0:00:04 > 0:00:10Nestled in the far north-west of England, this is the Lake District.
0:00:10 > 0:00:13A land defined by its natural beauty.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25And known to millions who love the Lakes
0:00:25 > 0:00:31was the late Alfred Wainwright, author, guide writer and talented artist.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34But above all, he was the greatest fell-walker.
0:00:37 > 0:00:42Wainwright's Guides have inspired generations of walkers to roam these glorious fells.
0:00:42 > 0:00:49Now, a century after his birth, it's my turn to go in search of the real Wainwright experience.
0:01:13 > 0:01:19Today I'm at the northernmost tip of the Lake District, ready to tackle my first true mountain.
0:01:19 > 0:01:24At 2,847ft, this is firmly in the big league of English fells.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28And there she is - Blencathra.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36I've read that Wainwright truly loved this fell.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39Today I want to find out why.
0:01:39 > 0:01:45Out of all 214 fells, what made him devote more pages to Blencathra than any other?
0:01:56 > 0:01:58Now I haven't climbed anything like this for years.
0:01:58 > 0:02:04So I'm going to need all the help I can get off Wainwright and his guide to the Northern Fells.
0:02:07 > 0:02:13First published over 50 years ago, Wainwright's handwritten and illustrated guides to the Lakes
0:02:13 > 0:02:16have sold over a million copies.
0:02:16 > 0:02:21They've become the bible for those who want to get the best out of England's largest National Park
0:02:21 > 0:02:25and as a novice climber, they're pretty much all I've got to go on.
0:02:28 > 0:02:34The first thing you notice about Blencathra is what a great big hulk of mountain it actually is.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38I mean look at it. All the different slopes, the ridges,
0:02:38 > 0:02:42the colours you can see from here, dark crevices you want to get into.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44Definitely intimidating.
0:02:51 > 0:02:57The next thing you notice is this - a big, fat A road right at the foot of the mountain -
0:02:57 > 0:03:00the A66. Which is nice(!)
0:03:07 > 0:03:09Wainwright must have hated this.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15When he published his Blencathra guide in 1962,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19this road was nothing but a plan in the minds of local authorities.
0:03:19 > 0:03:21But Wainwright made his opposition perfectly clear.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25The present road policy in the Lake District,
0:03:25 > 0:03:30of generally turning highways into racetracks, is surely wrong.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34It is an offence against good taste to sacrifice their character
0:03:34 > 0:03:39to satisfy speeding motorists and roadside picnickers.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43But Blencathra remained a very important fell for Wainwright.
0:03:43 > 0:03:49And to explain it's significance I'm meeting someone who knows his work intimately.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53Chris Jesty is halfway through a complete revision of Wainwright's original guides.
0:03:53 > 0:03:58Every path, scree and cairn is being checked and updated.
0:03:58 > 0:04:03Some might say that it's a bit of a poisoned chalice to take on updating a Wainright book.
0:04:03 > 0:04:09I must say, when I first thought that I was going to do it three years ago
0:04:09 > 0:04:12it hung about me like a black cloud -
0:04:12 > 0:04:16I didn't want to do it. Because I knew and what nobody else knew how much work was involved.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20I'd have liked to have done it in his lifetime so he could comment.
0:04:20 > 0:04:22But unfortunately he can't now.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25Why you? What was your relationship with Wainwright?
0:04:25 > 0:04:32Ah well. In 1972 I published a guide to the Summit of Snowdon.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35And this is rather like the panoramas in his books.
0:04:35 > 0:04:41I sent him a copy of this and I got a very pleasant letter saying how much he liked the panorama...
0:04:41 > 0:04:46- So he was your critic?- Yes. And if I had any letter from Wainwright,
0:04:46 > 0:04:48I'd have been delighted.
0:04:48 > 0:04:53To have Wainwright saying he liked the panoramas was just too much.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55What's the highlight for me up there on Blencathra?
