Striding Edge

A photo diary of Lake District fell walks

  • Walks
  • Fells
    • Wainwrights
      • Eastern Fells
      • Far Eastern Fells
      • Central Fells
      • Southern Fells
      • Northern Fells
      • North Western Fells
      • Western Fells
      • Outlying Fells
    • Birketts
  • Dogs
  • Love The Lakes
  • Contact

Pillar Rock

Walked on 17/09/2008

Start point: Wasdale Head (NY 187 088)

Wasdale Head – Black Sails Pass – Looking Stead – High Level Traverse – Shamrock Traverse – Pillar Rock (541) – Pillar – Wind Gap – Mosedale – Wasdale Head

Distance: 6.6 miles     Total Ascent: 960 metres     Time Taken: 7 hours 30 minutes

Weather: Hazy with sunny spells. 16ºC.

It’s been a long journey, much longer than I expected when I started out on a quest to complete the Birketts on 4th May 2004 but today I finally achieved that particular goal. I must admit to losing the will to carry on with them half way through, hence the time taken, but it was all worth it in the end and it certainly got me to places I never would have gone otherwise. Today’s route took in Pillar Rock; no walk this one, it is a climb and not one for the faint hearted. Make sure you take the proper precautions if you want to tackle it. Me? I had the perfect guide today…

You see yon precipice–it almost looks
Like some vast building made of many crags,
And in the midst is one particular rock
That rises like a column from the vale,
Whence by our Shepherds it is call’d, the Pillar.

Extract from ‘The Brothers’, William Wordsworth 1800

Pillar-Rock.jpg

17.09.08-004.jpg

Kirk Fell from Wasdale Head.

17.09.08-009.jpg

Heading into Mosedale with Bill Birkett and his dog, Jet.

17.09.08-013.jpg

Kirk Fell from Mosedale.

17.09.08-015.jpg

Pillar at the head of Mosedale.

17.09.08-019.jpg

Red Pike.

17.09.08-024.jpg

Sunshine walking through Mosedale.

17.09.08-027.jpg

Stirrup Crag on Yewbarrow and Dorehead Screes.

17.09.08-031.jpg

The climb of Black Sail Pass.

17.09.08-038.jpg

Yewbarrow from Gatherstone Beck.

17.09.08-040.jpg

Gatherstone Beck falls.

17.09.08-060.jpg

Pillar and Looking Stead.

17.09.08-065.jpg

The same view from the un-named top, 587m.

17.09.08-067.jpg

Green Gable, Great Gable and Kirk Fell form Looking Stead.

17.09.08-072.jpg

Pillar from Looking Stead.

17.09.08-082.jpg

The High Level Route to Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-087.jpg

Looking across Ennerdale from the plaque on Robinson's Cairn.

17.09.08-099.jpg

Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-118.jpg

The Pillar from the Shamrock Traverse. Bill's friend Tom waits for us at the foot of the climb.

17.09.08-121.jpg

The first part of the climb - descend this great slab descending to the left in this photo.

17.09.08-126.jpg

Bill climbs the slab.

17.09.08-134.jpg

Bill and Tom at the top of the slab.

17.09.08-137.jpg

Bill belays whilst Tom climbs the notch.

17.09.08-145.jpg

The view to High Stile and High Crag across Ennerdale from the top of Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-147.jpg

Pillar from Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-151.jpg

Ennerdale.

17.09.08-154.jpg

Tom and Bill on High Man, the summit of Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-162.jpg

Bill Birkett summits Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-169.jpg

541 up! Completing the Birketts on Pillar Rock.

17.09.08-175.jpg

On top of Pillar Rock, or is that the world?

17.09.08-185.jpg

All we have to do now is get down! Abseiling into Jordan Gap.

17.09.08-192.jpg

Watching Tom abseiling Jordan Gap from below.

17.09.08-210.jpg

Someone else has climbed it after we left.

17.09.08-216.jpg

...and now the sun is shining once more.

17.09.08-229.jpg

Spot the climber to see the route of ascent.

17.09.08-240.jpg

Great Gable and the Scafells from Pillar.

17.09.08-253.jpg

Red Pike and Yewbarrow from the descent to Wind Gap.

17.09.08-264.jpg

The steep descent into Mosedale from Wind Gap.

17.09.08-272.jpg

Yewbarrow, sunlit through the haze.

17.09.08-286.jpg

The Y Boulder, Mosedale.

17.09.08-301.jpg

Heading back to Wasdale Head.

Share this…


  • Facebook


  • Twitter


  • Messenger


  • Whatsapp


  • Email

Previous walk Next walk

Walking Diary

  • The Mosedale Horseshoe 01/03/2022
  • Caw 18/01/2022
  • Coniston sunset 17/01/2022
  • Blencathra 15/01/2022
  • Scafell Pike 14/01/2022

Social

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Information

  • Striding Edge
  • T&C’s
  • Privacy
  • Links