0:00:04 > 0:00:09Nestled 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 was
0:00:25 > 0:00:30the late Alfred Wainwright, author, guide writer and talented artist.
0:00:30 > 0:00:34But above all, he was the greatest fell walker.
0:00:36 > 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.
0:01:16 > 0:01:21Today I'm setting my sights on the toughest of all Wainwright's challenges.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24I've had a cooked breakfast, I've packed my lunch,
0:01:24 > 0:01:28you can see I've got my waterproofs, and it's not even eight o'clock.
0:01:31 > 0:01:37At 3,210 feet, Scafell Pike tops the charts of English peaks.
0:01:39 > 0:01:44I can't fully appreciate Wainwright's Lakeland until I've tackled its greatest fell.
0:01:44 > 0:01:49He described the Pike as the one objective above all others. A mecca.
0:01:50 > 0:01:55But I also want to know why Wainwright thought this particular fell walk was the finest of all.
0:01:59 > 0:02:04The crew and I have been waiting for three days for the right weather to tackle Scafell Pike
0:02:04 > 0:02:08and today, to be honest, might not be it. It feels like it could rain.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11And it looks like we're not the only ones trying it as well.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19Wainwright's recommended route starts at Seathwaite Farm
0:02:19 > 0:02:23near Seatoller village, right in the heart of the Lake District.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29It's a seven-hour round trip for most walkers.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33But much longer when there's a film crew tagging along.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41What you could find disconcerting about this walk, is that you can't
0:02:41 > 0:02:44see the destination, the goal isn't in sight.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46It's such a mountainous area.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50All I know is the summit is five miles in that direction.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54Luckily I'm meeting a man who's studied these peaks very closely.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03Whereas Wainwright famously roamed the fells with his pipe,
0:03:03 > 0:03:08there is another legend of this area who tackles things at a much faster pace.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11Jos Naylor is the most famous of all fell runners.
0:03:11 > 0:03:18A local sheep farmer by trade, but this is a man who ran to 70 peaks on his 70th birthday.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23And he once conquered all 214 Wainwright fells in just seven days.
0:03:26 > 0:03:31As a fell runner, you must know these parts better than Wainwright?
0:03:31 > 0:03:36Probably I think I've put in more miles than Wainwright has ever done.
0:03:36 > 0:03:43- An extraordinary record of yours is that you've covered all 214 fells in seven days.- The Wainwrights.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46It was a tribute to Wainwright really.
0:03:46 > 0:03:52I'd read most of his guidebooks and I thought they were well put together, well documented.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56I thought it would be a nice thing to do,
0:03:56 > 0:03:58to remember him in this way.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01On the last two days, I was running on empty.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05My mouth was very sore. My throat got an infection and I couldn't eat.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08You were running for the last two days with no food?
0:04:08 > 0:04:11No food. I was getting a bit of glucose and stuff like that.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14- So, you know...- And sleep, anything like that?
0:04:14 > 0:04:18I didn't sleep much. The last night we didn't lie down at all.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21You ran 70 fells on your 70th birthday.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Are you going to do 80 on your 80th?
0:04:23 > 0:04:26Well. I promised my wife it would be the last one.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28She was getting a bit concerned.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30I said she could take my
0:04:30 > 0:04:33long-distance licence off me.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35Let's talk about Scafell Pike.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38What's the fastest time you've done Scafell Pike in?
0:04:38 > 0:04:4047 minutes. But it was a gift, really.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42I touched the summit,
0:04:42 > 0:04:48set off to bomb back down. Just as I came out of the Pike's crags, the helicopter came and filmed us down.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50It was magic.
0:04:50 > 0:04:52You could sprint as fast as you could
0:04:52 > 0:04:56and the down draught of the helicopter pulled you along and held you safe.
0:04:56 > 0:05:01- You were like a little angel of the fells.- Aye. You couldn't describe it.
0:05:01 > 0:05:05It was like floating coming down. My legs were hardly touching the ground.
