Sadly, unless we have sunshine, most people moan and complain about our weather.
Considering we have many more dull or wet days than sunny warm days, those people must be miserable the majority of their lives!
On a very wet and misty day on the last day of Winter, March 20th.
Myself and a friend set off into the misty hills on Subberthwaite Common which can be a very bleak place at any time. My companion on the day wanted to learn some map-reading skills, so these were the perfect conditions for that.
Our walk began from Blawith Church and from there we walked up the narrow road leading up to Tottlebank, Subberthwaite Common and eventually up onto Blawith Knot. We couldn’t see Blawith Knot, due to the heavy mist, even though the fell stood right above us.
This was a place that most people would consider the last place Earth to take a walk in such ‘dull’ conditions, not weather hardened country folk like us though. Anyhow I think weather like that brings out the child that lies deep within all of us. The child within us who likes to splash in the puddles, the child who likes to get soaking wet and step into the gloomy mystical fog.
We walked for about 4km before getting to the road that lies at the foot of Blawith Knot, we knew the fell was there; our map told us so!. I guess that not being able to see the fell gave us the urge to venture to the top, an urge to be up in the mist where nobody in the whole world could see us, giving us a total feeling of isolation.
Walking up was quite easy and it wasn’t long before we reached the summit, a summit that has two cairns. Looking around we could probably see no more than 10-20 meters and there was an eerie feeling in the cold wind and heavy mist. It was like a scene from ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles,’ or some other ‘Hammer Horror’ film!
Anyhow we had to get back down so by the use of our trusted map and compass we took a 96˚ reading and headed down into the cold mist.
We were hopefully heading towards a stream, a stream that would, if found, lead us eventually back to the main path at the foot of the fell. we had not been walking for very long when, through the cold grey gloom, we could hear the sound of a bubbling stream. This was the stream we wanted and we used it as a handrail to find our path, this is a good skill to use in bad visiblilty.
Reaching the path back to where we began made us reflect on what had been a lovely walk, a walk in conditions that most other folk would have shivered at and turned their central-heating up another notch. Walking in ‘bad’ weather can be a very good experience and I just wish more people would appreciate how lucky we are to have such a diverse weather system, how boring would it be if we had nothing but sunshine and warmth?
I think it was Alfred Wainwright who said:
“There is no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes.”
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