vital importance. Quite apart, too, from the comfort and security which
it alone can give, it is an implement which can only be properly
manipulated after long practice, and consequently a beginner should
eagerly avail himself of every opportunity of acquiring dexterity in the
use of it. From Christmas to Easter there is nearly always snow enough
on the fells of Cumberland to give excellent practice in step-cutting.
=Ill Bell.=--A Westmorland hill forming a series of three with
_Froswick_ and _Rainsborrow Crag_. Its north or north-easterly face is
very steep for a height of about 300 ft. Staveley is perhaps the best
starting-point for these three; but they can be managed quite easily
from Ambleside or Mardale Green. _Ill Bell_ is on sheet 20 of the
Ordnance map of Westmorland.
=Ingleborough=, 2,361 ft., one of the most striking of the Yorkshire
mountains, of which the poet Gray spoke as 'that huge creature of God.'
Readers of the 'Heart of Midlothian' will remember how it reminded
Jeannie Deans of her 'ain countrie.' The most exaggerated ideas of its
height formerly prevailed. Even in 1770 it was commonly reckoned at
3,987 ft., and Hurtley actually gives 5,280 ft.
Its top is only about four miles from Clapham, and ponies can go all the
way. It is ascended far and away more frequently than any other
Yorkshire hill, and consists mainly of limestone cliffs and slopes of
shale, with a certain amount of millstone grit.
Here are some very remarkable caves (see _Alum Pot_ and _Gaping Gill
Hole_), and of some of these there is an early description by Mr. Adam
Walker in the _Evening General Post_ for September 25, 1779, which is
quoted by West, and an account of an ascent of it made in the year 1761
is also extant.
=Jack's Rake= is a natural passage across the face of _Pavey Ark_ in
Langdale. The first notice ever taken of it by any but shepherds was a
note in the visitors' book belonging to the inn at Dungeon Gill by Mr.
R. Pendlebury, who spoke highly of it, considering it to be a striking
yet simple excursion among magnificent rock scenery. After a time the
world came to look at _Pavey Ark_, and seeing an impossible-looking
combination of ravine and precipice, concluded, not unnaturally, that it
must be what Mr. Pendlebury had found a pleasant yet simple stroll.
Under this delusion, they began to try to climb what is now known as the
Great Gully in _Pavey Ark_, and did not expect to find a place anything
like the real _Jack's Rake_.
Mr. Gwynne, in 1892, says of it: 'Along the face of the cliff there runs
a ledge that looks from below hardly wide enough for a cat to stand
upon. However, if an attempt is made to climb it, it will be found wide
enough for two fat men walking abreast. Towards the top it tapers off
again, and the climber will have to do a bit of scrambling to get on to
the summit of the precipice. This is a climb which offers no difficulty
whatever, unless the climber is given to attacks of giddiness, and if
that is the case there will hardly be any need to tell him that he has
no business there at all. This ledge, however, offers a multitude of
good opportunities to the climber. It runs obliquely across the face of
the precipice, but it need not necessarily be followed throughout its
length by the mountaineer who wishes for something a little more
exciting.
'About halfway up there runs on to the ledge a chimney which, when it is
not a small waterfall, forms a pleasant climb to some broken rock above,
whence the summit is easily reached. If, however, the water in the
chimney makes it uncomfortable and unpleasant for the climber, he may
still arrive at the top of it by choosing a long bit of steep smooth
rock to the left. There are two cliffs which afford fairly good hand and
foot holds, and from there the top of the chimney is attained.'
It is remarkable that a gallery more or less resembling this is found on
many of the chief precipices in the Lakes. There is a steeper one on the
Ennerdale Crags of _Great Gable_; there are two on the Ennerdale face of
the _Pillar Rock_, and on _Scafell_ the _Rake's Progress_ and _Lord's
Rake_ in their mutual relation closely resemble this rake and the wide
gully at the north end of it.
[Illustration: PAVEY ARK AND STICKLE TARN
A, Narrow gully; B, Big gully; C, D, Smaller gullies; E, Wide scree
gully. From the foot of E to A runs _Jack's Rake_.]
=Kern Knotts= are on the south side of _Gable_, close to the _Sty Head_.
There is a short but difficult gully here on the side facing Wastdale,
which was climbed by Messrs. Owen Jones and Robinson in 1893, but
described by them under the name of _Tom Blue_, a rock much higher up
the mountain.
=Keswick.=--Though rather too distant from the very best climbing, this
is an excellent centre in point of variety.
Of _Skiddaw_ and _Saddleback_ it enjoys a monopoly, while _Helvellyn_,
_Gable_ and _Scafell Pikes_ are all within the compass of a day's work.
The railway is a convenience, of course, but not as useful as one might
expect in extending the field of operations, because most of the places
to which it goes are of little interest. The town is very well supplied
with driving facilities, such as coaches, breaks and omnibuses.
The clay-slate of which the Skiddaw and Grassmoor groups are composed
provides climbing of smaller quantity and inferior quality to that found
among the harder rocks of what is called the 'Borrowdale Series,' but
there are a few good scrambles west of Derwentwater, such as _Eel_ (or
_Ill_) _Crag_, _Force Crag_, and _Hobcarton_. The nearest good rocks are
in the neighbourhood of _Wallow Crag_, but there is no pleasure in
climbing with a crowd of gaping excursionists below. A much pleasanter
day may be spent in a visit to _Wanthwaite_. Of Keswick itself an early
writer says that the poorer inhabitants subsist chiefly by stealing or
clandestinely buying of those who steal the black-lead, which they sell
to Jews and other hawkers; but whatever changes the character of the
people has or has not undergone, it is not easy to believe that the
scenery is the same as that which the early writers describe.
Camden's tone is neutral: 'Compassed about with deawy hilles and fensed
on the North side with that high mountaine _Skiddaw_ lieth _Keswike_;'
but two centuries later, when the place began to be fashionable, this
description would not have satisfied any one. The great characteristic
of the scenery was considered to be its power of inspiring terror. Dr.
Brown in his famous 'Letter' dwells upon the 'rocks and cliffs of
stupendous height hanging broken over the lake in horrible grandeur,
some of them a thousand feet high, the woods climbing up their steep and
shaggy sides, where mortal foot never yet approached. On these dreadful
heights the eagles build their nests, ... while on all sides of this
immense amphitheatre the lofty mountains rise round, piercing the clouds
in shapes as spiry and fantastic as the very rocks of Dovedale.... The
full perfection of Keswick consists of three circumstances, _beauty_,
_horror_ and _immensity_ united.'
=Kirkfell= has two fine buttresses of rock at the back, facing
Ennerdale, but they are broken up and so only fit for practice climbs.
They are, however, not unfrequently assailed by climbers who imagine
themselves to be scaling the crags of Great Gable. The direct ascent
from Wastdale is one of the steepest lengths of grass slope to be found
among these hills. The only gully on this fell is _Illgill_, which faces
_Lingmell_ and contains two or three severe pitches. It is rather seldom
visited, and is exposed to falling stones.
=Lancashire.=--Though some of the rough country which borders on
Yorkshire contains a rocky bit here and there, Lancashire climbing has
no real interest except in that part of it which belongs to the Lake
country. The climax of this part is reached in the neighbourhood of
_Coniston_. South of the Lakes there are some limestone crags of
striking form. The impression produced on Defoe by what we consider the
exceptionally beautiful scenery of the Lune valley is curious. 'This
part of the country seemed very strange and dismal to us (nothing but
mountains in view and stone walls for hedges; sour oatcakes for bread,
or clapat-bread as it is called). As these hills were lofty, so they had
an aspect of terror. Here were no rich pleasant valleys between them as
among the Alps; no lead mines and veins of rich ore as in the Peak; no
coal-pits as in the hills about Halifax, but all barren and wild and of
no use either to man or beast.'
=Langdale.=--(See _Bowfell_, _Pavey Ark_ and _Pike o'Stickle_, _Gimmer
Crag_, _Harrison Stickle_, _Oak How_.) By many thought the finest valley
in Westmorland; the name is often written Langden or Langdon by old
authorities.
Dungeon Gill has always been a favourite haunt of climbing folk, and
from this base strong walkers can easily manage to reach _Scafell_,
_Gable_, _Coniston_, _Old Man_, or _Helvellyn_ in the day.
=Limestone= is abundant in Derbyshire and Yorkshire, and forms the fine
cliffs of Cheddar in Somerset, Berry Head in Devon, Anstis Cove and
others; indeed most of the south coast of Devon and Cornwall east of
Penzance is of this material. Chudleigh Rock and Morwell Rocks on the
river Tamar are very striking. West, speaking of this rock in
Lancashire, says, 'The whiteness and neatness of these rocks take off
every idea of _horror_ that might be suggested by their bulk or form.'
In England it is very rare to find limestone which is a satisfactory
material on which to climb.
=Lingmell=, called _Lingmoor_ by Wilkinson, is a mere shoulder of
Scafell Pike. It has, however, some fine cliffs facing those of _Great
Napes_ on Gable; between these two Housman thought a collision imminent.
These used to be thought inaccessible, but were climbed by Mr. Bowring
about 1880. There is a striking view of them from near Sty Head. The eye
looks right along the dark ravine of Piers Gill, which is apparently
overhung by the long line of these crags, rising from tongues of rock
divided by huge fan-shaped banks of scree. There is a good deal of
chance about the climbing here. It may be exciting, or you may just
happen to avoid what difficulties there are. It is a very treacherous
rock, especially low down, where curious long stone pegs are lightly
stuck in the ground and come away at the first touch. A few feet below
the top stands a curious pinnacle of forbidding appearance, of which a
sensational photograph has been taken; but Mr. Robinson found one side
from which the top is reached with ridiculous ease. Further west there
are gullies facing Kirkfell which are worth climbing, though there is
much unsound rock. (See also _Piers Gill_.)
[Illustration: LINGMELL AND PIERS GILL]
=Lingmoor=, rather over a mile south-east of Millbeck Inn, and near Oak
How, is a little pinnacle of which a photograph and a description by Mr.
H.A. Gwynne will be found in the Climbers' book at that place. In old
maps the name is sometimes found applied to _Lingmell_.
[Illustration: LORD'S RAKE AND RAKE'S PROGRESS
A, The foot of _Moss Gill_; B, The foot of _Steep Gill_;
C-D, _Lord's Rake_; C-A, Part of _Rake's Progress_.]
=Lord's Rake.=--A well-known scree-shoot in the north face of Scafell,
for the ascent of which from Mickledoor it offers an easy route without
climbing. The earliest account of its being used for this purpose is in
the _Penny Magazine_ for 1837 at p. 293: 'It is very laborious and looks
dangerous, but in fact there is no risk except that of a sprained
ankle. It is through the Lord's Rake, a shaft between two vertical walls
of rock about five yards across all the way up, and twenty or
twenty-five minutes' hard climbing on all fours up a slope of about 45 deg..
The place must have been cut out by a watercourse, but is now dry and
covered with light shingle. It looks right down into Hollow Stones (the
deep vale between the Pikes and Scafell), and most fearful it does look,
but it is not dangerous. When we reached the inn at Eskdale over Scafell
my shepherd was very proud of having brought me through the Lord's Rake,
and the people were much surprised. It seems to be rather a feat in the
country. It is the strangest place I ever saw. It may be recommended to
all who can bear hard labour and enjoy the appearance of danger without
the reality.' 'Prior's Guide' contained the first good description of
this rake.
=Luxulion=, in Cornwall, is of interest to the mineralogist and the
travelled mountaineer on account of its enormous block.
