Subtitle: Wordsworth Wasn't a Wuss
“I wandered lonely as a cloud…”
Today we walked in the footprints of Wordsworth from our lovely accommodation at Glaramara House. We stuck to the road through to Stonewaithe and then entered the sheep folds to start our ascent to Lining Crag and Greenup Edge and then down the valley to Grasmere. We huffed and puffed our way through muck and stones on a fairly gentle climb—much easier than yesterday’s. After an hour or so of climbing, I looked up to the top of a ragged cliff and saw some folks we had spoken with several times along the way hanging around the edge of an escarpment. I told dear hubby, “Look at those spirited Brits. They climbed WAY up there to get a view.” We both agreed that we weren’t nearly that energetic.
After another half hour of climbing, the route got much steeper. And that is when we realized that we were indeed climbing to the exact spot we saw our British acquaintances and that the place was known a Lining Crag. I think they call it that because they should start lining your casket when you get about halfway up. Except for a mild detour to the right of the stream on the steepest part (future walker reading this: STAY LEFT of the gill) and turning back to avoid clawing hand over fist to get up the side of the mountain, one foot in front of the other and up we went.
The views were spectacular and the weather was good enough to see well into the distance in both directions. When we finally stepped onto the Greenup Edge, which was not nearly as far away as we thought, we sighed relief seeing the footpath down to Grasmere.
What fools! The path down was the real challenge of the day. Shall we step on the slick, moss covered humungous rock, the ankle deep muck or just abandon all reason and jump?
This is a very popular part of England for walkers, so we saw lots of people both directions, all your usual lot of friendly polite folks from all over England with an occasional Aussie for fun. And little kids in shorts and tanktops smiling up at us creaky kneed hiking gear clad adults as they pass us by saying, "Mommy, why are they all sweaty?"
We finally arrived in Grasmere, the equivalent of Gatlinburg, TN without the go carts and museums, and treated ourselves to a Highland ice cream before making our way to our home for the night: The Grasmere Hotel. This place was awesome and the owner, Rob was so nice. He was very hospitable and a Dutchman to boot. Dankuvel, Rob for a great night at a beautiful hotel. Our meal was amazing as well at the hotel. Paul had lamb and I had chicken. The Grasmere gingerbread dessert was a big hit. Our journey to Grasmere was a lot of fun, and that’s my “words worth.”
Paul’s Ponderings: For the day, total mileage was just short of eleven. In theory, we are about 38.5 miles into the Wainwright Path, but we’ve actually walked about 45 miles over the three days. An equipment tip or two is that hiking poles are a must and an ordinance survey map might be a real asset. Some of the terrain is well marked and the path is obvious, but there are other parts that are bogs and grassy areas that have few cairns to guide you, so you spend time thinking “am I in the right place now?”. We’ve not gotten really lost, but have had some head scratching moments or consultations with other folks regarding the route. Something to keep in mind as well is that there are hundreds of people doing walks over here in this area for pleasure and they may or may not be going where you are at any given point in time, so just following them may get you in the next town over! Likewise, many of these towns don’t have direct roads between them, so it’s not possible to just walk back up the road. And, weather is a concern around here….it can mist up in a heartbeat. The pre-dinner payoff today was fine ales at Tweedy’s bar, including some wonderful “Black Sail” dark beer, named after the hut we ate lunch in a day ago!
“I wandered lonely as a cloud…”
Today we walked in the footprints of Wordsworth from our lovely accommodation at Glaramara House. We stuck to the road through to Stonewaithe and then entered the sheep folds to start our ascent to Lining Crag and Greenup Edge and then down the valley to Grasmere. We huffed and puffed our way through muck and stones on a fairly gentle climb—much easier than yesterday’s. After an hour or so of climbing, I looked up to the top of a ragged cliff and saw some folks we had spoken with several times along the way hanging around the edge of an escarpment. I told dear hubby, “Look at those spirited Brits. They climbed WAY up there to get a view.” We both agreed that we weren’t nearly that energetic.
After another half hour of climbing, the route got much steeper. And that is when we realized that we were indeed climbing to the exact spot we saw our British acquaintances and that the place was known a Lining Crag. I think they call it that because they should start lining your casket when you get about halfway up. Except for a mild detour to the right of the stream on the steepest part (future walker reading this: STAY LEFT of the gill) and turning back to avoid clawing hand over fist to get up the side of the mountain, one foot in front of the other and up we went.
The views were spectacular and the weather was good enough to see well into the distance in both directions. When we finally stepped onto the Greenup Edge, which was not nearly as far away as we thought, we sighed relief seeing the footpath down to Grasmere.
What fools! The path down was the real challenge of the day. Shall we step on the slick, moss covered humungous rock, the ankle deep muck or just abandon all reason and jump?
This is a very popular part of England for walkers, so we saw lots of people both directions, all your usual lot of friendly polite folks from all over England with an occasional Aussie for fun. And little kids in shorts and tanktops smiling up at us creaky kneed hiking gear clad adults as they pass us by saying, "Mommy, why are they all sweaty?"
We finally arrived in Grasmere, the equivalent of Gatlinburg, TN without the go carts and museums, and treated ourselves to a Highland ice cream before making our way to our home for the night: The Grasmere Hotel. This place was awesome and the owner, Rob was so nice. He was very hospitable and a Dutchman to boot. Dankuvel, Rob for a great night at a beautiful hotel. Our meal was amazing as well at the hotel. Paul had lamb and I had chicken. The Grasmere gingerbread dessert was a big hit. Our journey to Grasmere was a lot of fun, and that’s my “words worth.”
Paul’s Ponderings: For the day, total mileage was just short of eleven. In theory, we are about 38.5 miles into the Wainwright Path, but we’ve actually walked about 45 miles over the three days. An equipment tip or two is that hiking poles are a must and an ordinance survey map might be a real asset. Some of the terrain is well marked and the path is obvious, but there are other parts that are bogs and grassy areas that have few cairns to guide you, so you spend time thinking “am I in the right place now?”. We’ve not gotten really lost, but have had some head scratching moments or consultations with other folks regarding the route. Something to keep in mind as well is that there are hundreds of people doing walks over here in this area for pleasure and they may or may not be going where you are at any given point in time, so just following them may get you in the next town over! Likewise, many of these towns don’t have direct roads between them, so it’s not possible to just walk back up the road. And, weather is a concern around here….it can mist up in a heartbeat. The pre-dinner payoff today was fine ales at Tweedy’s bar, including some wonderful “Black Sail” dark beer, named after the hut we ate lunch in a day ago!
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| View Up The Valley Toward Lining Crag |
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| Lining Crag In Center (Yes we climbed up there) |
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