ENGLAND

=Alum Pot=, the name of which is also found in such forms as _Allen_ and

_Hellan_, lies just west of the Midland Railway, about halfway between

Horton and Ribblehead stations, and on the north-east side of

Ingleborough. It is one of the most striking and most famous of the

Yorkshire potholes, being an elliptical opening in the limestone, 120

ft. long and 40 ft. wide, with a perpendicular depth of 200 ft. The

exploration of it was begun by Mr. Birkbeck of Anley in 1847, who,

assisted by Prof. Boyd Dawkins and a large party including three ladies,

made a complete examination in 1870.

=Angler's Crag=, on the south side of Ennerdale Water. The steep portion

is about 300 ft. There are also some similar crags on _Grike_ and

_Revelin_, close by; but none of them are worth a long walk, and the

only resting-place near is the Angler's Inn, at the foot of Ennerdale

Water.

=Apron-strings.=--Throughout Scotland and the North of England the

traditional explanation of large heaps of stones is that while some one

(generally the Devil or Samson) was carrying the stones in his apron the

strings broke and the stones fell in a heap. Many such heaps are to be

found, bearing the name of 'apronful' or 'bratful,' which means the same

thing. A good instance of the latter form is _Samson's Bratful_, in

Cumberland, between the rivers Bleng and Calder. For another good

instance see what is said about Wade's Causeway in _Murray's Handbook

for Yorkshire_, at p. 206.

=Aron.=--So Wilkinson (in his 'Select Views') calls _Great End_. It may

be that he misunderstood his guide, who was, perhaps, speaking at the

time of _Aaron Crags_, which are on _Sprinkling Fell_, and would be in

the line of sight to any one coming up from _Borrowdale_. In fact, the

path to _Sty Head_ passes not only _Aaron Crags_ on the left, but also

_Aaron Slack_ on the right. It is, of course, tempting to suggest that

Aron was the original Keltic name of Great End; but in Wales the name

Aran is generally applied to mountains of very different appearance to

_Great End_.

=Arrowhead=, a prominent rock in the _Napes_ of _Great Gable_, being

part of the ridge immediately west of _Eagle's Nest_. It was climbed on

April 17, 1892, by a large party, including Messrs. Horace Walker,

Baker, Slingsby, and others. In the following year, on the last day of

March, this climb was repeated by Messrs. Solly, Schintz, Brant, and

Bowen, who continued it right on to the top of the ridge. They kept

rather more on the ridge itself than the former party had done on the

way to the _Arrowhead_, and from that point the climb is along the

crest of the ridge. It is not a difficult climb for an experienced

party. The ridge has been called the _Arrowhead Ridge_.

[Illustration: THE ARROWHEAD

(South side of Great Gable)]

=Ash Crag=, a rock in _Ennerdale_, near the _Black Sail_ end of the

_Pillar Fell_. It is the writer's belief that this is the rock which the

poet Wordsworth, in 'The Brothers,' has confused with the _Pillar Rock_.

At least a lad belonging to an old Ennerdale family, the Bowmans of

Mireside, was killed by falling from this rock at a date closely

corresponding to that indicated in the poem.

=Attermire=, one of the most picturesque limestone scars in Yorkshire.

It is reached from Settle on the Midland Railway, and may be seen on the

way to Malham Cove.

=Back-and-knee=: the process of supporting or raising the body in a

'chimney' by pressure against opposite sides with back and knees, or,

more usually, back and feet.

=Band.=--This word forms part of many hill names in the North of

England, and is also found in Scotland. Dr. Murray deals with it in the

'New English Dictionary,' but not in a satisfactory manner. He defines

it as 'a long ridge-like hill of minor height or a long narrow sloping

offshoot from a hill or mountain,' but it would be easy to adduce

instances where this could have no application. The word is used by

Douglas in his translation of Virgil to represent the Latin word

'jugum':

Himself ascendis the hie _band_ of the hill;

and from this Jamieson concluded that the word meant simply 'top of a

hill'--a definition almost as unsuitable as the last. The late Mr.

Dickinson, the leading authority on the Cumberland dialect, gave to the

word the meaning of 'a boundary on high uninclosed land,' and indeed the

frequent association of the word with personal names (often of clearly

Scandinavian character) seems to indicate some territorial significance.

=Bannerdale Crag= (C. sh. 57) may be taken on the way up _Saddleback_

from Troutbeck station on the line between Keswick and Penrith. About

three miles up the stream is _Mungrisdale_, and still farther up along

the course of the stream one fork leads to _Scales Tarn_ and another to

_Bannerdale_, where there is a lead mine just north of the crags. There

is a rocky face some 600 ft. to 800 ft. high, offering climbing, which

is steep, but by no means first-rate.

=Barf.=--From the southern shore of Bassenthwaite Water there is a fine

steep scramble up this hill. On a bright winter's day it is rather

inspiriting, and the views are good.

The name is more frequent in Yorkshire, where, according to Phillips, it

has the meaning of 'a detached low ridge or hill.'

=Beachy Head=, close to Eastbourne, in Sussex, is a very fine bold chalk

cliff, the first ascent of which is made about once in every two years,

if we may believe all that we see in the papers. The truth is that there

is a treacherous incline of some 600 ft., formed of chalk and grass,

both very steep and often dangerously slippery; and during the

Eastbourne season the coastguards at the top find their principal

occupation in supplying mechanical assistance to exhausted clamberers;

but for difficulty these cliffs will not for a moment compare with those

of half the height which carry on the line westward to _Birling Gap_.

The tops of these in many places literally overhang the sea, and there

are few points where a climber could make the slightest impression upon

them. On Beachy Head there is a dangerous-looking pinnacle, which was

climbed (by dint of cutting a step or two) in April 1894, by Mr. E.A.

Crowley.

=Bear Rock=, a queerly-shaped rock on _Great Napes_, which in the middle

of March 1889 was gravely attacked by a large party comprising some five

or six of the strongest climbers in England. It is a little difficult to

find, especially in seasons when the grass is at all long.

=Beck.=--In the North of England (except in Northumberland and Durham,

where 'burn' prevails) this is the usual word for a brook. It differs

from a 'gill' in being more open, and having banks less rocky and a

stream somewhat more copious. A gill may contain only a few drops of

water, or none at all, and still preserve its self-respect, but not so a

beck. Camden speaks of 'Beakes and Brookes.'

=Bell= enters into many North Country hill-names. It is commonly said to

indicate spots which were specially devoted to the worship of Baal, and

many arguments have been based upon its occurrence and distribution. If

there is anything in this assertion, the 'high places' for the worship

of Baal must have been most capriciously selected. My own belief is that

the term is purely descriptive and is applied to a convexity in the

slope of a hill. In Lowland Scotch the phrase 'bell of the brae' is not

uncommon and has the same significance.

=Bell Rib End=, a short drop on the narrow south ridge of _Yewbarrow_.

Though on a very small scale, it is not without interest, and was a

favourite with Mr. Maitland, one of the early explorers of Wastdale.

=Bield.=--This word not only occurs frequently in place names, but is

still part of living speech in North England and South Scotland. It

means shelter of any kind for man or beast, and in the latter case

especially a fox or a sheep. It is also used as a verb; in fox hunting,

for instance, the animal when run to earth is said to be 'bielded.'

=Bink=: a long narrow grassy ledge. (N. of Eng.)

=Black Sail.=--It has been suggested that this name, now borne by the

pass from Wastdale to Ennerdale between Pillarfell and Kirkfell, may

have originally been named from the mountain it crossed, and so may

possibly now preserve an older name of one of those two mountains. Dr.

Murray, writing to a local paper some years ago, did not hesitate to

affirm positively that Pillar Fell is entirely due to the Ordnance

surveyors, and that the original name was Black Sail, a fact which he

said could be proved by historical evidence. It would be extremely

interesting to see this evidence, but the name 'Pillar' certainly

appears in maps published long before that of the Ordnance. (See

_Sail_.) The pass (1,750 ft.) is very familiar to all climbing folk,

being the ordinary way of reaching the Pillar Rock from Wastdale Head.

It is generally preferred to _Wind Gap_ on account of greater variety

of view and better 'going,' and some make use of it even for the purpose

of reaching the Ennerdale side of _Great Gable_.

The route, however, has one disadvantage. It is hot. It is no uncommon

thing to hear enthusiastic frequenters of the Lakes complaining of the

popular misapprehension that the sun never shines there, and urging that

people are so unreasonable as to notice the wet but to disregard the

warmth. Among these traducers of the Cumberland climate the frequenters

of the Black Sail route are not found. Argue not with such; but some

fair morning, when the reviler is most rampant, lead him gently into

Mosedale and watch with calm delight while he pants painfully up the

pass, trying his utmost to look cool, with the sun, which he has

maligned, beating down squarely upon his back and exacting a merciless

revenge. Many a time will he turn about and feign rapture at the taper

cone of Yewbarrow and the bold outline of Scafell; often will his

bootlace strangely come untied before his reverted glance catches the

welcome gleam of Burnmoor Tarn; but long before that time his heart

within him will have melted even as wax, and he will have registered a

vow that, when next the Cumberland sunshine is discussed, the seat of

the scornful shall know him no more. Mr. James Payn, having occasion to

allude to 'dry weather' in the Lakes, adds demurely, 'which is said to

have occurred about the year 1824'; but, from his own description of

Black Sail, it is clear that he deeply rued the sarcasm: 'You will begin

to find your pass quite sufficiently steep. Indeed, this is the severest

pull of any of the cols in the District, and has proved the friend of

many a gallant with his ladylove. To offer a young woman your hand when

you are going up Black Sail is in my mind one of the greatest proofs of

attachment that can be given, and, if she accepts it, it is tantamount

to the everlasting "Yes!"' We may be sure that, before he reached the

top, the witty novelist experienced remarkably 'dry weather,' and also

some of those symptoms which elsewhere he has himself described with

such scientific accuracy: 'Inordinate perspiration and a desperate

desire for liquids; if the ascent be persisted in, the speech becomes

affected to the extent of a total suspension of conversation. The temper

then breaks down; an unseemly craving to leave our companion behind, and

a fiendish resolution not to wait for him if his bootlace comes undone,

distinguish the next stage of the climbing fever; all admiration of the

picturesque has long since vanished, exuded, I fancy, through the pores

of the skin: nothing remains but Selfishness, Fatigue, and the hideous

reflection that the higher we go the longer will be our journey down

again. The notion of malignant spirits occupying elevated

regions--Fiends of the Fell--doubtless arose from the immoral

experiences of the Early Climbers.'

Green's _Guide_ (1819) records a touching instance of a husband's

attentions surviving a test which we saw above, that even lovers find

severe: 'This is a steep and craggy ascent, and so laborious to man that

it might be imagined horses could not travel it; yet Mr. Thomas Tyson,

of Wasdale Head, has conducted Mrs. Tyson over this stony ground while

sitting on the back of her horse.'

In Switzerland one might look back after a day's work, and fairly

forget ups and downs so slight as Black Sail; but many of the guide

books speak of it in terms which might apply to the Adler or the Felik

Joch. For instance, _Black's Picturesque Guide_ (ed. 1872) says: 'The

_hardy_ pedestrian with _very minute_ instructions _might_ succeed in

finding his way over the mountains, yet every one who has crossed them

will beware of the danger of the attempt and of the _occasional fatal

consequences_ attending a diversion from the proper path.' This is

highly encouraging; and the enterprising traveller who only breaks his

neck two or three times in the course of the journey will be of good

cheer, for he is making rather a prosperous expedition than otherwise.