According to Mr. Baddeley, this is the largest block in Europe, larger
than any of the famous boulders at the head of the Italian lakes, and it
may take rank with the largest known, the Agassiz blocks in the Tijuca
mountains near Rio Janeiro. He gives the dimensions as 49 feet by 27
feet with 72 feet girth, yet makes no allusion to the _Bowder Stone_ in
_Borrowdale_, which in another work he describes as being 60 feet long,
30 feet high, and weighing 1,900 tons. It would appear, therefore, that
the _Bowder Stone_ is considerably larger than the largest stone in
Europe without being so remarkable for size as another stone in England.
=Malham Cove.=--A fine example of the limestone scenery of the Craven
Fault. The river Aire gushes forth from the base of the cove, which can
easily be seen in the same excursion as _Gordale Scar_. The nearest town
is Skipton-in-Craven and the nearest station Bell Busk, but Settle is
very little farther and will generally be found the most convenient
starting-point.
=Mardale Green=, at the head of Hawes Water, is a delightful and little
visited spot. In the way of climbing it commands _High Street_, _Harter
Fell_, _Froswick_, _Ill Bell_, and _Rainsborrow Crag_. The best near
climbs are about _Bleawater_ and _Riggindale_.
=Mellbreak.=--One of the few Cumberland fells which the indefatigable
Colonel Barrow seems to have left unvisited; yet no one who stops at
Scale Hill or Buttermere will consider wasted a day spent upon it. The
proper course is to begin at the end which faces Loweswater village and
ascend by _Frier's Gill_, a nice little climb. Having reached the top of
the gill and then the summit plateau, proceed to the hollow about the
middle of the mountain, and from there descend the highly curious
_Pillar Rake_, which gradually slopes down towards the foot of Crummock
Water. It is not a climb, but any one who is not content with the study
of mountain form can find climbing in the little gullies which ascend
the rocks above the rake. Sheet 63 of the Ordnance map of Cumberland
contains it.
=Mickledoor Chimney=, in the cliffs of Scafell, is not the easiest, but
the most obvious point at which to attack them. It is conspicuous from
the _Pikes_, and would probably be selected by any experienced stranger
as the most vulnerable point. It was visited about the year 1869 by Mr.
C.W. Dymond, who contributed to 'Prior's Guide' the earliest and best
description of it. He says that, 'leaving _Mickledoor_ Ridge, you pass
the fissure leading to _Broad Stand_, and continue descending steeply
for two minutes, which brings you to a narrow gully in the rock, with a
thread of water trickling down it over moss. This is the _cheminee_ to
be ascended, and there is no special difficulty in it until you are near
the top. Here the gully, of which the 'chimney' forms the lower section,
is effectually blocked for some distance, and the only alternative is to
climb out of it by the rock which forms the right wall, and which is
about 12 ft. high, the lower six vertical and the upper a steep slant.
This, which can only be scaled _a la_ chimney-sweep, is exceedingly
difficult, as is also the gymnastic feat of escaping to _terra firma_
from the narrow shelf on which the shoulder-and-hip work lands you.'
This is very clear and in the main correct, but there is another and
easier exit much lower down called 'the Corner,' and there is a third
exit only a few feet from the mouth of the chimney. All these are on the
right hand, for the opposite bank is not only much higher and much
smoother, but would lead to nothing if it were surmounted. It is not
really necessary to enter the chimney at all, for the edge presented
where the bank cuts the wall bounding the screes is quite assailable,
and just right of it there is a point which may even be called easy;
but two terrible accidents which have occurred at this spot prove the
necessity of care.
Until the extraordinarily dry season of 1893 the moss-grown block at the
very head of the chimney had never been climbed. It was accomplished on
the 12th of September by Mr. W.H. Fowler. By standing on the shoulders
of a tall man he was able to reach a slight hold and to establish
himself on a rough rectangular block forming the floor of a recess big
enough to hold one man. The block above it was holdless, and overhanging
and loose stones were a great nuisance.
=Micklefell.=--The highest mountain in Yorkshire, but except on that
account it possesses no special attraction. The best starting-point is
the High Force Inn in Teesdale, 5 miles from Middleton. By making the
round of the mountain from High Force to Appleby some very fine
rock-scenery may be enjoyed.
=Millstone grit.=--A material which is very abundant in Yorkshire and
Derbyshire. It is fairly firm, but seldom affords a climb of any
sustained interest. Few kinds of rock weather into such eccentric forms,
and of this propensity _Brimham Rocks_ are a good example. It forms most
of the 'Edges' in Derbyshire, and generally speaking a precipice at the
top of a hill is of this material, while those at the foot are of
limestone.
=Moses' Sledgate= is a curious track, which has evidently been
engineered with considerable care, running from near Seatoller in
Borrowdale at the back of _Brandreth_, round the head of Ennerdale below
_Green_ and _Great Gable_, and then over Beck Head and down Gavel Neese
into Wastdale. The question is, who made it and for what purpose was it
used? A few years ago, the writer, while climbing with two friends among
the crags on the Ennerdale side of _Great Gable_, stumbled quite by
chance on something which seemed to throw a side-light on the question.
This was a ruined hut thickly overgrown with moss, and showing no trace
of any wood having been employed in its construction. The spot had
evidently been chosen primarily with a view to concealment, and the
result of enquiries kindly made since then by one of my friends has been
to elicit proof of certain traditions still lingering among the older
inhabitants of these dales concerning a noted distiller of illicit
spirits, who flourished and defied the law among these wild retreats. At
the same time it is not easy to believe that a smuggler would have
undertaken the construction of such a path as this. In the South of
England, it is true that the smugglers were considerable roadmakers; but
that was at a time when smuggling was a great and well-organised
institution, and it seems much more probable in this case that Moses
made use of an old path constructed for some purpose which had at that
time been abandoned.
The terms 'Moses' Path' and 'Moses' Trod' are also used to describe this
track. It is not noticed in the guide-books, but something is said about
it by Mrs. Lynn Linton.
=Moss Gill=, on Scafell, is the next gully on the east or _Mickledoor_
side of _Steep Gill_. The name _Sweep Gill_ ('from the probable
profession of the future first climber of its extraordinary vertical
chimneys') was suggested for it by Mr. Gilson shortly after its
discovery, but that name has been entirely superseded. The first mention
of it in the Wastdale Head book is a note by the present writer in June
1889, recommending it to any one in search of a new and difficult
climb. His party on that occasion was repulsed after reaching the great
blocks, which have only been passed since by the aid of the artificial
step subsequently cut in the rock. It was tried again a fortnight later
by a party under Mr. R.C. Gilson, which got very nearly, but not quite
as far. Two days later the same party explored the gill from above and
descended in it for a considerable distance. It was not, however, till
three and a half years later, at Christmas, 1892, that the climb was
accomplished by Dr. J.N. Collie, G. Hastings, and J.W. Robinson, and
their account of it is:
[Illustration: MOSS GILL AND STEEP GILL
A, _Moss Gill_ (Collie's exit); B, _Moss Gill_ (Collier's exit):
C, Top of _Steep Gill_. Just below the point to which A and B converge
is the artificial step.]
'The chief points in this climb are, First--to begin on the rock wall to
the right of the foot of the gill and not in the very foot of the
chimney itself, then enter the gill just below the first great pitch,
which may be turned by climbing the wall on the right hand on to a grass
ledge of considerable size, called the "_Tennis Court_"; enter the gill
from here again, and pass into the cavern under the great boulder.'
'We found,' says Dr. Collie, 'that below the great slab which formed the
roof, another smaller one was jammed in the gully, which, stretching
across from side to side, formed the top of a great doorway. Under this
we passed and clambered up on to the top of it. Over our heads the great
rock roof stretched some distance over the gill. Our only chance was to
traverse straight out along the side of the gill, till one was no longer
overshadowed by the roof above, and then, if possible, climb up the face
of rock and traverse back again above the obstacle into the gill once
more. This was easier to plan than to carry out; absolutely no
hand-hold, and only one little projecting ledge jutting out about a
quarter of an inch and about two inches long to stand on, and six or
eight feet of the rock wall to be traversed. I was asked to try it.
Accordingly, with great deliberation, I stretched out my foot and placed
the edge of my toe on the ledge. Just as I was going to put my weight on
to it, off slipped my toe, and if Hastings had not quickly jerked me
back, I should instantly have been dangling on the end of the rope. But
we were determined not to be beaten. Hastings' ice-axe was next brought
into requisition, and what followed I have no doubt will be severely
criticised by more orthodox mountaineers than ourselves. As it was my
suggestion I must take the blame. _Peccavi! I hacked a step in the
rock_--and it was very hard work. But I should not advise any one to try
and do the same thing with an ordinary axe. Hastings' axe is an
extraordinary one, and was none the worse for the experiment. I then
stepped across the _mauvais pas_, clambered up the rock till I had
reached a spot where a capital hitch could be got over a jutting piece
of rock, and the rest of the party followed. We then climbed out of the
gill on the left, up some interesting slabs of rock. A few days later
the gill was again ascended by a party led by Mr. J. Collier. They did
not follow our track to the left after the overhanging rock had been
passed, but climbed straight up, using a crack which looks impossible
from down below, thus adding an extra piece of splendid climbing to the
expedition.'
Only four days after Dr. Collie, a party of five climbers, led by Dr. J.
Collier, made the second ascent of Moss Gill. The description given by
their precursors was of great assistance, and except that the gill was
entered much lower, the same line was followed up to the traverse from
the great boulder. Here, instead of climbing out to the sky line on the
left side, the ascent of the gill itself was completed by climbing the
vertical moss-grown wall on the right. This part was entirely new, and
Dr. Collier's note of his variation, or we may say correction, for his
climb is the more direct of the two, is that the ascent of the wall was
made by using the cleft of the gill for about 15 ft., when a resting
place was reached. Above this point they climbed about 15 ft., and then
traversed out on the face of the wall for about 8 ft. by some ledges
which afforded just sufficient hold. They then ascended vertically about
6 or 8 ft., re-entering the cleft above a small platform of jammed
stones ('Sentry Box'). This gave a starting-point for the completion of
the ascent, which was made by climbing out on to the face of the wall to
enable the jammed stones at the top of the pitch to be turned. These
last stones did not appear to be secure and were avoided. From this
point the gill continues upward at an easy slope, with one pitch of
about 15 ft. to the back of the small summit on the left of _Deep Gill_.
Two days later the ascent was repeated by Dr. Collier in company with
Professor H.B. Dixon and the late Professor A.M. Marshall, the latter
of whom inserted in the Climbers' book a remarkably bold and effective
outline sketch of the gill, with explanatory notes. Speaking of the
climb, he said that Mr. Collier led throughout, and that the success of
the climb was due entirely to him. The climb is a very fine one, and,
except for the leader, is entirely free from danger. At the very awkward
return from Tennis Court Ledge into the gully, the leader can by a short
traverse fix himself directly above the rest of the party. During the
traverse from the 'window' the leader can fix the rope over the
'belaying-pin.' In the great chimney the _Sentry Box_ is a place of
absolute safety. The climb is difficult, but no part of the chimney is
harder than the short rock face leading up to Tennis Court Ledge, and
the most awkward traverse (if covered with snow) is the one from Tennis
Court Ledge back into the gully. For a party of three 80 ft. of rope
would be enough; 100 ft. perhaps better. On January 9, 1893, Mr. O.G.
Jones attacked this formidable climb entirely by himself, following Mr.
Collier's route up to the foot of the Great Chimney, and then Mr.
