Rosthwaite Fell (Bessyboot)

Having parked at the school in Stonethwaite (£2.00 honesty box) we took the route, suggested by Wainwright, up by the side of Stanger Gill.  Walking through the small hamlet of Stonethwaite  with the Cumbrian Way on the other side of Stonethwaite Beck, the first challenge was to find the Big Stanger Gill. Once correctly identified, (just after crossing Little Stanger Gill, a shepherd opened the gate for us gate leading up the hllside into the trees and confirmed we were on the right track. His poor sheepdog was having a difficult time with one sheep who refused to be rounded up.  We soon found on old stone path heading upwards on the lest hand side of the gill covered with fallen leaves and moss making the stone extremely slippery and concentration was required to step on the horizontal stones or those inclined in towards the hillside otherwise a slip was a almost inevitable.
Climbing steeply by the beck the water was gushing down on our left and the crags above loomed through the trees, which had a few golden leaves remaining on their branches. The well made but obviously little used path continued up to above the tree line heading towards the cleft between the crags and then onto the flatter open hillside. Here the gill veered right the path follwing but soon crossing the stream on continuing now in a westerly direction with the stream to the south.
Our summit was now up to the left but we carried following the path to a distinct but small coll for which it was heading and then left the track to head straight up the hillside tot he summit cairn.
The weather was fine, the view down Borrowdale spectacular the high peaks revealing themselves as the cloud base lifted and the fell again. Sheltering from a cold wind on the top we had our lunch then headed south to Tarn at Leaves and the found the path heading initially down Rottenstone Gill hoping this would be a good path to take down to the valley. However the path soon became non existent and we pick our way down the hillside to the valley floor of Coombe Gill and then back along the paths to Stonethwaite.

The colours in the evening sun were spectacular

Time  3hrs 30mns

Grade  Excellent

Memories

• Charming climb by Big Stanger Gill
• Well made but old and slippery path
• Excellent half days walk

Completed 141  To go 73