=Blea Crag=, an isolated square stone on the left of the path to the

_Stake_, a long mile up _Longstrath_. It is climbed on the side which

looks down the valley. Messrs. Jones and Robinson recorded their ascent

of it in September 1893, but it seems that four or five years ago there

were traces on it of a previous ascent.

'Crag' is not very commonly used of a single stone, as it is here and in

the case of _Carl Crag_.

=Borrowdale.=--'Divers Springes,' says old Leland in his 'Itinerary,'

'cummeth owt of Borodale, and so make a great _Lowgh that we cawle a

Poole_.'

The 'Lowgh' is, of course, Derwentwater, and Borrowdale is the heart of

the finest scenery and the best climbing in England. It may be said to

stretch from _Scafell_ to _Skiddaw_, and excellent headquarters for

climbers may be found in it at _Lowdore_, _Grange_, _Rosthwaite_, and

_Seatoller_. With the aid of its wad mines and its _Bowder Stone_, it

probably did more during last century than anything else to arouse

public interest in the Lake country. The natives were not famed for

their intelligence, and many stories are told in support of their

nickname of 'Borrowdale gowks.'

There is another _Borrowdale_ in Westmorland, and _Boredale_ is perhaps

the same name.

=Bowder Stone= in _Borrowdale_ was already a curiosity about a century

and a half ago, when it was visited by Mr. George Smith, the

correspondent of the _Gentleman's Magazine_. Clarke, writing some years

later, says it bore the alternative names of _Powderstone_ and

_Bounderstone_; and being 'thirty-one yards long by eight yards high,

must therefore weigh over 600 tons, and is said to be the largest

self-stone in England.' It is not really a 'boulder' at all, but the

word is rather loosely used in Cumberland.

=Bow Fell= (2,960 ft.).--The name is probably the same as that of _Baugh

Fell_, also called _Bow Fell_, in Yorkshire. This graceful peak,

standing as it does at the head of several important valleys--_Eskdale_,

_Langdale_, _Dunnerdale_, and _Borrowdale_--is a great feature in Lake

scenery. There is not much rock-work on it, but a good deal of rough

walking and scrambling. From _Borrowdale_ or _Wastdale_ it is approached

by way of _Esk Hause_. On this side there is no climbing, except that

_Hanging Knot_, as the N. end of Bow Fell is called, descends to _Angle

Tarn_ in a long, steep, rocky slope which offers a pleasant scramble.

On the _Eskdale_ side there is a gully or two which might be worth

exploring.

By inclining to the right hand on emerging at the top of _Hell Gill_, or

to the left hand from the pony-track at the foot of _Rossett Gill_ we

reach _Flat Crags_, huge glacier-planed slopes of rock, overlooked by

what in winter is a fine _couloir_ of most alpine appearance. When

Messrs. J. & A.R. Stogdon ascended it (_Alpine Journal_, v. p. 35) the

inclination of the snow increased from 30 deg. at the foot to 63 deg. after 350

ft. or more, and there was a large cornice at the top. In the account

which the same party inserted at the time in the Wastdale Head Book

steeper angles are given.

In summer it is merely an open scree-gully; but the

insignificant-looking chimney just N. of it, and only separated from it

by a narrow ridge, is quite worthy of attention, though it has but one

pitch in it after the one at the foot. The descent is harder than the

ascent, and takes about twenty minutes.

There is a fine rocky walk along the S. ridge, called _Shelter Crags_

and _Crinkle Crags_, which descends towards the head of Dunnerdale, but

it is extremely unfrequented.

=Bram Crag= and _Wanthwaite Crag_ flank the coach road between

_Threlkeld_ and _Grasmere_ on the east. The best part is rather more

than two miles south of Threlkeld station. The climbing is somewhat

similar to that about _Swarthbeck_ on Ullswater, but on better and

sounder rock, and there is more of it. A good day's work will be found

among these crags, and a fine specimen of a 'sledgate' is deserving of

notice.

=Brandreth= is between _Borrowdale_ and the head of _Ennerdale_. The

name, which occurs elsewhere in the neighbourhood, denotes a tripod

(literally a 'grate,' usually made with three legs). The meeting-point

of three boundaries of counties, parishes, &c. is often so named.

Brandreth has only one short bit of bold rock--one of the many _Raven

Crags_. It is hardly worth a special journey, but may very easily be

taken by any one who attacks _Great Gable_ from _Borrowdale_.

=Brimham Rocks=, in Yorkshire, are very easily visited from Harrogate or

from Pateley Bridge. From the latter they are only four miles to the

eastward. The station for those who come from Harrogate is Dacre Banks,

from which the Rocks may be reached in an hour's walking. They are of

millstone grit and well deserve a visit, for nowhere are the grotesque

forms which that material delights to assume more remarkable. Some

resemble the sandstone forms common about Tunbridge Wells, and many

might very well stand for Dartmoor Tors; but others at first sight seem

so evidently and unmistakably to suggest human handiwork that one can

feel no surprise at the common notion that they were fashioned by the

ingenuity of the Druids. Several of them, though very small, can only be

climbed with considerable difficulty.

=Broad Stand=--a term commonly but, in my opinion, incorrectly used to

denote a particular route by which the crags of _Scafell_ may be

ascended direct from _Mickledoor_. There are numerous other places

within a few miles of this into the names of which this word 'stand'

enters, and a consideration of them leads me to the belief that it

signifies 'a large grassy plot of ground awkward of access.' This is

exactly what we find here. A break in the cliffs produces a large open

space which is the key to the ascent by the _Mickledoor Chimney_, to

that by the _North Climb_, and to that which, being the oldest, easiest,

and most frequented, has arrogated to itself as distinctive the name of

a feature which it should only share with the other two. Really all

three routes are merely different ways of reaching the Broad Stand.

One of the earliest recorded ascents is that of Mr. C.A.O. Baumgartner

in September 1850, an account of which was sent by one of the people of

the dale to the local paper in these terms: 'The Broad Stand, _a rocky

and dangerous precipice_, situated between _Scaw Fell_ and the _Pikes_,

an ascent which is perhaps more difficult than even that of the _Pillar

Stone_.' The late Professor Tyndall climbed it in 1859, and described it

in the _Saturday Review_ of that year. It evidently had a great

reputation then, which was not, in his opinion, entirely deserved. It

seems to have been known in 1837 (see the _Penny Magazine_) to the

shepherds; and even in Green's time, at the beginning of the century,

one or two daring spirits had accomplished the feat.

=Buckbarrow= (C. sh. 79).--_Broadcrag_ (more north-east) is really part

of it, and about 400 ft. high. Buckbarrow rises near the foot of

Wastwater, opposite the best part of the Screes. When approached from

the head of the lake it appears as two huge rocky steps; but, as in the

case of _Eagle Crag_ in _Greenup_, the steps are not really in the same

plane. Seen from the slopes of _Lingmell_, it forms the boundary between

the mountains and the plain, to which it sinks in one very graceful

concave curve. It is not lofty--there are perhaps some 400 ft. of

rock--but by the shepherds it is reputed inaccessible. This is only true

in the sense that there are stiff bits on it which have to be evaded. It

is haunted by both the fox and the buzzard--connoisseurs on whose taste

in rocks the climber can generally rely. There is also climbing in the

whole line of rock (Broad Crag) which stretches away towards

_Greendale_. Since 1884, when the writer first became acquainted with

it, Buckbarrow has become rather popular, considering its remoteness

from _Wastdale Head_.--At Christmas 1891 a strong party, led by Messrs.

Robinson, Hastings, and Collie, ascended it 'from the fox's earth to the

hawk's nest,' and on April 15, 1892, a party containing several of the

same members climbed 'the first main gully on this [the north] side.

There are two short chimneys at the end of this little gill--one in each

corner, about ten to twelve yards apart.' The left one, up which Mr.

Brunskill led, was considered the harder. Afterwards Dr. Collie led two

of the party up the face of the cliff to the right of the next gully on

the west, which is marked by a pitch of about fifty feet low down. To a

house near the foot of Buckbarrow old Will Ritson and his wife retired,

after giving up the inn which they had kept for so many years and made

so famous at _Wastdale Head_.

=Buresdale=, the proper name of the valley between Thirlmere and

Threlkeld. Hutchinson, for instance, says: 'At the foot of _Wythburn_ is

_Brackmere_ [i.e. Thirlmere], a lake one mile in length ... from the N.

end of this mere issues the river Bure, which falls into Derwent below

Keswick.' He also mentions Buresdale in connection with _Layswater_, yet

another equivalent for Thirlmere. Guidebook writers seem to have

conspired together to obliterate this name from the map, and to

substitute for it the name _Vale of St. John_, which Sir Walter Scott

made famous. To revive the name of the river would be an act of only

posthumous justice, now that the Manchester waterworks have taken away

all its water; but the valley is still there, and ought to be called by

its genuine old name, which is of Scandinavian origin; compare with it

the Bure river in Norfolk, and fishermen will recall similar names in

Norway.

=Burn=: the Scotch word for a brook is hardly found south of the river

Wear. In Wythburn, Greenburn, and other cases it probably represents

_borran_ (stone heap).

=Buttermere=, a pleasant stopping-place from which many of the

Cumberland fells can be explored. It is a good centre for _Grassmoor_,

_Melbreak_ and the _Red Pike_ range, while _Borrowdale_ and _Ennerdale_

are quite within reach. Once a day the Keswick waggonettes swoop upon

the place, bringing trippers by the score, but at other times it is a

quiet and enjoyable spot.

=Calf (The)= (2,220 ft.), in Yorkshire, near _Sedbergh_. _Cautley Crag_,

on the E. side of it, is very steep. In this corner of the county the

Yorkshire climber experiences the intense relief of seeing rocks which

are neither chalk, limestone, nor millstone grit.

=Camping.=--Camping out by rivers has always been more popular in

England than the same form of airy entertainment among the mountains.

The labour of carrying tents or sleeping-bags acts as the chief

deterrent. It is true that some thirty years ago a distinguished member

of the Alpine Club applied to Scafell Pike, and one or two other spots

where England is loftiest, the practice, which he has carried out on

many of the higher peaks of the Alps and Pyrenees, of watching sunset

and sunrise from the loftiest possible _gite_ which the mountain can

afford. Mr. Payn, too, has given us a most humorous narrative of how he

and his friends encamped on Fairfield. Also, about twenty years ago,

four stalwart climbers from Penrith made a regular camping tour of the

Lakes. Their tent was pitched on these spots: Penrith Beacon, Red Tarn

on Helvellyn, in Langdale under Pike o' Stickle, Sty Head, in Ennerdale

under Gable Crag, and on Honister. It weighed only 5-1/2 lbs., and yet

had a floor space of 8 ft. by 8 ft.

It may be that, just as bicyclists suffered by the scathing definition

'cads on casters,' so the enthusiasm of the camper may have received a

check when he heard himself described with cruel terseness as 'a fool in

a bag.' Perhaps, again, our climate is not one which offers much

encouragement to any but the hardiest of campers. In the Lakes by far

the most popular (and probably, therefore, the most convenient) place

is the shore of Ullswater, where tents have been seen even in the depth

of winter.

