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 Why is it always hard to get to sleep when you have to be up early the next morning! I set my alarm for 6.15am and must have been awake on the hour, every hour, checking the time until I went into a deep sleep just as it was time to get up! I had heard the wind howling during the night and wondered if it was going to continue for our walk. I remembered Roger, Stephen and Helmut once crawling across Windy Gap to avoid getting blown over and I wasn't too keen on the idea myself!
Once I was up and dressed and had ventured outside it didn't seem too bad. The wind had abated and it wasn't raining. 8.15 and we were up at Honister ready to set off. The weather seemed fairly reasonable to start with and we made good progress up the track from the mine buildings to the foundations of the drum house where we branched off to follow the ever increasing numbers of people making their way towards Great Gable. It had started to rain and the mist was down although it didn't seem too cold at this point. The path was wet but not as slippery as it had been two years previously when the temperature was below freezing and the rocks were covered in ice. As we climbed higher it became colder and the rain turned to sleet. We followed the quieter track known as Moses' Trod, skirting underneath Green Gable and heading for Beck Head. The mist lifted briefly and we were able to see a line of walkers crossing Green Gable and making their way down to Windy Gap. I always find the sight of all these people quite moving. Somewhere here Jill Batchelor managed to step down off a high piece of ground awkwardly and twist her ankle and it was a relief when she found she was able to walk on it. Although in pain for the rest of the walk she was able to continue. As we reached the col at Beck Head the bitterly cold wind suddenly hit us and we didn't linger. Just time for a few quick photos before the chill set in. The steep climb up to the summit always gets my heart racing and the adrenaline flowing. It's a fairly tough climb when you haven't got the longest of legs and are surrounded by people who want you to get a move on. It's not always easy to find a space to pause and catch your breath when the path is narrow and the rocks are slippery and it's always a relief when the steepness begins to lessen and the ground begins to level out. As the summit came into view I was stopped in my tracks by the surreal nature of the scene before me. The sun was beginning to break through the mist, highlighting in silhouette the figures gathered around the memorial. When Angie saw my photo she said it reminded her of a battle scene and she is right. An appropriate reminder of why we were there. We were on the summit early this year and had time to put on extra layers while we waited for the address and the two minutes silence. It is always a moving and emotional experience and this year it was heightened by snow falling as we stood there waiting. As the two minutes' silence ended and the trumpet sounded the last post the mist began to lift and the mountains around us were revealed in all their magnificent glory. It was stunning and unforgettable. With the summit now bathed in sunshine we made our way to the Westmorland cairn for lunch and Peter presented us with special chocolates, a 'snow' covered miniature toblerone and a Flanders Field Belgian chocolate which I have still by me as I write this. Not that I don't like chocolate, I have eaten my toblerone, but it's almost too special to eat. No doubt I will succumb in time! When we all began to feel the cold it was time to descend and we made our way down to Windy Gap and then over Green Gable and on towards Brandreth where John wanted to head back on a new path he had spotted and I decided to keep him company. We met up with everyone back at the car park in Honister and said our goodbyes. It had been an extraordinary day on a mountain which captured my heart over 30 years ago. |
