Latterbrow

After 10 minutes, I escaped the trees and entered another forest of head high ferns. They were wet from the morning rain and so my trousers and shirt got a soaking. At least it cooled me down a bit. The stone pillar on Latterbrow's summit finally came into view. The pillar is well built and quite impressive. It looked like I'd got the muggy top to myself today. I felt a bit like Mugsy Alone. To the west, the Coniston fells were clear of mist and the sun tried its best to illuminate the Old Man. I started making my way down the other side of Latterbarrow. A chainsaw whined away in the section of forest that I approached. I hoped that the Tree Troublers had not shut the footpath off.

'We're not supposed to be on this footpath, but the bridleway is far too muddy.' Three elderly mountain bikers were heaving their bikes over a stile on my footpath. They'd started out  on the bridleway to Hawkshead but the condition of the track was so bad that they'd decided to divert on to this footpath instead. I sighed; I'd need to walk on a section of that bridleway later on. If it was too muddy for mountain bikers, then it was going to be horrendous for walkers. I told them they'd done well to make their way down this footpath since I remembered from a previous walk (see Wray Sawrey Latterbarrow Potter) that it had been fairly difficult to progress along, even on foot.

Tree Troublers

Indeed, the track hadn't improved at all since my last journey along it. I waded through the tree branches and undergrowth that had overflowed on to its path. After 15 minutes, the track reached the bridleway and my heart sank. The bridleway was a mud bath. It looked like the Tree Troublers had driven heavy machinery along it and nuked it in the process. I picked my way along it, trying to avoid the worst bits, but by the time it intersected  with a stone forestry road, my boots were just two clumps of mud. 

I started making my way back to Lake Windermere on a drier bridleway. I found a stream and stepped into it to clean my boots. I thrashed my feet  about in the water but the mud just wouldn't shift. I ended up having to wipe the gunk off with some moss. At Scab Moss I came across a rather pretty plant that I presumed to be a Heath Spotted Orchid. I'm no expert though...it probably is a weed.

The bridleway became almost a cobbled stone pathway. In the past I'd found this surface very slippery and treacherous. It was dry today though and I soon descended to the lakeside road at Belle Grange.

Return

The track from Belle Grange to Wray Castle is flat and easy. There are frequent gaps in the trees offering good views across the lake to the fells. The lake was bustling today with ferries, yachts and motor boats. The nearer I got to Wray Castle, the busier it got. Families were out walking or cycling. A troop of scouts in bright blue uniforms marched by me on some sort of mission. The Wray Castle carpark looked full on my return. I dumped my rucksack in the car and headed off to the castle to have a look around (see Captain's Log in NT Wray Castle for the account).

Despite the doom laden weather forecast, the day had turned out very well. There were a couple of light showers but they weren't heavy or long enough to require wet weather gear. The views from Latterbarrow are well worth the effort to climb up to its summit. Wray Castle was also well worth wandering around.