=Carl Crag= lies on the sea-shore in Drigg parish. Mr. Jefferson says

that it is of syenite, and measures in feet twelve by nine by five and a

half, but it is deep in the sand. The legend is that while Satan was

carrying it in his apron to make a bridge over to the Isle of Man, his

_apron strings (q. vid.)_ broke and let it fall. It is probably an

erratic. With the name compare _Carlhow_, _Carlwark_, &c.

=Carrs=, in Lancashire, in the _Coniston_ range, north of the _Old Man_.

It is craggy on the east side. In _Far Easdale_ there is a line of crag

which bears the same name. Clearly neither can have anything to do with

'carrs' in its usual sense in the north, viz. 'low marshy ground.'

=Castle Rock= (C. sh. 64).--This rock in _Borrowdale_ is said to have

been crowned by a Roman fort. The west side is craggy for a couple of

hundred feet. It may serve to occupy a few odd hours for any one

stopping at _Grange_, _Rosthwaite_, or _Seatoller_.

=Caw Fell= (C. sh. 73).--The name is possibly the same as _Calf_,

_Calva_; compare also _Caudale_, _Codale_, &c. On the north side there

is a craggy bit about 200 ft. high.

=Chalk.=--Though this can hardly be regarded as a good rock for

climbing, much excellent practice can be gained on it. As a general

rule, it is only sufficiently solid for real climbing for the first

twenty feet above high-water mark, though here and there forty feet of

fairly trustworthy rock may be found. These sections of hard chalk are

invariably those which at their base are washed by the sea at high tide;

all others are soft and crumbly.

[Illustration: CHALK CLIFFS NEAR DOVER]

Whilst any considerable ascent, other than up the extremely steep slopes

of grass which sometimes clothes the gullies and faces, is out of the

question, traverses of great interest and no slight difficulty are

frequently possible for considerable distances. A good _objectif_ may be

found in the endeavour to work out a route to the various small beaches

that are cut off from the outer world by the high tide and cliffs.

The best instances of this sort of work are to be found along the coast

to the eastward of Dover (between that town and St. Margaret's). Between

the ledges by which these traverses are in the main effected, and the

beach below, scrambles of every variety of difficulty may be found, some

being amongst the hardest _mauvais pas_ with which I am acquainted.

Owing to the proximity of the ground, they afford the climber an

excellent opportunity of ascertaining the upper limit of his powers.

Such knowledge is a possession of extreme value, yet in most other

places it is undesirable to ascertain it too closely. Chalk, it must be

remembered, is extremely rotten and treacherous, very considerable

masses coming away occasionally with a comparatively slight pull. In any

place where a slip is not desirable, it is unwise to depend exclusively

on a single hold, as even the hardest and firmest knobs, that have stood

the test of years, give way suddenly without any apparent reason. The

flints imbedded in the chalk are similarly untrustworthy; in fact, if

they project more than an inch or so, they are, as a rule, insecure.

The surface of the chalk is smooth and slimy if wet, dusty if dry, and

does not afford the excellent hold obtained on granite. As a whole it

may be regarded as a treacherous and difficult medium, and one which is

likely to lead those practising on it to be very careful climbers.

To the westward of Dover (between it and Folkestone) a great amount of

climbing on grass and crumbly chalk slopes can be obtained; almost every

gully and face can be ascended from the sea, or the S.E. Railway, to

the top. It is desirable to remember that in dry weather the grass and

the earth which underlies it is of the consistency of sand, and great

care is requisite; after rain the grass is of course slippery; but the

underlying material adheres more firmly to the cliff. It is unnecessary

to add that a slip on any of these slopes would almost certainly prove

fatal. On the face of _Abbot's Cliff_, and to the westward (about

halfway between Dover and Folkestone), some traverses may be effected at

a height of 200 ft. or more above the base; they do not, however,

compare for climbing with the traverses on the other side of Dover.

As one goes westwards, the angle of the cliffs becomes less, and from

_Abbot's Cliff_ towards Folkestone it is rarely necessary to use one's

hands, though very nice 'balance' is essential, as the results of a slip

would usually be serious. Above the _Warren_, still nearer Folkestone,

the slopes become easy, and after heavy snow afford excellent

_glissades_.

The cliffs between Dover and St. Margaret's vary from 200 to 350 ft.,

whilst those between Dover and Folkestone vary from 250 to 500 ft. in

height.

In Sussex the chalk is well developed at and near _Beachy Head_, where

it attains a height of some 600 ft. Just west of this come several miles

of cliffs, lower indeed (about 300 ft.), but amazingly vertical.

About _Flamborough Head_, in Yorkshire, this formation attains fine

proportions, while as far west as Devonshire _Beer Head_ is upwards of

400 ft. high.

=Chimney=: a recess among rocks resembling the interior of a chimney

open on one side. (See _Back-and-knee_.)

=Chockstone=: a northern word for a stone wedged between the sides of a

gully. A short word for this is greatly needed, and I would suggest that

it might be called a 'chock,' simply.

=Clapham=, a station on the Midland Railway, is an excellent centre for

_Ingleborough_ and the _Potholes_.

=Clark's Leap=, near _Swirl's Gap_ on Thirlmere, is a jutting rock, so

called from a suicide which took place there over 100 years ago. It is

one of many local absurdities of the novel called 'The Shadow of a

Crime' that this name is brought in as an antiquity in the eyes of

characters supposed to be living two centuries ago.

=Clough= (_Cleugh_, _Cloof_, _Cluff_, _Clowe_) is a North of England

word for a kind of valley formed in the slope of a hill. The first cut

in carving a shoulder of mutton produces a typical 'clough.' There is

seldom any climbing about a genuine clough, because it implies soil

rather than rock. Dr. Murray tells us that the word has no connection

with the Icelandic 'klofi,' yet assigns to the latter word the origin of

'cloof,' in the sense of the fork of a tree, or of the human body. To a

layman in such matters the two words bear a singular resemblance, both

in sound and in sense.

=Collier's Climb= on _Scafell_ was made by Messrs. Collier and Winser on

April 2, 1893, and a very severe climb it is. It begins from the _Rake's

Progress_ at a point 105 ft. west from the _North Climb_. After a direct

ascent of about 40 ft., a grassy platform on the right (facing the wall)

is reached. From here a narrow and somewhat awkward traverse leads back

to above the first part of the climb. This traverse could probably be

avoided by climbing directly upwards. There follows an easy ascent for

30 ft. still directly upwards. By traversing broad grassy ledges to the

right--i.e. towards _Moss Gill_--one of the inclined cracks so plainly

seen on the face of the cliff is reached, and the rest of the ascent

made in it. The only severe difficulties in the climb are: 1. at the

beginning, in leaving _Rake's Progress_; 2. at one point in the crack

where there is not much handhold for 10 or 15 ft.

=Combe Gill=, a fine gill in the north end of _Glaramara_. The climb is

a little over two miles from _Rosthwaite_, and about a mile less from

_Seatoller_. A very fine mass of rock (one of the many _Eagle Crags_)

stands at the head of the little valley, and up the centre of this crag

lies the way. It was climbed on September 1, 1893, by Messrs. J.W.

Robinson and W.A. Wilson, whose account of it is as follows: 'This very

fine gorge has three good-sized pitches in the lower part. These were

passed by climbing the right-hand edge of the gill--interesting work. A

return on to the floor of the gill was made near the top of the third

pitch, when a little scrambling led to a very fine waterfall more than

100 ft. high. Here climb in the water as little as you can; then diverge

slightly on to the right-hand wall of the gill just where the water

spouts over a small recess; next traverse across a rather difficult slab

into the cave under the final boulder, which is climbed on the left-hand

and is the last difficulty.'

=Coniston=, having the advantage of both railway and steamboat, is very

accessible, and, notwithstanding this, it is agreeably free from the

rush of excursionists. Practically it has one fine mountain--the _Old

Man_--and no more, though _Bow Fell_ and the _Langdale Pikes_ are not

entirely out of reach. There is much good scrambling in the rocks which

fringe the _Old Man_ and _Wetherlam_, and superb climbing in _Dow Crag_.

=Coniston Old Man.=--Quarrymen and miners have between them done an

immense deal towards spoiling a very fine mountain. They have converted

to base industrial uses the whole east side of the mountain, which

Nature intended for climbers. They have not yet invaded _Doe Crag_

(q.v.), which is really part of it, but practically no one goes up the

_Old Man_ proper, except for the sake of the view, which is magnificent,

and no one ascends except from Coniston, varied in a few cases by

working north along the summit ridge and descending via _Grey Friars_ on

to the pass of _Wrynose_.

=Copeland.=--Camden says of Cumberland: 'The south part of this shire is

called _Copeland_ and _Coupland_, for that it beareth up the head aloft

with sharpedged and pointed hilles, which the Britans tearme _Copa_.'

Leland alludes to this when he makes a ludicrously pedantic suggestion:

'Capelande, part of Cumbrelande, may be elegantly caullid Cephalenia.'

_Cop_ is found in Derbyshire also, as a hill-name, and hunting men will

not need to be reminded of the Coplow in Leicestershire.

[Illustration: CONISTON AND DOE CRAG]

=Cornwall.=--To the true-souled climber, who can enjoy a tough bit of

rock, even if it is only fifty, aye, or twenty feet high, the coast of

Cornwall with its worn granite cliffs and bays has much to offer. It is

interesting almost the whole way round the coast. Granite prevails, but

at _Polperro_ we have cliffs belonging to the Lower Devonian period, and

for some ten or twelve miles going west from _Chapel Point_ we find

rocks of the Silurian order. At many points round the _Lizard

Promontory_ there are remarkable rocks; but some of the finest cliff

scenery in England is to be found between the _Logan Rock_ and the

_Land's End_. These are on the regular tourist tracks, and conveniently

reached from good hotels; but the north coast of Cornwall is here easy

of access. There are fine cliffs about _Gurnard's Head_ and _Bosigran_,

which are well worth a visit, from St. Ives or Penzance (7 or 8 miles).

There is a small inn at _Gurnard's Head_. _Bedruthan Steps_ are

well-known, and _Trevose Head_, _Pentire_ (Padstow), _Tintagel_ and

_Penkenner Point_ are only a few of the many grand rock-scenes on this

coast.

=Coterine Hill.=--Leland, in his 'Itinerary,' says that Ure, Sawle, and

Edon rise in this hill, and that 'the Hedde of Lune River by al

Aestimation must be in _Coterine Hill_, or not far fro the Root of it,'

adding that, in the opinion of Mr. Moore of Cambridge, the river Lune

'risith yn a hill cawlled _Crosho_, the which is yn the egge of

Richemontshire.'

There is _Cotter-dale_ on the Yorkshire slope of the hill in which these

rivers rise, and the celebrated Countess of Pembroke, in 1663, when she

crossed from _Wensleydale_ to _Pendragon Castle_, calls her journey

'going over _Cotter_, which I lately repaired,' the last words showing

that it was a recognised pass.

In all probability Leland's form represents '_Cotter End_,' by which

name, though not given in most of the maps, part of the hill is still

known.

=Cove=: often means 'cave' in Yorkshire and Scotland, but as a rule it

is a large recess in a hill-side.

=Craven=--_Camden_ remarks that the country lying about the head of the

river Aire is called in our tongue _Craven_, 'perchance of the British

word _Crage_, that is a _Stone_. For the whole tract there is rough all

over, and unpleasant to see to; which [with?] craggie stones, hanging

rockes, and rugged waies.'