0:05:05 > 0:05:11I'm not very sure I'm going to make it in 47 minutes, or an hour, in fact, up to the top.
0:05:11 > 0:05:16- What are your tips, what should I look out for? - It's picking the right weather.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18On a clear day, you can see all the views.
0:05:18 > 0:05:23You can look back into Keswick, you can see most of the Lake District at the summit of the Pike.
0:05:23 > 0:05:25So it's worth getting to the summit.
0:05:25 > 0:05:30You'll make it all right. You've just got to keep going.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33I'll take Wainwright's advice and watch where I'm going.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37- Concentrate on the ground beneath your feet.- I will do.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42- That was Wainwright's advice.- Joss, it's a pleasure to meet you. - Enjoy your walk up the Pike.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44I will. I'm going to walk not run.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46That's it. Aye. Just enjoy it.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49Bye, now.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52So this is it. The biggest climb in England.
0:05:52 > 0:05:57But before I start, let's take a closer look at the longest Wainwright walk I've tackled yet.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10Right at the southern end of the Borrowdale Valley,
0:06:10 > 0:06:14Seathwaite Farm is not only the beginning of my ascent but also
0:06:14 > 0:06:18the focal point for one of the most popular walking areas in the Lakes.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25I'll be starting off very gradually, as the path follows the River Derwent
0:06:25 > 0:06:27southwards up to Stockley Bridge.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34Things get steadily steeper as the valley narrows and I head up Grains Gill
0:06:34 > 0:06:38to a height of 2,000 feet, looking out for the great ravine at the top.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44Above the ravine, there's a brief detour past the sheer face of Great End
0:06:44 > 0:06:48to find Sprinkling Tarn dramatically set beneath.
0:06:55 > 0:06:59Heading back on the route, there's a long and steady climb
0:06:59 > 0:07:03up to the plateau at Esk Hause for a lunch spot with views to remember.
0:07:08 > 0:07:15Turning westwards, I'll pass round the back of Great End, and finally get on to the rocky Scafell ridge.
0:07:17 > 0:07:24This dramatic stretch takes me past the lower peaks of Ill Crag and Broad Crag
0:07:24 > 0:07:28before the last testing climb to the Pike itself.
0:07:38 > 0:07:43But back at Seathwaite Farm, it's a long time before I get a clear view of the summit.
0:07:43 > 0:07:48The peak is only three miles from here as the crow flies, but with so many twists,
0:07:48 > 0:07:54turns and other peaks to negotiate, I'll have to go a lot further than that before I'm getting close.
0:07:54 > 0:07:59Wainwright sums up the challenge in Book Four of his Pictorial Guides.
0:07:59 > 0:08:03"The ascent of Scafell Pike is the toughest proposition
0:08:03 > 0:08:07"the collector of summits is called upon to attempt,
0:08:07 > 0:08:13"and it is the one above all others that, as a patriot, he cannot omit."
0:08:13 > 0:08:15Inspiring stuff from Wainwright.
0:08:15 > 0:08:19Look, this is the first walk I've seen that actually covers two pages.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21Slightly ominous! We're starting at Seathwaite.
0:08:21 > 0:08:26We're going all the way to the top, back of Great End and back to the bottom of the page again.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28It's a biggy!
0:08:29 > 0:08:33But I am a lot better kitted out than Wainwright would have been.
0:08:33 > 0:08:38When AW, as he was known, was writing his Guides, there was more tweed than Gore-Tex.
0:08:38 > 0:08:43And when he came on holiday for a whole week of walking in the 1930s
0:08:43 > 0:08:48he recalls bringing his sturdiest shoes, a mac, and just one set of clothing!
0:09:22 > 0:09:26Stockley Bridge is my first major landmark.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29Originally it was an important pack horse crossing
0:09:29 > 0:09:32between Borrowdale and the Wasdale Valley in the west.
0:09:34 > 0:09:38In the mid-sixties, the bridge was almost destroyed by storms,
0:09:38 > 0:09:39but now it's fully restored
0:09:39 > 0:09:42and probably carrying more traffic than ever before.
