Black Fell

Date: 19 Sep 2016 Weather: 16’C, sunny, light wind
Height gain: 650 ft Distance: 3.0 miles
Time taken: 2 hours 45 mins Wainwrights: 19 of 214

Route:  From layby on A593 up to High Arnside Farm and following various tracks up to the top.  Headed north on the descent and took a longer path back to Hollin Bank and back along road to car.

We needed a rest day after our exertions on Wetherlam yesterday but the weather is just too lovely to waste so we decide on this little mountain.

Our first ascent was in rain and gale force winds back in May 2011 when my woolly hat was lifted off my head and sailed away towards Windermere and I was actually blown off my feet at one point at the top.  Today is going to be very different.

We park in a layby on the A593 and cross the road to pick up the track up to High Arnside farm.  It feels quite steep on tired legs but the going is easy on the tarmac.  We make our way through the farmyard and through a gate onto the fellside.  We pick up a path that is heading upwards.  Before too long the views back towards the farmhouse are looking lovely:

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We reach a wall and beyond it the paths go everywhere.  We pick one and keep heading upwards in the general direction of the trig point we could see on the top earlier.  The going gets boggy in the flatter parts and then gets very steep.

There’s choice of routes for the final 150ft or so – you just need to pick how steep you want your path to be.  50 minutes after we set off we reach the top:

3 - High Seata

The big surprise when you get here is the views down to Windermere which appear in the east:

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And to the south we can see Tarn Hows and Coniston Water behind it:

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Great views north west towards the Langdales:

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And to the west are Crinkle Crags and Bowfell:

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This is a fantastic viewpoint for a mountain which is only 1,056ft tall.  There are plenty of good rocks around the top and we take some time to sit in each direction to enjoy the views and soak up the sunshine.

Eventually we decide to head back down.  We retrace our steps back towards High Arnside Farm but then follow a more distinct path heading north to try and avoid the confusion from the ascent.

We soon realise that we’re heading beyond the car but we spot some people ahead of us who turn left and we follow them down Hollin Bank and back to the road.  It’s less than half a mile along the road, most of it on a path which runs parallel behind a wall, and we’re back to the car.

What a wonderful little mountain – so glad we came back on a nice day where we could really enjoy those fabulous views.