Modern climbers, however, find it hardly rocky enough for them, at least

above ground, and have been driven to invent a new variety of

climbing--the subterranean. Exploration of the numerous _potholes_ which

honeycomb the limestone hills has of late years become a favourite

pastime, and, in truth, it combines science with adventure to a marked

degree.

Any one who tarries for any length of time among these Yorkshire dales

should read Mr. H. Speight's handsome volume, which gives a very

complete account of the beauties and the curiosities which they have to

show.

=Cross Fell=, in Cumberland, long enjoyed the reputation being one of

the highest mountains in England, and as late as 1770 its height was

calculated at 3,390 ft., which is some 500 ft. more than it is entitled

to. It was earlier than most English mountains in becoming the object of

scientific curiosity, and an account of it will be found in the

_Gentleman's Magazine_ for 1747. It is chiefly celebrated for the Helm

Wind originating from it.

=Cumberland= is the premier climbing county. The best centres are

_Wastdale Head_, _Rosthwaite_ or _Seatoller_, _Buttermere_, _Keswick_

and _Eskdale_. The cream of the climbing is on those fells which are

composed of rocks belonging to what is called 'the Borrowdale Series,'

such as _Scafell Pillar_, _Gable_, _Bowfell_, and as a rule the finest

climbs are found on the sides which face the north and east. _Cross

Fell_ does not belong to the same mountain-system as those just

mentioned, and offers little climbing. The best cliffs on the coast are

about _St. Bees_ Head.

=Cust's Gully=, on Great End.--To the large and increasing number of men

who visit the Lakes in winter, perhaps no climb is better known than

this. In the spring of 1880, a party, including one of the greatest of

lady mountaineers, and over twenty members of the Alpine Club, ascended

this 'very interesting chimney or couloir, which, being filled with ice

and snow, gave unexpected satisfaction. There is a very remarkable

natural arch in this couloir, which Mr. Cust claims to have been the

first to discover, and he was therefore entrusted with the guidance of

the party.' The orthodox approach is by way of Skew Gill, which is

conspicuous at the right hand on nearing Sty Head from Wastdale. A short

distance beyond the head of this gill our gully is seen rising on the

right, marked by the conspicuous block of stone. Being, as the Scotch

say, 'back of the sun,' this gully often holds snow till comparatively

late in the season. Indeed, in winter, it is sometimes so much choked

with snow that the arch disappears, and it is even said that

self-respecting climbers, who recognise that a gully ought to be

followed with strictness, have felt bound to reach the block by

tunnelling, instead of walking over the top. In the spring of 1890 there

was a tremendous fall of stones, by which the gully was nearly filled.

Except in snow time, loose stones are an objection, and many find it

more interesting to ascend by a small gully, almost a branch of

'Cust's,' on the right hand. As climbs neither of them will compare with

the more eastern gullies.

=Dale=: curiously used in Derbyshire for each separate section of a

river valley, which elsewhere would form only one dale.

=Dalegarth Force=, in Cumberland, near Boot, in Eskdale. The wall on the

north side of this extremely pretty little fall is very low; but, being

granite, offers one or two problems to the climber. _Stanley Gill_ is

another name for the same place.

=Dartmoor=, a high upland moor, forming a vast reservoir, from which

most of the Devonshire rivers are fed. It is curious rather than

beautiful, and more interesting to the geologist, the antiquary, and the

fisherman than it is to the mountaineer. Yet it is instructive even to

him, for the frequency of rain and mist and the paucity of landmarks

which can be seen more than a few yards off, coupled with the necessity

of constantly watching the ground, render it one of the easiest places

in the world in which to lose one's way in any but the finest weather.

There are no true hills, but here and there a gradual rise of the ground

is seen, with a lump or two of granite grotesquely planted on the top of

it. These are the _Tors_. As a rule they are very small, but often

present problems to the climber, and are seldom without interest of some

sort.

A great many may be reached from Tavistock or the little inn at

_Merivale Bridge_.

=Dead Crags= (C. sh. 56) are lofty but disappointing rocks on the north

side of Skiddaw. There is perhaps 500 ft. of steep crumbly rock,

something like _Hobcarton_.

=Deep Gill.=--The name is not infrequent; for example, there is one on

the south side of _Great Gable_, east of the _Napes_, but now it is

always called _Hell Gate_. The Deep Gill is on _Scafell_, and falls into

the _Lord's Rake_. The first mention of it was made in August 1869 by

Mr. T.L. Murray Browne, who wrote in the Visitors' Book at Wastdale

Head: 'The attention of mountaineers is called to a rock on Scafell on

the right (looking down) of a remarkable gill which cleaves the rocks of

Scafell and descends into Lingmell Gill. It looks stiff.' The rock

alluded to is the _Scafell Pillar_ and the gill is _Deep Gill_. It is

well described by Mr. Slingsby in the _Alpine Journal_, vol. xiii. p.

93: 'After a couple of hundred steps had been cut in the snow in Lord's

Rake and at the bottom of Deep Gill, which joins the former at right

angles, we reached the first block--a large rock perhaps 15 ft.

square--which overhangs the gill, and so forms a cave. Below the rock

the snow was moulded into most fantastic shapes by occasional

water-drips from above. At the right hand of the big rock a few small

stones are jammed fast between it and the side of the ravine, and they

afford the only route up above the rock. These stones can be reached

from the back of the little cave, and occasionally from the snow direct.

Hastings--who is a very powerful fellow and a brilliant climber--and I

got on the stones, as we did last year. He then stood on my shoulder,

and, by the aid of long arms and being steadied by me, he reached a tiny

ledge and drew himself up. Mason and I found it no child's play to

follow him with the rope. Some two hundred more steps in hard snow

brought us to the only place where we could attack the second block.

Here three fallen rocks stop the way, and on the left hand is the

well-nigh ledgeless cliff which terminates far away overhead in the Sca

Fell Pinnacle, or Sca Fell Pillar. On the right a high perpendicular

wall effectually cuts off the gill from the terraces of Lord's Rake. On

the left hand of the gill a small tongue of rock, very steep, juts out

perhaps 40 ft. down the gully from the fallen block nearest to the

Pinnacle wall, and forms a small crack, and this crack is the only way

upward. From a mountaineer's point of view the stratification of the

rocks here is all wrong. The crack ends in a chimney about 20 ft. high,

between the wall and a smoothly polished boss of rock. Hastings, still

leading, found the crack to be difficult, but climbed it in a most

masterly way. All loose stones, tufts of grass and moss, had to be

thrown down, and, in the absence of hand and foot hold, the knees,

elbows, thighs, and other parts of the body had to do the holding on,

whilst, caterpillar-like, we drew ourselves upward bit by bit. The

chimney is best climbed by leaning against the Pinnacle wall with one's

back and elbows, and, at the same time, by walking with the feet

fly-like up the boss opposite. From the top of the boss a narrow sloping

traverse, perhaps 12 ft. long, leads into the trough of the gill. With a

rope this is an easy run; without one it would not be nice. A stone

thrown down from here falls over both blocks and rolls down the snow out

of the mouth of Lord's Rake on to the screes far away below. The crack,

chimney, and traverse, short distance though it is, took us about an

hour to pass. The climb from Deep Gill to the gap from which the

Pinnacle is ascended is a very good one, which two men can do much

better than one. The Pinnacle itself from the gap is perhaps 25 ft.

high, and is really a first-rate little climb, where the hands and the

body have to do the bulk of the work.'

[Illustration: DEEP GILL, SCAFELL

(The Lower Pitch)]

The date of Mr. Slingsby's attempt was March 2, 1885, and that of his

successful ascent March 28, 1886: but as early as 1882 this climb had

been made, piecemeal, by the present writer, who, however, never, so far

as he can remember, blended the different items into a continuous climb

until the summer of 1884, when he descended the whole length of the

gill in company with Mr. Chr. Cookson, of C.C.C., Oxford. A yet

earlier descent of the gill had been made at Easter 1882 by Messrs.

Arnold Mumm and J.E. King, of the same college, who found such a

phenomenal depth of snow that the obstacles were buried, and they were

able to walk from end to end without using their hands. The same thing

happened again in January 1887, when Messrs. Creak and Robinson were

able to walk up over both pitches without having even to cut a step.

The lower pitch may also be passed by using a recess resembling one half

of a funnel in the red rock of the vertical south wall of the gill. The

worst part of this is where you leave the funnel and begin to coast

round in order to re-enter the gill. The space comprised between the two

pitches can be entered very easily by passing round the foot of the

_Scafell Pillar_, or with much more difficulty down the vertical south

wall. The upper pitch may be passed in two ways, besides the incline.

One is by means of a narrow side gully, the upper stage of which is most

easily passed by following the ridge which divides it from the main

gill. The third way is the most direct and the most difficult, lying

between the incline and the great block. Mr. Owen Jones seems to have

invented it in the year 1892, and took up a party by it on that occasion

with the assistance of a good deal of snow, and another party in the

month of August 1893, when there was no snow at all. There is no more

fashionable winter climb than _Deep Gill_, and about Christmas time the

clink of the axe echoes among its crags from dawn to dusk.

It is reached from Wastdale Head in about an hour and a half. The

shoulder of _Lingmell_ has first to be rounded, and it makes little

difference either in time or fatigue whether this be done comparatively

high up or by taking the high road to the bridge near the head of the

lake or by an intermediate course. At any rate, a long grind up _Brown

Tongue_, in the hollow between _Lingmell_ and _Scafell_, cannot be

avoided, and when the chaos called _Hollow Stones_ is reached a vast

outburst of scree high up on the right hand indicates the mouth of

_Lord's Rake_. After a laborious scramble up this scree the rake is

entered, and only a few yards further the lower pitch of Deep Gill is

seen on the left hand.

=Deep Gill Pillar.=--See _Deep Gill_ and _Scafell Pillar_.

=Derbyshire= is well endowed in point of rock scenery, but it is not

really a climber's country. The rocks are of two kinds--the Limestone,

of which Dovedale may be taken as a type, and the Millstone Grit, which

prevails further north. The former shows many a sharp pinnacle and many

a sheer cliff, but is often dangerously rotten, while the latter assumes

strange, grotesque forms, and, when it does offer a climb, ends it off

abruptly, just as one thinks the enjoyment is about to begin. It is,

nevertheless, much more satisfactory than the limestone, and many

pleasing problems may be found on it, especially in the neighbourhood of

the _Downfall_ on _Kinder Scout_. For this Buxton or Chapel-en-le-Frith

is of course a better centre than Matlock.

=Devonshire.=--The inland climbing in this county is very limited. Of

granite there are the _Tors_ of Dartmoor and the Dewerstone near

Plymouth, and there is a remarkably fine limestone ravine at Chudleigh,

but there is little else worthy of mention. But the coast of Devonshire

is exceptionally fine, and perhaps no other county can show such a

variety of fine cliffs. At _Beer Head_ we have chalk; at _Anstis Cove_,

_Torbay_, and _Berry Head_ limestone; at _Start Point_ and _Stoke Point_

slate. For bold cliff scenery few parts of the Channel can rival the

piece between _Start Point_ and _Bolt Tail_.

On the north coast of Devon there are many striking cliffs. Among them

may be noticed _Heddon's Mouth_, _Castle Rock_ (at Lynton), some rocks

about Ilfracombe, the granite cliffs of _Lundy_, _Hartland Point_; in

fact much of the coast from Clovelly right away to Bude in Cornwall is

remarkably fine.