0:04:55 > 0:05:00Well, the Sharp Edge route would be recommended I think, by Wainwright,
0:05:00 > 0:05:05because in the final pages of the final volume
0:05:05 > 0:05:08he gives his six favourite mountains,
0:05:08 > 0:05:14and that includes Bencathra, and also six favourite places to be, apart from summits.
0:05:14 > 0:05:20And he mentions Sharp Edge on that. Sharpe Edge is the most difficult of all the ascents
0:05:20 > 0:05:24of any of the mountains because of the, it's just rock-climbing, really.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26- Have you done it?- I attempted it.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30This was 1993, and I couldn't get up it.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33So I wouldn't attempt it now. I had a look at it from the bottom
0:05:33 > 0:05:36then I went up and had a look at it from the top, and that's enough for me.
0:05:36 > 0:05:42So the man that's updating Wainwright's Walks hasn't tackled Sharp Edge?
0:05:42 > 0:05:46Well, if it was me doing it, I would go a different way up.
0:05:46 > 0:05:47Thank you!
0:05:47 > 0:05:52I can't deny I'm slightly concerned that a man like Chris Jesty chooses to look at
0:05:52 > 0:05:55rather than climb Sharp Edge.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58I'm hoping it will be the climax of my walk today.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02But before I start, let's take a look at the route I'll be taking.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19Starting from the Inn at Scales Village, I'll be leaving the main road behind.
0:06:26 > 0:06:31To begin, there's a steady ascent through the dense bracken of the lower fell.
0:06:31 > 0:06:36Things should get steeper as I reach the side of the great hollow known as Mousthwaite Combe.
0:06:39 > 0:06:45The path here zig-zags up the side of the Combe before edging its way round the top of the rim.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51At the top of the Combe, I'll head north at the crossroads,
0:06:51 > 0:06:54following the valley of the Glenderamackin River.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01From here I should be able to get a clear view of the mountain's summit
0:07:01 > 0:07:07and the distinctive plateau top that lends the mountain its alternative name - Saddleback.
0:07:09 > 0:07:14Leaving the river, there's a short ascent to the secluded Scales Tarn.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18The Tarn is a perfect rest spot and also the access point for Sharp Edge.
0:07:20 > 0:07:25And this is what I'll be facing - Blencathra's jagged ridge of rock.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28The Edge is the shortest, most direct
0:07:28 > 0:07:32and easily the most treacherous approach to any peak in the Lakes.
0:07:33 > 0:07:39But my reward for this route should be a gentle and very satisfying stroll
0:07:39 > 0:07:41across the saddle to the peak.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45But back at the A66, that reward is a long way away.
0:07:47 > 0:07:522,847ft - that's a pretty decent climb.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55Be nice to get away from the road as well.
0:08:00 > 0:08:06People who knew him, claim that this was the only fell Wainwright truly completed.
0:08:06 > 0:08:10In the winter of 1960 he devoted himself to climbing and mapping this -
0:08:10 > 0:08:13the south side of the mountain.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16Everywhere else? There's probably some small stream
0:08:16 > 0:08:20or scree slope that he never got round to recording.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22But not Blencathra.
0:08:24 > 0:08:29- DISTANT TRAFFIC - The old A66 - can still hear it, nice and loud.
0:08:33 > 0:08:41With so many people speeding past its base, Blencathra is one of the most familiar landmarks in Lakeland.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44It stands alone, the last great outpost in the region,
0:08:44 > 0:08:48giving climbers a view right across to the Pennines.
0:08:51 > 0:08:55And to begin with at least, it really is a gentle climb.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58The path meanders round the edge of Mousthwaite Combe,
0:08:58 > 0:09:02although I know that at some point I'm going to be reminded of what's coming up ahead.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Now there's a sort of mini crossroads here.
0:09:18 > 0:09:23A faint path coming up the hill that way, a strong one across the mountain.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29But I know I've got to follow the river, the river Glenderamackin.
0:09:29 > 0:09:34And there are two valleys, but this just looks like the more obvious path, so this must be the way.
