Yewbarrow: The Return to Wasdale
As restrictions began to ease, 12th April marked the return of 'self-contained' accommodation & outdoor dining in England, and, I thought, you can't get much more self contained than in a tent. So, on a glorious Friday afternoon I set off up to Cumbria. This would be the farthest I've travelled in over six months!
Astonishingly it had been almost 18 months since my last visit to the Wasdale valley in the Western Lake District, when I camped out on Middle Fell before scaling Scafell Pike the following day. The sense of anticipation and excitement as I drove up the A595 western coast road kept building, even more so when the first sign for Nether Wasdale appeared!
Turning off the main A-road, the narrow, winding country lanes, and tall hedges obscured the view for a good few miles until the road headed over a rise, and all of a sudden, the vista down the Wasdale valley opened up.
Following the road for a mile or so along the lakeshore, I pulled into Overbeck Bridge car park, at the base of Yewbarrow. Having not carried my wild-camping rucksack for six months, it felt particularly heavy, and I definitely wasn't as 'mountain-fit' as I used to be.
But, onwards and upwards, I followed the path out of the back of the car park, following Over Beck for a short distance, before turning up onto the lower grassy slopes of Yewbarrow. The path heads up a steady slope by the side of a dry stone wall before reaching the base of the crags of Bell Rib at the top. A step stile is at the top end of the wall for anyone who headed up on the opposite side, and a look back from here gives a spectacular view of Wastwater and the Screes.
Incase that picture looks familiar, this wasn't my first time climbing Yewbarrow. As part of my Wainwright's journey, I summited Yewbarrow in May 2018, although conditions on that day started grey & cloudy, and I was drenched by the time I got back to the car. The weather was looking vastly more promising for this weekend though.
From the stile, the path headed along a short terrace below the crags, before a steep zig-zag path began the rocky ascent between Dropping Crag and Bell Rib. A little scrambling was involved to get up some of the rock steps, but nothing too extreme - just enough to be exhilarating after so many months away from the mountains.
I 'topped out' at a wide gully just north of Bell Rib, and from that point, the majority of the climb was behind me. The path headed up the last few grassy undulations before Yewbarrow's 2,060 foot summit was finally insight. It was only just over a mile from where I had parked my car, but it was an exciting mile to be sure. That was one of the reasons I chose Yewbarrow as my first fell after lockdown - a short, steep hike up one of Lakelands most iconic fells.
The summit offered amazing 360 degree views of Wasdale, Mosedale, south over Burnmoor Tarn to the Eskdale hills, and south west - down the valley & out towards Seascale & the Irish Sea. For its stature, from the summit it is also possible to see all five of England's 3,000 foot mountains - Scafell & Scafell Pike just 'across the way', Great Gable at the head of the valley, with Helvellyn just beyond, and looking north west between Pillar & Kirk Fell, the top of Skiddaw makes an appearance on the skyline.
But, it was time to start looking for a pitch for the night. There was hardly a breathe of wind, so, not having to not worry about being sheltered, there was ample selection, with large flat grassy areas. Although, on closer inspection it was the tufted moorland grass, or boggy under-foot. I managed to find a decent spot though, and set up the Hilleberg Soulo looking over to the Scafell's. Time to crack open a beer & enjoy the evening.
Chicken tikka masala with rice was on the menu tonight, cooked up in the Jetboil, of course. I found a small group of rocks not far away, one of which was just the right size to sit on, and tucked into my dinner whilst watching the sun go down.
The remaining wisps of cloud dissipated, and it was going to be a clear night. The crescent moon was shining overhead, and as the darkness approached, the stars began to shine.
It was a wonderfully calm evening, but I was awake early to brew up a coffee whilst watch the sunrise - with it making an appearance at 06:15 precisely.
After breakfast, and packing up, I headed north west along the summit ridge to the other end of the fell. From here, above Stirrup Crag, is a 1,700 foot drop looking right down into the patchwork of fields & buildings that make up Wasdale Head.
Although their is a rocky path which works its way down Stirrup Crag to the col at Dore Head, it looked too steep a descent to undertake with my camping back-pack, so I retraced my steps about half way back towards the summit, to a path which leads off the fell at a gentler gradient, also ending up at Dore Head.
Once at Dore Head, the path meets up with the path off Stirrup Crag. There is a stunning view of the Mosedale Valley from here, the view of Kirk Fell in particular highlights the sheer hulk and mass of the fell.
From Dore Head , you can either continue up towards the neighbouring fell of Red Pike, drop down the steep path alongside the Dore Head screes, which is the quickest 'escape route' to Wasdale Head (and the route I took last time I was up here), or double back and follow the path along the bottom of the Over Beck valley, which would lead me straight back to the car park & Wastwater shore.
The faint path along the desolate valley follows alongside Over Beck, from its initial conception as a spring at Dore Head as it makes its way along the valley with some small pebble beaches along the becks route. There are also some quite spectacular (and unexpected) waterfalls further down stream making it a lovely walk in the spring sunshine.
It took around an hour and a half to leisurely make my way own for Dore Head to the car. I decide to cross the road, and make my way down to the lakeshore - and I'm so glad I did. The lack of any breeze or wind meant the lake was amazingly still. After about 10 minutes, taking it all in, and making sure to get plenty of pictures, a very slight breeze picked up, and the reflections faded.
That was a stunning end to my first wild-camp in more than six months, and a fantastic return to Wasdale. My 'mountain-fitness' is still somewhat to be desired, but that only means more expeditions, on both familiar & new ground.
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