=Dixon's Three Jumps=, on Blea Water Crag (High Street, Westmorland), so

called from the famous fall here of a fox-hunter about the year 1762.

Perhaps no one ever fell so far and yet sustained so little permanent

injury. As an instance of 'the ruling passion strong in death,' or at

least in appalling proximity to death, it may be mentioned that, on

arriving at the bottom, he got on his knees and cried out, 'Lads, t' fox

is gane oot at t' hee eend. Lig t' dogs on an' aa'l cum syun.' He then

fell back unconscious, but recovered, and lived many years after.

Another Dixon fell while fox-hunting on Helvellyn in 1858, but was

killed. There is a monument to him on Striding Edge.

=Dodd=: a round-topped hill. The word is common in the Lowlands and in

the North of England. It is often said to mean a limb of a larger

mountain, but Dodd Fell in Yorkshire would alone refute this, being the

highest hill in its neighbourhood.

=Doe Crag=, in Eskdale (C. sh. 74), is a bold rock, long reputed

inaccessible, low down on the north side of the approach to _Mickledoor_

from the east. The Woolpack in Eskdale is the nearest inn. The rock, as

a climb, is very inferior to its namesake at Coniston (see _Dow Crag_).

=Door Head=, the _col_ between _Yewbarrow_ and _Red Pike_. There is

capital scree here, and a very rapid descent into Mosedale may be made

by it. Men who have spent the day on the Pillar sometimes return to

Wastdale Head round the head of Mosedale, and wind up by racing down

these screes from the _col_ to the stream below. The distance is about

650 yards, and the perpendicular drop about 1,200 ft. Anything less than

five minutes is considered very 'good time.'

=Doup=: any semicircular cavity resembling half an egg-shell (N. of

Eng.).

=Dow= (or =Doe=) =Crag=, in Lancashire, lies just west of _Coniston Old

Man_, being only divided from it by _Goat's Water_. The climbing here is

second to none. There are three or four superb gullies. Perhaps the best

is in a line with the head of the tarn and the cairn on the _Old Man_,

and another scarcely, if at all, inferior is nearly opposite a very

large stone in the tarn. The first ascent of one was made by Mr.

Robinson and the writer in the year 1886; that of the other by a party

including Messrs. Slingsby, Hastings, E. Hopkinson, and the writer in

July 1888. The last-mentioned (with indispensable aid from the rope)

afterwards descended an intermediate gully of terrific aspect.

[Illustration: DOE CRAG, CONISTON

The lowest pitch of the central gully. The top of the wedged block is

reached by mounting the shallow scoop on the left of the picture, and

then coasting round into the gully again.]

Towards the foot of the tarn the gullies are much less severe.

Above is an illustration of the first pitch of the gully climbed in

1888. Mr. Hastings led up the shallow crevice seen on the left of the

picture, and on reaching the level of the top of the pitch contoured the

intervening buttress into the chimney again. This is no easy matter and

required great care.

=Dunald Mill Hole.=--One of the earliest descriptions of a '_Pothole_'

will be found in the 'Annual Register' for 1760, where this curiosity is

treated of at some length. It is a good specimen of a common type, and

lies between Lancaster and Carnforth.

=Dungeon Gill=, in Langdale, deserves mention in any treatise on British

climbing, inasmuch as the poet Wordsworth has made it the scene of an

early deed of daring performed by an idle shepherd boy--

Into a chasm a mighty block

Hath fallen and made a bridge of rock,

The gulf is deep below.

The gulf and the mighty block are both there still; but there is more

pleasure in seeing the former than there is excitement in crossing by

the latter.

=Eagle Crag.=--Rocks of this name are pretty numerous in the North of

England, and, like the 'Raven Crags,' are, as might be expected, always

bold and precipitous.

_On Helvellyn._--Canon Butler, in his article on the Lakes in 1844,

which appeared in _Longman's Magazine_, describes in an amusing manner

an adventure which he had on this rock. It is on the right-hand side of

the track from Patterdale to Grisedale Hause.

_In Easdale_ (W. sh. 17).--This is easily found by following up the

stream which runs into Easdale Tarn. There is not more than 200-300 ft.

of crag, and much of it is very rotten, but with pretty bits of climbing

here and there. Grasmere is the only place from which it is conveniently

reached.

_In Greenup_ (C. sh. 75) is as noble a rock as can be found in England.

As seen from Borrowdale near Rosthwaite it has the appearance of two

huge steps of rock, but the steps are really separate rocks, one behind

the other--Eagle Crag and Pounsey Crag. Large portions of each of them

are quite unclimbable, and much of them is too easy to be worth doing,

so that the amount of interesting climbing to be met with is less than

might be expected. Close by is Longstrath, where there is a little work

which may be combined with this (see _Blea Crag_ and _Serjeant Crag_).

The foot of Eagle Crag is reached from Rosthwaite or Seatoller in less

than an hour.

=Eagle's Nest=--one of the ridges of the _Napes_ lying between the

_Needle_ and the _Arrowhead_. On April 15, 1892, Messrs. Slingsby,

Baker, Solly, and Brigg ascended it and found it extremely difficult for

150 ft. At one point, about on a level with the top of the _Needle_,

there is room for one person to sit down, and here the second man on the

rope joined the leader and gave him a shoulder up. To this place they

gave the name of the _Eagle's Nest_, and it is almost the only point at

which any material help can be given to the leader.

The part just above this they considered the stiffest part of the climb;

but when they reached a patch of grass just below a slanting chimney the

difficulties moderated. From the bottom to where the ridge joins the

_Needle Ridge_ they took two hours and ten minutes.

=Eel Crag.=--The word 'Eel,' we are told, is identical with 'Ill,' which

is seen in _Ill Bell_ and the numerous _Ill Gills_, and means 'steep.'

If so the name ought to be more frequent in the Lake country than it is,

and it might be suggested that in some cases 'eagle' may have been worn

down to 'eel.' There are two crags of the name in Cumberland, not very

far apart.

_In Coledale._--These rocks are steep, but too much broken up to be

really worth a visit on their own account. However, after _Force Crag_

has been tried, these are conveniently near.

_In Newlands_ (C. sh. 70).--Among the rocks which flank Newlands on the

east much good material may be found. One is reminded a little of the

Wastwater Screes, but of course these are not on anything approaching

that scale. The greatest height of the craggy part is only about 400 ft.

=Eight-foot Drop.=--On the Pillar Rock is the passage from the ridge of

the _Curtain_ down onto the lower part of the _Steep Grass_. It figures

in some of the earlier accounts as a formidable feature of the ascent.

Nowadays it is known how much easier it is to keep on the flank of the

curtain, and only leave it when at the top of the chimney which runs up

from the head of _Steep Grass_. No 'drop' is, in fact, necessary; but

the climb, though not in any sense difficult, is generally regarded as a

good test of neatness of style.

=Ennerdale.=--For a valley which not only is one of the largest and most

impressive in the Lake country, but contains moreover a share of the

most perfect mountain in broad England--Great Gable--and all of the most

famous rock--the Pillar--singularly little is popularly known of

Ennerdale. But, when we consider that the place is one which is, or

should be, hallowed to all devout Wordsworthians as the scene of one of

the finest productions of their poet, the thing becomes

incomprehensible. To begin with, the guide-books have never done it

justice. In area of paper covered with descriptions of it English

Lakeland is probably many square miles ahead of any equal portion of the

earth's surface. But guide-book writers love to stand upon the ancient

ways; and any one who takes the trouble to compare West or Otley with

the works of to-day must admit that, except in matters of detail, the

advance has been incredibly small. The public are better judges of

accuracy than of enterprise, and what pleases the public pays. These

gentlemen, therefore, worthy and painstaking as they are, share to some

extent in the narrow aspirations of the hireling, and, indeed, we are

tempted to believe that their motives in shunning Ennerdale were not

wholly foreign to the character of him who 'fleeth because he is

afraid,' for they have brought up a terrible report of the dale. If,

however, this has been a wise precaution on their part, a means of

deterring any inquirer from exposing their want of energy, it has been

rewarded with a large measure of success. Here is an inviting prospect

for a timid traveller: 'Ennerdale Lake ... is so wild in the character

of its shores and in its position among the mountains as to have caused

more terrors and disasters to strangers than any other spot in the

district. At every house from Wastdale Head to Ennerdale Bridge stories

may be heard of adventures and escapes of pedestrians and horsemen in

Mosedale and the passes of Black Sail and Scarf Gap' (Whellan's 'History

of Cumberland,' 1860). Can it be wondered at that, in the face of such

terrors as this, very few people find their way into Ennerdale, except

those who with fear and trembling cross the head of it on their way

between Buttermere and Wastdale Head? Every guide-book, indeed, mentions

Ennerdale and the Pillar by name, because it gives an opportunity for

quoting the well-worn lines from 'The Brothers,' after which a few

meagre remarks may be expected to follow on the 'Pillar Mountain,' the

'Pillar Rock,' and 'Ennerdale Lake,' expressions of which not one,

strictly speaking, is correct, for the proper name of the first is

beyond all doubt 'Pillar _Fell_,' 'mountain' being an innovation of

tourists and guide-book writers, who between them have made 'Pillar

_Rock_' sound more familiar than the genuine name 'Pillar _Stone_,' and

have almost ousted 'Broadwater' in favour of 'Ennerdale Lake.'

Printed authorities are scanty, because Ennerdale is of very recent

discovery. The early guide-books simply know nothing about it. West

(1778) does not mention it, and the gifted authoress of that touching

poem 'Edwina' did not even know how to spell its name:

But chiefly, Ennersdale, to thee I turn,

And o'er thy healthful vales heartrended mourn,

Vain do thy riv'lets spread their curving sides

While o'er thy glens the summer zephyr glides.

And yet Mrs. Cowley was by no means indifferent to such points. Indeed,

we owe the origin of this exquisite poem to her etymological zeal and to

her desire to immortalise the brilliant suggestion that the name

'Wotobank' was derived from some one having once said, 'Woe to this

bank!' It may even be that the spelling is a symbolical subtlety--a kind

of refinement on 'word-painting' intended to shadow forth to less poetic

minds, by the sinuosity of the superfluous 's,' the unique manner in

which the rivulets of this happy valley are wont to 'spread their

curving sides.' One of the earliest visitors to Ennerdale appears to

have been the artist Smith, of Derby (1767), who sketched the lake, as

did also Wilkinson in 1810. Wordsworth had been there before 1800, and

Green's description shows that he was much struck by the scenery of

upper Ennerdale. But, though visitors to Ennerdale have been and still

are few, most of these few speak highly of its beauties, 'partly

perhaps,' says Mr. Payn, 'in consequence of their having endured certain

inconveniences (with which they are anxious that you should also become

acquainted) when belated in that lovely spot.' The dale is not without

its associations. Formerly it was a deer forest, the property of the

Crown by forfeiture from the father of the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey. The

Sandford manuscript speaks enthusiastically of 'the montaines and

fforest of Innerdale, wher ther is reed dear and as great Hartts and

Staggs as in any part of England. The bow-bearer is a brave gentleman.'

