Day 21 Patterdale to Bampton Grange

Back to Patterdale

Another great start to the day with fine skies and a 20+ km walk ahead of us past the infamous Kidsty Pike.

The walk starts with yet another climb, but not before we are slightly confused as we can’t find the correct track. Why because we haven’t walked that extra 10 metres or so for us to see it!

It’s a steady climb up to the Angletarn Pikes which afford us great views over the Patterdale Valley, becoming more expansive as we get higher.

We reach a place called Boarddale Hause where the view ahead open up too.

We then circuit around a very attractive tarn, Anglers Tarn, before ascending again up past Satura Crag to the Knott.

Anglers Tarn

We then take a sharp alteration in direction and proceed along the ridge that leads to Kidsty Pike. On one side precipitous, and it was here in 2010 that we were nearly blown off our feet. Such was the strength of the wind that we were unable to reach the top of the Pike, it was so fierce.

Not today, gentle breeze and great views.

Kidsty Pike

Off the Pike is a very steep track that finally spews you at the top of Haweswater, a tarn converted into water storage by a dam, which is the direction that we now head. It’s 8 km so turns into a bit of a trudge.

We finally pop out at Burnbanks at the end of Haweswater, and at this point we have to head off the maps to find our accommodation.

After a couple of false starts we get into the one pub village of Bampton Grange where we are staying at the Crown and Mitre.

We are early having completed the 22 km in just over 5 hours, so have a beer, as one does.

We get the keys to our room, small neat and there are earplugs on the bedside tables! Why?

An exploration of the village takes 4 minutes and the churchyard a bit longer. The church was built in 1792 and has a clock tower which chimes every quarter of an hour. Maybe that’s why the ear plugs.

No matter Jo is in bed and asleep though has vowed to kill me if she is kept awake by either the chimes or me snoring! Moi snore, surely not!