Crookdale

Distance: 13 miles
Ascent: 750m
Weather: warm and still, hazy without views
Bog: lots of it, better get used to it
Deer: one, then loads
Plants of note: bog asphodel, harebell, devil's bit scabious, cotton grass, deer grass (love this stuff), thistles with butterflies, heather, cross leaved heath, sphagnum moss
Annoying birds of prey that were always slightly too far away to see clearly, possible stonechat, meadow pippit
Fungi: Scarlet waxcap, golden waxcap, egghead mottlegill

Good start to the day, complete with hearty breakfast and discussion about the correct term for a small quantity of baked beans, and after waiting for the rain to stop and quite a lot of faffing about, we were walking away from the Shap Wells hotel alongside Wasdale Beck. There were loads of meadow flowers on the banks of the stream, it had rained heavily last night and was very wet underfoot, the waterfalls were impressive. We turned away from the beck and up onto a track that led towards the A6.

We saw a lot of fungi this weekend - mostly growing on poo, which doesn’t make for particularly attractive photographs but I took a few to try and identify, although this will be patchy as there are thousands of varieties and you really need to look closely at them from all angles but I won’t even touch them. I read some good advice that I shall share here: if you plan on eating wild mushrooms, you should always pick three – one to eat, one for the doctor and one for the coroner.

A muddy track turned into a wet but solid bridleway, and then turning though a gate where we saw a lone deer grazing, followed a pleasant grassy path down to a stuck gate above Hause Foot. We made our way up a steep hillside with a solid looking wall at the top - thankfully we didn't have to follow it along for too long before there were steps to climb over and we were up onto High House Bog Bank (495m). A grassy ridge led to Robin Hood and High House Fell where we stopped for lunch and a change of socks.

We worked our way around the valley end, over a couple of small streams and some groughs and up on to Great Yarlside (585m) to Little Yarlside. We had fine views over to the coast and Silverdale, as we made our way along the ridge, swapping sides a few times, across Whatshaw Common - where I got some balloons! - and back to the muddy track. We avoided the wet riverside on the way back, opting for a quiet lane instead.