A windy night under cuben in the Eastern Fells

I didn't think I would be able to get out in july due to work & family commitments, so when my wife planned a night out with friends I jumped at the chance to get a night out in the hills .

A few messages were exchanged with lee taylor & Peter Dixon and we decided on a 2 day route in the Eastern Fells so I could tick off a few unclimbed Wainwright's in the area.

Mr Lake District a.k.a. Peter Dixon know's the Lakeland fell's & all its nook's and crannies far better than me , so I was more than happy for him to plan a route.

After a couple of day's he got back to me with a crackin route of just under 26 miles & we agreed to meet in Hartsop Saturday morning , the weather didn't look too good - 40 - 45 mph winds , gusts too 55 mph light rain showers before heavier rain moved in for the evening , they pretty much got this bang on !

An early start saw me parked up in hartsop at around 7.30. We had planned to meet around 8.30.but travelling from the midlands , along the M6 I knew I had to allow extra time for traffic ect.

Peter , Lee & Oscar ( Peter's faithful hill companion a 10 yr old chocolate Labrador ) pulled up around 45 min's later .We greeted each other then kitted up and headed out .

The tops were in clag , and it was raining lightly , but it didn't dampen our spirit's & soon we reached brock crags - a new wainwright for me.

From there we headed towards Angle Tarn Pike , passing Angle Tarn along the way .

Next target was Beda Fell where we decided we would take a break there before descending northwards towards Ullswater , then onto the Roman Road (high street ) that runs all the way to the summit .

Just before we got to Beda Fell  Oscar started limping badly he was obviously in dis-comfort as he kept stopping for a rest .

Concerned for Oscar's welfare peter decided it wasn't wise to continue on our intended route , being a dog lover myself I could fully understand his concern & we took a break at Beda Fell & weighed up the options .

Peter decided to head back the way we had come , and camp to allow Oscar to rest , leaving a short walk to his car the next day . lee and myself could have continued , but decided we would head back with Peter and camp with him .

 



 



It was getting quite windy now & we knew we would need to find somewhere sheltered to camp , Peter suggested a spot he and lee had camped at a few yrs previous just below Satura crag .

Soon 3 mountain laurel designs cuben duomids were fastened to the hillside & we retreated to our individual shelters for a brew , there was a brief lull around tea time & we took the opportunity to eat and chat behind a near by wall .

After around 30 mins we went back to the shelters for the night , I took a wind speed reading & it showed gusts too 50.6 mph ! they got stronger during the evening.

 This was the 1st real test for my Duomid  - I was really impressed with it as well , I did have 1 problem which I quickly sorted - I had used MLD'S  guyline on the 4 main corners , but had used thinner dyneema on mid panel guy points , this was a mistake as the constant buffeting caused them to slip - I solved this by tying them off & it stood rock solid for the rest of the night. I have changed back to the thicker guyline .

Morning came and we all still had cuben above our heads , the mountain laurel designs cuben duomids had took all mother nature threw at them during the night , no damage was suffered - testament to mld's superb build quality & materials.

Whilst eating breakfast we noticed signs of blue skies & a little while later we packed and set off to a much improved day .

We said our goodbyes to Peter & Oscar then myself and lee headed towards the Knott .

Around 15 mins later Peter & Oscar caught us up again - Oscar had started doing 'doughnut's ' shortly after leaving us , so he decided to catch us up . We then walked together to Thornthwaite crag from where we parted company again - Peter , Oscar & lee making their way back to the car park whilst I continued on to Stoney cove Pike / Cauldale moor , before bagging my final wainwright on that side - Hartsop Dodd .

It had been another fantastic trip & it was great to catch up with the lad's again.

Till next time .... happy wildcamping
Daron