Hastings' exit to the left. Heavy snow had fallen since the previous
ascents and the climb appeared to be exceedingly difficult. Almost every
hold had to be cleared of snow; essential precautions rendered the climb
of five hours' duration, and it was not completed till after dark (5.45
p.m.). While clearing snow from the more remote portions of the _Collie
traverse_ from the _window_, in search of the third step, the difficulty
of balancing proved too great, and he fell into the gully below. A rope
had been secured round the _window_ and thus prevented his passing
beyond the snow patch on which he fell. The _window_ 'sill,' already
loose, was on the verge of falling, and was therefore pushed over into
the gully. Returning two days later, he found that the two lowest
chimneys in the gill could be taken straight up, and that the simplest
way of reaching Tennis Court Ledge is by 'backing up' the chimney till
the level of the recess in the right-hand face is reached. 'The recess
is near enough to be taken with a stride. It would seem that the Tennis
Court Ledge and traverse back into the gully may be entirely dispensed
with by continuing up the chimney, the small jammed stones being firm
enough to render the necessary assistance. While making these
suggestions concerning small details in the climb, it may be mentioned
that at the _Collie traverse_, which the writer's experience leads him
to think is the most dangerous piece in the gill, an axe may be of much
help to a party. A man fixed on the _window sill_ may press the point of
the axe into a conveniently placed notch in the slab facing him, so that
the lower end of the handle shall supply a firm hand-hold for any one
stretching round the third step.
_Heights calculated by Mr. Jones._
Foot of Gill on Rake's Progress 2,625 ft.
Snow Patch below Tennis Court Ledge 2,805 "
Tennis Court Ledge 2,840 "
Foot of jammed stone pitch 2,870 "
Window in jammed stones 2,895 "
Snow patch above 2,920 "
Top of left-hand exit 3,140 "
Top of Moss Gill proper 3,170 "
It must, however, be borne in mind that these measurements, though
useful for the purposes of comparison, cannot be absolutely correct,
seeing that Scafell itself is only 3,162 ft. high. On February 11
Messrs. Slingsby, Woolley, and R. Williams found the gully very
difficult owing to ice, and recorded an emphatic protest against any
one following their example by attempting it, 'except when the rocks are
dry and quite free from ice.'
On the last day of March Messrs. Brunskill and Gibbs followed, with a
slight improvement, Dr. Collier's route, and made the subjoined
observations, taken apparently with greater care than those by Mr.
Jones:
Foot of Gill at Rake's Progress 2,570 ft.
Snow Patch above jammed stones 2,865 "
Top of Great Chimney or Moss wall 2,965 "
Top of Gill (neck leading to Deep Gill Pisgah) 3,065 "
It will be seen that while the points are all made lower than Mr.
Jones's table, the height between the commencement of the climb and the
snow patch above the jammed stones is exactly the same--295 ft. In this
case an observation was taken at the cairn on the top of Scafell, and
the aneroid stood at almost exactly the correct figure, which somewhat
confirms the figures now given.
=Napes.=--A collection of fine rocks, starting up like a stack of organ
pipes on the south side of _Great Gable_. The extremity of them nearest
to _Kirkfell_ is called _White Napes_, and sometimes Gable Horn. East of
this is a gap known as _Little Hell Gate_. East of this comes _Great
Napes_, and east of them again is _Great Hell Gate_, which is called
Deep Gill in the Ordnance map.
In September, 1884, a note by the present writer in the book at Wastdale
Head drew attention to these excellent rocks. They are now one of the
most favourite climbs in Wastdale, and contain the well-known _Needle_,
the _Bear Rock_, and the _Arrowhead_, with their respective gullies and
_aretes_.
Just west of _Hell Gate_ there is a considerable width of very large and
steep rock, which continues nearly to the _Needle Ridge_, with only a
few steep and shallow gullies, in which the grass is very rotten. West
of this ridge there is a deep gully, grassy, but exceedingly steep. The
ridge beyond this was ascended in April, 1892, by Messrs. Slingsby,
Baker, Solly, and Brigg, who called it the _Eagle's Nest_ (q.v.). The
narrow gully west of this ridge is apparently that which was climbed on
December 29, 1890, by Mr. R.C. Gilson. He describes it as 'the gully on
the left as you face the mountain of the gully coming down left of the
_Needle_.' He proceeds to say that it presented no special difficulty,
except at a point about one-third of the way up, where there was a large
boulder and a smooth slab thinly glazed with ice. It was claimed as a
first ascent when climbed on April 17, 1892, by Messrs. Solly and
Schintz. West again of this is the ridge of the _Arrowhead_ (q.v.). We
are here getting near the end of _Great Napes_, which are separated on
the west from _White Napes_ by the scree gully which is called _Little
Hell Gate_.
=Napes Needle.=--A rock of very striking form, which, by an eminent
mountaineer, has been compared to a violon-cello.
It stands at the foot of the _Needle Ridge_ in the _Napes_, and was
first climbed by the writer about the end of June, 1886. The second
ascent was made on March 17, 1889, by Mr. G. Hastings, and the third
by Mr. F. Wellford on June 22, Mr. J.W. Robinson following on August 12
in the same year.
[Illustration: NAPES NEEDLE FROM THE WEST
A, _Needle Ridge_; B is reached from below by means of a deep crack
which goes right through the rock. In order to get to C from B it is
necessary to pass round behind to the crack seen at D, along which one
may pass to C, and thence direct to the top.]
Miss Koecher (March 31, 1890) was apparently the first lady to ascend.
It was first climbed from the west; the way on the opposite side is
perhaps less severe, but longer and more varied.
The rock is frequently photographed, and an illustrated article on it
appeared in the _Pall Mall Budget_ of June 5, 1890.
=Needle Ridge= is that ridge of the _Napes_ on _Great Gable_ which is
immediately behind the _Napes Needle_. It was discovered in 1884 by the
writer and Mr. Robinson, and ascended by them in a somewhat desultory
fashion; that is to say, they cut in from the east side nearly at the
top of the difficult face which forms its lower extremity, and also
avoided the topmost piece by passing over on to the easy terrace on the
west side of the ridge. The _arete_ was climbed in a strict and
conscientious manner for the first time by the writer in 1886. This was
a descent, and apparently the first strict ascent was made by Messrs.
Slingsby, Hastings Hopkinson, and a brother of the writer.
=North Climb.=--The first to describe this climb on Scafell was Mr.
Seatree, who says:
'From the ridge we traversed a ledge of grass-covered rock [the Rake's
Progress] to the right, until we reached a detached boulder, stepping
upon which we were enabled to get hand-hold of a crevice 6 or 7 ft.
from where we stood. To draw ourselves up so as to get our feet upon
this was the difficulty; there is only one small foot-hold in that
distance, and to have slipped here would have precipitated the climber
many feet below. Having succeeded in gaining this foot-hold, we found
ourselves in a small rectangular recess, with barely room to turn round.
From here it was necessary to draw ourselves carefully over two other
ledges into a small rift in the rocks, and then traverse on our hands
and knees another narrow ledge of about 8 ft. to the left, which brought
us nearly in a line with Mickledoor Ridge. From here all was
comparatively smooth sailing.'
This climb had been made many years before (1869) by Major Ponsonby
Cundill, R.E., who left his stick in the deep crack behind the ledge
which Mr. Seatree traversed on his hands and knees. The stick was found
in 1884 by Mr. Chas. Cookson. This ledge, by the way, should certainly
be walked or at least sidled in an upright attitude, otherwise ungainly
gambollings are necessary when the time comes for stepping off at the
other end. The descent of the _North Climb_ is decidedly difficult,
unless the ascent has been made just previously, and the climb whether
up or down is an excellent test of style.
A couple of yards to the left there is an alternative to the
'rectangular recess,' and it is known as the 'Rift.' It is to be done by
a wild struggle. It was at one time the wetter and harder of the two
ways, but the conditions are now reversed.
=Old Wall.=--On the east side of the Pillar Rock a natural line of rock
runs down to the head of _Walker's Gully_, having, however, a narrow
passage by means of which sheep may reach the Low Man. A hundred years
ago or more, the shepherds built a wall of loose stones to stop the
sheep, and though little of the wall remains, the name clings to the
spot. At one time the _North-east Route_ was usually spoken of as the
_Old Wall Way_.
=Patriarch.=--By this name the Rev. James Jackson, of Sandwith in
Cumberland, was very widely known. It is an abbreviation of one which he
himself invented and assumed--'Patriarch of the Pillarites.' Some
considerable mention of him is made by Mr. Williamson, but his readers
will be glad to have further particulars, for this was a man of no
ordinary stamp. Born at Millom just before the series of naval victories
which closed the eighteenth century, he passed his boyhood in the thick
of the Buonaparte struggle and shared in it personally when a mere lad.
However, he soon changed the colour of his coat and entered the Church;
but long before his connection with the Pillar he had ceased to take any
active part in his profession. Thenceforward he lived at his ease,
amusing himself by rambles and scrambles far and near among the fells.
'I have knocked about,' he said himself, 'among the mountains ever
since, till I may almost say "I knaw iv'ry craag."' That he was somewhat
of an egotist cannot be denied. In his letters as in his poems his own
feats form the burden of his song. To this point all topics converged
with the same certainty that all roads are said to lead to Rome. He was
never tired of relating how, for instance, in his sixty-ninth year he
had one day walked 46 miles in 14-1/2 hours, on the third day following
56 miles in 18 hours, and after a similar interval 60 miles in less than
20 hours, thus accomplishing within one week three walks, any one of
which might well knock up many a man of half his age; how, on another
occasion, he had found two brethren of his own cloth struggling feebly
to surmount the difficulties of Rossett Gill; how, taking pity upon
their tender years, he had transferred their knapsacks to his own
venerable shoulders and, striding on before, encouraged them to complete
their weary task. A man aged between sixty and seventy might fairly
plume himself on such an exploit. He also rejoiced greatly in the fact
that he had been the first student of St. Bees College--a distinction of
which, as he justly said, no one could ever deprive him. But the feat on
which he especially prided himself was one of bodily activity. During
the third part of a century he held the living of Rivington, near
Bolton-le-Moors. It chanced that the weathercock of his church had
become loose, and the masons rather shrank from the risk of going up to
secure it. Here was an opportunity which our friend could not forego;
and Rivington witnessed the unwonted spectacle of a beneficed clergyman
of the Church of England solemnly swarming up his own steeple and making
fast the vane 'under circumstances of terror which made the workmen
recoil from the task, and the gazing rustics turn sick with horror at
the sight!' While walking proudly back to his parsonage he composed a
commemorative epigram which will bear quotation:
Who has not heard of Steeple Jack,
That lion-hearted Saxon?
Though I'm not he, he was my sire,
For I am 'Steeple Jackson'!
Indeed, his fancy was as lively as his limbs were supple. He was ever on
the watch for some analogy or antithesis; ever producing some new
alliteration or epigram expressive of such contrasts as that between his
age and his activity. His favourite description of himself was 'senex
juvenilis'--an idea which he frequently put into English, e.g.:
If this in your mind you will fix
When I make the Pillar my toy,
I was born in 1, 7, 9, 6,
And you'll think me a nimble old boy.
On the late Mr. Maitland, a well-known climber, as only second to
himself in age and ardour, he bestowed the title 'Maitland of Many
Mounts' and 'Patriarch Presumptive of the Pillarites.' There is nothing
strange in his thus designating a successor and bestowing titles of
honour; for these are matter of royal privilege, and he looked upon
himself as the Mountain Monarch and always expected climbers to attend
his mimic court and pay him homage. But he had many a high-flown alias
besides. When Mr. Pendlebury came under his notice he contrasted himself
with the Senior Wrangler, rather neatly, as the 'Senior Scrambler';
after his ascent of the Pillar he dubbed himself 'St. Jacobus Stylites';
and many other titles are introduced into the occasional poems on which
he expended much of his ingenuity.
