Coast to Coast Day 5 – Patterdale to Bampton

May 30, 2015

Miles: 13.3

Time:  9:09 - 4:15
Elevation gain: 3,238'

Year to date miles: 254.6

Hike description:
 

Sunny day with no rain! Glen was in a fabulous mood :)

We had a nice stay in Patterdale last night. The innkeeper is an avid hiker (as is his 11 year old daughter). They are world travelers and he's an interesting guy to talk to.

 

We left Patterdale without studying our maps first. We walked back the way we had come (not all B&B's are on the trail). Well - we were going the wrong way. Luckily we didn't get very far before we checked our map. Navigation takes more time on this hike, and you do have to pay attention! Duh!

Today's hike started out climbing up into the mountains and looking down at lakes. The terrain wasn't too bad for most of the hike. We hiked up to Kidsty Pike, which has lovely views. There were many non Coast to Coast hikers doing it as well. Descending was steep. Sometimes grass, sometimes rocky trail, sometimes a rock scramble. I can feel it in my knees despite using poles.

 

At the bottom of the climb, we walked along Haweswater Reservoir. It was more undulating than I expected. We took our time hiking today because Glen had a sore knee.

We are now out of the Lake District. I love the Lake District! So many mountains to hike!

 

At the end of the reservoir we arrived in Burnbanks. From there we left the trail to walk 1.25 miles to Bampton. It is a roadside walk bordered by farms. We saw a red squirrel on the road - Brits are very excited by red squirrels! Not sure why! Later we found signs asking for people to report grey squirrel sightings. They trap them.

We almost skipped a short wooded section between the road section and Bampton. So glad we didn't! It was a magical forest filled with bluebells. Two of the highlights of doing this hike in the spring are the lambs and the bluebells. This time of year is also supposed to be the driest and has the most sunlight. It is light from around 4:00 am - 10:00 pm. This does make sleeping more difficult in places without blackout curtains!

We arrived at Bampton Village Stores where they gave us a huge room! They also have a small shop where we picked up hiking snacks.

 

In the evening we went to The Crown & Mitre where we were able to get risotto. So far we've had pretty good luck getting vegan and vegetarian food in the evenings.

 

Night: Bampton Village Stores

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