Date & Time: Wednesday 6th June 2007. 12.30 pm start.

Location of Start : Blea Tarn car park, Langdale, Cumbria, Uk. ( NY 292 043 )

Places visited : Blea Tarn, Side Pike, Lingmoor Fell, back down to car park.

Walk details : 3.25 mls, 1275 ft of ascent, 3hrs 30 mins.

Walked with : Ann and the dogs, Harry and Bethan.

Weather : Hot and sultry, with hazy blue skies.

Ann on Side Pike at lunchtime

A walk in the southern Lakes today takes us into the picturesque Langdale Valley, here seen from near Chapel Stile.

We plan to walk Side Pike, which is the lesser summit of Lingmoor Fell, and so we needed to drive up the valley first.

The rocky summit is seen here in the centre of the picture in front of all that wonderful blue sky.

There's a good car park hidden in the trees overlooking Blea Tarn so this would be the starting place for the walk.

Side Pike is the prominent rock outcrop seen here in front of the Langdale Pikes.

June is the month for cotton grass, growing well in the damp turf surrounding Blea Tarn.

It's been a fine and dry Easter, and it's hot today, but in between there has been enough moisture to allow the plant to thrive.

A slight breeze ruffles the water but doesn't spoil the classic view across the lake.

Harry and Bethan are still on the lead at this stage due to the close proximity of a group of photographers.

Bouncy dogs and tripods just don't mix, and they've waited long enough to get a calm lake so two dogs in the foreground is the last thing they need.

Blea Tarn is certainly looking beautiful today.

Leaving the lake behind now as we walk under the slopes of Pike O' Blisco to the top of the shallow Blea Tarn valley.

To make the walk a little longer we also plan to include Lingmoor summit opposite. Our route therefore will take us up the sky-line from the left, round the back to Lingmoor Tarn and down from the top following the diagonal line of trees across the centre of the fell. That will leave just the short road walk back to the car parked in the trees adjacent to the lake.

At the head of the valley we reach the cattle grid where the road has climbed from Langdale.

Ahead is Bowfell, with it's rising green spur, The Band and Rossett Pike, the flatter summit at the head of the Mickleden Valley.

Pike o' Stickle, Loft Crag, Gimmer Crag, Thorn Crag and Harrison Stickle make up the Langdale Pikes

seen here as we start to climb Side Pike.

Pike O' Blisco and Crinkle Crags from the slopes of Side Pike.

The path we had used in descent on our previous visit was a little difficult to find in reverse, especially as the bracken was starting to grow.

A steady climb up however, avoided the rocky sections and gave us a simple if rather warm ascent.

A pause for breath and a chance to pose for a photo in front of the Langdale Pikes.

That's the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel below.

Last time we were here it was so hot than Ann preferred not to climb minor peak of Side Pike. To be fair it was an extremely hot day and we had already climbed Lingmoor, so she had waited several hundred feet below.

Today she wanted to put that omission to right, and reach the rocky summit . . .

. . . which she duly did !!

Langdale from the top, including that ugly new path.	Looking down the other side we could see Blea Tarn House below.

A Canadian family followed us up to the top where Harry waited to greet them.

They were having great weather for their visit to the Lakes.

Lunch with a view from near the summit.

Side Pike is also famous for it's "Squeeze Rock", a restricted gap on the south side of the fell which is a challenge for those shall we say "of a larger diameter" !

The main path on to Lingmoor passes behind the rock, seen here tucked under the overhanging crag.

Ann had no problem - once she took her rucksack off	and I managed reasonably well too . . .

. . . but not as easily as the three kids and their mum, who were following on behind us.

We took our leave and headed up Lingmoor while they headed back down to their car near Blea Tarn.

Blue skies and fluffy clouds but the photo can't show the temperature or the humidity, both of which were rather high.

A diversion around the back of Lingmoor found us at Lingmoor Tarn, a hidden gem of a mountain pool.

It is quite shallow which allowed the water plants to thrive.

Still, water is water, and a great way to cool down.	Unfortunately it was not deep enough for me to take a dip though.

Those ever present Langdale Pikes seen across Lingmoor Tarn.

Leaving the islands, the reeds, the early water lilies and the dragonflies behind now as we head for the summit.

We regained the wall up from Side Pike just before the summit.

and it was just that last 100 yards and we were there.

From our loftier position we could look around at more extensive views.

Ahead were the slopes of Wetherlam, Holme Fell and Black Fell, and across to the Yorkshire peaks far in the distance beyond Windermere.

Below us the village of Chapel Stile we had driven through earlier in the day.

These are the Yew Crag Quarries normally hidden within the trees

with Elterwater village behind.

Time to go now, so we dropped down from the summit and crossed the fence at the stile.

We set off to find that diagonal line of trees down to the right that we had seen earlier.

One awkward fence crossing later (despite a clearly defined path) and we were once again enjoying views of Mickleden as we started our descent.

A gap in the wall with Blea Tarn House below . . .	and we were soon down at road level again.

Three and a half hours after the start of our extremely warm walk,

you would have found us sitting out at the Three Shires Inn enjoying a much anticipated period of re-hydration.

- - - o o o - - -

Technical note: Pictures taken with a Canon G7 Digital camera.

Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder.

This site best viewed with . . . A pot of tea for two and a glance at the evening menu ?

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Previous walk - 3rd June 2007 Whinfell Beacon and the other Borrowdale Valley

A previous time up here - 5th July 2006 A hot walk up Lingmoor and Side Pike with Sean

Next walk - (later this same day) - 6th June 2007 Slaters Bridge and Cathedral Cave