular visual. Not one to miss an opportunity we did spend some time down by the water making our way through different levels of the falls taking many many pictures in the hope that one would capture the stunning sight before us. The sound, the water pounding down the rocks was the only sound around for miles. No other people, just us and the falls. Brilliant stuff!
Our attention was then turned behind us to the lovely rockface of Eagle Crag and following the river again on the other side we made our way along to where a wall showed us the way up the steep and sometimes boggy slope that was the initial climb. It really was quite steep but nothing more than we'd encountered before on previous hills so it was just one foot in front of the other and keep plodding on.
The cloud was starting to lift at it was getting a bit brighter. We reached the rocky bit and it was a nice bit of scramble through the stones and rocks. I do like the whole problem solving excercise when faced with a bit of rock like this. Where do you put your feet? Is there something to hold on to to pull yourself up? 3 points of contact at all times and before we knew it we were up and through that piece of rock and I wanted to do it all again. Luckily there were more rocky bits to come both up and down so we had that to look forward to.
Just before the summit we were skirting round the edge and there was a nice little banked, shelved like area which seemed perfect for first lunch. It was a bit damp and as per usual I didnt put anything down to sit on and got a wet backside, ewwwh. Not only that but we seemed to be sitting in the course of a little stream running down behind us and could feel little drips on our head so hoods up. The view made up for everything as it was spectactular looking down into the valley. Good job we had the view because the sandwiches were rubbish lol, dry and horrid bread........
Up and moving quickly again we made our way round and up the last bit of rocky incline before the summit. It was a strange summit and had a rock which was like the baby version of Bowfell's great slab. It had a strange green hue to it which must have been caused by the lichen, in fact a lot of the views today had strange colours in them and not easily captured by camera. The edge of the flat rock summit was a great picture spot with its pinnically edge just perfect for that mountain shot.
Sargeants Crag was clearly visible as our next target and the weather was on the change. The temperature had dropped and the clouds had lifted so that we could see clearly over far away fells and hills. The sun was shining somewhere and we could see a hill in the distance all lit up but above us it still remained grey and overcast.
Another great craggy walk up to the top of Sargeants Crag following a path through the rocks and soon we were on the summit where the wind had again gathered some strength. We only spent a moment actually on the top before deciding which route we'd take down. Would we go down the path we'd planned that would take us back to the path where the waterfalls were earlier in the day or could we find an alternative route off the back down into another valley that had its own selection of waterfalls further down that we'd not seen yet.
A quick reccy down to see what lay beyond the initial descent and there really wasnt much to see. Going off piste can sometimes be fun but when you have no idea whats ahead or how the terrain is then sometimes its better to stick to your original plan. The map told us that it would be steep and didnt indicate any sheer drops but with the weather closing in and time potentially against us it was decided that we clamber back up the hill and reroute ourselves on the original path.
Up and over the side of Sargeant Crags again and down over the other side we kept following the path until we met up with the river. This river was one of many flowing down the hillside and meeting up with the big river which in turn provided us with some brilliant waterfalls on the way down the hillside. This has to be my favorite descent of any hill. A rocky and sometimes steep path with the most beautiful waterfalls right at the side distracting you completely from the descent. Many many more picture moments and we were only halted by the changing light meaning it was probably going to be dark quite soon.
Leaving the waterfalls behind and spotting a gap in the hills we noticed whiteness on top of a hill that we'd seen earlier in the day and realised that it had snowed whilst we were coming down. I can't wait till we're walking in the snow and the landscape has been altered completely by frost and deep and beautiful snow.
It was these thoughts that stayed with us as the daylight frittered away and before we knew it we were back at the car. The last light of the day fading fast and we headed for Keswick where I was assured there was a brilliant fish and chip shop. Not having had fish for about 34 years or perhaps longer, mainly because I was sure there were bones in the fish, I was really keen to have it tonight, it just seemed right. So assured that there would be no bones I jumped right in and it was cod and chips x 2 ........... oh lordy how scrumptious it was and Keswick does indeed have a great little fish and chip shop. A perfect way to end a stunning walk. Once again the lakes didnt disappoint. 2 Wainwrights today bringing my total up to 33. A long way to go and I'm looking forward to every second.
