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PICTURES AND TRIP REPORTS FROM MY WALKS IN THE ENGLISH LAKE DISTRICT
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E-mail - karl@karlswalks.co.uk |
I'd arranged to meet Richard from wildaboutwalking.wordpress.com for a camp in the Lakes this weekend but after looking at the weather forecast we decided to postpone. I was all packed and ready to go so I had a look where the weather might be better and saw that the Forest of Bowland area was forecast to miss the constant rain and high winds so I decided to have a walk and camp around there.
I've done a couple of day walks in the Bowland hills and have driven past the interesting looking path through the valley of Langden Brook so that's where I started from. The first couple of miles is easy walking along first the tarmac road and then the track which passes the water treatment works into the valley.
After only a mile or so the valley takes on a pleasantly wild and remote feel.
After passing Langden castle (which I didn't visit as there was a guy having a smoke and his two aggressive looking dogs were running around off the lead ) I left the main track at this handy signpost.
I crossed Langden Brook and could see the path up to Fiendsdale on the hillside ahead but I decided to follow the stream and go and see what was around the corner in the valley.
Although it was only a couple of hundred yards before I was around the corner this little valley again felt quite remote and I noticed a couple of nice grassy campsites if you didn't mind the sound of running water by your head all night. Eventually the valley narrowed and although you can't make it out on this picture I could see a horizontal line high above me on the hill which I thought must be the path so I climbed steeply up through the heather to reach it.
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On to the path heading for Fiendsdale Head.
On to Fiensdale Head looking to the north to Ward's Stone and Wolfhole Crag.
The stone flagged path doesn't last long and from here to Fair Snape Fell it's a game of dodge the bogs.
The weather did brighten up though allowing me to see how large an area the Bowland fells cover.
Eventually I did reach Fair Snape Fell and after passing over the very indistinct summit I walked across the escarpment to the large cairn of Paddy's Pole from where there was a misty view towards the coast across the Lancashire plain. I returned to the summit of Fair Snape Fell where I'd noticed a patch of green grass amongst the bogs and pitched up there and enjoyed a fairly quiet night.
The forecasted rain arrived in the early hours but by the time I was ready to leave it was dry but very cloudy.
I'd not walked too far before the cloud broke and I had a nice bit of blue sky.
It didn't seem to take as long coming back as the day before and I was soon on the slab path near Fiensdale Head.
The western escarpment of Fair Snape Fell was still in the cloud though.
Nice spot of morning sunshine on the lower slopes of Fiensdale.
Looking down to Fiensdale water. Today I followed the path all the way down the hill rather than dropping into the stream valley.
This is a view I didn't have yesterday. Looking down to Fiensdale Water which yesterday I'd followed around the corner.
The overnight rain meant that Langden brook which I crossed with ease yesterday presented a bit more of a challenge and I had to walk a little way downstream before I could cross and even then the water was knee high.
No aggressive dogs hanging around so today I could go and have a look at Langden Castle which I think it's fair to say might be a disappointment if you were expecting a moat, turrets and the rest. I read that that castle in this context meant a place where the accused and jailers could overnight on their way from Whalley to Lancaster assizes.
Following the track back to the water works and the road.
And here is the road and the avenue of trees from where we started.
Previous walk -- Eagle Crag and Sergeant's Crag