His bodily powers were not allowed to rust away. 'My adopted motto,' he
said, 'is "Stare nescio,"' and some idea of his boundless love of
enterprise may be formed from one of his letters: 'I have been twelve
months afloat on the wide, wide sea. I have been beneath the falls of
Niagara. I have sung "God save the King" in the hall of St. Peter's; I
have ascended Vesuvius in the eruption of 1828; I have capped Snowdon in
Wales and Slieve Donard in Ireland, and nearly all the hills in this
district.... It only remains for me to mount the Pillar Rock!' Before
the end of the following May this hope was gratified, and a proud moment
it was for this veteran climber when, seated serenely on the summit, he
was able to record in a Greek inscription (written, as he carefully
notes, 'without specs') his ascent of the famous rock. Think of the
life, the energy, the determination that must have been in him! Years
seemed to be powerless to check the current of his blood. Where are we
to look for another of his age--he was now in his eightieth
year--showing any approach to the same combination of enterprise, pluck
and bodily vigour? It cannot be wondered at that his success filled him
with the keenest delight. He wrote off at once in high glee to his
friends and felt quite injured if, in their reply or their delay in
replying, he detected any sign of indifference to his exploit. But true
to his motto 'Stare nescio,' he was not content with this. Within a
month we find him expressing a fear that his title 'Patriarch of the
Pillarites' might not be acknowledged by 'the Western division of the
Order,' and announcing his intention of climbing the Pillar from the
west also in order to secure his claim. He playfully proposes, moreover,
that while he, 'the aged errant knight,' with his faithful squire
toiled up from the west, a certain fair Pillarite should arrive at the
summit from the east and crown his success on the spot by the bestowal
on him of her hand and heart. According to all approved precedent the
'aged errant knight' ought to have bound his lady's favour around his
clerical hat and ranged the mountains extorting from the passing tourist
at the point of his alpenstock a confession of her peerless beauty; or
for her sake betaken himself to the Rock and there passed nights of
vigil and days of toil assisting distressed damsels in the terrible
passage of the 'Slab.' Whatever he did, he made no attempt on the west
route. Perhaps despair of the reward had cooled his zeal--zeal
conditional like that of the Hindoo teacher who, when asked whether he
professed the creed which he was anxious to teach, naively replied, 'I
am not a Christian; but I expect to be one shortly--if sufficient
inducement offers.'
There is a sad and sharp contrast in turning from his high spirits and
playful fancy to his sudden death. It has been described elsewhere.
Though fourscore and two was (as he himself expressed it on the very day
of his death) the 'howdah' on his back, it cannot be said that the
ever-growing howdah had crushed its bearer. His vigour was unimpaired.
Like Walter Ewbank,
To the very last,
He had the lightest foot in Ennerdale.
Indeed, the same thing might have happened to a boy. It was an accident;
but it might be rash to say that it was a misfortune, or that he would
himself have regarded any other death as preferable. His life had
already been longer and more varied than falls to ordinary men; but the
change could not long have been delayed. A few months would have seen
his faculties failing and his powers decayed. To a man of his habits and
temperament inaction would have been the most terrible affliction, and
though he might have dragged on for years, his strength would truly have
been labour and sorrow.
Two years before he had stood close to this very spot. 'Almost all the
mountains,' he said, 'which I had known in youth, in manhood, and in old
age were visible, and seemed to give me a kindly greeting "for auld lang
syne." In the fervour of admiration I might have chanted, "Nunc
dimittis, Domine, servum tuum in pace."' We may well believe that, had
the old man foreseen his fate, he would have gladly welcomed it, and
have found for it no fitter place among all his beloved mountains than
this quiet cove almost within the shadow of the majestic rock.
=Patterdale= is a place where a climber may spend a week or two with
much enjoyment, though the quality of the rocks is by no means
first-rate. It is the best centre for _Helvellyn_, _Fairfield_, and _St.
Sunday Crag_, and convenient for _Swarthbeck_ and the whole _High
Street_ range. On _Place Fell_, fine as it looks, there is not much
worth climbing. _Deepdale_ and _Dovedale_ are both worth exploring.
=Pavey Ark=, one of the Langdale Pikes, is easily reached in
three-quarters of an hour from Dungeon Gill. On it will be found some
splendid climbing, including the _Big Gully_, the _Little Gully_,
_Jack's Rake_ (q.v.), and many minor points of interest. The two chief
gullies stand on either side of a buttress of rock, the top of which
forms a tooth on the sky line. The _Little Gully_ is on the south side
of it, and is V-shaped, giving a very straightforward but pleasant
climb. But the _Great Gully_ has two considerable difficulties, one low
down and the other near the top. The lower is caused by a huge block
covering a considerable cavern. The way is either right through the
cavern and out again through a narrow hole, or up a high grassy bank on
the right hand. In either case a narrow place is reached, walled in
between the big block and a smaller one on the right hand. Here the
difficulty is that the walls nearly meet towards the top, so that it is
necessary, in order to get room for the head, to go rather 'outside.'
However, a second man with a rope can hold the leader very securely, and
a piece of rock having come away, the headroom is much more commodious
than it used to be. Just below the level of _Jack's Rake_ there are some
very 'brant and slape' inclines of wet or muddy rock, which most people
consider the worst part of the climb. There is very little hold, and
what there is was on the occasion of the first ascent lubricated by a
film of fine mud. On reaching _Jack's Rake_ several variations may be
made, and straight ahead there is a very neat little chimney. These
upper rocks are of splendid gripping quality; rough as a cow's tongue,
it would be quite difficult to make a slip on them. The Big Gully was
climbed by the writer in the summer of 1882, and the small one in June
1886. In March 1887 Mr. Slingsby made a note about the former in the
Wastdale Head book. He says that it took his party two hours and forty
minutes, but his estimate of the height of the gully at 1,300 ft. is
more than double of the truth, and must be due to a slip of the pen.
[Illustration: PAVEY ARK (NEAR VIEW)
A, Narrow gully; B, Big gully; C, D, Smaller gullies; E, Wide scree
gully. From the foot of E to A runs _Jack's Rake_.]
In the book at Millbeck there is a note by the same distinguished
climber, dated May 30, 1887, in which he records an ascent of this gully
made by Miss Mabel Hastings, and gives the height of it as 600 or 650
ft.
=Penyghent.=--The sixth in height of the Yorkshire hills, but long
supposed, on account of its finer shape, to be the highest of them all.
As late as 1770 it was reckoned at 3,930 ft. It can be ascended from
Horton station in little over an hour. Celtic scholars revel in the
name; they practically agree that it means 'head of something,' but
cannot accept each other's views as to what that something is. When
Defoe was in this neighbourhood he saw 'nothing but high mountains,
which had a terrible aspect, and more frightful than any in
Monmouthshire or Derbyshire, especially _Pengent Hill_.'
=Piers Gill=, in Wastdale, on the north front of _Lingmell_, has a vast
literature of its own. As a rock ravine, not in limestone, it is only
second to _Deep Gill_ on _Scafell_ and the great gully in the Wastwater
_Screes_, both of which are far less easy of access than this, which can
be reached from Wastdale Head in half an hour. The difficulties depend
entirely on the quantity of water. One, the 'cave pitch,' may be passed
at the cost of a wetting almost at any time; but above it is another,
known as the 'Bridge Fall,' from a vast column of fallen rock which
spans the stream a few yards above it, which is at all times difficult,
and in nineteen seasons out of twenty wholly impossible.
Until the unprecedented drought of 1893 it had never been climbed. Even
then a less brilliant climber than Dr. Collier would scarcely have
succeeded. His ascent was made on April 29, 1893, and his companions
were Messrs. Winser, W. Jones, and Fairbairn. The big pitch was found to
be 40 or 50 ft. high, the lowest part of it apparently overhanging. The
first few feet were climbed about three feet to the right of the falling
water, after which the leader was able to reach the other side of the
gill by stretching his left foot across it just outside the water. By
this means this great and hitherto insuperable difficulty was overcome.
Unless we are entering on a cycle of dry seasons, the exploit is one
which will not be repeated for some time.
Various accidents and minor mishaps have taken place in Piers Gill. One
is described by Mr. Payn, and the injured man was, I believe, a shepherd
called Tom Hale. Mr. W.O. Burrows had a bad fall above the bridge, and
people descending from the _Pikes_ are often pounded about the same
spot. Some years ago a tourist had to pass the night in the gill without
food, but protested that he was 'quite consoled by the beautiful
scenery.' The discovery of the route up the east side of the _Pillar
Rock_ was within an ace of being delayed for years, owing to the band of
bold explorers who were to work it out becoming entangled in _Piers
Gill_ while on their way to _Wastdale Head_.
The name is spelt 'Pease' by Mr. Payn and by most of the early
authorities, and judging by the analogy of other places in the North of
England this would appear to be more correct.
=Pike o' Stickle=, also known as _Steel Pike_ and sometimes as the
_Sugarloaf_, drops into Langdale from the north in one continuous slope,
which for length and steepness has not many rivals in England. The top
piece of the hill is curiously symmetrical, and resembles a haycock or a
thimble. It is not easy to find satisfactory climbs on it. Mr. Gwynne
says of it: 'A very fine peak, that, viewed from the valley, has very
much the appearance of the Moench. It runs down towards the _Stake_ Pass
in a spur, which must be the starting-point of most of the climbs on
this mountain. There is a curious gully here, too, which is worthy of
the climber's attention. It does not run from top to bottom, but
suddenly begins about the middle of the crag. The difficulty is to get
at this gully, and some pretty climbing can be obtained in the attempt.'
=Pillar Rock.=--There are but three directions from which the _Pillar_
is commonly approached--namely, Ennerdale (Gillerthwaite), Buttermere,
and Wastdale Head. In each case the guide-books (except Baddeley's)
exhibit a suspicious shyness of specifying any time for the walk.
Wherever the present writer gives times, they must be understood to be
the quickest of which he happens to have made any note; for the best
test of times is a 'reductio ad minima.' A journey may be indefinitely
prolonged, but it cannot be shortened beyond a certain limit; thus,
_Scafell Pike_ cannot be reached from Wastdale Head in much less than 60
minutes of hard going, while the walk up the Pillar Fell cannot be cut
down much below 75 minutes. This supplies us with a trustworthy
comparison, although for a hot day that pace is not to be recommended;
in each case double the time is not more than a fair allowance. Never
let yourself be hurried at starting, come home as hard as ever you like;
it is the chamois-hunter's system, and by far the best. Baddeley seems
to reverse the principle, for he allows 2 to 2-1/2 hours for the ascent
via Black Sail, and says that it is shorter by Wind Gap; yet for the
_descent_ from Wind Gap (which is, say, 20 minutes short of the summit)
he gives as a fair allowance 2 to 3 hours. Perhaps he preferred
conforming to what is apparently the approved fox-hunting style:
[Illustration: PILLAR ROCK
A, B, Summits of Shamrock; C, Shamrock gully; D, Pisgah; E, High Man;
G, Curtain; H, Steep Grass; I, Foot of Great Chimney; I, K, Walker's
gully; J, Low Man; L, J, West route; M, Waterfall; N, I, East Scree.]
Harkaway! See, she's off! O'er hill and through whol
We spank till we're gaily nar done,
Than, hingan a lip like a motherless fwol,
_Sledder heammward, but nit in a run_.
[Illustration: PILLAR ROCK FROM THE NORTH
A, _High Man_; B, _Low Man_; C, _Shamrock_; D, _Walker's gully_;
E, Below this is the _waterfall_. The _terrace_ runs past the foot of
Walker's gully to the foot of the _waterfall_.]
