Mountain Scrambling on Fairfield, Lake District

Route: The Dark Slabs, Greenhow End, Fairfield, Hart Crag

Meet at: Outside the Patterdale Hotel on the main A592 road through the village of Patterdale, postcode CA11 0NN. The best place to park is in the large pay and display car park across the road from the hotel. As an environmentally conscious group, we actively encourage car sharing. Further details of car sharing arrangements from Sheffield, Manchester and elsewhere will appear in the comments section nearer the time.

This big mountain route leads to the 873 metre summit of Fairfield via one of the very best scrambles in the Lake District. The Dark Slabs route on Greenhow End provides superb continuous and sustained scrambling featuring a pleasant airy rib, an exhilarating steep wall and some of the finest mountain slabs anywhere in England. The route is quite serious but for those who don’t fancy it, the main difficulties can all be avoided.

The full day will include a scenic walk in through the remote valley of Deepdale to the enchanting Link Cove, a Grade 1 scrambling ascent of Link Cove Gill and a short hop across the head of the cwm then a Grade 3 scrambling ascent of the Dark Slabs before a steady plod up to the summit of Greenhow End followed by a more gentle ascent to the summit of Fairfield from where we will enjoy a leisurely descent taking in the summit of Hart Crag and the long broad Hartsop Above How ridge.

Photos from some of the previous times we did this outing can be seen here:

https://www.meetup.com/sheffield-mountaineering-rock-climbing-meet/photos/32921230/

https://www.meetup.com/Sheffield-Mountaineering-Rock-Climbing-Meet/photos/31582936/

Difficulty: Solid Grade 3 scrambling if the full Dark Slabs route is tackled, Grade 2 or Grade 1 if some or all difficulties are avoided. For more information on scrambling grades see:

https://www.thebmc.co.uk/understanding-scrambling-grades

Experience Required: Some previous mountain scrambling experience is essential even if you plan to avoid all the main difficulties. If you want to participate but lack the required experience just come to a couple of our other scrambling meets first.

Ordnance Survey Map: OS 90 Penrith & Keswick 1:50,000 scale.

Guidebooks: Scrambles in The Lake District Volume 2: Northern Lakes published by Cicerone Press.

Accommodation: For those of you thinking of staying over and making a weekend of it, we can make the following recommendations:

Sykeside Campsite and Bunkhouse: https://sykeside.co.uk

Gillside Campsite and Bunkhouse: https://www.gillsidecaravanandcampingsite.co.uk

Patterdale Youth Hostel: https://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/yha-patterdale

As always, if everybody wants to contribute £2.00 towards our Meet Up site fees and other operating costs that will be great, thanks.