0:09:43 > 0:09:48Aha! There is a sliver of silver which is the river, so this is the right way.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50There's a real cloud hanging over Blencathra today.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53I walked through a bit of it back there, so my hair's gone all curly.
0:09:53 > 0:09:58I hope that it lifts off Sharp Edge because you don't want to tackle Sharp Edge in pea soup,
0:09:58 > 0:10:00which is what that is.
0:10:09 > 0:10:14The weather is one of the enduring characteristics of the Lake District.
0:10:16 > 0:10:23No number of weather forecasts will ever enable the walker to venture forth with total confidence.
0:10:23 > 0:10:29This is a world of microclimates, where one valley basks in sun whilst the next runs for cover.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37But today it seems I might just be very lucky.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44The whole atmosphere of the walk changes about here.
0:10:44 > 0:10:50You tip over that edge into the bosom of the valley and suddenly the road noise has gone
0:10:50 > 0:10:55and all you can hear is the river gushing through the valley down below, and the odd sheep.
0:10:55 > 0:10:56It's lovely.
0:11:02 > 0:11:03Wainwright would have loved this.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06A beautiful valley,
0:11:06 > 0:11:07blue skies
0:11:07 > 0:11:11and not a soul in sight.
0:11:11 > 0:11:13I've got the place to myself.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04Despite 19 million visitors a year, the Lakes still offers
0:12:04 > 0:12:07one of England's best opportunities for escapism.
0:12:07 > 0:12:10And that was half the appeal for Wainwright.
0:12:10 > 0:12:14I do prefer my own company to that of other people.
0:12:16 > 0:12:20The tinkling of a mountain stream, the twittering of birds,
0:12:20 > 0:12:24the sound of wind sighing across the mountaintops...
0:12:24 > 0:12:26That's music to me.
0:12:33 > 0:12:34Wow!
0:12:36 > 0:12:39Unless I'm very much mistaken, that is Sharp Edge.
0:12:39 > 0:12:44In fact I know I'm not mistaken because it looks exactly like that in Wainwright's book.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46That jagged silhouette is unmistakeable.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52It looks impossible to climb but there are little ants on the top.
0:12:52 > 0:12:55'And that's what I'm meant to be doing.'
0:13:08 > 0:13:12From here on, Blencathra begins to feel like a genuine mountain.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24Phew! Steep incline.
0:13:28 > 0:13:34For the walker in search of a raw fell-climbing experience, Blencathra scores highly.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38The Lakes these days are littered with specially constructed footpaths, a necessary step
0:13:38 > 0:13:43to protect the fells from tens of thousands of visitors every year.
0:13:43 > 0:13:49Blencathra, for now at least, remains amazingly free from man-made paths,
0:13:49 > 0:13:53leaving me to enjoy the mountain just as Wainwright first found it.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08Ah! This is just a classic Lake District scene, and it's beautiful.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13This is Scales Tarn, just at the base of Sharp Edge
0:14:13 > 0:14:17and there's something so magical about these pools of water.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21Perfect spot for lunch.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32Scales Tarn is one of hundreds of tarns in this area.
0:14:32 > 0:14:34They're a real feature of the Lake District
0:14:34 > 0:14:38and mark the spot where huge basins of snow and ice once gathered.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Many of these became so massive that they spilled over
0:14:41 > 0:14:47to form the glaciers that carved out so much of the Lake District environment.
0:14:47 > 0:14:49Ten thousand years later,
0:14:49 > 0:14:54the ice has long gone and all that remains are these great natural bowls,
0:14:54 > 0:14:56where water gathers, forming a tarn.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05I feel like a speck of dirt
0:15:05 > 0:15:07by a plughole
0:15:07 > 0:15:09in an enormous basin.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12It's really imposing.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17It's like a giant amphitheatre.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44We know how much Wainwright enjoyed being on his own in the Lakes.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46That's almost impossible these days.
