Friday 22 February 2013

Routes in the Northern Fells–Part 2 of many

In my first post I mentioned that I nearly completed a challenge to run all of the Northern Fells of the Lake District by the end of 2012. The relatively unimposing Meal Fell still eludes me. Here are some brief descriptions of the routes I followed with some helpful tips. For the most part they are around 10km with varying ascent apart from the Old Crown Round which I would highly recommend as a whistle stop tour of the Northern Fells.

Obviously I do not provide any guarantee for the accuracy or current safety of these routes. They are simply a record of my own endeavours and if you decide to adopt them you do so at your own risk.

Great Calva

Watching the rain clouds rapidly approach across Skiddaw Forrest from a vantage point on Great Calva is motivation enough for anyone to start running in the opposite direction. Dash Falls is spectacular after there has been some rain.

Statistics

  • Distance: 10.5km
  • Ascent: 480m
  • Summits: 1
  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Comments: Don’t jump Dash Beck at the top of Dash Falls as I did. If you continue but 10m you will cross the beck on a bridge! Great Calva can be boggy after heavy or prolonged rain.

Route

  • Park in the layby opposite Peter House Farm (NY249323).
  • Follow the Cumbria Way signpost Keswick and Threlkeld ignoring the left turn (NY261319).
  • Continue to the unmistakeable top of Dash Falls (NY272312).
  • After you have crossed the beck follow the fence to your left steeply up with Dry Gill on your left.
  • Use the fence as a rail until you reach the Little Calva summit plateau (NY282315).
  • Follow the contours round to avoid losing height and head for Great Calva summit (NY290311).
  • On a clear day you can enjoy spectacular views of the Northern Fells from the ‘inside’.
  • From Great Calva summit head SW to re-join the Cumbria Way at its intersection with Dead Beck (NY283303). This can often be very wet underfoot.
  • Follow the Cumbria Way back to Peter House Farm.

More to come…

Techy Geek Corner

I am still trying to work out a decent way of getting OS Map extracts on here without having to pay large sums of money for Memory Map or the like. If anyone has any ideas, please tweet me @mcinsley83.

Routes in the Northern Fells–Part 1 of many

In my first post I mentioned that I nearly completed a challenge to run all of the Northern Fells of the Lake District by the end of 2012. The relatively unimposing Meal Fell still eludes me. Here are some brief descriptions of the routes I followed with some helpful tips. For the most part they are around 10km with varying ascent apart from the Old Crown Round which I would highly recommend as a whistle stop tour of the Northern Fells.

Obviously I do not provide any guarantee for the accuracy or current safety of these routes. They are simply a record of my own endeavours and if you decide to adopt them you do so at your own risk.

Brae Fell, Great Sca Fell & Knott

I remember doing this run in the early hours of a morning and watching the sunrise from the summit of Knott. An unforgettable experience.

Statistics

  • Distance: 10km
  • Ascent: 420m
  • Summits: 3
  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Comments: At risk of sounding like Wainwright, the plateau of Great Sca Fell summit can be confusing if visibility is poor.

Route

  • Park at Green Head Farm (NY286370) which is sign posted from the B5299 at the back of the Northern Fells.
  • Head SW from the farm ignoring the right fork.
  • Just before Charleton Wash (Ford) make a bee-line SE up the grassy slope to Brae Fell summit (NY288351) it gets steeper as you go.
  • From Brae Fell you can join one of the numerous paths which skirt around Great Sca Fell towards Knott summit (NY295329) roughly SSE. If you hit the right contour around Great Sca Fell you can avoid unnecessary height gain.
  • From your furthest point at Knott you approach Great Sca Fell summit (NY291338) head-on roughly NNW.
  • Head N from Great Sca Fell and you can join a motorway of a path. Follow this down with Charleton Gill on your right and Longlands and Lowthwaite on your left.
  • When you hit the main track at the N base of Longlands (NY275364) turn right, through the gate and over Charleton Wash (Ford) back to Green Head Farm.

More to come…

Techy Geek Corner

I am still trying to work out a decent way of getting OS Map extracts on here without having to pay large sums of money for Memory Map or the like. If anyone has any ideas, please tweet me @mcinsley83.

Wednesday 20 February 2013

Snowdonia Part 2-Snowdon

It seemed wrong to visit Snowdonia without at least attempting an assault on Snowdon. We needed to be realistic given the time of year and we would be walking with George (5) and Eliza (1).

