Esk Gorge Eskdale - The best of the gorges, by far
Today I was over in Eskdale with sisters Jess & Issy. There was a little light rain on our drive over the Wrynose and Hardknott passes, but nothing much, so what we found in Eskdale was quite a surprise.
After kitting up in double wetsuits, we were straight into the water with a splash, from about 8ft up the first jump does take your breath away, but is beautiful and a joy to do. A gentle float downstream  into the shallows and to watch the others take the plunge, such fun.
We then made steady progress upstream, passing various obstacles along the way, taking it all in our stride and enjoying being in the swirling waters of the Esk Gorge, such an amazing place. More jumps followed, even bigger too!
High water forced us to retreat onto the bank a few times, and soon, the water levels kept us firmly on the bank, with no way of safely re-entering the torrent. Whilst it was clear the water had risen, we didn't yet know by how much. A walk across to the nearby Lingcove Beck gave a similar result, too much fast flowing swirling water!
Heading back to the pool we started in today, I could hardly believe my eyes, the water level was approximately 24 inches higher then when we started, wow! No longer was the pool quick flowing dark water, but a torrent of raging white water. After some investigation we established a safe jump into the pool and the girls went for it, both doing 2 more jumps into the crazy waters, fantastic.
The mighty Esk had delivered yet another memorable day. We swam a lot, jumped into deep pools a lot, and been amazed, captivated by the beauty of this gash of water. Total respect for nature and the power of water.
For more information about our Esk Gorge trips see here
Thanks Jess & Issy
Mark