But it is now many years since the last of the herd was destroyed, and

no one living can remember the days when Ennerdale could show--what in

almost any landscape is a crowning beauty--the stately figure of a great

red stag. Certainly an element of romance has here been lost; but how

can that be felt so long as here and there some aged man survives to

keep green among the dalesmen the memory of 't' girt wild dog'? The

stories told of this remarkable animal would fill volumes and form a

highly interesting study in contemporary mythology; and yet, when we

consider the state of unparalleled excitement into which the whole

countryside was thrown at the time, and the assiduity with which it has

ever since been talking over the events of that stirring period, we

shall find cause to wonder, not that the story in some of its details

should have acquired a slight legendary flavour, but rather that the

great bulk of the incidents narrated should be so thoroughly well

authenticated. Certainly it is a lesson in faith, and makes it easier to

credit stories such as that which Ovid tells with so much spirit of the

Calydonian boar; for if in the days of modern firearms a dog can defy a

large district and kill a couple of sheep a day for nearly half a year

together, there is less reason for doubting that in old days an amount

of destruction and devastation which would not discredit a modern

minister could be wrought by the unaided exertions of one malevolent

pig. For months the dog was hunted and shot at, but seemed to lead a

charmed life; in the excitement farming operations were terribly

neglected, until at last, in the person of John Steel of Asby, arose the

modern Meleager.

Many a story is told of that exciting time, and one especially has hit

the fancy of the dale. Until recently the custom was that fox-hunts

should take place on one particular day of the week--a day the selection

of which for a Southern meet would, however convenient, be regarded with

considerable surprise. Possibly this custom was held to govern

dog-hunting also; for one Sunday, as the Rev. Mr. Ponsonby (probably the

identical 'homely priest' who is mentioned in 'The Brothers') was

conducting Divine Service, the attentive cars of the congregation caught

the sound of some commotion without, followed by the rush of hounds and

the panting of human lungs. There could be no mistaking these signs. A

faint murmur passed round the sacred building, 'T' girt dog!' and in an

instant the reverend gentleman was the only male within the walls. A

moment's pause, and then female sympathy and female curiosity triumphed,

and the other and better half of the congregation disappeared. The story

goes in Ennerdale (but for this we decline to vouch) that the aged

pastor, casting a sorrowful glance upon the empty benches, hastily

adjusted the robes of his office, and ere the last petticoat had

fluttered from the porch was in full career to join the headlong hunt.

For five months Ennerdale had been in a state of convulsive excitement,

for the first and last time, it is said, 'syn t' Flud'; the honour of

having enlivened the dale is fairly divided between the Deluge and the

Dog.

To see Ennerdale as it should be seen, and to get a clear idea of the

surrounding district, there is no better plan than to mount from

Buttermere to Red Pike--the Rigi of Cumberland--and from there follow

with eye and, if necessary, map the following account of a 'run,'

telling how 'oald Jobby o' Smeathat tallyho't a fox ya Sunday mworning,

just as day brak, oot ov a borran o' steeans, abeunn Flootern Tarn, i'

Herdas end; an' hoo it teukk ower be t' Cleugh gill an' t' hoonds viewt

him sa hard 'at he teuk t' Broadwater an' swam 'cross t' hee end on't,

an t' dogs went roond an' oop t' Side Wood ... an' they whisselt him oop

be t' Iron Crag, an' be t' Silver Cwove an then throo t' Pillar, an' a

gay rough bit o' grund it is. Hoo he shakt 'em off a bit theer, an' they

at him agean an' meadd o' ring amang t' rocks. Hoo they ran him roond be

Black Sail, an' Lizza hee faulds an' clam oot be t' Scarf Gap an' on to

t' Wo' heead an' they beeldit 'am onder t' Brock Steeans an' he was

seaff aneugh theer.'

With or without the fox-hunt this view from Red Pike is magnificent, yet

there are several others which run it very close. What, for instance,

can be better, just at the clearing of a shower, than the look-out from

the Pillar Fell on the opposite side of the valley? From the gloom and

grandeur around it the eye travels right along to the smiling green of

the open country beyond the lake bordered by a line of glittering sea.

This view has one drawback in that you cannot at one time be looking

both from the Pillar and at it; but then it is hardly possible to enter

Ennerdale at all without seeing this rock, the real glory of the valley,

from many effective points; and, moreover, no day there is complete

without a quiet half-hour spent in floating on the lake about sunset;

for, whether it be due to the westerly lie of the dale or to some other

cause, the fact remains that the Ennerdale sunsets are not to be beaten

among the Lakes. By the early morning light the upper part of the valley

should be explored, and the marvellous view enjoyed from Haystacks: from

the 'bulky red bluff of Grasmoor' on the right to the dark recess of

Mosedale half seen upon the left all is beautiful; separated from

Crummock and Buttermere, which are both well seen, by the steep Red Pike

range, Broadwater throws in a dash of life to relieve the desolation of

upper Ennerdale, while the richly coloured screes of Red Pike sweep down

in striking contrast to the forbidding frown of the Pillar Fell. We have

seen a fine water-colour sketch which renders this view with great

fidelity. It has additional interest as the work of the first amateur

who ever scaled the Pillar Stone--Lieut. Wilson, R.N.

The scenery of Ennerdale, however, would not long have remained

beautiful if the Ennerdale Railway Bill, promoted in 1883 and 1884, had

been suffered to pass into law. That scheme was happily defeated, and

the only modern touches added to the dale have been the galvanised wire

railings recently erected along the sky-line, and the blue indicators

set up on the Black Sail and Scarf Gap track.

=Eskdale.=--There are two dales of the name in Cumberland, but the only

one which is of interest to mountaineers is reached by the little

railway from Ravenglass. Lodgings, largely used by Whitehaven people,

are to be had, but the most convenient inn is the Woolpack, about a mile

up the valley from the terminus of the line. From no place can

_Scafell_, _The Pikes_, or _Bow Fell_ be more easily explored, while the

Coniston range is quite within reach, and the Wastwater _Screes_ are

more accessible than they are from Wastdale Head. The valley itself is

only second to Borrowdale, and there are grand falls and deep pools in

the Esk. There are also some good rocks, though not quite equal to the

description of Hutchinson, who says that 'Doe Cragg and Earn Cragg are

remarkable precipices, whose fronts are polished as marble, the one 160

perpendicular yards in height, the other 120 yards.' Both of these will

be seen on the way up to _Mickledoor_, the former standing on the

right-hand side at the foot of the steep ascent. It is strange that so

few climbers ever go to this valley.

=Esk Pike=, a name given by the shepherds to a peak of 2,903 ft., which

stands at the head of the Esk valley. Being left nameless by the

Ordnance six-inch map, it has attracted to itself the nearest name it

could find, and is very commonly called _Hanging Knot_, which, in

strictness, applies only to the north shoulder of Bow Fell, where it

hangs over Angle Tarn. It would save some confusion if this name had a

wider currency than it has. At the head of Eskdale there is a rather

good gully, which was climbed at the end of September 1892 by Messrs.

Brunskill and Gibbs, whose account of it is that 'its direction is

W.N.W., and it consists first of a short pitch of about 10 ft.; then a

slope of 20 ft. at an angle of 60 deg.-65 deg., the holds in which are fairly

good; and, last, another pitch at a somewhat similar angle, with an

awkward corner of rock to round. Above this to the top is an easy

scramble.'

=Fairfield= (2,863 ft.), in Westmorland, sometimes called Rydal Head in

old books, stretches down to Grasmere and Ambleside; but it is from

Patterdale that it should be seen and climbed. One of the best things on

it is _Greenhow End_, which stands at the head of Deepdale. The steep

part, which is not wholly crag, is 400 or 500 ft. high, and faces N.E.

This is the mountain which Miss Martineau so greatly longed to ascend,

and every one knows Mr. Payn's account of how he encamped upon it.

There is another _Fairfield_ in the Coniston Fells.

=Falcon Crag=, a couple of miles from Keswick, beside the road to

Borrowdale, is not more than 150 or 200 ft. high, but at many points so

vertical as to be quite unclimbable. The steepest side is also the most

exposed to the public gaze. On the south side there is a deep gully in

which excellent scrambling is to be had.

=Fellpole= is a much better word than its foreign equivalent,

'alpenstock'. Except in the depth of winter on the highest fells it is

of much more use than an axe, which is, of course, indispensable when

there is much snow or ice. On difficult rocks either axe or pole is a

great incumbrance; but where there is much scree, or steep grass, or

broken ground, all three of which abound on the Fells, a pole is a very

great comfort on the descent. Of course, while being used for this

purpose, it must be kept behind the body. On the steep nose of

_Fleetwith_ a fatal accident occurred to a young woman solely in

consequence of her attempting to descend with her stick held improperly

in front of her. This is a fault which nearly all beginners commit.

Nevertheless, it is perfectly legitimate to use the pole in that way if

it is to break the force of an abrupt drop from rest to rest--as, for

instance, when a slope is broken into binks separated by drops of from

three to six feet. In such cases a jump is often dangerous, and the life

of Mr. Pope, lost on _Great Gable_ in 1882, is only one of many which

have been similarly sacrificed.

=Force Crag= is reached from Keswick by way of Braithwaite station and

the long _Coledale_ valley. Here the track of the disused mining tram is

a well-engineered road direct to the foot of the crag, where the

fragments of the baryta mine are littered about. The best climb is up to

the basin, into which pours the force, and then, leaving the force on

the right, ascend a steep, dry gully. The rock is very treacherous,

being not only loose, but covered with long fringes of rotten heather.

It is very difficult to get out, as the top part steepens rapidly. The

force is very fatal to sheep. On one occasion the writer counted no less

than six of their carcasses in the basin.

=Froswick.=--It is most easily reached from Staveley or Windermere by

following up the valley of the Kent, or from Ambleside by crossing the

Garbourn Pass into the same valley. This hill resembles _Ill Bell_ and

_Rainsborrow Crag_ in character, and has a very steep face towards the

north-east, 300 or 400 ft. high. It is on sheet 20 of the Ordnance map

of Westmorland.

=Gaping Gill Hole=, in Yorkshire, on the south side of _Ingleborough_,

is most easily got at from Clapham, on the Midland Railway. It lies

higher up than the well-known _Clapham_ or _Ingleborough Cave_, and both

should be visited in the same expedition. The actual funnel is about 8

ft. by 20 ft., and Mr. Birkbeck, of Settle, partly descended it many

years ago. There is a ledge of rock about 190 ft. down, from which a

plumb-line drops a further distance of 166 ft. Strangers often pass

close to the place without finding it.

=Gash Rock.=--We are indebted to Colonel Barrow for this name, which he

bestowed on _Blea Crag_ in Langstrath apparently for no better reason

than that he knew a man called Gash, who did not know the name of the

rock, or how to climb it.

This rock is the 'spy fortalice' spoken of in Prior's Guide. It is an

upstanding block of squarish outline, conspicuous on the left hand as

one ascends Langstrath from Borrowdale. It is climbed from the side

which faces down the valley, and is rather a stiff little rock of its

inches.

It was climbed by Mr. Owen Jones and Mr. Robinson on September 6, 1893,

but there is some doubt whether it had not been done before (see _Blea

Crag_).

=Gavel=--apparently the local form in the North of England of the

Southern 'Gable.' In the older maps 'Great Gable' is usually spelt in

this way, and for part of that mountain the name _Gavel Neese_ (i.e.

nose) still lingers among the shepherds. Generally speaking, in the less

frequented parts, where the names are used only by the shepherds, we

find this form. Thus we have _Gavel Fell_ between Loweswater and

Ennerdale, _Gavel-pike_ on St. Sunday Crag, _Gavelcrag_ on the south end

of _High Street_, and again on _Seat Sandal_, and this form is used in

the Lowlands of Scotland, while on the more frequented _Skiddaw_ we get

_Gablegill_. In Icelandic, 'gafl' is said to mean 'the end of a house or

of a ship.'

