Well, finally, we could make our way to the Lakes to stay for a holiday. One Covid cancellation and one burst water pipe in the holiday cottage, had meant that the last time I set foot in Lakeland was October 2019. Which is far too long ago for me. Those that say that the hills will always be there for you and you don’t need to make a summit, has clearly never driven for 7 hours up the M5 and M6 to get there. I was glad to get out of the car at Stone Ends and finally put a boot on some Wainwright turf. A week away with the boys is always my favourite week of the year and this one started at the end of a heatwave, which meant that we needed to be careful with our walk times and taking plenty of fluids and suncream with us. This walk has a tricky little section at the start, Rake Trod is not to be messed with, there’s plenty of scree and steep slopes in there and it is far easier in ascent than it would be in descent. We met a group of girls at the top of the rake and watched as one descended on her backside down the first 50 metres of it. Once at the heathery section above the rake and for the rest of this walk it is very simple, little ascent needed, mainly grassy paths, then a good track in return. Its a great walk after driving for 7 hours to get here and number 164 and 165 on my Wainwright journey. So good to be back.
Start – Stone Ends
Route – Rake Trod – Carrock Fell – Round Knott – Miton Hill – High Pike – West Fell – Carrock Beck – Stone Ends
Distance – 6.5 miles Start time – 12.20pm Time taken – 4hrs Highest Point – Carrock Fell 661 metres
The car had done another fine job to get me here, we’d stopped 3 times at services to get here for just after midday. Gloucester services wasn’t open, at all at 6.20am. We waited 10 mins to go the loo and then left. I like Gloucester services but they’ve clearly reduce their service times, so we went on and stopped at Stafford for an extended break, breakfast (got fleeced by the boys), lots of coffee for me and a good leg stretch. We also stopped at Tebay for a loo break and coffee, but clearly being on the telly in the last week or so has meant everyone wants a look, parking was horrific and the place was a mess. I got back in car and left for Rheged which was brilliant, quiet and clean. So here we are at Stone Ends, pinching myself at the potential 2 Wainwrights to be bagged. oh and that’s Great Mell Fell in the distance if you were wondering.The boys are off already, like unleashed tigers. The track slants right to left up through the bracken and scree to the rake on the left of photoUp through the brackenStone Ends farm is down there as is the parking spots, north eastern Cumbria spred out beneath usMore of eastern Cumbria and the northern Pennines in the distanceRake Trod, steep and scree, the rocks at the bottom are the edge of Apronful of Stones which is to my right and has to be one of the best named places aroundAt the top of the rake however it flattens a bit and changes to heather and bilberries. Again Great Mell Fell is the darker fell and some of the Far Eastern Fells in the hazy distanceMy youngest finds the bilberries, lots and lots of them
Bilberry result!!! I was the same as we ate a fair few. Along with a satsuma it made for 2 of our 5 that day
My eldest with his finest “I’m a teenager” poseI had read in early July that an arch had been built on Carrock Fell, unfortunately it was down when I passed. However the views beyond were still goodNot far to number 164 now, which would leave me with 50 to go. Carrock Fell aheadCarrock Fell summit. Now the fella on the right was radioing someone. Not sure if it was part of the microlights that had passed overhead, about 10 of them. Or the runners taking part on the Lakeland 100 which we think we saw on High Pike. But he was up and down passing on messages. We also met a nice guy called Stuart (might be Stewart also) from Peterborough up here who was also completing the Wainwrights, he was on about 170 odd and had done Carrock Fell before but not High Pike, so we walked and chatted with him the rest of the way.Great view along the River Caldew to Skiddaw at the back, Knott is up on the right and either side of the river is Great Calva and Mungrisdale Common, need to do both of them.The route ahead, nothing too tricky, it might get boggy in winter but when there hasn’t been rain for 6 weeks its fineNorth CumbriaThe start of Carrock Beck, with Carrock Fell up on the rightThanks to Stuart we have a summit photo on High Pike of all 3 of us. The marshals and runner help are to the right of shot which might be for the Lakeland 100.My youngest takes a photo of the back of Blencathra, I’m looking towards Knott and Skiddaw beyond thatHere they are, the runners support, the normal Lakeland 100 route doesn’t take them this far north, so it might not be that. However it was this weekend and runners went passed us and it would be on time for those runners to reach here.Blencathra to the left, which looks strange from behind, Skiddaw right and the valley in the middle which continues south along Thirlmere and Dunmail RaiseCarrock Fell on the right and the sandy section to the left is the way we are heading nextDown at the old Caldbeck mine section, the path on the left is the best way down to the road and the carCarrock Beck on the left. High Pike is up on the middle right. A simple valley but no one around except us and StuartBit further out of the valley now. West Fell is up on the right. High Pike is hiding at the back and Carrock Fell is on the leftCarrock Fell looms on the right, and Great Mell Fell again is in the distanceCrossing Carrock Beck on the road section back to the car, there were a few families enjoying a splash in the water to my rightNot the best photo, but back at the car nearly and looking up at the ascent route. If I’m honest these 2 fells won’t win many prizes, the views across the Cumbrian fields are stunning, as is the one along the Caldew from Carrock Fell. But if I’d have been told to drive home from here I’d have been very happy with my lot. So good to be back.
