Wainwrights in 21 Days
Eastern Wainwrights - Hartsop South
34km & 2356m (21miles & 7728ft)
Predicted Walking Time 9hr 54m
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A big day in the Eastern Wainwrights, with many climbs. But there are lots of runnable ridges with easy navigation, at least until The Tongue.
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The day starts high, so the steep path up Red Screes is soon over. The paths over Middle Dodd to Little Hart Crag are not always obvious, but the lie of the land means the general direction is always clear.
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Romp down High Hartsop Dodd to the campsite, and notice that there is a coffee machine in the Reception at the Sykeside campsite.
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The path up Hartsop Dodd becomes thin as you climb, but just keep going upwards! Then on large paths to Stony Cove Pike and down to Threshwaite Mouth. Climbing up from there, look out for indistinct paths going to Gray Crag. They join a larger path once you reach the top of the ridge.
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From Gray Crag return to Thornthwaite Crag and continue on big paths along part of the Western side of the Kentmere Horseshoe. When you reach the Garburn Pass divert to Sallows and Sour Howes, both examples of Wainwright's idea that "the best views are from the lower hills".
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Down to theTroutbeck Valley and along to The Tongue. It's a lovely hill but by this time in the day you may be wishing it was not quite so steep.
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From the summit of Tongue, aim West of the footbridge to find a gate through a new fence, then join the path. At this point navigation becomes a little tricky. The first route is all on Access Land,but not easy. I'll then describe two optiions that involve some sneaking across private, though quite rough, land.
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Option 1. You're trying to get to Woundale Raise, and it may be that you can find a better route than mine!
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Go North along the path to a footbridge. After the stream, aim to skirt the boggy areas for the kink in the wall below a rocky outcrop South of Low Great Knott. There is no gate, but there is a sheep hole that you can crawl through. Now continue to where the track from the Washfold meets the road. The wall in the top corner of the land onto the road is often low enough to straddle; worth checking as you drive to the start. Otherwise find an alternative route to the road lower down the hill.
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From Woundale Raise it's an easy, though boggy, walk to Wansfell.
Option 2 crosses the same footbridge, but then goes down a small path on the West side of the stream to Hird House. From there cut up the hill to reach the public footpath. Turn right, aiming for the road at elevation 285m. Continue along the road for a short way and turnleft into open land (not the newly planted forestry). Follow faint paths to the ridge and then South to Wansfell.
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Option 3. After descending from The Tongue, follow the footpath to Troutbeck Park and continue to Ing Bridge. After crossing the stream, continue up the hill to join the footpath. Turn Right and continue up the footpath as in Option 2. Longer than Option 2, but at least you are not in sight of the farm when you do the short bit across private land.
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A cairn marks Wainwright's Wansfell summit: the OS maps disagree about the location. After returning, avoid the traffic by going onto the open land E of the road to get back to the Kirkstone Inn.