0:09:44 > 0:09:48It's also my cue that things are about to get steeper.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08I made that mistake earlier of stepping in a stream,
0:10:08 > 0:10:11getting one foot wet by accident,
0:10:11 > 0:10:14which is never a good idea at the beginning of the walk.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18So any little bit of heat to dry it out
0:10:18 > 0:10:20would be most welcome.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25Wainwright loved to walk on his own.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28But his lonely career mapping the routes and ridges
0:10:28 > 0:10:31mean the fells today are more popular than ever.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35And various conservation schemes are under way, including
0:10:35 > 0:10:38these great bags full of boulders, ready to reinforce the path.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44I can see a chink of blue sky up there.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47This is more like rock climbing than walking.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50Well, the good news is, we're coming to the end of Grain's Gill
0:10:50 > 0:10:52because there's the ravine.
0:10:52 > 0:10:56The bad news is, that's not where I'm heading.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59That is just Great End, which we're going around.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02So that is not the highest point.
0:11:14 > 0:11:19I love the sounds of bubbling brooks and gentle streams, it reminds me
0:11:19 > 0:11:23of when I used to go tickling trout with my dad in Derbyshire,
0:11:23 > 0:11:26just that gentle noise.
0:11:26 > 0:11:30By now I've covered almost half the walk in terms of distance.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32But as for height, it's a different story -
0:11:32 > 0:11:36there's still over 1,500 feet left to go.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43The central heating system's really working now.
0:11:47 > 0:11:48Whoa.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51And look at Borrowdale Valley.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54That is just beautiful.
0:11:54 > 0:11:59You can just make out Castle Crag, Derwentwater behind.
0:12:00 > 0:12:02Just gorgeous.
0:12:08 > 0:12:12At the top of Grain's Gill, Wainwright recommends a detour.
0:12:12 > 0:12:13Now, I'm a city girl.
0:12:13 > 0:12:16That's my goal, that's my destination.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19I don't usually like detours, so I hope it's worth it.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30Sprinkling Tarn is one of this walk's best kept secrets.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Lying just a few hundred yards off the main route
0:12:36 > 0:12:38and over a slight mound, it's visited
0:12:38 > 0:12:42by just a few of the thousands that trek up to Scafell Pike.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46Oh.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48That's worth it, huh?
0:12:48 > 0:12:51That is definitely worth
0:12:51 > 0:12:53a detour!
0:12:53 > 0:12:54Sprinkling Tarn.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01That's very, very gorgeous.
0:13:03 > 0:13:04And listen.
0:13:07 > 0:13:08Listen.
0:13:12 > 0:13:13Nothing.
0:13:17 > 0:13:18It's lovely.
0:13:32 > 0:13:35The silence here is magical.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38The odd sheep.
0:13:40 > 0:13:42A little trickle of water.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45Ravens flapping above you.
0:13:45 > 0:13:47That's it.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50I could stay here for hours and just listen to nothing.
0:13:50 > 0:13:51Just the little sounds.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08What's interesting here is that you don't feel very high up.
0:14:08 > 0:14:12It's a deceptive plateau, but we're nearly 2,000 feet up.
0:14:20 > 0:14:25You can see the mountain range over the tip of the tarn.
0:14:25 > 0:14:26Hello!
0:14:26 > 0:14:28VOICE ECHOES
0:14:29 > 0:14:30Hello!
0:14:30 > 0:14:32VOICE ECHOES
0:14:32 > 0:14:33Hee-hee.
0:14:38 > 0:14:42It's very strange to be the noisiest thing around.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47At home I step out of my front door
0:14:47 > 0:14:50and there are buses and motorbikes and people.
0:14:53 > 0:14:55My walking and the rustling of my jacket
0:14:55 > 0:14:58is the noisiest thing here at the moment.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09The sun is really trying to get through now.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13This is a tiny world,
0:15:13 > 0:15:17lost to all those that aren't prepared for a serious walk.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20And once you're here...
0:15:20 > 0:15:22the temptation is to linger.
