Guided walking on Scafell Pike with SINCIL sports college

17.7.14
Walking with; Kallum, Josh, Jordan, Brad, George, Michelle and Mr Z!

As part of their challenge week five students and two members of staff from Sincil Sports College in Lincoln decided they would like to attempt an ascent of Scafell Pike, England’s highest mountain, and Come walk with me UK were more than happy to help them achieve this fantastic goal! The weather the day before had been horrendous and when I’d ventured on to the fells to do a bit of a reccy, visibility had been little more than five metres and the rain torrential, so it was with some trepidation I crawled out of my tent on Thursday morning to see the tops of the big peaks covered in cloud.
I met the guys at the NT campsite where they were busy dismantling their camp and after a quick kit check we set off along the banks of Longmell Gill and were soon climbing towards the now fully visible Scafell Pike, stopping for fantastic views of Wastwater, Yewbarrow, Ill Gill Head, Great Gable and Kirk Fell. After our stream crossing we carried on up the steep steps on Brown Tongue and onto the Hollow Stones. It was a popular day for walking and the same faces ebbed and flowed as we walked, admired the views and took the odd breather, but the peak continued to grow ever closer. We finally made the summit and the whole team were really proud of the effort it had taken to get to the top of England.
The descent was a bit easier and the views down to Styhead Tarn were fantastic. It was hot work and hard on the legs as we made our way back down to Wastwater, stopping for a cooling dip in the Gill en route. Although all the team would agree that it had been hard work, I think we would all agree it was well worth the effort and a true challenge! So, Congratulations to Team Sincil and I hope to see you again for another challenge soon!

Two down, one to go

22.6.12
Walking with; Ruthy

A couple of years ago Ruthy and I visited the Yorkshire Dales staying at the fantastic "Game Cock Inn" in Austwick (http://www.gamecockinn.co.uk/), fuelled by French food and Yorkshire bitter we ascended Ingleborough in the snow and sleet and I decided that she was the girl for me. Later on, with another pint in front of the fire I asked her to marry me! Last weekend was our first Wedding anniversary and we stayed once again in this fantastic pub and decided to try and conquer another of the Yorkshire Three Peaks, Pen-Y-Ghent this time. Whilst Pen-Y-Ghent is the lowest of the three, it is an impressive looking lump of rock when viewed from the tables outside the legendary cafe in Horton in Ribblesdale. The Celtic sounding name appears to be a bit of mystery with some people ascribing it to ancient Cumbric whilst others back a Welsh interpretation meaning "Hill of the Winds", given the conditions on the top I am prepared to favour the latter!
We decided to take the anti-clockwise route gradually climbing from Brackenbottom Farm until we reached Brackenbottom Scar where the full imposing splendour of the hill really became evident.We continued to ascend with spectacular clear views to Ingleborough and Whernside and of lonely windswept farms perched on the moorland below. The scramble to the summit was made a little trickier by the buffeting wind but it seemed to be those coming down who were finding the route more difficult and we were soon walking over the brow to the Trig Point on the summit which was pretty busy with people enjoying the rare day of sunshine.
The descent follows The Pennine Way and drops down quite steeply through moorland with views of Hull Pot (a gaping hole in the earth), flocks of Jackdaws and the rare Purple Saxifrage that is found in abundance on the slopes of this hill. As the path levelled out, we admired the views back to Pen-Y-Ghent and watched a waterfall crashing down in another limestone scar. It wasn't long before we were making our way back into Horton with two Yorkshire Peaks under our belt and making the decision to schedule in another trip to Austwick and give us a crack at the third and final one of the challenge!

To view the full album please click on the link below;
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?id=718985691&tid=136991043086476&skipClustering=false&qn=1343292443&success=16&failure=0&set=oa.252632414855671