SEDBERGH VIA RAVENSTONEDALE - 7th June 2026

 Photo: by Claire D

Steph set off with Lorna and Martin for Firbank Fell in dull and windy conditions. Navigation was fairly straightforward and they were soon on the descent to the well sign posted Dales Way.  Lunch was taken at the Lune Viaduct, where they were able to shelter from a strengthening wind. At Lincoln's Inn Bridge they decided to ignore the 'impassable' post on the net and progressed past Luneside with no problems.  Near Brigflatts they rested next to the calm river in much warmer and less windy conditions. It was here that they saw a Kingfisher. Finally they followed the River Rawthey south of Sedbergh to New Bridge and walked along the road to the coach. Lorna commented on the large number of wild flowers throughout the walk. 12 miles in total.

Paul’s group left the coach at junction 37 of the M6 and headed west, an area few of them had been in before, with the wind largely behind them on this section. There was a little bit of a problem finding the start of the final stretch of path where the signpost pointed straight through a garden with no apparent exit. After detouring around the house to get to the field behind, an exit gate was visible with a bush conveniently planted in the garden to obscure it. One would think the owners would prefer to have walkers leaving their property quickly by making the exit clear rather than have a group of people wandering around searching. Anyway, the Dales Way was soon upon the group and the planned route was followed into Sedbergh, covering the full 13 miles and just under 2,000 ft of overall ascent. And it stayed dry!

On his solo walk Alan varied his walk slightly to that which was on the card. He left the coach at M6 junction 37, started on the A684, then took bridleways and footpaths towards the Howgills. These are not paths that are walked very often! There were firmly locked gates to climb and even a barbed wire fence to get round, and very few signs to help. At one point he wandered into a farmyard at Ghyll Farm, and met a farmer. He was really friendly, and said very few people could ever find where the bridleway went. He showed Alan where to walk through his farm to get to where he needed to be. He finally arrived at Lincoln's Inn Bridge, went through Underwinder, along Howgilll Lane then up to Winder. It was so windy on the summit he abandoned his plan to climb up Arant Haw and went instead across to Crook. It was all a bit wild, so he descended down Soolbank into a much quieter Sedbergh.

Stuart being responsible for the co-ordination of the transport and group arrangements, found it a relief when the various 'drop offs' for the four led, and two private, parties went to plan.

He was a little concerned initially regarding the first drop off at junction 37, as technically they were on the hard shoulder, although when he Google Earthed it, there were halt signs on the carriageway alongside, so quite safe really!

The drop offs at Tebay and then Newbiggin both went to plan, with Gerry turning off the route to disembark.

John and Stu were the last off at Ravenstonedale, a really pretty little village that is deceptively bigger than it looks from the A685.

The village from the back road, spreads south for about half a mile, revealing a towered church, a second pub and hotel along with lovely stone-built houses and cottages. The southern tip is named Town Head, and after this the open landscape begins.

They followed a muddy at times bridleway, rising up to open fells at Snowfell End. Here, the so called 'bridleway' started to disappear, map and compass work assisted by GPS becoming necessary.

The planned route to Grere Fell, their highest intended point on the walk, was slightly foiled by the rough tussocky ground, devoid of any path they could detect! They skirted this summit to descend to Adamthwaite, a small farm tucked into the valley between Harter Fell and Wandale Hill.

Climbing again and following the 'bridleway', they skirted Wandale Hill, again over rough ground, eventually locating the path which took them past the forlorn remains of 'Mountain View' house, once a fine building.

Reaching Narthwaite, another little Rawthey Valley farm, they rattled along a good path which is now part of 'A Pennine Journey' long distance route.

Stu wouldn’t recommend the early part of this route, especially in poor weather, as locating any pathway was impossible.

Pausing near Cautley for lunch, the awesome Cautley Spout waterfalls could be seen. Climbed many times, this was not their route today, as the Pennine Journey pathway took them south along the valley, down to the River Rawthey and into Sedbergh via delightful footpaths and through the school playing fields.

A great place to end the walk, the little town of Sedbergh has some nice pubs and cafes to relax and refresh in.

Garry’s group got off the coach at Newbiggin and headed straight towards the fells, however before they could even start ascending, they encountered the jungle that is Weasdale Nature Reserve. After battling through that, they started the long ascent to Green Bell where they met some horses and Mike's horse whispering came to the fore again!! Setting off again, and gaining height we experienced the significant headwinds which would be with us for the rest of the day. Along the ridge of Green Bell and Randygill Top, lovely views into the lower valleys especially Weasdale were had.   

Then came the most difficult bit of the 'walk', descending into Bowderdale. While walking down was popular, they found sliding down on their backsides was far more efficient and significantly easier! Being on the bottom of the valley meant the wind was significantly less strong and so a spot of lunch was had there. 

After lunch they then proceeded along Bowderdale through the obstacle course that was crossing the myriad of streams in full flow after the week of rain we've had. A positive of all of the rain however was that Cautley Spout was in full flow, which was viewable several times from the pass at the top of Bowderdale all the way to Cautley Spout itself. A weasel was scouting just above Cautley Spout where they crossed to climb up their second significant climb of the day along Cautley Crags. Views to the east were also good, with only the haze preventing even better ones. They carried on ascending to Calders (the highest point of the day) before descending via Sickers Fell into Sedbergh. A tough but enjoyable 11 miles.

Keith's group left the coach at Tebay to walk the full length of the Howgills from North to South. They summited the peaks of Blease Fell, Uldale Head, Hand Lake, Docker Knott, Bush Howe, White Hill, The Calf, Bram Rigg Top, Great Dummacks, Calders and Sickers Fell.  As the group began the walk, they passed the wild ponies at the base of the fells which was a clear warning of what the conditions were like on top. Although the rain stayed away, the wind was a very different matter. The group spent the day walking at strange angles to stay on their feet meaning what should have been an easy walk was quite demanding. Overall a pleasant day was had by all with 14 miles and 3000ft of ascent completed.

Thanks as usual to the leaders who had to deal with both navigation and the elements to bring their charges home safely - Keith, Steph, Garry, Paul C, Stu and Alan.

And to the photographers for another selection of great photos in trying conditions - Howie, Claire D, Neil O, Darren, Dawn, Steph, Mike K, Karen, Chris, Pam B, Michelle, Stu and Alan.

Click HERE to open the photo album.

Click HERE to see Darren's great 'The Howgill Fells and The Calf' video.

Next Walks:

Sunday 21^st June 2026 – Braithwaite

5.30 p.m. departure

Northbound to Preston, M6 north to junction 40, A66 westbound towards Braithwaite. Park at the Braithwaite end of the minor road that runs on the north side of the A66 from just after Portinscale. Morning coffee stop at Tebay services.

Sunday 5^th July 2026 – Betws-y-Coed via Ogwen

5.30 p.m. departure

M57 south, Mersey Gateway Bridge, M56, A55 westbound to junction 11, A5 through Bethesda, Ogwen, Capel Curig and on to Betws-y-Coed. Park in Betws-y-Coed. Return via outbound route. Morning coffee stop at Chester services, M56.

Sunday 19^th July 2026 – Wythburn to Grasmere

5.30 p.m. departure

Northbound to Preston, M6 north to junction 36, A590/A591 though Ambleside and over Dunmail Raise to Wythburn, where the coach will turn round and return on the A591 to Grasmere. Park in Grasmere.  Morning coffee stop at Burton services.