0:15:23 > 0:15:29"Too many walkers bound for Scafell Pike have given up the ghost here,
0:15:29 > 0:15:32"daunted by the sight of Great End
0:15:32 > 0:15:36"and bewitched by the beauty and solitude of the tarn.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38"'Onwards!' must be the cry.
0:15:38 > 0:15:41"'Much remains to be done.'"
0:15:44 > 0:15:47That was a worthwhile distraction.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49But the summit beckons.
0:15:53 > 0:15:56This is the second ravine, Ruddy Gill.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00So named, according to Wainwright, because of the red subsoil.
0:16:00 > 0:16:04It must be having a day off today because it's not looking that red
0:16:04 > 0:16:06but the good news about all of this
0:16:06 > 0:16:08is that we're nearly at Esk Hause,
0:16:08 > 0:16:12which means we're at the top of the first page of the walk.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15Halfway there, according to the book.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30Aha. So here is the answer to the black bag mystery. Hello, gentlemen.
0:16:30 > 0:16:35I've been seeing these all along the footpaths. Now I know what's going on.
0:16:35 > 0:16:40So you've got to do a good two-hour walk before you even start with this lot.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43Yes. We usually walk first thing in the morning.
0:16:43 > 0:16:48Get up, have a cup of tea, then get going after that and work till late tonight.
0:16:48 > 0:16:52You must be very fit, healthy boys, cos those are big rocks.
0:16:52 > 0:16:56- These, you don't bring up yourself. - No, we fly these in by helicopter.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58We try to use everything we can lying around.
0:16:58 > 0:17:03But the quantities we need means it's best to get them from a big source.
0:17:03 > 0:17:07These rocks came from about a mile over there.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10We can't touch the rocks on this side because they are protected.
0:17:10 > 0:17:15- So we have to get them from as near as possible.- I have walked over an awful lot of these paths.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17What's the technique for them?
0:17:17 > 0:17:22It's basically, you just find where the old way is,
0:17:22 > 0:17:26and you dig all the stone into the ground in a random fashion
0:17:26 > 0:17:28and then join them altogether.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30It's like a big jigsaw puzzle, really.
0:17:30 > 0:17:35What would Wainwright have made of these crazy paving stones in the sky?
0:17:35 > 0:17:37I would imagine he would have been pretty
0:17:37 > 0:17:41scathing about them. He was very hostile to human imprints in the hills.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45I would imagine he would be throwing his pipe down in disgust
0:17:45 > 0:17:48if he saw a path like this. I think so, definitely.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50It's a necessary evil now.
0:17:50 > 0:17:53He popularised a lot of the routes here.
0:17:53 > 0:17:5750 years ago when he walked up there, the main route went straight
0:17:57 > 0:18:02ahead to the head of the valley and then turned right and he identified the shortcut to the right.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05At the time it was barely discernible.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09Yet now, 50 years later, it's a big wide track that's
0:18:09 > 0:18:11had some substantial repair on it
0:18:11 > 0:18:17- to take away the big scar that used to be visible up there.- So the shortcut is the main route now?
0:18:17 > 0:18:20- It certainly is.- It cuts 20 minutes off the journey up to Scafell Pike.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24It wouldn't surprise me if 100,000 people had come up
0:18:24 > 0:18:29this path, come up the path there, towards Scafell Pike every year.
0:18:29 > 0:18:35Well lads, you've got a lot of work to do so I won't hold you up any further. Thanks a lot.
0:18:35 > 0:18:36Cheers, thank you. Mind your back!
0:18:48 > 0:18:52Wainwright's shortcut, confirmed with its brand new footpath,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55marks a point where my walk changes in character.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59The long view down the massive valley to Seathwaite Farm is gone,
0:18:59 > 0:19:03the gentle pastures are out of sight.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07And, after five hours, I'm up amongst the wild high fells.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15The new path takes you straight to Esk Hause,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22which, at 2,500ft,
0:19:22 > 0:19:25makes it the highest pass in the Lake District.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31Well, there's a definite T-junction here
0:19:31 > 0:19:34where you've got to make up your mind which way to go.
