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Date & start time: Friday 5th December 2008. 1 pm start.

Location of Start : The red phone box, Loweswater, Cumbria, Uk. ( NY 143 211 )

Places visited : Kirkhead, Mosedale, Little Dodd, Hen Comb and back the same way.

Walk details : 5.5 mls, 1450 ft of ascent, 1 hrs 45 mins.

Highest point : Hen Comb 1,669ft ( 509m ) (1670 ft with Snowman)

Walked with : Myself (Roger) and the dogs, Harry and Bethan.

Weather : Grey with heavy clouds on the high fells. Wintery showers about. A cool breeze on the top.

Hen Comb from the start of the walk.

 

We seem to have missed the best of the winter weather while we were away so I take a walk up onto Hen Comb to see what snow is still about.

It's damp cold and decidedly grey, but we keep warm and enjoy the winter conditions.

The Thursday snow which closed the A66 after we had returned home is laying cold and damp on the fells.

This is the view up Buttermere Valley from the start of today's walk.

Haystacks is there, but Great and Green Gable at the head of the valley are lost in the low cloud.

My target for today is that one ahead. The dogs seem to know the way.

To my right across the fields is Carling Knott.

To my left is a damp looking Grasmoor

beyond Low Park houses and Crummock Water.

Ahead, the impressive dome of Hen Comb summit still showing above the trees.

The Mosedale pool and crossing point . . .
. . . and a fairly full Mosedale Beck

During the recent storms that raged over the Mountain Marathon weekend

the beck was in full flow and many of the handy stepping stones that used to be there have been washed away.

Someone up north is getting better weather than we are.

The route ahead

with Hen Comb's snow restricted to the last part of the climb.

Behind is the ridge from Red Pike to Great Borne which seems to have retained a consistent covering.

A close up on Red Pike and the High Stile Ridge as I walk the broad shoulder of Hen Comb.

Grey clouds are high enough to leave Fleetwith Pike clear.

The steep part of the ascent

but the dogs still find time to play catch the snowball.

A look back to appreciate the climb.

Loweswater is on the left, a green Lorton Valley on the right.

The summit successfully reached.

There's a touch of brightness out to the west and the visibility is excellent.

Fluffy white clouds over the Isle of Man contrast strongly with our heavy grey ones.

Looking round from the summit, this is Great Borne.

Floutern Tarn is hidden out of sight on this side of its crags.

Harry and Bethan find a patch of clear grass and have just had a few lunchtime biscuits in the cool breeze.

I'm the first person up the fell since the snow left it's white mantle . . . There's a snowman at the top . . . I wonder how that got there !

Maybe it's there since the boys and I were up here in the snow in March ?

Still no time to linger as we must get back down to meet Ann who has been busy shopping in Cockermouth today.

On the way back . . . .

" If you go down in the woods today " . . .
. . . you'll find Chris's cattle sheltering from the weather.

- - - o o o - - -

 

Technical note: Pictures taken with with my Cannon G7 Digital camera.

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

This site best viewed with . . . a car boot full of shopping without having to go myself !

[ but then I did have to walk the dogs instead ... and it nearly rained ]

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Previous walk - 25th November 2008 Darling Fell with Hilton

A previous time up here - 23rd March 2008 Hen Comb with the boys