Spring is here, so it’s time for my annual “I’m going to do the Yorkshire Three Peaks this summer”, pledge!
But this year I do intend to actually do the walk with an old acquaintance from Bolton, step forward Mark, potentially another few people will join us for company and banter etc. Now that there is a nice dry path diverting walkers from the horrors of Red Moss and Black Dub Moss, that’s one obstacle off the list (technically one and one equal two these days).
Yep, Pen-Y-Ghent, and the Pennine Way leading up it!
However, there’s still the mountains themselves to worry about and to prepare for…Pen-y-ghent from Brackenbottom is sodding steep – then it levels out, then it’s a lovely walk, then it gets all scambly, then steep (I’m mentally reliving this now can you tell?) then it joins then Pennine Way, then it gets majorly (I’m just making adjectives up on the spot now!) steep and scrambl-y! Finally at the top it gets all nice and flat…but you’re too busy hyperventilating (and in my case trying to locate Pendle Hill – obsessed much?) to really have a good old rest before falling back down the other side of it!
The new route avoiding the moss’s should expedite things a tad, it goes without saying that I’ve watched another of Adam Galleymore’s You Tube videos (psst it’s not as good as your Anglezarke Amble one Adam), I’ve watched a lot of You Tube videos of people doing the Yorkshire 3 Peaks – some are quite bizarre, others couldn’t be less interesting, thus, I won’t be doing one!
Whernside, looking surprisingly more formidable than what it really is…unless you do it from Chapel le Dale, then it’s a pig!
Upon arrival at Ribblehead – the base of Whernside, I shall be doing one thing – NOT looking up! That’s one of the areas where I went wrong in 2010 – I looked at the gigantic cloud over the top of the mountain, I was already feeling the cold, owing to bad choices in terms of clothing and …chickened out! Actually, this could be one of the easiest parts of the route, I did Whernside from Ribblehead last March and survived, it isn’t actually that hard and it’s a damn site easier than doing it from the Chapel le Dale aspect. The only problem may be coming down the other side, one part of the path is in serious need of repair – or at least that was the case last March, so instead of coming down the hill at full pelt, I’d have to take it all nice and easy – which could eat into the overall time.
Ingleborough, looking all dark and fearsome, and at this stage I do believe we’ll have already done eighteen miles!
I’ve only ever been up Ingleborough once, I think Mr Farrington from Breightmet County Junior School had us somewhere near it when we were staying at Cautley Hall, one year. But as far as I know, my only ascension was with Chris in 2009. Apparently, the “Frodo’s Steps” section of Ingleborough puts fear into the hearts of people. I’m inclined to think that you can only go as fast as your body and gravity in conjunction will let you, ’nuff said. I am so looking forward to the walk back down – ‘cos we won’t get a view off the top of Ingleborough…you never do on 3 Peak days, but you do if you go to see Ingleborough just on it’s own, she knows…cobblers, when Chris and I went in 2009 it was like taking our own personal sheet of fog with us…got damned nippy as well if memory serves me right! Then it’s the one and a half – three miles, walk back to Horton in Ribblesdale to go and collapse at the Pen-Y-Ghent Café to drown yourself in coffee and stress over whether your clutch or gas foot is going to make it all the way back home!
Piece of cake!