0:15:46 > 0:15:51You have moments of solitude, moments of peace and quiet, but this is clearly a mecca for lunchers.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57Wainwright's particular pet-hate was school parties -
0:15:57 > 0:16:04long caterpillars of 40 kids that he insisted would have to share just one cheery hello from him.
0:16:09 > 0:16:12One thing you do notice from down here is,
0:16:12 > 0:16:18as craggy as Sharp Edge looks, once you make it, it's completely flat along the top,
0:16:18 > 0:16:20all the way round.
0:16:26 > 0:16:31But reading my Wainwright leaves me in no doubt about the challenge I've got first, though.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34Sharp Edge is a rising crest of naked rock.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37A breaking wave carved in stone.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42The sight of it at close quarters is sufficient to make a beholder
0:16:42 > 0:16:47about to tackle it forget all other worries, even a raging toothache!
0:16:49 > 0:16:51"The crest itself is sharp enough for shaving.
0:16:51 > 0:16:57"The former name was Razor Edge, and can be traversed only at some risk of damage to tender parts.
0:16:57 > 0:17:02"There is one awkward place calling for a shuffle off a sloping slab onto a knife edge.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06"Countless posteriors have imparted a high polish to this spot."
0:17:06 > 0:17:10I think my posterior might be polishing it as well!
0:17:16 > 0:17:18Right, it's time to tackle Sharp Edge.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21And it's time to let you into a little secret as well.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26No big surprise, I'm not actually completely on my own.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29There is a camera crew with me.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32And amongst the crew is the lovely David,
0:17:32 > 0:17:35who just checks that we don't do anything horribly wrong.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38It's a health and safety thing, because David is our mountain goat.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40- You don't mind me calling you that do you?- No, no.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42You've been walking these hills for how long?
0:17:42 > 0:17:45- A long time.- A long time - are we going into decades?
0:17:45 > 0:17:47- Yes, many decades.- Many decades.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51So there's nothing you don't know about probably every square inch of this place.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53I know a fair bit of Lake District.
0:17:53 > 0:17:57- I am going to make it, aren't I? - Absolutely - no problem. Absolutely not.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00My reputation depends on it!
0:18:00 > 0:18:03Today, visibility is good, it's not wet...
0:18:03 > 0:18:04No, dry rock, it'll be good.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07Cloud has gone, OK. I think we should just go for it.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09- Absolutely. - Come on then. And grab your bag.
0:18:09 > 0:18:10Just mind this crew.
0:18:16 > 0:18:22Not only is David a mountain guide with a vast local knowledge, he's also a fanatical fell-runner.
0:18:22 > 0:18:27He celebrated his last birthday by running 48 miles across 30 peaks.
0:18:27 > 0:18:32A ridiculous feat, made even more surprising because it was his 60th birthday!
0:18:38 > 0:18:41A glorious day. Have you noticed that everybody speaks to everybody?
0:18:41 > 0:18:44Which I like. Yeah.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46Not like that in London, you know.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48I've only ever been to London three times.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56Do you think you know the fells as well as Wainwright did?
0:18:56 > 0:18:59No, absolutely not. He spent months on one single mountain.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02Finding every single way to the top.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05Every route, ridge, he knew everything about them.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08And his guidebooks are definitive. The way he does the perspective
0:19:08 > 0:19:11drawings of the path going up the fell.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15No-one before or since has written books that come anywhere near him.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24He used to sleep out on the fells rather than go home.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27And the books he wrote purely as an aide memoire,
0:19:27 > 0:19:32for when he couldn't go up the mountains himself in his later years.
0:19:32 > 0:19:3536 pages he wrote on this mountain,
0:19:35 > 0:19:38just unbelieveable. Anyway, we're getting to the serious bit now.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41This has all been not too bad - so far.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45We'll just take our time and not do anything silly.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47You should go first.
0:19:47 > 0:19:52Wainwright always liked to send people first so they saw things for the first time.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57The wind's picking up now.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01It is. It'll just add a little frisson to our expedition.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05As if we didn't need anything else.
