Uncharted territory! I’m a solitary beast by nature and in the other rooms of the Pele Tower there is the sound of music, pool balls bouncing off the cushions of a little mused pool table, drinking and laughter coming from the comunal litchen are. 14 people some strangers some friends from a spinning class at Braunstone Leisure Centre. I don’t mix easily, my own fault, so this five days will, certainly, initially, won’t be easy. Fear is a strange thing, they’ll be some of you that laugh at my inadequacies whilst I wonder at those that think mountaineering is for the insane! Dune and the litany of fear springs to mind.
I drove myself and a passanger to the Lakes. Martin, the passanger, closed his eyes and mumbled prayers for the three and a bit hours as we made our way to Blencathra, also known as Saddleback. A mountain that lies at the entrance to the Lakes and one my Father loved and many a first day was spent climbing to the summit via Sharp Edge. And today was to be no exception. A short sharp climb of 650m. We left Leicestershire under a blanket of drizzly grey cloud and a cool Easterly wind, which followed us until just north of Manchester. The cool Easterly wind warmed as it raced East across the Pennine summits towards the West Coast and the sun appeared as the cloud retreated. The temperature soared as we reached the North Eastern Lakeland fells. The climb up Blencathra was a hundred shades of greens with a dark blue unchanging background and the view of the high central peaks of the Lakes loomed larger and larger on the horizon with each step.
Martin and I joined the rest of the group in a wateringhole not too far from the Airbnb. After a quick pint we moved on to the accommodation, which is a section of Irton Hall called the Pele Tower. A rambling old section of the house converted into a five bedroom b&b sleeping 16 people. Anyone who’s good at maths will, I’m sure, calculate that there is therefore more than the usual two people to a room… interesting for a group who have never slept together before! Three rooms of four, one twin and one double! And only three bathrooms and two of those en-suites. Morning rituals could turn out to be very interesting! After saying all of that, what a fabulous place, spread over four floors, there was room for the sociable and unsociable, which was of course, me!
Day one of the 24 Peak Challenge, ten peaks 27km but more importantly 2,143 metres (7,027 feet) of ascent. This is the most I’ve ever done in one day. As usual I won’t give you a blow by blow account, all I’ll say is that it was bloody hard. 14 started 6 finished! It appears that the over 50 club is still going strong, as all but one of the finishers were a member of that cliub. It was a hard brutal walk one that tested all of us. A walk I wouldn’t normally have attempted, too long, too much ascent and one that came very close to taking me past my enjoyment level and as I’ve always said why do it if you don’t enjoy it. Carolynn, when I spoke to her, reminded me it was a ‘challenge’, should a challenge mean that enjoyment is sacrificed? Day two is similar in length with slightly less ascent, so hopefully only a ten hour day and not 12. Don’t get me wrong I did enjoy it, but it was close to going either way.
We arrived back to whoop, whooping and applause, but most importantly food. Thank you to all those that prepared and cooked an amazing meal. The morning was ominous by the sound of the squaking peacock and nothing else, no clattering in the kitchen, no queue for the bathroom, just silence with the empty glasses, bear cans and bottles of wine a testimony to the late night of the previous evening. I slipped out with only seeing a couple of the group and headed back towards the New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel and the start of a walk up to Pavey Arc via Jacks Rake one of my Father’s favourite short walks. A short sharp scramble that traversses diagnoly across the vertical face of Pavey Arc and on to its summit.
It was decided that day two of the challenge should be started somewhat earlier! This meant a 5am wake up call and I have to say that by 6am the ten of us starting the walk were ready for the hour and a half’s drive to Glenridding. It’s never easy getting any group of people ready in good time never mind a large group. The numbers had dwindled Craig and Sam who bowed out fairly early on, on the first day were happy to stay at the accomodation and Danny had little or no sleep decided to attempt a monacomb of sleep whilst we were out walking. Ten started the walk.
A stunning morning, ideal as we headed up Birks and St Sunday Crag the first of our 16 peaks. Along the group lost four its memebers, one to a turned ankle and his help that went down with him. Tom wanted to reach the summit of Helvellyn and walk down Striding Edge (our route took us away from Striding Edge) for very much personal reasons and Hannah went along with him. As with the first day six of us finished, with four of us having done the whole 24 Peak Challenge.
It’s a long time sonce I’d been to the Lakes and done any serious walking, so to be given the oportunity by Neil, I’m very thankful for. It’s not a the kind of walk I would have normally chosen, the days were long and strenuous. It did, however, mean summiting many of the summits I did with my Father with the twice yearly trips to the Lakes that I did as a child with him and my sister, Helen. I’ll say at this point that my Mother very rarely came, she had more sense!
Wonderful four days and a great bunch… thank you for inviting me.
