Harter Fell and Green Crag

Distance: about 10 miles
Ascent: about 900m
Weather: a little cloudy
Going: wet and boggy
Midges: thousands of 'em
Wainwrights: 2 down, 2 to go

We parked at the car park at Birks Bridge, which has parking for quite a few cars and crossed the new bridge on the forestry track. On the way, we'd seen a couple of deer and some Humbug cows (later identified as belted galloways.)

Leaving the track we turned right on to a wet rocky path heading north through Dunnerdale Forest. Most of the forest has been chopped down and stacked up by the side of the track, so it was more heathery moorland than woods, and the going was very muddy in places, especially the place I put my foot in up to my ankle.

We headed off the path straight over to Horsehow Crags (good views down over the Roman Fort), picking up a faint path that headed though the grass to a stile and up on to Demming Crag and then Harter Fell. There were some hounds out for a run today, their baying echoing eerily around the Fells. It was quite an unnerving feeling, even though I knew they weren't after us, being out of breath as we climbed up the steep grassy slopes of Harter Fell and having barking dogs closing in on us - the sort of memory that could one bad night be a sound basis for a nightmare.

We contoured around under Demming Crag, where we were briefly accompanied by a herdwick sheep, coming to the top from the other side and then made a push for Harter Fell. Here we stopped just behind the summit cairn for lunch and a flask of tea, while watching the cloud descend.

We left the top on the path that heads down ENE and then left that to contour across to cross Spothow Gill and up to Kepple Crag. We followed the line of the ridge up to Green Crag and then down via a sheep trod, which met up with a boggy path that headed through some bog to meet Grassguards Gill where we entered Hard Knott Forest (which we remember well from our North of England Way Walk) with its signs announcing the introduction of deciduous trees, natural habitats and bog, because everyone loves a bog. It was utterly bog-tastic today.

Emerging from the mire we found ourselves on a forestry track, where a couple of very posh lads asked us if by any chance we'd seen any sign of some hounds. Why yes, yes we have. They had been blowing their horn, but I don't think the beagles cared.

We followed the forestry track (accompanied by some very friendly midges) back down to the bridge and the car park.

 The top of Harter Fell

Route map and download gpx