A delightfully dippy day in the dales.....

Sunday 26th May 2013

The alarm went off at 5am and once bags were packed, water bottles filled and sandwiches made we headed out into the sunshine in the direction of Kettlewell which would be the start point for our walk today.  Great Wernside was the destination and although it wasn’t the heady heights of the Lakeland peaks it was the most stunning area in the countryside and with the weather holding it had all the makings of an excellent walk.

The car park was in the centre of the village and adjacent to a lovely little stream.  We headed off out the village to find the path that would take us initially up through the valley which was itself a lovely part of the walk.  Lucious and green with some really unusual trees.

There was no one around, once sheltered from the chilly wind the sun got warm and it wasn’t long before layers were off as we headed further and further into the valley.

Views behind us opening up as far as the eye could see and the path ahead of us winding through the hillside carving our route.  The river beside us offering the faint sound of trickling as it tumbled through the rocks.

The river came to fork and our map told us to take the left hand route further up the hillside and veering sharp left to take us up onto the plateau past Providence Pot and heading towards the path that would take us up the final hillside to the summit of Great Wernside.

It was at this point, it was noticed that something was missing.  Chris’s sunglasses.  They must have come off when we were having a “delayering” moment so Chris headed back down the hillside to see if he could see them.  I waited with all the gear, packs and cameras and took the opportunity to study the map, have a banana and enjoy, for a moment, the sunshine, hoping to see Chris re-appear over the crest with sunglasses back on his head.

After about 45 mins he still hadn’t returned so I gathered up our stuff and went off for a wander back down the hillside.  Too heavy to go very far and afraid I’d miss him if he came up another path I waited on a large flattish rock for his return.  No sunglasses L, he went almost as far back as the village and couldn’t see them.  Gutted!

Heading again back up the hillside it was getting hotter and was a bit of a slog.  It reminded us of Grisdale Pike although there was no fog, mist and wind today and the slog, although hard work, was actually quite pleasant.  Behind us we could see over to the 3 Yorkshire peaks of Pen y Ghent, Ingleborough with Wernside  hiding in the cloud.

Before long we arrived at a largish pointy cairn with the path clearly visible in front of us up onto Great Wernside so we chose to stop here for 1^st lunch.  Cheese and piccalilli sandwiches on olive bread, fruit and nuts.  Delicious!

The final part of the path up onto the summit was quite boggy.  We darted in and out trying to avoid getting dirty/wet but before long we could see the trig point nestled in a large amount of boulders which was indeed quite pretty.  It was a bit windier up here so another layer was added and with the obligatory trig pictures taken we headed left over the top towards a grouping of rocks at the other end of the plateau ridge.  The rocks were an assemblment of cairns and a very large shelter, not needed today though.   The weather was beautiful and again it was a great feeling having the views that we had.

The path downwards was easy to spot and easy to navigate.  Not much in the way of loose rocks and a good solid path which made the going down easier than usual.

Arriving at the road that was taking cars and bikes back down into the village of Kettlewell we crossed it and continued on the path.  We hadn’t gone far along the path before we came to a small herd of cattle, all very curious as to what we were doing.  Chewing stopped and they all individually raised their heads and had a good old look at us…..extremely intimidating!  Escape routes over a nearby wall were mentally prepared and I desperately  tried not to make eye contact, even when taking their picture.  Beautiful beasts but a bit to close and curious for my liking.  We briskly moved forward and the fact is that they were probably not interested at all in us but they were big brutes and I was glad to be past them.

The path wound its way back down to the village and the sun was still shining.  We stopped for 2^nd lunch on the path and were rewarded with even more views of the stunning countryside. Interesting walls, luscious green pastures and of course behind us where’d we’d been that day.  What an absolutely glorious sight.

Back in the village we popped into the shop for a drink and then had a lovely ice cream treat which we ate by the riverside where the car was parked.  Sitting on the wall, in the sunshine, watching Dippers in the river darting about was a perfect way to end a walk.  Who says we don’t get good weather in this country?  These folk must be sitting at home, on the couch, with the curtains shut!