Go climb a mountain

Don't normally have holidays but this weekend I got away, first time away from work in months .

I've been pining to go walking and climbing mountains and get back that 'on top of the world' feeling again - and even a small 1100 foot climb was enough to get some temporary satisfaction.

It's been quite some time since I last sat on top of a really big hill, looking down on a great view, and Loughrigg Fell, just west of Ambleside at the Northern shore of Lake Windermere in Cumbria, was a good place to get back into the swing of things again. The top of Loughrigg itself seemed to be too far from the lake to get a decent view so I took a detour to take in a couple of crags before hitting the top. That was a clever move because the view over Windermere was brilliant.

The weather was supposed to be bad all weekend with storms and high winds coming in from the west. As always, luck was with me and it stayed pretty clear with a few clouds skimming the peaks, the occasional bit of rainfall and some beautiful clear patches of sky to make me smile. The wind was still hitting 50-70 mph on the peaks and I managed to get across to look at Grasmere and Rydal Water before heading back down to Ambleside.

Back at the car the heavens opened. Good timing :)

If you need a book to guide you through this part of the Lake District you'd do well to get a copy of Wainwright's Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells - Book 3 - "The Central Fells" - these books are pretty much unchanged since their first publication some 50 years ago and they're well worthwhile.

Gotta go back sometime soon and do some more of that, looking forward to climbing Helvelyn again, one of my favourites (and England's third highest peak). Maybe next time I'll take the bikes too - who's coming?

PS - If you're looking for a place to stay the Applegarth Hotel, Windermere is recommended - a great base to start from and has its own car park too. As for a decent pint the Watermill Inn, Ings is a real pub with 16 real ales on tap at any one time. For walking and climbing gear Gaynor Sports, Ambleside had the best selection of stuff.