0:19:34 > 0:19:37I know this is Esk Hause and I know this is Great End.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40So I'm going to make my way that way.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42It's amazing how the terrain changes up here.
0:19:42 > 0:19:46You're exposed all of a sudden. It's become...much more open.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50Time for a bit of lunch, check the plasters, check the book.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00Esk Hause has been an important pass for centuries
0:20:00 > 0:20:02and was used to transport wool
0:20:02 > 0:20:05from farms in Borrowdale to the Cistercian monastery
0:20:05 > 0:20:08at Furness Abbey, way to the south.
0:20:09 > 0:20:13With views down into three valleys, this is a commanding,
0:20:13 > 0:20:15if utterly exposed spot.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25Now I assumed that that
0:20:25 > 0:20:30was the top of Scafell Pike, but sadly, taking a little look,
0:20:30 > 0:20:34this is Esk Hause here, and much further up the path,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37he says "Summit now in view for the first time".
0:20:37 > 0:20:41So that can't be. That must be Ill Crag.
0:20:41 > 0:20:43So there's much further to go.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51Many "wishful thinkers", as Wainwright describes them,
0:20:51 > 0:20:53have mistaken Ill Crag for the peak.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56But no, there's still a mile-and-a-half
0:20:56 > 0:20:59of the most difficult Lakeland terrain to negotiate.
0:21:03 > 0:21:05I love the way Wainwright describes Ill Crag.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07He says it's "a desolate scene.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10"A frozen avalanche of crags and stones,
0:21:10 > 0:21:12"much of it unexplored and uncharted.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15"A safe refuge for escaped convicts
0:21:15 > 0:21:18"or an ideal depository for murdered corpses."
0:21:18 > 0:21:21That's nice, isn't it! Hiya.
0:21:22 > 0:21:23Watch out for the bodies!
0:21:27 > 0:21:31Leaving Esk Hause, I cross the grass to Calf Cove, the point
0:21:31 > 0:21:36where I climb up and on to the ridge that takes me right to the summit.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39This is where the legs start to burn.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50The Scafell ridge is the most consistently high ground in England.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54For over a mile the path that runs from Great End, past Ill Crag,
0:21:54 > 0:22:00Broad Crag and ending in the Pike, never drops below 2,800ft.
0:22:00 > 0:22:07This desolate, volcanic rock is inhospitable yet captivating.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10I thought the winds were pretty cutting down there.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14This is the top of Scafell ridge and these are proper winds. Look at my trousers.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17They look like ferrets are running up and down them!
0:22:24 > 0:22:28I may be on the final ridge but the we have been going for seven-and-a-half hours now.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32We've got to keep pushing on if I'm going to reach the summit in daylight.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37And there it is.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40The summit.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42Let's check it out.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44Yeah, that's got to be it.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46It's pretty like the picture.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50Ah. Turn it round.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53Yeah. That's it.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56I think some people have got there before me.
0:22:56 > 0:22:57I know that's hard to believe!
0:22:57 > 0:22:59Come on then! Keep going.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11This is like being on another planet, like the moon, or something.
0:23:11 > 0:23:16It's just a boulder graveyard, these sharp jagged rocks everywhere,
0:23:16 > 0:23:19it's very difficult to walk, and even the sheep have disappeared.
0:23:23 > 0:23:27Amongst this landscape, the path completely disappears at times.
0:23:27 > 0:23:31The only clues are the small cairns that other walkers have left behind.
0:23:31 > 0:23:37But Wainwright talks about the magic of camping out alone in a hollow just below here.
0:23:37 > 0:23:42He loved to watch the sunrise cast its pink glow over the dark crags and boulders.
0:23:44 > 0:23:49But for me, I've just discovered that there's still one last hurdle to get over.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54This is really depressing.
0:23:54 > 0:23:59It looks very much like I've got to go all the way down this
0:23:59 > 0:24:03boulder highway, which is all it looks like to me,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06to get to the bottom, to get
0:24:06 > 0:24:08all the way to the top.