0:20:09 > 0:20:12Now, that looks nice and not so hard up there, David.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14Yes, but that's not where you're going. Up the gulley. Come on.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24Just...you have to think three points of contact.
0:20:24 > 0:20:26Three points of contact?
0:20:26 > 0:20:30- So obviously both feet.- And one hand or...- I'm not going one-legged!
0:20:36 > 0:20:40Is this particular bit called anything else?
0:20:40 > 0:20:44I don't think so. It's all part of Sharp Edge until we get
0:20:44 > 0:20:47to the steep bit there which is called Foule Crag.
0:20:49 > 0:20:54It's totally different. There, you can't just balance across. You have to use hands and feet.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58- Even you?- Even I will use my hands on that bit.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01Sorry I've let you go again.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05- I should wait for you.- That's fine.
0:21:05 > 0:21:10Don't worry about me - I'll just keep using my hands.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30- Aha!- Well, this is the exposed bit.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33The thing to do is just to go across it.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37- Shall I go first? - Yeah, please do go first.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41All you need is good balance and watch where you're putting your feet. Use your hands.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44What if I said I didn't have great balance?
0:21:45 > 0:21:49Well, now's the time to discover that you do.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52OK, I'm gonna do my three point thing if that's alright.
0:21:52 > 0:21:53That's OK.
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Look at you just walking across.
0:21:59 > 0:22:02This is where we have to be careful of those tender parts.
0:22:02 > 0:22:04Wainwright, ooh! 'Allo!
0:22:12 > 0:22:14And then we get to the big slabs.
0:22:17 > 0:22:19- Room for a picnic up here.- OK.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28- Am I being a bit too cautious? - No, no. Shall we try full height?
0:22:34 > 0:22:37- OK.- Yeah?- Yeah.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40- Just not looking.- That's all right.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42Ooh, bit windy.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46I probably look quite pathetic.
0:22:46 > 0:22:49But I don't care.
0:22:49 > 0:22:50It looks quite high from up here.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52My heart's going boom, boom, boom.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57- Is that the hard bit done?- Yeah.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59Yay! Thank you.
0:23:03 > 0:23:08For me, there's a real buzz about completing something that genuinely makes you nervous.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11And heights are definitely not my thing.
0:23:11 > 0:23:16But the reward for getting across the Edge is Foule Crag, the final steep climb to the summit plateau.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22Remember, three points of contact.
0:23:22 > 0:23:23I'm right behind you.
0:23:34 > 0:23:39Try and keep your body away from the rocks so you can see what you're doing with your feet.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43That's it.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48You've got the bit between your teeth now, haven't you?
0:23:48 > 0:23:50I can... Smell the summit!
0:23:50 > 0:23:53Success. Yes.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00Unlike David, I'm no rock-climber, so there's a real sense of achievement
0:24:00 > 0:24:03in completing something that felt truly adventurous.
0:24:03 > 0:24:08Having got over Sharp Edge, I really feel I know what Wainwright
0:24:08 > 0:24:12meant when he called Blencathra "a mountaineer's mountain".
0:24:14 > 0:24:17- Nearly there.- Yeah, not very far.
0:24:17 > 0:24:21Just before you go, just look back and see where you've come from. Isn't that just superb?
0:24:21 > 0:24:24You see, that's quite impressive.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28- Yeah. It looks like a Sharp Edge from here.- It certainly does.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31You can really see the bowl into which the tarn is set.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35Without you, I wouldn't have done it at all, I've got to say, David.
0:24:35 > 0:24:36Thank you.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39Well, this is the best bit of the walk, isn't it?
0:24:39 > 0:24:42You can look back and take in the views from up here.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45- Well, you haven't sent the best bit yet anyway.- No.
0:24:47 > 0:24:52David, where do you stand on this name game? Saddleback vs Blencathra.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55- Well, Blencathra has to be it for me. It has to be.- Because?
0:24:55 > 0:24:58Well, it just rolls off the tongue so nicely, doesn't it?