=Gill= (or _Ghyll_).--In a large part of the North of England this is

the regular word for a stream flowing between walls of rock. It is by

many regarded as a test-word for Scandinavian settlements, and it is

certainly more abundant in such districts, but notice should be taken of

the fact that in Kent it is applied to the steep wooded slopes of a

brook-valley. There is good authority for both spellings, but the less

romantic of the two is to be preferred.

=Gimmer Crag=, just behind the inns at _Dungeon Gill_ in _Langdale_, has

good scrambling on it. Mr. Gwynne says of it: 'Between _Harrison

Stickle_ and the _Pike O' Stickle_, commonly called the _Sugarloaf_,

there is a splendid crag that is full of opportunities. This fine piece

of rock, although it has the appearance of being easy, has the

disadvantage of being wet, and therefore more or less dangerous.

However, there are times even in the Lake District when the rain ceases

and the sun shines, and it is then that the climber should gambol upon

this crag.'

=Glaramara=--a long broken hill stretching from Stonethwaite along the

east side of Borrowdale to Esk Hause. Its name is only less disguised

than its nature in the description given of it in the 'Beauties of

England,' p. 65: 'Glamarara is a perpendicular rock of immense height.'

Sir W. Scott has confused it with _Blencathra_. It contains very little

climbing, but _Combe Gill_ and _Pinnacle Bield_ may be mentioned.

=Gordale Scar=--a magnificent limestone ravine near _Malham Cove_, in

Yorkshire, on the line of the great Craven Fault. Bell Busk is the

nearest station, but Settle (6 miles) is generally more convenient. It

has been prosaically compared to a winding street between enormously

high houses, with a river falling out of the first-floor window of one

of them. It is easy to pass out at the head, leaving the water on the

right hand; but on the other side of the water there is quite a little

climb, which, however, the writer has seen a lady do without assistance.

=Goyal.=--This west-country word for a gully will not require

explanation for readers of Mr. Blackmore's 'Lorna Doone.'

=Grain=: the northern word for a prong, and hence the usual name for the

branches of a stream.

=Grassmoor= (2,791 ft.) in the older maps and guide-books (such as

Robinson's) is often called Grasmere or Grasmire. The only climbs which

it presents are on the side which drops steeply down towards the foot of

Crummock Water, and the only inns within a convenient distance are at

Scale Hill (1 mile) and Buttermere (3 miles). There are two gullies

which furrow the mountain side nearly from top to bottom. The more

southerly of these has two pitches in it close to the foot, and the

upper of the two is generally thought as hard as anything on the

mountain. The approved method of doing it is to keep the back to the

rock until the top of the pitch is nearly reached, and then to break out

on the south side. Above this pitch the gully is of little interest. The

north gully is of more sustained merit, but, as seen from below, less

prominent, and therefore easily overlooked. It may, however, be

recognised by its liberal output of scree. It has three pitches near the

foot, and in all three the hold is somewhat scanty. The first forms a

narrow gully rising from left to right, and is the highest and hardest.

Higher up than these a broad wall of rock some 40 ft. high cuts across

the gully and gives a pretty climb. Above the wall there is a branch to

the left containing one little pitch, but the main channel continues.

Loose stones are now the only source of excitement, and climbers are

recommended to get out to the right and finish the ascent along the

rocky ridge of the bank. It is very safe climbing on this face, yet full

of interest and instruction, and for the initiation of a 'young hand'

nothing could be better.

=Great End= (2,984 ft.) has not received justice at the hands of the

Government map-makers, who have scamped their work most shockingly. The

six-inch map would lead the innocent, stranger to imagine that he could

ascend from Sprinkling Tarn by a smooth and gradual slope. The cliffs

are on the right-hand side on the way from Sty Head to Esk Hause, and

are reached from Wastdale or Borrowdale by way of Sty Head, and from

Langdale by Rossett Gill. The best general view is from Sprinkling Tarn.

Col. Barrow, when citing Great End in his book as an instance of a

mountain with one impossible side, no doubt refers to these cliffs,

which, however, long before he wrote, had been climbed in every

direction. He might reasonably object to _Cust's Gully_, invented in

1880, as being quite at the end of the cliff; but from a point some way

below the foot of that gully there is an easy passage, sloping up the

face of the cliff very much like Jack's Rake on _Pavey Ark_, and this

passage was descended by Mr. Cust in the same year that he discovered

the gully. A little later a couple of ardent fox-hunters got into

difficulties in one of the main gullies, and so drew more attention to

these rocks. The whole face was pretty thoroughly explored by the

present writer in the summer of 1882. Two very fine gullies face

Sprinkling Tarn. _Great or Central Gully_, the nearer of the two to

_Cust's_, is also the wider, but not quite so long as the other. It has

a copious scree at the foot, and more than half-way up it divides into

three. The central fork is grassy, that to the right is more abrupt,

while the left-hand way lies for several yards up a wet slide of smooth

and very steep rock. On the slide itself there is hold enough for

comfort; but on getting off it at the head to the left hand there comes

a bit on a disgustingly rotten buttress which even good climbers have

often found very unpleasant. Above this the gully is more open and

very easy, but splendid climbing may be had on either side of it.

[Illustration: GREAT END FROM SPRINKLING TARN

A, Position of _Brigg's climb_ (not seen); B, The east gully; C, The

great central gully; D, _Cust's gully_.]

_The South-East Gully_, as it is usually called, has its mouth only some

20 yards east from that of the last. Being much narrower, it is bridged

by numerous 'choke-stones,' and, while less fine than the other in snow

time, offers in summer a better and rather longer climb. Half-way up or

less there is a fork, the dividing ridge forming quite a sharp _arete_.

Above it the forks coalesce, and as it nears the top the climb can be

varied a good deal.

_Brigg's_ (or _Holmes'_) _Pitch_, of which a photograph will be found in

the Climbers' Book at Wastdale Head, is still nearer to Esk Hause, which

it faces. Mr. Holmes and the Messrs. Brigg, who climbed it on Easter

Monday 1893, describe the difficulty as consisting in a cave formed

quite at the foot of the cliff by a jammed stone, the top of which is

reached by way of the rocks on the north side of it.

=Great Gable= (2,949 ft.) may be ascended with equal ease from Wastdale

or the head of Borrowdale, and is within easy reach of Buttermere. The

simplest way up is by Sty Head, from which half an hour's rough walking

lands one on to the top. The only alternative for Wastdale is 'Moses

Sledgate,' alias _Gavel Neese_, a ridge of rather steep grass, which

offers a very direct way. There is a bit of scrambling on White Napes, a

rocky mass which tops the Neese. Beyond this _Westmorland's Cairn_ is

left on the right hand and the summit cairn comes into sight. People

coming from Buttermere usually go round the head of Ennerdale over

Green Gable, and this is the way generally taken by Borrowdale visitors

for the return journey. The climbing on this mountain is quite

first-class. The _Napes_, _Napes Needle_, and _Kern Knotts_ are

separately described, but in addition to these there are grand crags

overlooking Ennerdale. These are referred to in Col. Barrow's book in

the passage where he defies the Alpine Club to ascend the most difficult

side of certain Lake mountains.

[Illustration: PLAN OF GREAT GABLE

A, _Westmorland's Cairn_; B, _White Napes_; C, E, _Little and Great Hell

Gate_; D, _Great Napes_; F, _Napes Needle_.]

[Illustration: GREAT GABLE FROM THE SOUTH-EAST

A, _Kirkfell_; B, _Beckhead_; C, _White Napes_; D, _Great Napes_;

E, _Westmorland's Cairn_; F, Summit; G, _Tom Blue_; H, _Kern Knotts_.

The path to _Sty Head_ is seen mounting from left to right.]

No one seems even to have looked at these crags till in 1882 Mr. Pope

met his death on this side of the mountain. In that year the writer

found that it was an easy matter to coast along the face of the cliff at

about two-thirds of the height of it, and a year or two later that for

all the ferocious appearance of these rocks there is a natural passage

by which a mountain sheep of ordinary powers might ascend them. Close to

this are the remains of a sort of hut of loose stones, evidently the

refuge of some desperate fugitive of half a century or more ago. Local

tradition speaks of a notorious distiller of illicit whisky, who was

known to have a 'hide' somewhere in this wild neighbourhood. The top of

the easy passage bears by prismatic compass 23 deg. from the highest cairn,

and is marked by a large stone.

To the east of this spot there is fine climbing, the rocks being on a

grand scale and difficult on that account. At intervals large masses are

detached by such agencies as frost, and heavy falls result. One of these

carried with it a slab pinnacle which, though only about 15 ft. high,

was remarkably difficult. The writer, and Messrs. Hastings and Robinson

gave themselves the trouble of climbing it, and consequently heard of

its untimely departure with deep regret.

In April 1890 Mr. J.W. Robinson greatly assisted subsequent climbers by

inserting a sketch in the Wastdale Head book, and this sketch has been

the usual basis of later work.

Gable has the threefold excellence of being splendid to look at,

splendid to look from, and splendid to climb; and one can easily

understand the enthusiasm of Mr. F.H. Bowring, who has ascended it over

one hundred times.

=Green Crag.=--A good piece of rock, though not as sound as it might be,

at the head of _Warnscale_, the recess between _Fleetwith_ and _Scarf

Gap_. It is reached from Buttermere by way of Gatesgarth, and then by

the quarry track which goes up on the south side of Fleetwith to _Dubs_.

There is a fine gully in the crag which is unmistakable. A note of the

ascent of it was made by Messrs. J.W. Robinson and W.A. Wilson in

August 1889.

=Griff=--a valley-name in east Yorkshire, probably connected with

'greave,' which is common in Derbyshire. Phillips says that the

Yorkshire word means 'a narrow, rugged valley.'

=Gurnard's Head=, in Cornwall, not far from St. Ives, is a fine

promontory on which there is good climbing. It is here that the

greenstone ends and the granite begins, prevailing from this point

practically right on to the Land's End.

=Hanging Knot.=--See also _Esk Pike_. The steep breast above Angle Tarn

contains no continuous climb, but there are several good bits in the

rocks and gullies which connect the terraces.

=Hard Knot.=--'Eske,' says Camden, 'springeth up at the foote of

_Hardknot_, an high steepe mountaine, in the top whereof were discovered

of late huge stones and foundations of a castle not without great

wonder, considering it is so steepe and upright that one can hardly

ascend up to it.'

This refers of course to the Roman camp, which is nowhere near the top.

The 'mountaine' scarcely deserves the name; it is not high, and though

rugged offers no climbing. Writers much later than Camden refer to it as

if it were one of the highest hills in England. Even Gray, in his

_Journal_, says 'Wrynose and Hardknot, two great mountains, rise above

the rest.'

[Illustration: HANGING KNOT FROM ANGLE TARN]

The usually accurate West introduces in the funniest way both 'the

broken ridge of Wrynose' and 'the overhanging cliff of Hardknot' into

his description of the view from Belle Isle on Windermere, and says that

they, with others,'form as magnificent an amphitheatre, and as grand an

assemblage of mountains, as ever the genius of Poussin,' &c.; and then

adds a note to say that they 'are named as being in the environs, and

are in reality not seen from the island.'