The weather was to be dry but cold on Wednesday and dry on Friday so we planned to have two attempts on each of these days. On Friday we would be joined by my father-in-law Mal Tabb and he would bring the wealth of experience that comes with being a Mountain Leader.

Preparation

It would be dry so the kids were in down. Eliza in her Spotty Otter Chillibug and George in his Spotty Otter Patrol Jacket and Trousers. The mountain weather forecast in Joe Brown was checked the night before and indicated freezing point at ground level and the snow line at 400m. A cold day.

I am aware of 10 routes up Snowdon. Only a few are suitable for kids and we traded distance for a less steep ascent. The Llanberis Path was our chosen route and would provide good views of the Snowdon Mountain Railway along the way. The path is well marked on OS Map OL17.

It is not well advertised but the Mountain Railway, the Summit Cafe and Halfway House Cafe are all closed in the winter until about Easter.

Ascent from Base Camp

In our case Base Camp was the lovely cottage we were staying in on Ty Du Road. A quick stop in the village to pick up some snacks for the kids and we were on our way.

George had a reluctant start but once he found his resolve it was miraculous. The first few kilometres out of the village were much steeper than they appeared on the OS map. The key to keeping the kids going was regular snack stops. Every 30 minutes they would get a few sweets and hourly we would get Eliza out for a short potter around which also helped to give my shoulders a rest.

We had a brief stop for lunch between Halfway House and Clogwyn Station. Only stopping for 20 minutes we all started really feeling the cold and estimated it was around –5oC. By the time we reached the fork in the path to begin the ascent up to Clogwyn the snow was getting deep and Eliza was upset. We decided to turn back. A few hundred metres down the path and Eliza fell asleep in the back carrier and stayed that way until Llanberis was back in sight.

The views were superb and I got plenty of footage with my head mounted GoPro, I will share the end result when I have finished the editing.

The aftermath

12.5km, 600m of ascent and 5 hours of walking made it an epic expedition especially for George. He was very proud of himself.

We had a great dinner at Pete’s Eats as a reward to the kids for being fantastic and to allow us all to refuel. Generous portions of chilli, spaghetti bolognese, lasagne and chocolate tiffin were exactly what we needed.

Star Kit – Spotty Otter Patrol Trousers

For a long time George has used Muddy Puddles waterproof sallopettes. When he outgrew this range we decided to get him a full Spotty Otter Patrol suit. It is fleece lined and fully waterproof making sure he stays warm and dry. They are also very rugged and able to cope with the abuse inflicted by an active 5 year old. The adjustable waist and ankle cuffs make sure they are a good fit and able to effectively reduce gaps between kit. Both the trousers and jacket are highly recommended.

Route and pictures

Runkeeper: http://runkeeper.com/user/mcinsley/activity/148810765

Llanberis Path Information: http://shawtrekking.com/snowdon-footpaths/llanberis-path/

 

Techy Geek Corner

So far so good with Windows 8. I’m starting to find my way around it and just spent some time rearranging my tiles. Now using Microsoft Windows Live Writer to compose blog posts offline and it’s actually very good. It is especially useful since I only get an intermittent Wi-Fi signal on the train. Using my iPhone as a hotspot also works well but likely hammers my data consumption.

Monday 18 February 2013

Snowdonia Part 1–Aber Falls

We all spent a week in Snowdonia. The next few posts cover our exploits from a fantastic base in Llanberis.

The weather was forecast to be heavy rain all day and for once it was right. The kids did us proud and we all got had a fantastic day. There were snowy mountains, sleet, amazing waterfalls and some personal bests for all of us!

Planning

Meticulous planning the night before was greatly helped by one of our guide books (All-Terrain Pushchair Walks Snowdonia). The plan was to combine two walks for Nic and the kids whilst I ran them. This would make sure we both got our training needs. The route would take us from the lower car park up the River Aber to Aber Falls (Rhaeadr Fawr) and back. Walking up the road to the upper car park we would then take us along Afon Anafon to the Llyn Anafon reservoir.

OS Map OL17 covers the route.

The kids are on best form in the morning so we get all kit ready the night before. Eliza is in the Little Life back carrier and therefore needs plenty of layers to keep her warm. Depending on conditions she will wear up to 8 layers on top and bottom and then either her Spotty Otter Chillibug down suit or Muddy Puddles waterproof suit. Its really important that she also gets multiple layers on hands and feet.