0:24:58 > 0:24:59It's more romantic, isn't it?
0:24:59 > 0:25:04And it's the ancient name. Saddleback is the Victorian name.
0:25:04 > 0:25:08We're just walking through what the Victorians call the saddle of Saddleback.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12It just doesn't sound the same to say, "Oh I've tackled Saddleback."
0:25:12 > 0:25:16It isn't as impressive as "I've tackled Blencathra! I got to the summit!"
0:25:16 > 0:25:19And yet the OS still can't make their minds up,
0:25:19 > 0:25:24one or the other, so they list it as both. Wainwright would only have Blencathra.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28- I like Blencathra too. - OK, we'll go for that.
0:25:31 > 0:25:34- Made it!- Yep, well done.
0:25:34 > 0:25:38And what magnificent views, but all around you.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41There's isn't a bad looking view in any direction.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44We've got Criffel in Scotland over there for a start.
0:25:47 > 0:25:52- Which water is that? - Derwentwater, just below Keswick.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55- Thirlmere over here.- Yep. And this mountain range straight ahead of us?
0:25:55 > 0:26:00That's Clough Head, onto the Dodds and way up onto Helvellyn.
0:26:00 > 0:26:07And over here is Skiddaw, and Skiddaw Little Man which overlook Keswick, dominate Keswick.
0:26:07 > 0:26:15And then further left you come onto down below, just above Derwentwater -
0:26:15 > 0:26:18Catbells, great favourite with lots of people who go to Keswick.
0:26:18 > 0:26:23And that runs onto Dalehead, Hind Scarth and Robinson.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26There's not a fell you don't know, man!
0:26:26 > 0:26:28It's ridiculous!
0:26:28 > 0:26:31Whether you know the peaks or not,
0:26:31 > 0:26:36the view from nearly 3,000 feet up is undeniably spectacular
0:26:36 > 0:26:40and you feel utterly detached from the world below.
0:26:40 > 0:26:45This may not be the highest spot in the Lakes, but it's one of the best known
0:26:45 > 0:26:49and, as I've just discovered, it's one of the toughest climbs around.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54There we go. Our spot is marked, atop the cairn.
0:26:54 > 0:26:55Well, that's good. Excellent. Well done.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59Now, Wainwright wasn't very impressed with this cairn was he?
0:26:59 > 0:27:03He loved the summit but overall, if you read the book here
0:27:03 > 0:27:07"And nothing marks the highest point but a poor untidy heap of rubble.
0:27:07 > 0:27:11"On occasions attempts are made to give the thing some shape and dignity, but until someone
0:27:11 > 0:27:16"carries up a few decent size blocks, the cairn will continue to disappoint by its insignificance."
0:27:16 > 0:27:20Well, there's a big one there. Shall I go and get it?
0:27:20 > 0:27:22Go on then. Rather him than me.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27I think he meant something even bigger, but nevertheless...
0:27:30 > 0:27:32We'll do something anyway.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34OK. Hurrah...
0:27:34 > 0:27:38We could have started the change in the cairn on the top of Blencathra.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41- It could become something significant.- David?
0:27:41 > 0:27:43Congratulations. Thank you very much.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49We know Wainwright thought this fell worthy of more pages than any other,
0:27:49 > 0:27:55but we'll never truly know whether Blencathra might just have been his all-time favourite.
0:27:55 > 0:28:01The great fell-walker was canny enough to keep this sort of information a close secret.
0:28:01 > 0:28:07But he did leave behind a comprehensive guide to one of the Lake's most dramatic climbs
0:28:07 > 0:28:13and left us in no doubt that whilst there are many saddlebacks, there is only one Blencathra.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23That's the Borrowdale valley in the heart of the Lakes, and that's where I'm heading next time.
0:28:23 > 0:28:29Now it's 2000ft lower than here and much flatter, but it's also the wettest point in England.
0:28:29 > 0:28:31So fingers crossed.
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