It was back to the English Lake District once again for a one-night camping stint at Castlerigg Farm near Keswick.
The day hadn't started very well as we witnessed a derby day defeat to Newcastle at the Stadium Of Light, Sunderland. The weather was the only good thing about the match - the sun was beating down and it was definately tee-shirt weather at the tail end of Summer. We were hoping for much of the same as we left Sunderland and headed across the A66 to begin our camping trip. We were half way there when the weather took a turn for the worst and grey clouds suddenly covered the region, which meant rain was almost certainly on its way. Upon arrival at the campsite we pitched the tent in no time while the rain drizzled down and Keswick was now under heavy dark cloud. And so the rain came...in bucket loads. After cooking a meal in the tent we headed off in the car and drove along the A66 towards Lake Bassenthwaite, but there was little or nothing to see in such poor weather so we headed back to Castlerigg Farm. Time passed quickly and before we knew it we were tucked up and heading towards a sleep. And sleep we did - the rain continued during the night, but as dawn broke the place had faired up dramatically and we made plans to go fell walking whilst tucking into a nice fried breakfast. The plan was to tackle Latrigg, a modest climb of just over 1200 feet.Latrigg is one of the lowest fells
in the Lake District, but is a popular climb due to its convenient location overlooking the town of Keswick and the excellent views down the valley of Borrowdale from the summit. It is the least mountainous of the Skiddaw fells, the summit being almost entirely devoid of rock. The slopes of Latrigg are partially wooded, and logging work is currently being undertaken. One lone tree just south of the summit is prominently viewed in silhouette when approaching Keswick from the west along the A66. Commonly Latrigg is ascended from Keswick, the route beginning along Spooney Green Lane near the old railway station and then either making direct for the top or swinging north via Mallen Dodd. Threlkeld is another starting point, first crossing the Glenderaterra Beck and then climbing up the east ridge. The easiest way is to park at the end of Gale Road, from where the summit is a simple 10 minute stroll on grass, the most accessible of all the 214 Wainwrights. This car park is commonly used as the starting point for the ascent of Skiddaw, although the purist will first climb Latrigg from Keswick before setting foot upon its parent. A recently constructed path allows disabled access to the summit of Latrigg from the car park.This was my sons first fell walk and he was very much looking foward to it.
Latrigg was the ideal introduction for a ten year old, so off we went. It took us around 90 minutes to reach the summit from ground level, which wasn't bad at all even though we only stopped for drinks and a rest on two occasions. The first half of the walk was under blue sky with a scattering of broken clouds, but the second part was quite different as the sky clouded over and the wind crept up on us. Just short of the summit was a wooden bench that was sited in a perfect spot on the edge of the peak, overlooking the town of Keswick, and Derwentwater in the distance. On a better day the views would have been quite impressive, but today the light was poor and I quickly got the feeling that I would have to return another day to get the full benefit of the panoramic views from Latrigg, especially if I wanted to photograph it in all its glory. And that's what I intend to do, one day. All round the walk the views are of the surrounding fells are great, especially the ones of the Skiddaw Range. It made me feel like climbing it there and then but that was a non-starter, especially with my ten year old camping partner at my side. Today this was a very short, very easy walk to the summit of Latrigg, the small mountain that looks over Keswick. A blessed job.Until the next time...
AC
