A morning (10am) run on a hot Bank Holiday Monday, pre-empting the main heat of the day and influx, to Buttermere, of visitors.Route: leaving the car by the side of the road level with High Wood and running just inside the fields by the side of the road as far as the first Rannerdale Knotts car parks where bearing left to pick up a track towards the valley. This time, at the behest of signs, spurning the descent through bluebells (too early for full effect) and continuing on to the first footbridge. Returning downhill, to run under the end of the fell to reach the pitched path. Walking briskly up the path to the summit then running along the ridge to the far end and back down the valley. Taking a faint track (“Pooks’ Traverse”) probably designed by sheep, though with some signs of an earlier possibly industrial origin, to cross “Pooks’ Gulch”, and then come to grief at a fence. Turning left before it to ford a stream and then immediately re-crossing a small footbridge to pick up a subtle (and empty) path eventually rejoining the outward track. Taking a path to the east and 100m from the road under Grasmoor before running pathless across the field back to the car.
Conditions: the promise of a hot day but not too warm at 10am. Later clouds, though strong, hot sun returned by the post-run pint at noon.
Pub: the Castle Bar, Cockermouth for Allendale Pennine Pale and Cumbrian Legendary Ales Lakeland Gold.
