Wasdale

The Walks
Wasdale is a top place for all things big in the Lake District. The Scafell massif is within easy reach here along with Great Gable and Pillar. The most imposing cliffs in the Lake District can be seen here while the stature of the mountains compares well with those summits in the Western Highlands of Scotland. It's a place loved by club members and was visited most years as a May Day Bank Holiday camping trip by MUHC.

Naturally the first thing to mention is the Scafell massif. This is comprised of Scafell, Scafell Pike, Broad Crag, Ill Crag, and Great End. There slopes are intricate with many features and thus it is worth a detailed exploration on a nice long day.

Scafell is a formidable mountain whose only easy way up faces away from the rest of the massif. This makes an even better excuse to explore the crags more closely. The col between Scafell and Scafell Pike is called Mickledore. The way up to Scafell from here is blocked by a rockface graded as a diff rockclimb by its easiest route. This necessitates a diversion using two options. The easier option is to go down towards Eskdale before ascending via Foxes Tarn. The other route is via the loose scurry up Lords Rake before being presented with two more options. The easy option continues along Lords Rake to the easy western slopes before heading up. The scary option involves an ascent of the West Wall Traverse which is a steep loose scrambly gully attained by leaving Lords Rake at some point.



Scafell Pike is the highest summit in England and can be reached from most directions by way of easy walking routes. It has many spectacular features. Most of these features aren't seen from the summit and are best seen on the plateau edge or from the lower slopes. One spectacular place is the Pulpit Rock (not the one at Prekestolen in Norway!). Try a short walk out onto it and you'll be rewarded with spectacular aerial views of Pikes Crag and Mickledore Buttress. A walk beneath these features is also worth doing. The side summit of Lingmell is worth ascending to see the steep crags overlooking Lingmell Beck and a peer down Piers Gill is worth it. Piers Gill is worth a closer look but it's worth remembering that the gill itself is the domain of the rock climber. The summits of Broad Crag and Ill Crag have some less visited features. This includes Little Narrowcove on the Eskdale side of the summits where steep slopes and huge cliffs hold the walkers with a great sense of awe. The western sides hold some shallow corries that provide some grassy picnic opportunities and are surprisingly quiet. Great End is described in more detail in the Borrowdale section. Great Gable is the next big summit to mention and is a classic mentioned in more detail in the Borrowdale section.



Kirkfell is a big bulky mountain with a large summit plateau that is quite grassy. The ascent straight up from Wasdale Head is unrelenting and steep and the route from Beck Head gives the least strenuous ascent. From the Pillar end, the ascent is either through a steep scrambly gully that is often loose and or up a ridge negotiating some scrambly outcrops.



Pillar, the next big mountain, has a very impressive face overlooking the Ennerdale valley. This has a path called the Shamrock Traverse and is very dramatic with long steep drops. The path visits the more impressive aspects of the mountain. One of the usual traverses of Pillar includes the Mosedale Horseshoe and sticks to the easy ridge lines. Some people also include Great Gable in this traverse while others are completely mad and include a dollop of the Scafell Massif in a day. The latter inclusion makes for a grand and challenging traverse.



Lower-level walks are somewhat limited in quality but a good round to include would be a circuit of Wastwater via the Wastwater screes. The screes are overlooked by dark brooding crags seamed with evil looking fissures. Other easy walks can be found to the west of Wasdale.

Eating and Drinking
Eating and drinking establishments are somewhat limited. The best pubs are in the vicinity of Nether Wasdale and are recommended by club members who have been on previous trips. There is also the Wasdale Head Inn at the head of the valley.

Travel
A train to Ravenglas can be taken but a long walk or a hitch is still needed to get in to Wasdale.