0:24:08 > 0:24:12Just when you think you've cracked a bit of it.
0:24:15 > 0:24:21What's slightly worrying is that there's no-one else up there, nobody, not a sausage.
0:24:21 > 0:24:23Just a couple of birds flapping around.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29It's when faced with this peak at close quarters, that Wainwright
0:24:29 > 0:24:33poses an interesting question in his chapter on Scafell Pike.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36"Why does a man climb mountains?
0:24:36 > 0:24:40"Why has he forced his tired and sweating body up here when he
0:24:40 > 0:24:44"might instead have been sitting at ease in a deckchair at the seaside?
0:24:44 > 0:24:48"It is a question every man must answer for himself."
0:24:49 > 0:24:52And now it's just the small matter of the final ascent
0:24:52 > 0:24:54to the top of Scafell Pike.
0:24:54 > 0:24:58And I think I can safely say that's the steepest thing I've climbed all day.
0:25:01 > 0:25:05Climbing and filming make for some seriously slow progress.
0:25:05 > 0:25:09It's now late in the days and all sensible walkers have conquered
0:25:09 > 0:25:11and long since left the summit.
0:25:19 > 0:25:24I suppose it's only fair that you have to work this hard to get to a peak this high.
0:25:28 > 0:25:30I've been on the go for almost ten hours now,
0:25:30 > 0:25:35but now I know why Wainwright rated this fell walk as the very best.
0:25:35 > 0:25:40In one long day I've seen everything the Lake District has to offer.
0:25:40 > 0:25:46From wide valleys to steep ravines, silent tarns to windswept rocky ridges.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Wainwright's biggest climb has it all.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05I think I can see it.
0:26:05 > 0:26:08Less than 100 yards away, yes, that's it!
0:26:08 > 0:26:10There it is.
0:26:10 > 0:26:12The cairn!
0:26:12 > 0:26:14The top of the summit.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17Nearly there. Spitting distance away now.
0:26:19 > 0:26:20Wa-hey!
0:26:25 > 0:26:28The wind has really picked up, up here.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35Another little challenge to overcome to make it.
0:26:37 > 0:26:38Woo-hoo!
0:26:41 > 0:26:42Hee hee!
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Made it!
0:26:47 > 0:26:49Look at that!
0:26:49 > 0:26:53It's a pretty fantastic feeling, I've got to say.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03You're not at the top until you're at the very top. And here it is.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06It's ridiculously windy up here.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09So this is the tallest mountain in England.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12That's Wast Water, which is the deepest lake.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16You can see hundreds of fells all around you and that over there,
0:27:16 > 0:27:20just glistening in the sunshine is the Isle of Man.
0:27:20 > 0:27:26And apparently, on a really clear day, which is not today, you can see Blackpool Tower over there.
0:27:26 > 0:27:30But right now, just to be here is fantastic.
0:27:30 > 0:27:32Spectacular.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34And ridiculously windy!
0:27:36 > 0:27:37Wooh!
0:27:49 > 0:27:52There are places I've been to recently
0:27:52 > 0:27:54where you'd be happy to spend hours.
0:27:55 > 0:27:58You'd choose to come again and again.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04But this spot has a very different quality.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06It's about being able to sit and look out across miles
0:28:06 > 0:28:10of cliffs and peaks, knowing you're above them all.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12There's nothing like the feeling
0:28:12 > 0:28:16that you've conquered everything that could be put in front of you.
0:28:16 > 0:28:21Wainwright says that fell walkers are not attracted to this summit for its beauty,
0:28:21 > 0:28:22because it's not beautiful.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25It is sturdy and rugged and strong.
0:28:25 > 0:28:30It is simply the fact that this is the tallest mountain in England,
0:28:30 > 0:28:33and when you get to the top, you can say "I did it".
0:28:34 > 0:28:35And I did.
0:28:52 > 0:28:54Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd - 2007
0:28:54 > 0:28:56Email subtitling@bbc.co.uk