Saturday 11th April 1998

Leaving Patterdale, the main route begins climbing immediately to Boardale Hause on its way to the highest point of the whole route, Kidsty Pike. If like myself, you take the alternative, lower level option alongside Ullswater your disappointment will be partly assuaged by the beautiful lakeside path to Howtown. On reaching Pooley Bridge you strike off across Moor Divock as you leave the Lake District. There then follows some walking on country lanes and field paths through a number of villages before reaching the ruins of Shap Abbey. It is then a short stroll along a lane into the village of Shap.

Route: Patterdale to Shap via Howtown, Pooley Bridge, Moor Divock, Butterwick, Bampton, Rosgill, Shap Abbey .

Distance: 19 Miles

Grade: Moderate - a relatively easy walk but long.

Facilities: All available. I stayed at the excellent New Ing Farm, which is one of numerous guesthouses in the village. There are at least four pubs one of which, The Bull allows camping on the back lawn but there are no facilities once the pub closes. There are also shops including a fish and chip shop.

Day Four

I awoke feeling slightly groggy from the previous evening’s excesses and was glad to be out in the fresh air and on my way once again. I had to make a decision fairly quickly, as I knew that the high and low-level routes parted company once out of the village. Today was my last chance to scale one of the high level options but the weather again looked unpromising. Although it was dry it was very grey and I was weighing up the options carefully and had virtually decided that as it wasn’t snowing, I would head for the heights of Kidsty Pike, when my mind was changed for me by the weather for the third time in three days. As I approached the fork in the path, large flakes of snow began falling and I reluctantly decided to again take the low-level option. I headed out of the village feeling disappointed that I would not now complete any of the high level options I had planned. I began regretting not attempting the High Stile Ridge as, although it had been very windy, it had been clear. When I had decided to omit it I had expected to be able to complete one or both of the others high level routes. (Above: Leaving Patterdale)

Soon, the snow was falling heavily and I felt that this at least partly vindicated my decision. It was strange that although the snow showers were fairly heavy the snow only settled on the felltops. One minute I would be walking in heavy snow and poor visiblity, the next in fairly clear conditions. Once I stopped fretting over my misfortune with the weather I took account of my surroundings and realised what a wonderful compensation the path alongside Ullswater was proving to be. The snow gave the scene across the lake to Glenridding and the surrounding fells a picture postcard atmosphere and the whole scene was one of real beauty. Wainwright himself waxes lyrical about the path and it was easy to see why. I romped along in solitude enjoying every minute of this wonderful route. Eventually, I reached the road at Howtown and followed the quiet lane along the lake to Pooley Bridge. I was now approaching the end of the Lake District crossing and I realised that I would not see anywhere as beautiful between here and the North Sea. As I headed off across Moor Divock I turned and took a final look back at the wonderful scene across the lake which was now bathed in sunshine, making it even more difficult to leave behind.

Once across the moor, I picked up a country lane which I followed in pleasant scenery through the village of Butterwick to Bampton. Here I left the road and struck off across fields following the river Lowther to Rosgill and eventually onto the ruins of Shap Abbey. Here, I spent some time exploring and I managed to take a photograph of myself among the ruins by resting the camera on some of the remaining walls. Leaving the abbey, I followed a lane for a short distance into the village of Shap and located the New Ing guesthouse where I had a room booked. It turned out to be the best room  of the trip so far and I was given a tray of tea and biscuits in my room upon arrival. It hadn’t been quite the trip I had imagined across Lakeland when planning it but I had enjoyed it enormously and I was looking forward hopefully to an improvement in the weather for the Yorkshire Dales, the second National Park of the trip.