[Illustration: PILLAR ROCK FROM THE SOUTH
A, Top of rock and of _West Jordan climb_; B, Top of _Central Jordan
climb_; C, Top of _East Jordan climb_; D, G, The _Curtain_;
E, The _Notch_; F, The _Ledge_. The mass of rock in the foreground is
_Pisgah_.]
_From Ennerdale_: From Gillerthwaite, a farmhouse nearly a mile and a
half above the lake, the Pillar is not far distant; but the direct way
is exceedingly rough, and it will be found best to make use of the path
up _Wingate Cove_, skirting round the mountain, when by that means a
considerable height has been gained. The way is so rough that many
people think it an economy of labour to go right on up the gap, and then
left over the summit of the mountain.
One of the best ways of approaching the Pillar is to sleep at the little
inn at the foot of the lake and row up from there to the water head. For
walking the whole way from the inn to the fell-top Baddeley allows 3 to
3-1/2 hours.
_From Buttermere_: After crossing _Scarf Gap_ some keep to the track as
far as the summit of the Black Sail Pass, and then turn to the right up
the ridge of the Pillar Fell, while others adopt the more laborious plan
of working upwards after descending the valley until nearly opposite the
Rock, which in this way is certainly seen to much greater advantage. If
the return be made by way of the mountain ridge, some little time may be
saved by descending into Ennerdale down _Green Cove_, nearly half a mile
short of Black Sail and 250 ft. higher; for Black Sail, being much
nearer the head of the valley than either Scarf Gap or the Pillar, can
only be used for going from one to the other at the expense of making a
considerable _detour_. For the ascent, however, Green Cove is not so
decidedly recommended, as many will prefer to make the round by the
regular pass for the sake of the more gradual rise.
_From Wastdale_: The vast majority of visitors come from this direction,
and almost all follow the same track, plodding up from Mosedale to the
top of _Black Sail_ and then turning left along the ridge of the
mountain. Mosedale, by the way, must not be confused with any of the
numerous other valleys of the same name: it sometimes appears in the
form 'Moresdale' or 'Mossdale' (Moos-thal, near Laibach in Austria, is
exactly parallel), and generally indicates scenery of a dreary
character; for such valleys are often, as in this case, the half-drained
beds of ancient lakes, by the loss of which the scenery has seriously
suffered.
[Illustration: PILLAR FELL]
Ladies who ascend by Black Sail will find it best to keep to the path as
long as possible, i.e. as far as the top of the pass, but others may
save something by breasting the hill on the left soon after reaching
_Gatherstone Head_, apparently a glacier mound, which rises just beyond
where the track crosses the stream (Gatherstone Beck) which comes down
from the pass.
On reaching the ridge it is no doubt safer, especially if there be mist
about, for those who are not familiar with the way to go right on to the
flat top of the mountain; the proper point from which to commence the
descent is easily found, in all weathers, by following the
compass-needle from the cairn to the edge of the mountain; a rough and
steep descent of 400 ft. follows, which in winter demands considerable
care. At first the course is to the right, but it soon strikes a small
ridge which curves down to the Rock. It is, however, a waste of labour
to ascend to the summit of the mountain at all. The ridge of the
mountain is divided into steps, and at the foot of the uppermost of
these a deep cove called _Great Doup_ is seen on the right. It may be
recognised even in a mist, as it is just beyond a curious rock running
out with a narrow edged top many feet from the hill-side. Less than 100
yards down the Doup the falling scree has nearly buried the cairn and
iron cross erected to the memory of the Rev. James Jackson. Beyond this,
as soon as the big rocks on the left permit, the track skirts round, and
after one or two ups and downs comes into full view of the famous Rock.
If, however, the object be to reach the north or lowest side of the
Rock, it is not necessary to descend into Ennerdale from Black Sail; for
there is the _High Level_, a fine scramble all along the breast of the
mountain from _Green Cove_--the first large hollow on the right, just
beyond _Lookingsteads_; but the way is rather intricate, and unless
properly hit off involves considerable fatigue and loss of time. At the
very least half an hour will be required in either direction, and a
stranger will certainly take much longer.
Those who are anxious to pursue 't' bainest rwoad' may save ten minutes
or more in the walk from Wastdale by making use of _Wind Gap_ at the
head of Mosedale. Hard work it undeniably is, but more shady than Black
Sail, and--when the way is familiar, though no one can go very far
wrong, unless he clings to the main valley too long and goes up to
_Blackem_ (Black Combe) _Head_--quicker also, occupying about ninety
minutes. Mr. James Payn calls it (poetically) 'a sort of perpendicular
shaft--a chimney such as no sweep would adventure, but would use the
machine--which is said to be the dalesman's pass into Ennerdale; you may
thank your stars that it is not _your_ pass.'
It really adds little to the labour of this way and affords a far finer
walk if the complete circuit of Mosedale be made along the hill-tops.
Ascending behind the inn and keeping round just under _Stirrup
Crag_--the north end of _Yewbarrow_, _Dore Head_ is soon reached, and it
is easy walking by the _Chair_, _Red Pike_, _Black Crag_ and _Wind Gap_
on to the _Pillar Fell_.
For the return to Wastdale _Wind Gap_ is very rough and hardly to be
recommended. Mr. Baddeley is not very consistent about it, for he says,
'the best descent is by _Windy Gap_'; but again, 'the descent from
_Windy Gap_ to Wastdale is, for reasons stated before, unsatisfactory';
and thereupon he recommends Black Sail. The latter gives a rapid
descent--the inn may be reached in twenty-five minutes from the top of
the pass; but a quicker return may be made by crossing the ridge after
emerging from Great Doup, and shooting down _Wistow Crags_ into
Mosedale by a large gully filled with deliciously fine scree.
Should it be preferred to make the circuit of Mosedale on the return
journey, an equally fine glissade may be enjoyed from _Dore Head_; but
the screes require judicious selection and dexterity on the part of the
slider.
[Illustration: PILLAR ROCK FROM THE WEST
A, Summit of _High Man_; B, _Pisgah_; C, _Low Man_; D, _Jordan Gap_.
The _West route_ ascends from this side to the depression between
A and C.]
It may here be said that stout walkers may visit all the mountains of
Wastdale Head in one day comfortably, and in few places is a finer walk
to be found. Start, say, at 10 A.M. for Scafell; then, by Mickledoor,
the Pike, Great End, Sty Head, Great Gable and Kirkfell to the Pillar,
returning in the manner described above in time for dinner. In June
1864, as Ritson's Visitors' Book records, J.M. Elliott, of Trin. Coll.
Camb., made this round, including Steeple and Yewbarrow, and found that
it took eight and a half hours; probably, however, he came over Stirrup
Crag and not Yewbarrow _top_, which would entail something like three
miles extra walking. He approached Scafell by way of Mickledoor,
returning from it to the same point, and those who do not know the Broad
Stand well had better follow his example; for it is a bit of a climb,
and the descent especially is not easy to find. By going to Mickledoor
first (and there is no shorter way to Scafell) each man can see what he
has before him, and decide for himself whether it would not be better to
leave Scafell out of his programme.
Before entering into the history of the Pillar it is almost
indispensable to give a short general description of its main features
in order to assist the comprehension of the facts narrated. Difficult as
it must always be to find an image which shall supply a stranger with
any clear idea of a mass so irregular and unsymmetrical as this, yet its
general appearance and the arrangement of its parts may be roughly
apprehended in the following manner:--Imagine a large two-gabled church
planted on the side of a steep hill. From the western and loftier gable
let there rise, at the end nearest the mountain, a stunted tower.
Finally let the building be shattered and all but overwhelmed under an
avalanche of _debris_. What will be the effect? Naturally the stream of
stones will be much deeper above than below, and, while nearly burying
the tower and upper ends of the roof, will flow along between the two
gables and run off, as rainwater would do, at the far end. Angular
fragments, however, remain at rest unless the slope is very steep, and
consequently a long talus will be formed sloping down to the brink of
the sudden drop at an angle of something like 45 degrees. Here we have a
fair representation of the Pillar mass: the tower will be the High Man,
and the gable from which it rises the Low Man. It will be readily
understood that the second gable may be a source of some confusion to
those who are ignorant that there is more than one, and from some points
may disguise or altogether conceal the tower. This is why it is called
the _Sham Rock_; but it is only from below that it would be recognised
as part of the Pillar mass, for from above it is wholly insignificant.
When viewed from immediately below, the tower is concealed behind the
gable from which it rises, and the whole mass of rock bears a rough
resemblance to the letter =M=; but from above, the High Man, with which
alone the climber from the east side has to reckon, is also the only
part of the rock which he is likely to observe. The result is that, when
the Low Man is mentioned to anyone who knows only the Easy Way, the
reply is usually on the model of the poet Wordsworth's only joke: 'Why,
my good man, till this moment I was not even aware that there _was_ a
Low Man!' Yet the Low Man is by far the finer object of the two, and its
cliffs are at least six times as high as those of what is called the
High Man. The only side from which the latter shows a respectable
elevation is the west, where the scree lies much lower, because it has a
free escape, instead of being pent up between the two gables like the
east scree.
In winter-time, when the inequalities are all smoothed over with a sheet
of hard snow, both sides of the rock are rather dangerous, but
especially the eastern, where a man who slipped would have the greatest
difficulty in stopping himself before he shot over the precipitous gully
at the end. This gully (occupying, as it were, the place of the
water-pipe) is known, in allusion to an accident which occurred there in
1883, as _Walker's Gully_.
When the question arises of how to climb the _High Man_, it is obvious
that the scree just above it will be the nearest point to the summit;
but equally obvious that the climb, though short, would be nearly
vertical. The plan which at once suggests itself for getting to the top
is to work round to the back of the rock and climb it from the top of
the ridge behind. The ridge may be reached from either side, and in this
fact we have the secret of two of the most important climbs.
So much for the general appearance of the Pillar; but the part which
admits of the easiest and most varied attack is the east wall of the
_High Man_, and of this side it is necessary to give a more detailed
description. This part of the rock is the only one which is at all well
known to the general public, and its chief features, being well marked,
have for the most part received, by common consent of climbers,
distinctive names. In order to see the formation of the rock properly it
is well worth the climber's while to descend for a few yards and mount
the _Sham Rock_ on the other side of the east scree. The peculiar
structure of the opposite wall may now be clearly seen.
[Illustration: PILLAR ROCK FROM THE SOUTH-EAST
A, _Pisgah_; B, _Jordan_; C, Summit; D, Top of _Curtain_;
E, Corner between the _Curtain_ and the main rock.]
On our left hand, between the mountain and the rock, is seen an outlying
mass severed from the High Man by a deep square-cut gap. When the Pillar
is looked at from the direction of the mountain-top, this gap is
entirely concealed by the outlying piece, which then appears to present
a fairly easy way direct to the summit. 'The climber (says Mr.
Williamson) mounts gaily and with confidence, only to find himself cut
off from the High Man by an impassable cleft.' He sees it indeed with
his eyes, but he cannot go up thither. Hence the names--_Pisgah_ for the
false rock, and _Jordan_ for the chasm. A very well-known Pillarite once
proposed to bridge the cleft with a plank or ladder and hold a tea-party
on the top. This very original idea was not carried into execution, but
certainly, without some such application, the passage of _Jordan Gap_ is
a formidable undertaking; for the north wall is only less vertical than
the other, and though barely 60 ft. high--not much more, that is, than
half as much as must be climbed by any other route--this is decidedly
one of those cases in which the longer way round will prove to be the
shorter way up.
