As is pretty normal for me, I didn't sleep much. I snatched a few hours after midnight but woke briefly at about 3am. After a few minutes of taking in the starry sky I slept again until about 4:30am when Lay started taking down his tent. After that I dozed for another hour and then got up and out. Lay was gone but the others were all still snoring away happily.

The sun wasn't quite over the horizon so I made a brew and decided to go out for a circuit of the tarn to get some pics in the early light while the others were still asleep. The tarn was flat-calm for most of the time and the reflections of the sky and fells were impressive. At the head of the tarn I found a couple of good wildcamping spots away from the main track and with decent running water nearby. Rounding one of the moraines I disturbed a heron which was fishing in the shallows. Later in the morning we would sit and watch it being mobbed by some of the seagulls that were in residence at the other end of the tarn.

I completed the circuit to find that some of the others were up and about. Darren was still in his doss-bag so I started off a brew for him and let him finish the job himself. John didn't appear for some time, was it because he was pacing himself, or was he just fed up of our company? 🙂 Anyway, the conscious members of the group started where we had left off the night before... more chat and banter, more brews and food, more photos.

It didn't take long for the day to start to heat up, there were a few light clouds around but for the most part it was very hot. There was general agreement that we should retreat to the safety of the Miller Howe Cafe again, so we packed up, checked that our site was tidy and clean, then set off down Easedale towards Grasmere.

Grasmere was a hive of activity - the place was full of runners and spectators gathered for the "Grasmere Gallop", which is described as "7+ miles over roads, timber trails and footpaths around the spectacular scenery of Grasmere and Rydal lakes". I decided not to join in, as I had errantly left my plimsolls and lycra bodysuit at home, so instead I went for a fried breakfast and a decent cuppa, inside the cafe this time because the sun was just too hot outside and the crowds were hogging the pavement.

Then it was time to start saying our goodbyes, first to John, who was off to other parts of the district for the next few days, then to Duncan who was steeling himself for the long drive back up to Scotland. Darren and Dawn kindly gave me a lift back to my car where we parted company after Darren had been presented with a small token of our appreciation.

So it was back to the tarmac for the drive back home, taking back the memories of a great time spent in the good company of a new group of friends.

Lilies and reeds

Howes Ridge reflected

Morning haze

Returning through Easedale

So, now my tally of “Wainwrights” is 160 (not counting repeats), which leaves 54 still to do. I'll update the maps ASAP and do a post-trip round-up sometime soon.

We pick up the story at the ever popular Miller Howe Cafe. The others were keen to be off up the Easedale path, but I was still taking on fluids after the exertions of the morning, so I stayed sat down for a while longer to sup up. Lay waited for me while the others went ahead, then we went off in pursuit of the others. It was a good opportunity for a chat about the new forum board and the ways that it could be developed.

Certainly the chinwagging helped the miles pass quicker - in what seemed like a very short time we had passed Brimmer Head Farm and had just got to the top of the first rise when we found Darren chilling in the shade of a tree aside Sourmilk Gill. Nobody was in any rush to be anywhere special, so we all sat there for ages recharging body and mind, there was a lot to talk about, and it was an idyllic place to linger. Many folk passed by on the way up, all were polite, some were appropriately dressed and kitted out, none of them looked as though they had been on an exercise bike or a rowing machine or similar such device.

Passing the waterfalls we found a group of folk that had just been skinny-dipping in the plunge-pool. Judging by the frantic pulling-on of clothes by the young ladies, I reckon we had got there just a couple of minutes too late to take pictures.

We carried on up and over the last rise to be met by a fantastic view of Easedale Tarn. This is an excellent place to come to see glacial features - moraines, tiered hanging-valleys, corrie-walls, scoured side-walls, glacial striations etc.. There was no sign of the others, but from where we were, we couldn't see the full length of the path as it weaved between moraines. There was a quiet spot a few hundred yards along the shore, so we sauntered over to it, dropped the packs and discussed our options for the evening. Darren seemed happy to stay in Easedale, I could have gone up to Codale but was so impressed with my surroundings that I decided to stay and keep Darren company, Lay seemed keen to go on up but he was concerned about Darren. Anyway, we lugged the kit over to a more secluded grassy flat-spot a bit further on, and got a brew on. Lay went off without his pack, I thought he was off on one of his photo-shoots until we saw him a long way off striding up towards Belles Knott on the way up to Codale.

We had some time to kill before we could pitch, so we lounged about taking in the scenery, took some pics and tried a bit of bouldering on a huge rock that reminded me of an elephant seal (vivid imagination required).

Eventually Lay returned - he had found the others up in Codale, and told us that they were coming back down (except for Geoff, who was happy to stay pitched there). We started pitching when we saw the others on the track down, and soon we were reunited and back into the campsite routine, then it was back to the banter, the cameras and the bouldering. The evening meals were accompanied by some in-depth chats about "current affairs", a short session of poetry-reading by Duncan, jokes about buffs (Darren was presented with one, a gift from Spiritburner, but he refused to try it on), and many opinions on many topics were aired. Duncan passed around the sake and the roasted seaweed - top stuff, that.

Darkness started to fall and one by one the others retired, leaving me and Duncan chatting away for a while longer, discussing matters of much import and trying to identify the features of the night sky, but eventually it was time for a final tick-check, ablutions and goodnights.

It had been a good day.

Lay and Darren

Contemplation

Rock in profile

Rays and reflections

Nearly finished - just one more part to come - hang in there!