For my birthday we decided on a walk taking in Cat Bells and High Spy. We like walks. We also like boat trips, especially having just enjoyed our trip to Wray Castle the previous day. So rather than take the car round to the start we took the ‘walkers special’ cruise from Keswick Pier to Hawse End.

It was a fine Sunday morning as we arrived at Derwentwater.

Cat Bells, of course, is arguably the best known of the Lower Lakeland Fells.

As the boat left the pier we turned and began our ascent of Cat Bells.

The views quickly opened up.

It’s a steep climb up Skelgill Bank, but generally the path is good.

You are quickly rewarded with fantastic views of mountains and lakes. The first summit however is a false summit.

For there is a narrow path on to Cat Bells summit.

The path then dropped down towards Hawes Gate.

This leads on to Maiden Moor.

We then continued to climb towards High Spy.

Taking a brief diversion to take in the views out over Eel Crags.

Eventually we reached the summit of High Spy.

From here we headed down towards Dalehead Tarn

Before turning off through the steep slate steps that take you through the spoil heaps of Rigghead Quarries.

And then Tongue Gill. At the bottom we took a brief rest.

Next we walked on towards a col near Castle Crags.

Before descending to the River Derwent.

Eventually we reached the village of Grange, where there is a tea room. We decided to have another short break in the form of some ice-cream!

However, time was rushing by and the arrival of the last boat of the day was now on the horizon. So, we pushed on.

  

We turned off the road as we pressed on beyond Brackenburn and made our way along the lower slopes of Cat Bells.

At one stage we thought it would be touch-and-go whether we would make the last boat. However, thankfully the last stretch was gentle. And, in spite of Sarah struggling with blisters we arrived with about 20 minutes to spare.

This was a challenging walk. We had walked nearly 11 miles and climbed approaching 3000 feet. Sarah and I were both rather tired at the end. That said, it was also a fantastic way to enjoy a birthday. There were views all day everywhere you looked. It had a little bit of everything – steep climbs, narrow ridges, rocky steps, mountains, lakes. Brilliant! It is a walk we would recommend you try.