30 November 2014

Variant circuit of Loughrigg

A 12km run on a suddenly beautiful autumnal day.

Route: from the lower Ambleside car park, taking the path through the graveyard, round the church and then left through Rothay Park to cross the River Rothay and turn right onto the Under Loughrigg road. Turning left, before the road re-crosses the river, onto a rising road then shady track to reach views of Rydal Water. Picking the upper, increasingly stony, path, eventually rising to reach the caves and then keeping to higher paths to reach the start of Loughrigg Terrace. Along this and then the higher track, at the end, through trees to reach the summit of Red Bank. Descending, left, to reach a track round the north of Loughrigg Tarn. Near the end of the track, but before reaching tarmac, taking a sharp left onto a stoney walled track rising and turning to circumnavigate the hillside rising to reach a spur and following a grassy path, right, to reach Lily Tarn. Descending on a grassy, muddy path to reach the main track over Loughrigg and thence back over the bridge over the Rothay and back to the start.

Conditions: a cool but cloudless sunny day.

Pub: the Hawkshead Brewery, Staveley for WPA and NZPA.