On the extreme right--and rather below us--is the nearly level top of
the Low Man; while not far from where broken cliffs lead up to the
higher rock a curious natural post standing on the ridge marks the point
from which a small deep channel is seen to come down towards _Walker's
Gully_. This channel is of small importance, except that high up on the
southern bank of it the glacier markings are most distinctly to be seen.
The channel itself soon curves more towards the north and plunges over
the fearful cliff which faces the Liza, forming the key to the great
climb on that face. From the foot of _Jordan Gap_ a broad smooth slope
of rock runs horizontally along the face of the High Man, giving to it
somewhat the formation of the 'pent-house wall' of a tennis court. The
steepness of the scree, which runs down from left to right before our
feet, makes the drop from this slope much greater at the Low Man end;
but it will give no false idea of this side to say that, roughly
speaking, the cliff is broken into three fairly equal portions, of about
60 ft. each, namely, a vertical wall above, connected with a steep and
rugged part below by a smooth stretch sloping at an angle not far short
of 40 degrees. The importance of this 'pent-house' is very great; for,
as it gives an easy passage right across this face of the rock, every
climb which is possible from below may be cut into from the side, and
thus more than half the labour of the ascent is saved. Indeed, any
mountain which allows its entire front to be traversed in this way by a
passable ledge exposes every weak point in so reckless a manner that the
attack becomes marvellously simplified.
Lastly should be noticed two rough curtains of rock which run down from
the top of the Stone near the centre, and enclose between them what is
called the _Great Chimney_. This chimney is the key to the climb on this
side. The curtain on the south of it is the only one which is at all
complete, and as it forms a kind of _arete_ running up to the summit, it
is known indifferently by either name--the _Curtain_ or the _Arete_.
The easiest way to picture to oneself the features of the Great Chimney
is to imagine a huge armchair, the 'seat' of which measures 20 yards
from back to front and is tipped uncomfortably forward and downward at
an angle of nearly 45 degrees. The _Curtain_ forms the right 'arm,' and
from a level with the top of the 'back,' which is 50 ft. high, runs down
very nearly but not quite as far as the front edge of the 'seat.' In
the narrow space thus left lies the _Ledge_, which makes it possible to
pass round under the end of the arm and gain the 'seat,' which is called
the _Steep Grass_. The same point may also be reached by climbing, as an
alternative to the _Ledge_, over the lower part of the 'arm' through a
deep nick--the _Notch_; and in either case the joint between 'arm' and
'back,' being badly cracked, offers an easy way (the 'small chimney' or
'jammed-stone chimney') of reaching the top of the back, which is the
edge of a small plateau forming the summit of the High Man. Lastly, it
should be noticed that the _Steep Grass_ can only be reached from below
by a severe climb of 70 ft.--the _Great Chimney_ climb.
The side from which the Pillar is commonly climbed is not that by which
the summit was first attained. The first successful attempt was made
from the West, and it is doubtful whether for a quarter of a century any
other route was known. But on the discovery of the Easy Way the older
route was forgotten, and now enjoys a reputation for difficulty which is
not deserved: it is looked upon as some little distinction to have
accomplished it. In the preface to one of Wordsworth's poems the year
1826 is mentioned as the date of the first ascent. This is confirmed by
a comparison of the second and third editions of Otley's 'Guide' (1825
and 1827), in the former of which the rock is declared unclimbable,
while the latter mentions the victory of 'an adventurous shepherd.' The
successful climber was not, however, a shepherd, but a cooper, named
Atkinson, and living at Croftfoot, in Ennerdale. It is likely that his
adventurous soul may have been fired by Otley's declaration that the
rock was inaccessible. The perseverance of a friend has hunted out a
contemporary notice of the ascent in the county paper, which remarks
that, 'though the undertaking has been attempted by _thousands_, it was
always relinquished as hopeless.' This proves, at all events, that even
then the rock had a reputation. Subjoined is a list of those who have
followed on Atkinson's track, so far as is known, up to 1873:
J. Colebank (shepherd);
W. Tyson (shepherd), and J. Braithwaite (shepherd);
Lieut. Wilson, R.N.;
C.A.O. Baumgartner;
M. Beachcroft and C. Tucker.
Summarising the various methods of ascending the rock, we may say that
the west side first yielded in 1826; the east side probably about 1860;
the south side in 1882, and the north side in 1891. The _Easy Way_ (as
it is generally called) on the east side was discovered in 1863 by a
party of Cambridge men led by Mr. Conybeare, and Mr. A.J. Butler, the
late editor of the _Alpine Journal_. Mr. Leslie Stephen had visited the
rock earlier in that year without finding a way up it, but in 1865 he
was more successful, and wrote an account of it in Ritson's book; the
account, as usual, was first defaced and afterwards stolen. The
_Northeast_, or _Old Wall_, _way_ was discovered by Matthew Barnes, the
Keswick guide, while with Mr. Graves, of Manchester. The central and
western climbs from _Jordan_ were done by the writer in 1882, as was the
eastern one in 1884, the last being scarcely justifiable under any
circumstances, and especially without a rope. The direct climb of the
_Great Chimney_ (starting on the south wall of it) was done about the
same time, and curiously enough--for it is safe and comparatively
easy--does not appear to have been done since. The long climb on the
north face was accomplished by Messrs. Hastings, Slingsby, and the
writer in 1891. It has been described in an illustrated article in
_Black and White_ (June 4, 1892), and by Mr. Gwynne in the _Pall Mall
Budget_. It should not be touched except by experienced climbers.
=Pinnacle Bield=, on the east side of _Glaramara_, is a rocky part of
the mountain and a famous stronghold for foxes. On the way up from
_Langstrath_ there is a very steep bit for about 500 ft.
=Pisgah.=--A name given in 1882 to the outlying rock on the south side
of the Pillar Rock, from which it is severed by an all but impassable
chasm, not seen until it bars the way. The term has in subsequent years
been applied almost generically.
=Pitch=: any sudden drop in the course of a rock gully, usually caused
by some large stone choking the channel and penning back the loose
stones behind it. Such a stone is then said to be 'jammed,' 'wedged,' or
'pitched,' and is sometimes called a 'chockstone' (q.v.).
=Pot-holes= are frequent in the Yorkshire limestone. The rivers for
considerable distances have underground courses. At each spot where the
roof of one of these tunnels happens to fall in a 'pot-hole' is
produced. They are very numerous about Settle and Clapham. Some are of
very great depth and can only be explored with the aid of much cordage
and many lights. The explorer of pot-holes has to face all the perils of
severe rock climbing, and, moreover, to face them for the most part in
the dark. It would be hard to imagine anything more weird than one of
these darksome journeys, rendered doubly impressive by the roar of
unseen waters and the knowledge that abrupt pitches of vast depth are
apt to occur in the course of the channel without the slightest warning.
(See _Alum Pot_, _Dunald Mill Hole_, _Gaping Gill Hole_.)
=Pow=: a sluggish rivulet.
=Professor's Chimney.=--A name bestowed by Messrs. Hopkinson on the exit
most towards the left hand as one comes up _Deep Gill_ on _Scafell_. Out
of this chimney, again to the left, diverges that which leads up to the
neck between the _Scafell Pillar_ and its Pisgah. To this latter chimney
the name is erroneously applied by many, though, indeed, they might urge
with some reason that if it comes to a scramble for one name between two
gullies the more frequented ought to get it.
=Rainsborrow Crag.=--A noble rock in Kentdale, Westmorland. It is,
perhaps, most easily got at from Staveley, but from Ambleside it is only
necessary to cross the Garbourne Pass, and the crag is at once
conspicuous. It is of the same type as _Froswick_ and _Ill Bell_, but
finer and more sheer than either of them.
=Rake=: a word common in Derbyshire, Yorkshire, and the Lakes, which has
been much misunderstood. It usually happens to be a scree-gully, but the
fundamental idea is straightness.
=Rake's Progress.=--This is a natural gallery on the face of the
Mickledoor crags of _Scafell_. It has been best described by Mr.
Williamson, who says: '_Mickledoor_ may be reached by scrambling up the
steeply sloping screes which form its Wastdale slope; but the easier and
more romantic approach is by the grassy ledge, which will be seen
projecting from the face of the Scafell precipice. This ledge or shelf
is in but few places less than four feet wide. In places it is composed
of shattered heaps of rock, which seem barely to keep their equilibrium;
but though there is a precipice of considerable height on the left hand,
the passage along the ledge is free from risk so long as the rock wall
on the right is closely hugged. By one who watched from below the
passage along the ledge of some of the early pioneers of lake climbing
it was christened the _Rake's Progress_, and the name appears apt when
it is remembered that the ledge leads from the lower limb of the _Lord's
Rake_ to the _Mickledoor Ridge_.' The first published description of the
_Rake's Progress_ is contained in a letter by the late Mr. Maitland to
one of the local papers in October 1881. He there states that he had
recently traversed it for the fifth time, but had not previously to that
occasion visited Deep Gill. Several grand climbs start from the
_Progress_, including _North Climb_, _Collier's Climb_, _Moss Gill_,
_Steep Gill_, and the _Scafell Pillar_.
=Raven Crag.=--This name is generally the sign of a hard, if not of a
good, climb. One of the finest stands on the west side of Thirlmere,
near the foot, or what used to be the foot of it before Manchester took
it in hand; a second is on the _Pillar Fell_ just east of the rock; a
third and fourth on _Brandreth_ and _Gable_, and indeed there is one on
almost every fell.
=Red Pike=, in Cumberland, overlooking Buttermere, is a syenite hill,
and commands a glorious view, especially strong in lakes, but there is
next to no climbing to be had on it. The best way up it is to follow the
course of Ruddy Beck from the southernmost corner of Crummock Water, but
the rocky amphitheatre in which Bleaberry Tarn lies is better seen if
the somewhat rougher route by Sourmilkgill and its east bank be
followed.
=Red Pike=, also in Cumberland, is a Wastdale fell, and lies between
_Yewbarrow_ and the _Steeple_. The north side of it has abundance of
small climbs, which, with the exception of _Yewbarrow_, are, perhaps,
more easily reached than any others from the inn at Wastdale Head; but
they are little visited, because everyone wants to fly at the highest
game and do the climbs which are most talked about. This fell is
sometimes called _Chair_, from the fact of there being a curious stone
seat on it near the ridge, and not far from _Door Head_.
=Red Screes=, in Westmorland (2,541 ft.), are very steep in the
direction of the Kirkstone (after which the pass of that name is said
to be called), falling about 1,000 ft. in a horizontal distance of a
quarter of a mile; but the ascent is not more than an exhilarating
scramble. There is a well-known view from the top.
=Rope.=--Some remarks on the use of the rope as a safeguard in climbing
will be found in the Introduction.
=Rossett Gill.=--A rough pass just over 2,000 ft. in height, which is
the only approach from Langdale to Scafell, Gable, and the Wastdale
fells generally. On the Langdale side you cannot go far wrong, but it is
very rugged, so rugged that Mr. Payn has caustically observed that all
expeditions in this region admit of being made by driving, by riding, or
by walking, 'except Rossett Gill, which must be done on all fours.' On
the Eskhause side the walking is perfectly easy, but mistakes are very
liable to occur. On this high ground mists are extremely frequent, and
blinding rain is abundant. The result is that people making for Langdale
are surprised at having to mount again after the long descent to Angle
Tarn, and often end by going away to the left down Langstrath, and find
themselves to their great surprise in Borrowdale. The only safeguard is,
of course, to bear clearly in mind that the ups and downs hereabout are
considerable, and to arm oneself with map and compass.