=Harrison Stickle=, 'the next neighbour of _Pavey Ark_, is another happy

hunting-ground for beginners. There are at least four good routes up.

There is one to the north-east which is fairly difficult. Due south

there are two or three rather steep gills, that may be climbed with a

certain amount of ease. But in no case should the climber, even on the

easiest of these routes, omit to use the rope and take every precaution

against preventable accidents.' Thus speaks Mr. Gwynne in the _Pall Mall

Gazette_, and to his remarks little need be added, except that it must

be borne in mind nothing on this group is quite in the same class as

_Pavey Ark_. The obvious starting-point for either is Dungeon Gill at

the very foot, where there are two inns, but Grasmere is within easy

reach, being only about an hour further off.

=Hause= (_hass_, _horse_, _-ourse_, _-ose_): used in the North for a

pass. The word means 'neck' or 'throat,' the latter being the sense most

felt in local names, where it refers more to lateral contraction than to

vertical depression, being thus parallel to _gorge_ rather than to

_col_.

=Haystacks=, just east of Scarf Gap, has one craggy bit on it where, as

appears from the curious map published in the _Gentleman's Magazine_ for

1751, eagles then built. The name is often quoted as an instance of the

Norse word which occurs in _Stack Polly_, and frequently on the Scotch

coast, but West says it was called _Hayrick_ (_sic_) on account of its

shape.

=Hell Gate.=--A channel on _Great Gable_, just by the east end of the

_Napes_. It is the outlet for immense quantities of scree. The older

name, _Deep Gill_, has during the last twenty years being quite

supplanted. The present name, if less pretty, is more precise, and saves

confusion with the better known _Deep Gill_ on _Scafell_.

=Hell Gill.=--There are many gills and becks bearing this name. Speaking

of one in Yorkshire, Leland says it is 'a Bek called Hell Gill because

it runnithe in such a deadely place. This Gill commithe to Ure.' The

idea is amplified by Camden: 'Where Richmondshire bordereth upon

Lancashire amongst the mountaines it is in most places so vast,

solitary, unpleasant and unsightly, so mute and still also that the

borderers dwelling thereby have called certaine riverets creeping this

waie "Hellbecks." But especially that about the head of the river Ure,

which having a bridge over it of one entier stone falleth downe such a

depth, that it striketh in a certaine horror to as many as looke downe.'

The best known Hell Gill, which at one time had considerable reputation

as a climb, is quite near the foot of _Bowfell_ on the Langdale side.

Though on a small scale, it is highly picturesque. The south fork is

hardly passable in ordinary weather owing to a small waterfall, below

which is a deep pool flanked by perpendicular walls of rock, and except

in very dry seasons it is necessary to crawl up the red rotten slabs,

steep, slimy, and wet, which form the north fork. The gill should be

visited more often than it is, as it is directly on one of the best ways

up the mountain from Dungeon Gill and Langdale generally.

=Helm Crag.=--Colonel Barrow, speaking of this hill, observes that

climbing among these rocks requires care. There are places quite as

dangerous and as difficult as on any rock-work on the Alps. He was

deterred from climbing the rock which is supposed to resemble a mortar,

by a slab of rock slanting sideways, but in his opinion there was no

great difficulty, except that arising from the absence of hold for hand

and foot--an exception of some importance.

=Helvellyn.=--A mountain which belongs equally to Grasmere and to

Patterdale, though the latter has by far the finest side of it.

_Striding Edge_ on this side was at one time considered to present

terrors such as the hardy mountaineer was not likely to encounter

elsewhere. This side is cut up into deep coves, which are exceedingly

steep and afford many opportunities for scrambling, and near the path in

Grisedale there is one of the numerous _Eagle Crags_.

On the west side there is no climbing on the mountain itself, but on the

range of _Dodds_, which runs away to the north, there is capital work to

be found; see _Bram Crag_ and _Wanthwaite Crags_. It was in connection

with Helvellyn that Colonel Barrow issued his famous challenge to the

Alpine Club. After stating that he had ascended the mountain by every

possible way of getting up it, and that it is the easiest of mountains

to ascend from any direction that is possible, he continues: 'No one, I

think, will venture the impossible, which may be found on all the

highest mountains in the Lake District. They have their precipitous

sides for adventurous climbers, who, I promise, will never get up them

even if they have a mind to try--viz., these, _Great Gable_, _Great

End_, _Helvellyn_, _Fairfield_, &c. Most of the difficult things in the

Alps have been accomplished. Here is a new field for any of the

adventurous climbers of our club: let them try these precipitous sides!'

Helvellyn was long regarded as the loftiest of the Lake mountains, the

height assigned to it by West being 3,324 ft., and even its tame grassy

slopes towards _Wythburn_ were thought very terrible indeed. In the

'Beauties of England' Thirlmere is described as 'a scene of desolation

which is much heightened by the appearance of the immense craggy masses,

that seem to hang on the sides of Helvellyn, from whose slopes they have

apparently been severed, but arrested in their tremendous progress down

the mountain by the impulse of gravitation. Huge and innumerable

fragments of rocks hang pendant from its sides, and appear ready to fall

and overwhelm the curious traveller who dares to ascend its wild and

fantastic heights.'

=Heron Crag=, Eskdale.--A rock in _Eskdale_ (q.v.) which was long

reputed inaccessible. It was supposed to be 120 yards high, and to have

a front like polished marble. It will be found north of the Esk river,

not far from _Throstlegarth_ (Cumberland, sheet 79).

=High Level.=--This name was bestowed about the year 1880 on a

particular route, by means of which the north-east foot of the _Pillar

Rock_ may be reached from _Black Sail_ along the face of the mountain,

thus avoiding the descent into Ennerdale and the subsequent laborious

ascent to the rock. The saving in time is very considerable, but the way

is so easily missed in thick weather that a stranger who attempted it

would probably gain nothing but an exciting walk.

After reaching the slight hollow between _Lookingstead_ and _Pillar

Fell_, _Green Cove_ is seen below. Here a descent may be made at once,

but it is better to proceed westward till about two dozen uprights of

the iron railing are passed, and then to descend, keeping as much to the

left as the cliffs will allow. The whole art of choosing a line along

this face is to cross each successive cove as high up as may be done

without getting impeded by rocky ground. The ridges which separate the

coves mostly form small headlands, and just above each headland a strip

of smooth grass crosses the ridge. Economy in time is usually of more

importance at the end than at the beginning of a day, and it is well to

know that, whereas from the foot of the rock to _Black Sail_ by way of

the valley would take up the greater part of an hour, Mr. Hastings and

the writer once timed themselves on the _High Level_, and found that

they reached _Lookingstead_ in 18 minutes and the ford in Mosedale in

seven minutes more.

=High Stile=, in Cumberland, between Ennerdale and Buttermere, has a

height of 2,643 ft., and on its north-west side a few good crags. It is

best reached by following up the course of _Sour Milk Gill_ from the

foot of Buttermere to _Bleaberry Tarn_, which can be reached from any of

the inns in an hour's walking. In a note made in the Wastdale Head book

in August 1887, Mr. Robinson called attention to these rocks, and he it

is who has done most of the exploration here.

The principal climbing is in and about a gully in the centre. A course

may be taken up very steep grassy binks with the gully on the right

hand. The gully itself was climbed direct in September 1893 by Messrs.

Jones, Robinson and Wilson, and they found the second pitch very

difficult. The same party also ascended 'a short, black-looking chimney

away round on the left of the great crag, and nearer the top of the

mountain.' The very hard upper pitch was passed on the right hand, and

the final pull was by the arms alone. Both climbs are in full view from

Rigg's Buttermere Hotel.

The mountain is called _High Steel_ in some early maps, and in that of

the Ordnance it comes on sheet 69.

=High Street=, with the Roman road running all along its ridge, lies

between Patterdale and Mardale Green, in Westmorland. It has a fine

precipitous side towards the latter place at Blea Water (see _Dixon's

Three Jumps_), and at the south end of it, about Gavel Crag and

Bleathwaite Crag, there are some good rocky faces, which can be readily

found by following up the course of the beck from Kentmere.

=Hobcarton Crags= have a considerable repute, which they have only

retained by reason of their not being very easily got at. The simplest

way of reaching them from Keswick is to take the train to Braithwaite,

then go up the straight Coledale until Force Crag is passed, then trace

the stream which comes down the hill on the right. Hobcarton is just

over the ridge, and the crags are on the left-hand side of the valley. A

descent may be made of a ridge which forms the right bank of a gill,

which runs from near the col where you are now standing; the gill itself

is too rotten.

The _Crags_ are very steep and very rotten; but there is one curiosity

about them, in the shape of a continuous sloping ledge, growing very

narrow indeed towards the top. It rises gradually in the direction of

_Hopegillhead_. The crags are picturesque, but can be traversed in any

direction without difficulty, and present no definite climb. Another way

of reaching them from Keswick is by crossing Whinlatter Pass, and on the

far side turning up the first valley to the left hand.

=Honister=, one of the grandest crags in Cumberland, is reached from

either Buttermere or Borrowdale. It is one of the chief attractions of

the 'Buttermere Round' made by the breaks from Keswick. If quarrymen

could only have been persuaded to let it alone, it would have been a

delightful climbing ground; as things are, we can only look and long.

Apart from the great crag there is a fine view of the lakes below from

the summit (called _Fleetwith Pike_). Owing to its position near the

black-lead mines, this was one of the earliest Lake mountains of which

we have a recorded ascent. It was made before the middle of last

century, and, so far as can be made out, these early mountaineers

ascended from Seathwaite and passed to the northward of _Grey Knotts_,

and so to the top of Fleetwith. 'The precipices were surprisingly

variegated with apices, prominencies, spouting jets of water, cataracts

and rivers that were precipitated from the cliffs with an alarming

noise' [Sourmilkgill]. On reaching the apparent top, they were

astonished to perceive a large plain to the west, and from thence

another craggy ascent, which they reckoned at 500 yards. 'The whole

mountain is called _Unnisterre_ or, as I suppose, Finisterre, for such

it appears to be.' In about another hour two of the party gained this

summit--'the scene was terrifying--the horrid projection of vast

promontories, the vicinity of the clouds, the thunder of the explosions

in the slate quarries, the dreadful solitude, the distance of the plain

below, and the mountains heaped on mountains that were lying around us

desolate and waste, like the ruins of a world which we only had survived

excited such ideas of horror as are not to be expressed. We turned from

this fearful prospect, afraid even of ourselves, and bidding an

everlasting farewell to so perilous an elevation. We descended to our

companions, repassed the mines, got to Seathwayte, were cheerfully

regaled by an honest farmer in his _puris naturalibus_, and returned to

Keswic about nine at night.'

=Hope= (_-hop_, _-up_): used by Leland as equivalent to 'brook,' but

usually taken to mean a retired upland valley. The Icelandic 'hop' is

applied to landlocked bays.

=Hough=--a hill name in east Yorkshire. Phillips says that it is

equivalent to 'barf,' and means 'a detached hill.' It is pronounced

'hauf.' If this be the exact sense, it can hardly be the same word as

'heugh,' which is used further north for 'crag' or 'precipice,' and it

is perhaps merely another form of 'how' or 'haugh.'

=How= (_-oe_, _-ah_, _-a_, _-haw_): a Norse word for a burial mound,

found all over the North of England.