Yeah both these two are good ones for a quicker walk after a long drive or before leaving. I wanted about 3 hours ish and around 6 miles. This one worked for us, I’ve got Hartsop Above How and Wetherlam as other single ones that I could also do. We tend to set off at 4am which gets us in Lakeland around 10.30 normally, but with the stopping at service stations it took longer this time
Was pretty crazy last time I stopped there too, back in July, but couldn’t move on. A red light on my dash meant I had to wait for the AA to sort it out. Garage had overfilled oil during a service a few days before my trip to Borrowdale..
Amazed you can get the boys out of bed at that early hour! 😀
A fine short walk that, lots of hills and routes in that corner of the Lakes I’ve never done
The views out over the Cumbria countryside are really good, and the rake up to Carrock Fell was pretty good, a nice little scramble even with the scree bits. To be fair the boys love the time away with all their cousins and we have an agreement that I will let them play phone/xbox games if they get the backsides out the door from time to time!
That route is on my list, hopefully for a little later this year. Been trying to decide whether to go up or down Carrock Pike – I think your post has decided that for me. Don’t think the old knees would cope with going down 😬
treksandtors 
I liked these two hills, though I did a different route. Good to see you back in the Lakes.
The drive is a pain though. Always seems to take me 7 hours even though it should be less.
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Yeah both these two are good ones for a quicker walk after a long drive or before leaving. I wanted about 3 hours ish and around 6 miles. This one worked for us, I’ve got Hartsop Above How and Wetherlam as other single ones that I could also do. We tend to set off at 4am which gets us in Lakeland around 10.30 normally, but with the stopping at service stations it took longer this time
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Stopped at Tebay on the way home on Monday, was really heaving, so we left. Glad you got back to the Lakes at last!
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Yeah Tebay wasn’t fun at all, might stick to Rheged from now on. I was glad to be back up there, a few Wainwright walks done as well
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Was pretty crazy last time I stopped there too, back in July, but couldn’t move on. A red light on my dash meant I had to wait for the AA to sort it out. Garage had overfilled oil during a service a few days before my trip to Borrowdale..
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Amazed you can get the boys out of bed at that early hour! 😀
A fine short walk that, lots of hills and routes in that corner of the Lakes I’ve never done
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The views out over the Cumbria countryside are really good, and the rake up to Carrock Fell was pretty good, a nice little scramble even with the scree bits. To be fair the boys love the time away with all their cousins and we have an agreement that I will let them play phone/xbox games if they get the backsides out the door from time to time!
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That route is on my list, hopefully for a little later this year. Been trying to decide whether to go up or down Carrock Pike – I think your post has decided that for me. Don’t think the old knees would cope with going down 😬
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I read a post from John Bainbridge who had come down that way about 3 weeks before I went, he didn’t like it at all. That made my mind up as well
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Good to learn from each other! 👍
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