=Saddleback= (2,847 ft.) was at one time thought to be higher than its
neighbour Skiddaw. To Mrs. Radcliffe, on the summit of the latter in
1795, the former was 'now preeminent over Skiddaw.' 'The Beauties of
England' informs us that 'the views from the summit are exceedingly
extensive, but those immediately under the eye on the mountain itself so
tremendous and appalling that few persons have sufficient resolution to
experience the emotions which those awful scenes inspire.' We have a
very full account of an ascent made in 1793. The narrator says: 'When we
had ascended about a mile, one of the party, on looking round, was so
astonished with the different appearance of objects in the valley so far
beneath us that he declined proceeding. We had not gone much further
till the other companion (of the relator) was suddenly taken ill and
wished to loose blood and return.'
The great feature of the mountain is its southern front, which is cut
away to form enormous cloughs, divided by narrow ridges. The latter are
the Edges of Saddleback. Narrow Edge (as _Halls Fell top_ is now
generally called) is the finest and most romantic. It runs up from
Threlkeld, where there is a convenient station. The proper name of Broad
Edge is _Gategill Fell_. Part of _Middle Tongue_ straight behind the
lead-mine is also very narrow. A writer in the _Penny Magazine_ for 1837
speaks of 'the serrated precipices above Threlkeld,' and adds, 'One of
these is called _Razor Edge_.' That name, however, has now for many
years at least been used as the equivalent of _Sharp Edge_, which is on
the east side of the mountain and on the north side of _Scales Tarn_,
and at one time enjoyed a tremendous reputation as a perilous climb.
The name of the mountain itself has been jeered at as a post-boy's name,
and romantically-minded people use the name Blencathara, for which many
Celtic etymons have been suggested. The most usual form seems to have
been Blenkarthur, and only the more northern of the two peaks was so
called.
The quickest ascent of the mountain is from Threlkeld up _Narrow Edge_,
but if the return is to Keswick, it should be made along the shoulder
towards Skiddaw, and so by Brundholme Wood.
=Sail.=--This word, in the opinion of Dr. Murray, the learned editor of
the new 'English Dictionary,' signifies 'a soaring dome-shaped summit.'
It occurs as a hill-name in the Grassmoor group, near Buttermere in
Cumberland; but the characteristics required by the above definition
are, to say the least, not conspicuously evident either there or in the
other cases where this element is found in fell-country place-names.
(See _Black Sail_.)
=St. Bees.=--In Cumberland, on the west coast. Several accidents have
occurred on the cliffs here. They are of sandstone, and incline to be
rotten. The best are about _Fleswick Bay_. The height is only about 200
ft. The Rev. James Jackson--the Patriarch (q.v.)--lived at Sandwith
close by, and was fond of climbing about on these cliffs.
=St. John's Vale.=--A name of modern invention, which has ousted
_Buresdale_ (q.v.). It is used in an article in the _Gentleman's
Magazine_ for 1754, and also in 'Gray's Journal,' which possibly misled
Sir Walter Scott, whose poem caused it to meet with general acceptance.
=St. Sunday Crag=, in Westmorland (sheet 19 of the Ordnance map), is of
far more importance than _Helvellyn_ to the views of and from Ullswater.
Moreover, it has some capital crags facing north-west, among which many
a good rock-problem may be found. They were long a favourite
scrambling-ground with Major Cundill, R.E., the inventor of the _North
Climb_ on _Scafell_, and are within easy reach of Patterdale.
=Scafell= (3,162 ft.) presents some fine rocks to Eskdale, but the
grandest rocks, both to look at and to climb, are towards _Mickledoor_.
As a climbing-ground it is perhaps even more popular than the _Pillar_,
especially in winter. In consequence of this the ground has been gone
over very closely by climbers of exceptional skill, and climbing of a
somewhat desperate character has occasionally been indulged in. This
applies mainly to the west side of Mickledoor. The other side is easier,
and has long been more or less well known.
Mr. Green says of it: 'The crags on the south-west [of Mickledoor],
though seeming frightfully to oppose all passage, have been ascended as
the readiest way to the top of Scafell, and, amongst other adventurers,
by Mr. Thomas Tyson, of Wastdale Head, and Mr. Towers, of Toes [in
Eskdale]; but Messrs. Ottley and Birkett contented themselves by
proceeding for some distance in the direction of Eskdale, to a deep
fissure, through which they scrambled to the top of Scafell.'
It might be thought that this 'fissure' was 'Mickledoor Chimney,' but
it is more likely that it was another and easier gully a good way
farther down.
Mr. Herman Prior's excellent 'Pedestrian Guide' (3rd edition, p. 194)
has a very clear and accurate account of it from the pen of Mr. C.W.
Dymond, who visited it about 1869, and another in Mr. C.N. Williamson's
second article in _All the Year Round_ for November 8, 1884; and in the
local press scores of descriptions have appeared.
[Illustration: SCAFELL CRAGS
A, Top of _Broad Stand_; B, _Pisgah_; C, _Scafell Pillar_;
D, Head of _Deep Gill_.]
The beginning of the climb is very easily overlooked by a stranger,
being just a vertical slit about eighteen inches wide, by means of which
it is easy to walk three or four yards straight into the mountain. It
will be found by descending the Eskdale slope from Mickledoor ridge for
twenty-one yards, and disregarding a much more promising point which
presents itself midway and is noticed both by Professor Tyndall and Mr.
Dymond. The floor of the proper 'adit' rises slightly towards the inner
end, and consequently allows an easy exit to be made on the left-hand
side. From this point three large steps in the rock, each 7 ft. to 10
ft. high have to be mounted, and many will be reminded of the ascent of
the Great Pyramid. What builders call the 'riser' of each step is
vertical, but the 'tread' of the two upper ones becomes very steep and
smooth, and when there is ice about it, this is the chief danger of the
climb. If a fall took place it would probably be to the left hand, in
which direction the rock is much planed away, and forms a steep and
continuous slope almost to the foot of the Mickledoor Chimney.
[Illustration: PLAN OF SCAFELL
A, _Broad Stand_; B, _Mickledoor Ridge_; C, _Scafell Pillar_;
D, _Lord's Rake_; F, _Pikes Crag_; G, _Deep Gill_.]
This slope is climbable, but far from easy. At the top of the steps the
Broad Stand proper begins, at the head of which there is one little bit
to climb, and then a walk among huge blocks of stone leads out on to the
ridge of Scafell, close to the head of Deep Gill.
The way is not easy to miss, but in descending--especially in misty
weather--mistakes are often made, either in finding the entrance at the
top or the steps at the bottom. The latter difficulty is the more
serious, but may be obviated by keeping close to the foot of the cliff
on the left hand and making straight for Mickledoor ridge; when further
progress is barred, the exit is reached by a short descent to the right.
=Scafell Pikes=--the highest mountain in England (3,210 ft.). Curiously
enough the name seems to be very modern. Till quite the end of last
century it was always known as 'The Pikes,' and it was only when careful
surveys promoted it that it became necessary to add the name of its
finer-shaped and better-known neighbour, to show what 'Pikes' were being
spoken of. The present name, therefore, and the older form, 'Pikes of
Scafell,' really mean 'The Pikes near Scafell.'
On the Eskdale side there are a few climbs, including _Doe Crag_; but
the best are on the side of _Great End_ and _Lingmell_, which are merely
buttresses of it.
[Illustration: SCAFELL PILLAR (SEEN ACROSS DEEP GILL)]
=Scafell Pillar= stands between _Deep Gill_ and _Steep Gill_. It has a
short side close to the summit ridge of _Scafell_, and a long side
towards the _Rake's Progress_. The first ascent was made on the short
side by the writer on September 3, 1884, and the first from the Rake's
Progress by Mr. Robinson and the writer on the 20th of the same month.
[Illustration: SCAFELL PILLAR AND THE UPPER PITCH OF DEEP GILL]
They climbed by way of _Steep Gill_ on to the Low Man, and thence to the
High Man. On July 15, 1888, a way was made up the outside of the rock
from near the foot of _Steep Gill_ by Messrs. Slingsby, Hastings, E.
Hopkinson, and the writer. Miss Corder made the first lady's ascent by
the short way (August 1887), and Miss M. Watson the first by the outside
route (June 1890), both ladies having the advantage of Mr. Robinson's
escort. Marvellous feats of climbing and engineering have been performed
by the brothers Hopkinson in their endeavours to make a way direct into
_Deep Gill_, in which they have not entirely succeeded.
=Scree=: the _debris_ of decaying rocks, forming a talus on the lower
parts of a mountain. It is the Icelandic 'skrida.'
=Screes (The).=--A long range flanking Wastwater on the south-west. They
are often called the 'Wastdale' Screes, but it appears from Hutchinson
that they were in his time known as the 'Eskdale' Screes, and--like most
hills at that period--were said to be a mile high. Apparently in those
days they thought less of the climbs on it than of the sheep-runs, which
latter are in Eskdale. The rock is of very loose construction and comes
away at a touch, or without one, sometimes many tons at a time; but it
improves towards the foot of the lake, and the great bastion opposite
Wastdale Hall is full of magnificent climbing. The writer, at the
suggestion of Mr. G. Musgrave, tried the great gully both alone and in
good company, namely, that of two of the party which ultimately
succeeded. Dr. Collie contributed a vivid account of the first ascent to
the _Scottish Mountaineering Journal_, a publication which should be
better known to climbers. The party found no difficulty till they were
in the left-hand branch above the point where the gully divides, and the
first pitch gave them some trouble, as the stream, being frozen, formed
a cascade of ice, and they were forced on to the buttress which divides
the two gullies. Hastings was sent on to prospect, whilst I had to back
him up as far as possible. With considerable trouble he managed to
traverse back to the left into the main gully, using infinitesimal knobs
of rock for hand and foot hold. We then followed him, and found
ourselves in a narrow cleft cut far into the side of the hill.
Perpendicular walls rose on either side for several hundred feet; above
us stretched cascade after cascade of solid ice, always at a very steep
angle, and sometimes perpendicular. Up these we cut our way with our
axes, sometimes being helped by making the steps close to the walls on
either side, and using any small inequalities on the rock-face to steady
us in our steps. At last we came to the final pitch. Far up above at the
top, the stream coming over an overhanging ledge on the right had frozen
into masses of insecure icicles, some being 20 ft. to 30 ft. long.
Obviously we could not climb up these. However, at the left-hand corner
at the top of the pitch a rock was wedged, which overhung, leaving
underneath a cave of considerable size. We managed to get as far up as
the cave, in which we placed Robinson, where he hitched himself to a
jammed boulder at the back. I was placed in a somewhat insecure
position; my right foot occupied a capacious hole cut in the bottom of
the icicles, whilst my left was far away on the other side of the gully
on a small, but obliging, shelf in the rock-face. In this interesting
attitude, like the Colossus of Rhodes, I spanned the gulf, and was
anchored both to the boulder and to Robinson as well. Then Hastings,
with considerable agility, climbed on to my shoulders. From that exalted
position he could reach the edge of the overhanging stone underneath
which Robinson was shivering, and was thus enabled to pull himself up on
to the top. Robinson and I afterwards ascended this formidable place by
means of the moral support of the rope alone. But I know that in my
case, if that moral support had not been capable of standing the strain
produced by a dead weight of about ten stone, I should probably have
been spoiling a patch of snow several hundreds of feet lower down the
gill. Above this pitch the climbing is easier as the gully opens out.'
[Illustration: WASTWATER AND THE SCREES
A, A long gully, not very difficult; B, The great gully, extremely
difficult; C, A minor gully, also very difficult.]
