Battered… But Not Defeated!

I began work on the 50 Gems book recently with one of my favourite walks from Clapham in the Yorkshire Dales to the top of Ingleborough.

Checking the Mountain Weather Information Service the day previous seemed to suggest a decent ascent with a low amount of cloud and good views from the top.

It was clear that was a huge lie – not the site’s fault of course – as as soon as I got in my car at Leigh, it was wet, foul and windy even in Lancashire.

I pressed on as not only would a wet day test my skills but you never know, the forecast could have been right and I could have found an inversion on top of the hill.

It was important for me to at least grab a few half decent pics for the book because I’d promised myself I wouldn’t use archive stuff and refresh the imagery I had.

At around 7.30am, the walk through the Nature Trail is pretty eery and the view below was what greeted me as I came out of woods. The sky had made the scene somewhat dour and quite spooky, but wrapped it with a welcoming glove that hugged the landscape.

Leaving Trow Gill having captured a few nice images, I climbed up and made my way to Bar Pot and Gaping Gill beyond. Compared to the sheer amount of rain in the air, impressive shaft of the pot hole was quiet say for a tiny trickle of water snaking its way to the chasm. Rat Hole further up the beck had a minute amount of water heading its way, but you could see the flood debris just inside revealing its true nature and danger.

The route onwards was Ingleborough itself; a tough ask with gales blowing down its face and rain hitting me from the left. As I approached the summit and scorned the interpretation sign installed close to the top – what is this doing in a natural wilderness – I locked my Go Pro in place to make sure I could easily record the trip back down.

All the hopes I had of an inversion were sadly misguided – in fact, I hunkered down near a rocky outcrop to make sure I wasn’t blown off the hill.

The Dales can be a beautiful place… but at times like these, it’s best to admit you’re beaten and head back down to the safety of a cafe. I’d missed out on the picture I wanted, but I’d not seen a soul all the way up and had the solitude I’d craved. It’s a gem is Ingleborough – yet it needs to be treated with respect.