Day 4 - Monday 4 June 2012
Patterdale to Shap (16.8 miles)
Awoke to a beautiful day which bode well for such a glorious leg of the walk over stunning scenery.
Breakfast at Crookey Cottage was the best of the entire walk. Homemade breads and jams, fresh fruit and lovely bacon set us up for the day. Ed and Hazel also made a fantastic packed lunch for us, which was again wholesome and filling. They are a lovely couple who are making the most of their super home and scenic location.
Leaving Patterdale at 0840 we made our way up to Boredale Hause and it seemed as though all C2C walkers had left at exactly the same time which made it an enjoyable climb up this steep section. Once at Boredale Hause the views over Brothers Water and Ullswater really open up and coupled with the weather made the long ascent really worth it.
Breakfast at Crookey Cottage was the best of the entire walk. Homemade breads and jams, fresh fruit and lovely bacon set us up for the day. Ed and Hazel also made a fantastic packed lunch for us, which was again wholesome and filling. They are a lovely couple who are making the most of their super home and scenic location.
Leaving Patterdale at 0840 we made our way up to Boredale Hause and it seemed as though all C2C walkers had left at exactly the same time which made it an enjoyable climb up this steep section. Once at Boredale Hause the views over Brothers Water and Ullswater really open up and coupled with the weather made the long ascent really worth it.
Brothers Water, Red Screes & Middle Dodd
It is here that people make the mistake of taking the wrong path to Angle Tarn but we were lucky as Dave had been here a couple of times before and knew the path to take. The Bankers were not so lucky but realised their mistake and we saw Ginge, White Legs and the gang beating a hasty change of course over the grass in order to be on the same path as us and The Four Porn Stars. Chatting to The Four Porn Stars we found out that they were from Stockton on Tees Ramblers and the bleached hair chap was from the Caribbean. He flew over especially to walk the C2C with his mates.
Fairfield, St Sunday Crag, Helvellyn & Catstycam
Angle Tarn is an idyllic spot. We let everybody else go on and stayed here for about ten minutes just taking in the lovely atmosphere of the area. Moving on we then made our way up to The Knott and on to High Street turning left at the Straits of Riggindale – it was here that we had a discussion with The Four Porn Stars and advised them whilst we would climb Kidsty Pike, we were not descending to Haweswater over the top of it. We would be continuing on over High Raise and Wether Hill and then making our way down Measand to the dam wall at Burnbanks. They thought that this made good sense considering the drop off Kidsty Pike to Haweswater is quite taxing on the knees.
We then made our way to Kidsty Pike but then noticed The Four Porn Stars going straight on to High Raise – we gave them a bit of grief about missing out the highest point on the C2C later! The walk over High Raise and Wether Hill was as we remembered from when we were here last year with great views over Ullswater and the Helvellyn range. The walk down to Burnbanks again provided us with clear views over Haweswater and the surrounding fells and we reached an area just before Burnbanks where we aired our feet and had our lovely packed lunch.
Kidsty Pike & Haweswater
From Burnbanks the remainder of the journey to Shap is often not given the credit it deserves. It is a lovely stretch of countryside and we saw it at its best with the weather we had today. We were in company for this part of the walk with The Bankers and Kim and Ian. Reaching Shap Abbey at 1630, we came across an enterprise which fitted the bill whereby the local farmer had provided a big green plastic basket full of ice and more importantly beer and cider at £1 a can! We learned later that Steve had lay in the grass by the basket and helped the farmer with his stock control.
Farming Diversity!
Shap Abbey is a grand end to the days walk and we sat here in the sun for about 30 minutes in the company of Stephen, Tracy and Tess the dog and Kim and Ian prior to making the short trip into Shap itself. We passed a lovely older couple who were in full Golden Jubilee garb and were kicking ourselves later at not taking a photograph of them as they were a comical sight.
Shap Abbey
Ian & Kim
Stephen with Tess in the shadows
Once in Shap we made our way to New Ing Farm where we were met by Scott the owner and his gorgeous Fox Red Labrador who was clearly pleased to see us. We dropped our gear off and walked up the main street of Shap in search of Mr Magners and Mrs Ice. We found this at The Crown and also in residence were The Four Porn Stars and Kim and Ian. We had a really good hour swapping stories and we told The Four Porn Stars our nickname for them and they were overjoyed. Steve arrived shortly after minus Jordan who, according to Steve was resting up in the B&B with “blisters on blisters”. Steve was funny and clearly needing a drink as he had a pint of Guinness with a Jack Daniels and Coke chaser.
We could have sat there all night as the company was so good but we had to get back to New Ing for a shower and evening meal. The meal at New Ing was very good and all locally sourced and we met more C2C walkers over dinner. We then made our way to The Kings Head to meet Billy and Eileen who had only just arrived after having a navigational snag on High Street. We had a few drinks with them and wished them all the best as we were having a rest day in Shap tomorrow whilst they were moving on to Kirkby Stephen. We hoped they slept well as the pub was heaving with Golden Jubilee celebrations.
We could have sat there all night as the company was so good but we had to get back to New Ing for a shower and evening meal. The meal at New Ing was very good and all locally sourced and we met more C2C walkers over dinner. We then made our way to The Kings Head to meet Billy and Eileen who had only just arrived after having a navigational snag on High Street. We had a few drinks with them and wished them all the best as we were having a rest day in Shap tomorrow whilst they were moving on to Kirkby Stephen. We hoped they slept well as the pub was heaving with Golden Jubilee celebrations.
Overnight Accommodation
2 nights at New Ing Lodge, Shap - www.newinglodge.co.uk
Scott & Jamie have created a basic but extremely comfortable B&B. It has a youth hostel feel about it but this does not detract from the service provided. We had a really nice 2 days here and the breakfast and evening meal was very wholesome. Be prepared to share your breakfast table with a wide variety of people ranging from rowdy students to the elderly.
Scott & Jamie have created a basic but extremely comfortable B&B. It has a youth hostel feel about it but this does not detract from the service provided. We had a really nice 2 days here and the breakfast and evening meal was very wholesome. Be prepared to share your breakfast table with a wide variety of people ranging from rowdy students to the elderly.
Day 4 Data
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Mileage
Cumulative Mileage Time Cumulative Time Maximum Ascent Total Ascent Cumulative Ascent |
16.8 miles
62.4 miles 8 hrs 08 min 31 hrs 31 min 2654 feet 4189 feet 15506 feet |