Start point: Old Quarry car park (NY 121 012)
Old Quarry car park – Irton Pike (OF) – Irton Fell (271) – Great Bank (272) – Old Quarry car park
Weather: Cool and clear.
I’m under doctor’s orders today but exercise was recommended so it had to be an easy walk taken at a gentle pace. The Irton Pike/Irton Fell route was ideal as it gives great views of the high fells without being too strenuous. There were still many trees lying around in the Miterdale Forest and the surrounding woods having been blown over by the recent high winds.
Irton Pike route map.
Elevation profile of the route. Key: IP=Irton Pike, IF=Irton Fell, GB=Great Bank.
3D image of the walk route.
Illgill Head and Miterdale Forest from the ascent of Irton Pike. Great Bank shows above the trees to the right of the photo.
Wasdale Head from Irton Pike - annotated.
Wasdale Head from Irton Pike.
Wainwright wrote '...a massive heap of stones calls for investigation...'. This pile of stones is marked on the map as 'cairn circle' and lies between Irton Pike and Irton Fell. The Ravenglass Estuary can be seen above it with Irton Pike to the right.
Another view of the River Mite entering the Ravenglass Estuary from higher up. The path looks down to Irton Pike, Muncaster Fell is to the left.
Whin Rigg from the summit of Irton Fell, Yewbarrow is to the left. I was tempted....
Harter Fell and Green Crag across Eskdale.
Muncaster Fell from Great Bank.
The rocky south face of Great Bank.
There is still much evidence of the devastation caused by the recent high winds.