Date: 26th July 2018
Start/Finish: Rosthwaite Hotel
Wainwrights: Castle Crag (951 feet)
Distance: 5.6 Miles
Height Gain: 2080 Feet
Time Taken: A very leisurely 4 hours
Social Hiking Map Link
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| The Route: Clockwise from the Rosthwaite Hotel |
Castle Crag is a bit of an outlier as it doesn't easily link up with any surrounding fells without significant height loss. Its nearest neighbours of High Spy to the west and Grange Fell to the east are best climbed in a circuit of their respective neighbouring fells. For this reason, Castle Crag is often the last Wainwright climbed on the circuit of 214. However, I was in the area on a family camping holiday and it was a balmy windless day ideal for a low fell with good views. So instead of marching my 11 year old lad up one of the high fells we decided to tackle something lower. Castle Crag fitted the bill nicely, especially as part of a circuit of the Borrowdale valley. It also had the advantage of finishing by the River Derwent where we could cool off afterwards.
We parked on the Rosthwaite Hotel car park and duly paid the £3 all day fee. The walk took us on a wide circular route out towards Seatoller and then looping back towards Castle Crag before descending steeply down to the Derwent.
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| Views over to Stonethwaite |
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| First sight of Castle Crag (centre left) |
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| Surveying the destination |
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| A steep ascent |
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| Remnants of previous quarrying |
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| Views southwards from the ascent path |
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| Slate cairns |
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| Summit views of Derwent Water |
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| The summit |
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| Cooling off in the Derwent |
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| Those fish were actually nibbling our toes! |
