Lake District Activities
The blog has been a bit slow of late, mostly due to the incredible weather at the moment, meaning we're out almost constantly, so no time to write!
A major highlight of recent weeks has been a visit to the Esk gorge with friends. We had originally planned a day of climbing on Engineers Slabs, Great Gable. But I heard some friends were heading to the cool waters of the Esk and couldn't resist.
Definitely the right decision. All the pools were warm and clear. Much swimming and jumping into the pools was enjoyed, as well as some scrambling. On a hot day in the Lakes, there is no better place to be. On a hot day in the Lakes, there's no place in the world i'd rather be, that's for sure.
There's been lots of other activity happening too. Abseils, scrambles, gorge scrambles and more.
Also lots of rock climbing on the higher mountain crags. A couple of notable days being Dow and Gimmer:
With Kate & Leanne, I headed up to Dow crag in the blazing sun. Every time this crag comes into view my heart rate begins to race and my pace quickens, it's simply magnificent and I love it.
We planned on ticking a couple of routes and started with the super classic 'Murray's Direct'. This gave good value climbing the whole way. Sadly, the wind soon whipped up and it became quite cold (we only had minimal clothing with us). So we bailed out for the day and retreated to the warm shores of Goats Water and a picnic.
A fine day on Gimmer was also enjoyed with Andrew from Dubai. Having climbed at many Lakeland crags but never on Gimmer, Andrew was keen to check the place out and see what all the fuss is about. We climbed 'Ash Tree Slabs', 'Oliverson's crawl and Lyon's variation', and finished with 'Main wall climb' to give a trio of brilliant routes. I say brilliant routes, we could have picked any 3 routes on Gimmer and they would almost certainly be brilliant.
I also enjoyed a day introducing Ed & Becky to trad climbing at Shepherds crag in Borrowdale. We climbed most of the routes on Brown Slabs and finished with Donkey's Ears. Another grand day.
Thanks all. Hope to see you again soon
Mark
