A 17km solitary jog: on reflection, too far at this stage.Route: taking the 9:32am train to Windermere and then the Orrest Head path but keeping left and level towards Elleray Bank. After 1km, taking the second right turn in woods (marked St Haggs Wood), gently uphill across fields before turning along a woodland path to a c-road. Doglegging left-right past Crosses Farm, to follow a track / line on a field to Far Orrest and then rather a complicated junction to continue underneath Allen Knott (not that this was noticeable) to dogleg right-left across another (this time, familiar) c-road onto Longmire Road. This becoming a stony track after a while, continuing often at a walk on some of the uphills to a junction of stony tracks. Trending right to join the Garburn Road and continuing, at a disappointing walk on all uphill sections, to Garburn Nook and the via a stile and again at a walk up steep marshy paths to the summit of Sallows.
Descending more happily and with a bit of speed towards Scour Rigg and crossing between the hillocks to find a path (after a bit of indecision) heading south-east, reaching a locked gate with a climbable bit of wooden fencing. Then heading almost due south along a rough wide ridge to descend surprisingly close to the familiar moorland path from Kentmere Village to the junction at the start of the Three Rivers path. Descending the latter to Ulthwaite Bridge and taking the riverside track - less flooded than the month before - and the bypass path round Bowfoot to reach the less used valley c-road. Following this to Scroggs Bridge, by now sometimes walking the slightest of uphill gradients and spurning the usual Scroggs Farm path (such was the level of fatigue) to stick with the slightly more direct main road and thus gain the Mill Yard uncharacteristically by its front entrance.
Conditions: some hazy sun; poor views; very wet under foot, still.
Pub: the Hawkshead Brewery, Staveley, for Downtime Easy Drinking IPA.
