Day 5              Patterdale to Bampton Grange

12.2 miles                           Fine but windy

Breakfast was tasty at the White Lion and we stepped out to find the weather wild and windy but with some promising blue patches in the sky.

The White Lion, Patterdale

The Village Stores, Patterdale

The ache under my ankle bone seemed to have moved to the back of my heel and although it felt tight I felt sure I would manage to get to Bampton Grange.

We stopped at the village store to buy fruit and postcards then went along the road before turning to the little hamlet of Rooking, where we saw a quaint cottage with the name 'Wordsworth Cottage', where the famous poet had once lived.

Rooking Village

Wordsworth Cottage

We moved on to the open fell where the climb was gradual, looking down on Brothers Water, but soon became steeper as we headed towards High Street.  Our first point of note was Angle Tarn, looking very pretty when the sun came out and then when we reached Satura Crag we caught our first glimpse of Hayeswater (not to be confused with Haweswater) below to our right.

Climbing Boredale Hause

Looking back to Patterdale

Carole looks very businesslike this morning

High Street was only temporarily our destination and we turned away from it to our clear objective, the climb to Kidsty Pike, the highest point of the Coast to Coast Walk.  On reaching the Pike we found the wind so strong we were wary of getting close to the rocky edge for fear of being made unsteady in the gale.

Our path runs ahead to the top of Kidsty Pike

Passing Stony Rigg

Angle Tarn comes into view

Angle Tarn

Soon after we began our steep descent to Haweswater, the sun feeling warmer as dropped down at a satisfying rate, at first over rocky ground and then onto steep grassy slopes.  The view was stunning, a great expanse of blue water with greenery all around.   As we approached the lake two deer bounded away along the dry stone wall towards a copse.

Starting the climb to Kidsty Pike

Hayeswater (not Haweswater!)

There were several walkers sitting by the lake and we sat nearby an American couple who we would see over the next few days (until our itineraries diverged at Richmond) while enjoying coffee from our flasks.

Haweswater appears below

We reach Kidsty Pike and are nearly blown off!

Approaching the steep descent to Haweswater

We are sheltered from the wind as we descend

The view from the tumble down section of wall where we sat, looking out across the lake, was truly lovely.

'Sometimes I sits and thinks and sometimes I just sits'

A long undulating walk along the lake bankside

We now had an undulating path of nearly 4 miles, following the lake edge which because of its unchanging panorama seemed to take forever.  Finally we reached the dam wall and passed the former dam builders' cottages of Burnbanks before turning away from the Coast to Coast path to follow the road to Bampton Grange and our accommodation for the night, the village store and tea shop and post office.  However, it fulfills all these roles on a part time basis and no-one was at home. Instructions had been left as to how to access our rooms and it was good to relax.  I rubbed cream into my heel, which was now feeling better than when we started out this morning.

The dam wall finally appears in the distance

We join the road to Bampton Grange

Our options for dinner were limited to the village pub, The Crown and Mitre, but we found it had a sign on the door saying 'Closed for World Environment Day.'  We laughed and reported the fact to our host, now returned to the shop.  He told us that the pub was no longer reliable and recently some C2C walkers had only been able to eat crisps for dinner.  We were determined to avoid that fate and with his assistance telephoned the Punchbowl Inn at Askham to book a table, and then arranged a taxi, a service run by a lady who lived over the road. In the end we shared this taxi with three Aussie walkers also staying at the Store and had an excellent meal, although the additional cost had made it an expensive evening.

To Day 6

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