On the day

George and Eliza were both in high spirits from the minute we set foot in Llanberis. This morning was no exception! George was definitely in the right mood for an epic day. We all got ready together in the lower car park and set off up to Aber Falls.

I ran up to the falls and met Nic and the kids on the way back. They were doing well. Eliza had a huge grin and George came running up to me. I let them know how amazing Aber Falls was and set off back down to the road. It was a real slog up to the second car park, never has a mile of road appeared so innocent on an OS Map but been so brutal in real life once the wind and rain was howling!

A few navigation mistakes on the second leg nearly had me on the summit of Foel Ganol. Finally putting my faith in the OS Map, I quickly corrected and got back on the right track using Pylons as a landmark. Even at 300m altitude the weather conditions worsened with driving sleet and high winds so I decided to turn back.

I met Nic and the kids heading up the road to the second car park. I was amazed they had made it so far and all were still very happy. George was very determined and seemed to have masses of energy. We had a quick chat about the weather conditions and decided I would run back up to Aber Falls again and then bring the car up to meet them. It would be perfect timing for lunch which was much anticipated by us all!

Nic had some more distance to cover to make sure her training was up to scratch. George fully refuelled himself at lunch and we set of up to Aber Falls again all together. I love running but it is so satisfying to see how much the kids enjoy the outdoors. George finished up back at the car having done a heroic 14km with >500m of ascent and kept going for nearly 4 hours.

Walk: http://runkeeper.com/user/725844528/activity/148162876

Run: http://runkeeper.com/user/mcinsley/activity/148152167

11319_10152563894280065_924884847_n

644114_10152563893715065_197004191_n

Star kit – Montane LightSpeed H2O

Nic bought me a Montane LightSpeed H2O for Christmas after much searching as they are no longer available. A few retailers still have them in stock.

It is an ultra light (<100g) waterproof jacket compressible to the size of a tennis ball. I was kept dry for the full 4 hours in the face of heavy rain and sleet. The only criticism I have of the H2O is its breathability which could be better.

Techy Geek Note

Those of you who know me will be delighted that I am now posting from my new Acer V5-171 Netbook running Windows 8. As an Apple convert I have to say that Windows 8 has impressed me so far. I’m sure it’ll blue-screen at some point…

Tuesday 5 February 2013

An active weekend

The family had an action packed weekend. Supporting the training for my wife's Moonwalk and the London Marathon is a tough job!

Walking


Nic, George, Eliza and I went walking locally on Saturday in the cold. George (5) was heroic, managing a swimming lesson in the morning and an 11km walk in the afternoon. A piece of chocolate every 2km helped.

Route





Fantastic to see the sheep being herded by two sheepdogs in one of the fields near Sawston.



Sunday saw a return to High Lodge in Thetford Forest this time with some of our friends and their children. Fantastic orienteering course covering a large area. The children (5 and 6) loved following the map and searching out the markers.
I got a chance to get the go pro out this weekend. Devastated to miss a shot of the three deer we saw! I will hopefully be posting an edited video later in the week.

Route





8km was good for the kids and made George's walking total 20km over the weekend.

Running


I somehow managed to drag myself around 24km on Sunday night. This was my long run for the week and tough to get started.

Route





Nutrition and hydration


This was much better managed and helped by a fine roast dinner! Using 500ml SIS Go Electrolyte to take with me for hydration. One half per 45 minutes of my trusty Country Crunch bars was the fuel! I have used these on the fells and they are perfect for endurance. I'm trialling SIS Rego protein shake for recovery, I will let you know how it goes after a few more long runs.

Kit in the spotlight





I have already big'd up George's achievements this weekend. A star piece of kit that he loves is his Vaude Puck 10L. It is a 10L pack that allows him to carry his own water, a waterproof sit-mat and the baby changing stuff. It looks the business and makes George feel part of any expedition. The pack also comes with an integrated shoe bag and magnifying glass for the dedicated pioneer! The Vaude never seems to look dirty and is made of a tough fabric to withstand ordeals only a child can put kit through! I would highly recommend this for the 5-7 year age group.





For the techy geeks and Apple-phobes, this entire blog post has been composed and formatted on my iPhone using BlogPress.