=Sergeant Crag.=--About half a mile up the valley of Longstrath, which
bounds Glaramara on the east as Borrowdale does on the west, there is a
line of crag on the left hand. The part nearest to Eagle Crag is called
Sergeant Crag, and is some 300 ft. higher than the other, which is Bull
Crag.
In these rocks there is a very fine gully, discovered in 1886 by Mr.
Robinson and the writer, for whom a high wet slab of smooth slate proved
too difficult. In September last the former returned to the attack
accompanied by Mr. O.G. Jones, who, taking a different and to all
appearance more difficult way to the right, forced his way over the two
stones which form the pitch. His companion followed by working out of
the gill to the right and in again above the obstacle, and this way has
commended itself to later climbers.
'There are six large pitches and several small ones. The total climb
must be 500 ft., and the climbing is of exceptional interest all the
way.'
=Shamrock=, in Cumberland, stands just east of the _Pillar Rock_,
divided from it only by _Walker's Gully_.
Seen from _Scarf Gap_ it looks very well, and its outline can with
difficulty be distinguished from that of the main rock. It derives its
name (bestowed on it about 1882) from this deceptive character. The face
of it towards the north affords a good climb, and on the east side there
is a gully, which is choked near the top by a block, which makes one of
the stiffest pitches in all Cumberland. It was first climbed, with the
aid of deep snow, by a party led by Messrs. Hastings and E. Haskett
Smith in March 1887, and in December 1890 Mr. Hastings succeeded in
repeating his ascent without any snowdrift to help him, as did Dr.
Collier exactly two years later.
=Sharp Edge=, on Saddleback, runs along the north side of Scales Tarn.
Mr. Prior's 'Guide' observes: 'The ascent (or descent) by this Edge is
considered something of an exploit, but without sufficient reason. To a
giddy head, indeed, it is unquestionably several degrees worse than
Striding Edge, which it somewhat resembles; possibly, to a head so
constituted, just without the limits of safety, as Striding Edge is
decidedly well within them. The main difficulty lies in the descent of
the cliff above the "Edge," and in the two or three rocky knolls by
which this cliff connects itself with the latter, and from which there
is an unpleasant drop on each side.... Excepting _head_, however, no
other quality of a cragsman is required for Sharp Edge; the footing is
ample, and the hands would be less called into requisition than even on
Striding Edge.'
This is a very just estimate, but it need hardly be said that not only
Sharp Edge but also those on the Threlkeld side undergo marvellous
changes in winter, and then give splendid chances of real mountaineering
practice.
=Shuttenoer= is mentioned by more than one of the old authorities as one
of the rocks at Lowdore between which the water falls. My belief is that
the intelligent travellers of that date, not having mastered the
'Cummerlan' mak o' toak,' mistook for the name of the rock what was
merely intended for a casual description of it, namely, 'Shuttan'
ower'--'shooting over,' 'projecting.'
=Sike=: a rill in marshy ground.
=Silver Howe= (1,345 ft.), near Grasmere, is only notable as being the
scene of the annual fell race, or 'Guides' race,' as it is sometimes
called, though there are few guides, and of them very few would have any
chance of success in this race. The course is uphill to a flag and down
again. The time is generally about ten minutes to go up and something
less than five minutes to come down. It is a pretty race to watch, but
the scientific interest for mountaineers would be increased if the
course were free from all obstacles and of accurately measured height
and length.
=Skew Gill.=--A curious deep channel in the Wastdale side of Great End,
giving a convenient approach to the foot of the gullies on the other
side. To go by Grainy Gill and this one, and so up Cust's Gully, has for
many years been the regulation expedition for the first day of a winter
sojourn at Wastdale Head.
=Skiddaw= (Cumberland, sh. 56) is 3,058 ft. high, 'with two heads like
unto _Parnassus_,' as old Camden observed, and Wordsworth and others
have repeated it after him. On this characteristic, which is not very
strongly marked, many derivations of the name have been based. In older
writings, however, the word much more commonly ends in _-ow_, a
termination which in countless instances represents the well-known word
'how.' Whatever its name may signify, Skiddaw is not a mountaineer's
mountain, and no amount of snow and ice can make it so. As a local bard
has truly sung:
Laal brag it is for any man
To clim oop Skidder side;
Auld wives and barns on Jackasses
To tippy twop ma ride.
It is true that there are great facilities for procuring gingerbeer on
the way, but even that luxury is scarcely an adequate compensation for
the complete absence of anything like a respectable rock on the
mountain. Keswick has Skiddaw almost entirely to itself, and on the
matter of routes it will be enough to say that by the back of Latrigg
and the gingerbeer shanties is the easiest way, and by Millbeck and
Carlside is the shortest and quickest, being made up of two miles of
good road and of two of steep fell as against five miles of easy
hillside.
The mountain used to enjoy a great reputation, and is put first in
Camden's 'Byword':
Skiddaw, Lauvellin and Casticand
Are the highest hills in all England,
and the early climbers of it were deeply impressed with the importance
of their adventurous undertaking.
Mrs. Radcliffe, in 1795, ascended 'this tremendous mountain,' and says
that when they were still more than a mile from the summit 'the air now
became very thin,' and 'the way was indeed dreadfully sublime.' On
reaching the top they 'stood on a pinnacle commanding the whole dome of
the sky,' but unluckily 'the German Ocean was so far off as to be
discernible only like a mist.'
Even Hutchinson remarks that, on the top, 'the air was remarkably sharp
and thin compared with that of the valley, and respiration seemed to be
performed with a kind of oppression.'
Skiddaw reserves what little natural ferocity it has for _Dead Crags_ on
the north side, but there are also a few rocky bits on the side which
faces Bassenthwaite Water.
=Smoking Rock= is at the head of _Great Doup_, east of the _Pillar
Stone_ and level with the ridge of the _Pillar Fell_. For fear of the
name being adduced as a proof of recent volcanic action it is well to
say that it is so called not as itself smoking, but because a well-known
climber of the old school loved to smoke an evening pipe upon it.
It affords a pleasant climb taken on the outside straight up from the
foot. This was done by a party of four, of whom the writer was one, on
June 5, 1889. See a note in the Wastdale Head Visitors' Book at p. 250.
=Somersetshire= has little to attract the mountaineer, except the very
remarkable limestone scenery on the south side of the Mendips at
Cheddar, Ebber and Wookey. There are magnificent cliffs and pinnacles,
especially at the first-named place, but not many bits of satisfactory
climbing. The cliffs are rotten at one point, unclimbably vertical at
another, and perhaps at a third the climber is pestered by clouds of
angry jackdaws. Ebber Rocks are rather more broken, but on the whole the
climbing is not worth much at either place, though the scenery both
above ground and below it is such as no one ought to miss.
=Stand.=--See under _Broad Stand_.
=Steep Gill.=--On Scafell, forming the boundary of the Scafell Pillar on
the Mickledoor side. It contains a very striking vertical chimney more
than 50 ft. high, the upper part of which is rather a tight fit for any
but the slimmest figures. At the foot of this chimney on the right-hand
side there is an exit by which either the ridge of the Scafell Pillar
can be reached or the chimney circumvented. The Gill becomes very wet
and steep just below the top, and extreme care is necessary in following
it out on to the neck between Scafell Pillar and the mountain. Except in
dry weather this bit may be considered a little dangerous. It is usual
and more interesting to work out here by a grass ledge on the right on
to the Low Man. The Gill was discovered by the writer, and first climbed
by him and Mr. Robinson in September 1884. A note by the former in the
Visitors' Book at Wastdale Head describes it as 'a chimney of unusual
steepness and severity.' The name is quite recent.
=Steeple.=--In Cumberland, separated from _Pillar Fell_ by _Wind Gap_.
There are some grand scrambles on the Ennerdale side of it, and it is
extremely interesting to the student of mountain structure to note the
points of parallelism between this group and that of _Scafell_, _Wind
Gap_, of course, representing _Mickledoor_.
=Stirrup Crag=, on the north end of Yewbarrow, is probably the very
nearest climb to Wastdale Head, and may therefore be useful in cases
when a wet day clears up towards evening and exercise within easy reach
is required. The quickest way to it is to cross the beck by the bridge
behind the inn and go up the hill straight to the rectangular clump of
larches, and then on beyond it in the same direction. There is a nice
little climb on an isolated bit of rock, noted by Mr. Robinson in the
Wastdale book, at Easter in 1888. The little rock should be crossed from
north to south and the same course continued up to the open fell above,
after which a short descent towards Door Head, keeping rather to the
left hand, will bring to light several small but pretty rock-problems.
=Striding Edge=, a ridge on the east side of _Helvellyn_, is called in
one of the old maps _Strathon Edge_. The difficulties of it have been
absurdly exaggerated. Miss Braddon wrote amusingly about the exploits
upon it of a certain gallant colonel, identified by Colonel Barrow with
himself. In winter it is sometimes an exciting approach to _Helvellyn_,
in summer just a pleasant walk. The idea of its danger probably arose
from the celebrity given to the death of Charles Gough by the poems of
Scott and Wordsworth.
=Sty Head.=--This name applies to the top only of the pass from
Borrowdale to Wastdale, though often incorrectly used to designate the
whole way from Seathwaite to Wastdale Head. The natives always speak of
the whole pass as _The Sty_ or _The Stee_. Hutchinson says, and the
statement has been repeated by Lord Macaulay, that this was at one time
the only road between Keswick and the West Coast. It has lately been
proposed to construct a driving road across it, but the project is not
likely to be carried out for some time. The way is not easy to find on a
really dark night. Some years ago two tourists who had been benighted on
the pass wrote a most amusing account of their experiences in the
_Graphic_, and it is only a year or two since two well-known Cumberland
climbers were caught in the same ignominious fashion.
=Swarthbeck=, in Westmorland, and on the east shore of Ullswater and the
west slope of _Arthur's Pike_, would appear to be identical with the
'chasm' noticed by Mr. Radcliffe in 1795. 'Among the boldest fells that
breast the lake on the left shore are _Holling Fell_ and _Swarth Fell_,
now no longer boasting any part of the forest of Martindale, but showing
huge walls of naked rock and scars which many torrents have inflicted.
One channel only in this dry season retained its shining stream. The
chasm was dreadful, parting the mountain from the summit to the base.'
It occurred to Messrs. T. and E. Westmorland, of Penrith, to explore it,
and they found it to be a capital little climb. They published a bright
and vigorous account of their climb in a Penrith paper, in consequence
of which a good sprinkling of climbers have been induced to visit it.
The writer has cause to remember the steepness of this gill, for on one
occasion, just as the last few feet of the climb were being done, the
alpenstocks, which had been a great impediment all the way up, slipped
and fell, and were afterwards found on the scree at the very bottom. The
steamers stop at Howtown, about a mile further up the lake, and the inn
at that place is much the most convenient place to start from.
=Tarn Crag= (Cumberland, sh. 57) is a precipitous bit of not very sound
rock, perhaps 200 to 300 ft. in height, rising on the south-west side of
Bowscale Tarn. There is a better-known crag of this name just by Scales
Tarn on Saddleback, and, in fact, they are exceedingly numerous, which
is natural enough, seeing that it is essential to every genuine tarn
that it should be more or less under a precipice of some sort.
=Toe-scrape.=--May be defined as 'foot-hold at or below its minimum.'
=Tors=, on _Dartmoor_ (q.v.).--The word is also found in Derbyshire,
though not there applied to quite the same kind of rock. The Ordnance
also give it in some instances in the North of England; but there it is
by no means clear that they have taken pains to distinguish it from the
sound of the word 'haw' when there is a final _t_ in the preceding word.
What, for instance, they call Hen Tor may be in reality Hent Haw. In
Scotland _tor_ is, of course, a common component in place names.