Picking a summit to walk solo is an interesting business, you want one with a decently marked path, you don't want any walk that is too long, challenging or remote and you want somewhere that feels worthy of the trip, and has a view. That knocks the likes of Wild Boar Fell, Mallerstang Edge and Cross Fell from the list of choices and puts Great Shunner Fell right to the top; it has the Pennine Way over it, the whole stretch is 8 miles, with 350 metres of ascent, and ends at a pub. It's also 12 miles from Kirkby Stephen and would be a challenge to do walking from the Settle & Carlisle line, and it has a view. So get an early start so my parents can drive me to the start point near Thwaite, bouncing up Birkdale and down to the head of Swaledale, and the hot weather continues so the pace does not need to be too quick, I'd measured the walk at 11 miles and guess 5 hours to the other side.
Spring Jollies: Day Two
Great Shunner Fell: Thwaite to Hardraw. 8.5 miles
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| Great Shunner Fell from Stock Dale |
Start from by the B6270 outside Thwaite at 9.45am, and as my parents leave, I note the the Pennine Way sign indicates that it is only 8 miles to Hardraw, where I had scheduled to be collected, and realise that I will probably be an hour earlier than I had planned (11 miles is me screwing up the maths with my map wheel thingy). So even less impetus to hurry and set off at a steady pace along the stony farm track that goes westward up the side of Stock Dale, slowing as my heart starts to pound and the heat starts to wear on me as the path steepens. Great Shunner Fell does not offer a face filled with romance, offering grassy slopes and a flat top with no exciting sharp edges, the top of Lovely Seat is a more attractive peak, and the view back down Swaledale is more immediately interesting, and that gets better and better as I ascend. I wonder how long it will be until I start meeting the Pennine Way walkers coming the other way, and the first passes me around 10am, and he clearly got a good start out on his day, a second follows not long after. The sultry heat of the valley ends around 45 minutes, as I hit the edge of the cultivated land and arrive on the edge of the moor, the wind starts to gather up and I never thought the differing climatic conditions would be so obvious.
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| Swaledale from Great Shunner Rake |
The path becomes paved as we continue to ascend on Blackburn Edge and the local sheep look on curiously as I stop to take on water, and as the path tops out we get a view to the north and west, with High Seat, Hartley Fell, Tailbridge Hill and Birkdale Tarn entering the landscape. After 300 metres of ascent, we get a frustrating bit of descent before the path goes southwest and we start on the ascent of the Fell proper, and there say hello to our third Pennine Way walker. Cross the moss that looks like is would be horrible in damp weather and start the ascent to Shunner Fell Rake, about 50 metres of ascent, but the grassy path is a bit of a slog and the big cairn you aim for is a bit of a tease as it only indicates a false summit, but at least we know that that is the case as we climb here. The terrain gets rockier and the path is marked by numerous cairns, indicating that this could be a tricky descent route in poor weather. No such trouble today, though and hit the last 50 metres up the gritstone cap with some alacrity, meeting the stray sheep on the last stretch and then finding a stile that needs to be crossed before reaching the summit windbreak. 716 metres up and the highest point in the Northern Dales, offering views around to the Three Peaks in the far distance, Great Whernside at the head of Wharfedale to the south-east, the Dent Fells to the south, and Baugh Fell and Wild Boar Fell to the south-west. Probably one of the best view points in the whole of the Dales, and I'm astonished to find that I did the 3 mile of ascent in only 2 hours. 11.45am, and I might as well take an early lunch whilst I have the summit to myself. Even more amazingly, I get a mobile phone reception and call my parents to expect me in Hardraw at 2.30pm, they are as surprised as I am at the speed of my ascent!
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| The Summit plateau |
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| The Summit shelter |
After soaking in the views for a good half hour, I spot someone else coming up from the south and cede the summit plateau to him, and he proves to be the last walker that I will see on the fell. The descent down to Hardraw is long and once off the top, the summit quickly disappears and we start off on numerous sections of descents and levels, with rather too much marshiness and mud crossing the path. This would be an immensely frustrating ascent route, as each ascent leads to a false summit and you'd soon lose count of how many times you'd thought you were nearly at the top as the summit disappears and reappears with regularity. Cairns provide markers as the path continues down, but I soon lose sense of distance walked and the markers on the ground can't be made to coincide with my map, all I know is that is is about 300 metres of descent over 2 miles to reach the wall that marks the edge of the moor and the start of the cultivated land. The views keep the descent interesting, with the High Clint and Low Clint crags to the immediate East and Wensleydale opening out beyond, and the ill-defined Dent Fells ahead, they look much more imposing than their modest heights would suggest. I'll have to take up the opportunity to walk Dodd Fell and its ilk in a future walking season.
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| Great Shunner Fell from Bluebell Hill |
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| Wensleydale from Hearne Top |
The wind drops and the heat returns as we cross the wall to leave the moor and the path moves south-east , and then hit the steepest descent of the day on the track down from Hearne Top. It's worth noting that even in this rural idyll, there are signs of ancient industry and fans of long paths that don't actually go anywhere should seek out the remnants of coal mining hidden away up Cotterdale and Hearne Coal Road (natch). Continue down as the track becomes more of a road and at Bluebell Hill, we find trees and earn the first bit of shelter for the day, and as we hit the final descent, a look back gives us a view all the way back to the summit of Great Shunner Fell, looking tantalisingly close when it is actually more than 4 miles distant. Down Hollin Hill to end the 480 metres of descent an join the road by the old village school and go over the beck to find the village of Hardraw. 2.20pm and find my parents enjoying beverages and sunshine in the yard outside the Green Dragon, and at long last my day's walking actually ends at a pub and I feel like I've earned my pint of lager-shandy!
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| Hardraw Force |
Of course it would be foolhardy to end here and not go up the glen behind the pub to take a look at Hardraw Force, a Malham cove in miniature, and whilst it might lack power after a dry spell, if has an atmosphere all of its own, not one spoiled by a man and his dog having a bathe beneath it. I do loves me a waterfall! Then our route takes us on a slow bounce home via Uredale and Mallerstang, pointing out sites from my previous exploits and stopping off at Hell Gill Force and Pendragon Castle for good measure.
To be continued...
1,000 Miles Cumulative Total: 151.6 miles
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