C2C Day 4: Patterdale to Shap

Previous: C2C Day 3 – Stonethwaite to Patterdale

Launch

There’s not much time to warm up leaving Patterdale before heading back up to the heights. It’s a difficult start to the day. Near the top you pass Angle Tarn, which I now call Canada Goose Tarn. I had no idea Canada Goose was alive and thriving in England. It made me feel like I was back in Denver’s City Park (or Washington Park or Sloan Lake or…)!

We were able to spy some people walking ahead of us and we followed their route. Don’t do this! There were so many roads up there that it was easy to get off the official C2C route. Not that it really matters much as long as you keep going up and in the right general direction. We saw that the people ahead realized they were also off route, so we ignored my own advice and followed their route back to the official C2C route.

The two toms

Near the top we passed two guys huddled behind a stone wall, and I realized it was the Union Jack-waving guy I’d seen yesterday. As we headed up Kidsty Pike, the highest point of the C2C, we found a spot sheltered from the wind and a light drizzle for a quick snack and a cup of tea when the same guys passed us. We chatted with both of them separately as the younger of the two was far ahead of the older. Then we discovered that they were father and son. Thus began our journey with the Two Toms or, as they both emphasized, Tom (the eldest) and Thomas (the youngest).

Children’s pike

It was exhilarating to be on Kidsty Pike and think about being at the top of the C2C, and doing it successfully without getting blown up. It was also a bit sad, because this meant we would soon be leaving the Lake District. But we still had to reach the 3.5 mile long Haweswater Reservoir. This descent is famous in tourist guides, but it didn’t seem as bad as its reputation. Yes, there is a very steep section, but overall it is a manageable descent.

We stopped for lunch halfway through Haweswater. It was much warmer down here and almost sunny at times. We received a lunch from our BnB host, but I didn’t pay for it. Oh! (By then we had learned that one lunch was enough for the two of us.)

There are some nice stretches of woodland along Haweswater. And throughout one section we saw a Red squirrelwithout fully appreciating at the time how special the event was, as we later discovered that red squirrels are endangered.

An important change in the scene

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