Canisfamiliaris

Alfred Wainwright made his first visit to Lakeland in 1930 when he was 23 years old. He came with his cousin, Eric Beardsall for a week's holiday. The first day they walked to the summit of Orrest Head, a spectacular viewpoint, where the scene of beauty before his gaze transfixed AW.

He wrote, 'This was truth. God was in his heaven that day and I a humble worshipper.' Ex-Fellwanderer

The next day, they set off from Windermere on their first proper fell walk. Here is AW’s account of that day. It is a remarkable piece of writing, as it was not written until AW was 80 years old in 1987! There is no doubt that his first visit to the Lake District left an indelible memory that burned brightly for the rest of his life.

‘The next day was again sunny and we walked up the Troutbeck valley, still entranced by all we saw and in awe of the towering mountains that soon closed in around us. Near the head of the valley we started our first great adventure. I had noticed on the map a path that led upwards to a high ridge and was marked ‘High Street, Roman Road’. I remember vividly, as we toiled up the grassy groove of Scots Rake, halting for a moment to look around and seeing far above the summit of Froswick, clearly outlined against the blue sky and seeming incredibly high and impossible of attainment. Froswick was not like Pendle Hill. Here were not smooth grass slopes but a savage uplift of stones and low crags, an intimidating sight that made us debate the wisdom of proceeding further. Froswick was a real mountain, the first we had ever seen at close quarters, and the aspect was frightening. But the path was easy and inviting and we plodded on ever upwards, duly reached the ridge and all at once looked down into the great gulf of Kentmere Head on the other side, its streams like silver threads far below. There was no doubt that we were embarked on the greatest adventure of our young lives. There had never been a day like this before. Mountains rose all around us, silent and brooding and we were innocents in their midst, with nobody around to assure us of our safety. There was a soundless silence, a profound stillness; we were alone in a strange new world except for a few grazing sheep who seemed not at all concerned by the awful loneliness of their surroundings … The walking was easier now and we went on, visiting the tall obelisk of stones on Thornthwaite Crag, comforting evidence that others had been here before us, and then crossed to the long whaleback of High Street, finding and following the faint traces of the Roman road. Of course we had no cause for alarm: the Romans had come this way nearly two thousand years ago. This thought eased our troubled minds, and when the long serrated skyline of the Lakeland heights came into distant view to the west our fears were succeeded by a confident exhilaration. It was great being up here alone on the top of the world. Spirits soared: we were gods looking down on a heaven that had fallen upon the earth.

We went on along the ridge in the steps of the Romans for many miles, passing over a succession of cairned summits that revealed new and exciting views, and then, with the afternoon far spent and hunger gnawing, decided to descend towards a lake my map promised as Ullswater. The long steep descent to valley level was mainly accomplished on our bottoms: our shoes had smooth soles and did not grip the grass. We had not seen a soul since leaving Troutbeck. We returned to civilisation at Howtown, whence a lakeside road took us in gathering dusk to Pooley Bridge. My cousin, who had travelled more than I and acquired a measure of sophistication, wanted to stay the night in a hotel. I had never been in a hotel before: they were too posh for the likes of me. But I was persuaded to follow him through a palatial doorway, and, despite our dishevelled appearance, we were accepted as guests. I need not have worried. The landlord was a Bolton man and was quick to recognise my accent. He was friendly; we ate well and slept well in luxurious comfort. I was beginning to like hotels.’
Ex-Fellwanderer

Return to top