Our story of climbing the wonderful lakeland fells described in Wainwrights books started with Hallin Fell (our 1st of the 214 listed).
Jono has been climbing it since he was small and vividly remembers being taken there during sail camp from Ullswater Yacht Club (UYC). They were learned to watch the wind squalls on the water, how the shape of the land affects the wind, and the lessons has stayed with him a lifetime.
Since I started coming to Ullswater in the early noughties, we’ve climbed it too many times to count with a variety of family, friends, and dogs, thanks to the fairly instant rewarding views of the dual valleys of Martindale and Boredale as they unfold behind you. The unveiling of the Helvellyn range to your left as you reach the top, and then the magnificent lake of Ullswater beneath you as you reach the cairn is breathtaking every step of the way.
Now that we have two small people in tow (ages 6 and 9 at time of writing), we continue to hike up on a regular basis, it just takes a little longer than it used to. To be honest, nearly double the time it used to, from our previous average of about 30 minutes up-and-down, to now 50 minutes.
There are usually sheep all over the hill so it’s a dog-on-lead kind of walk, but that doesn’t seem to hinder their enjoyment of the experience any less!
Recent highlights include walking up during UYC’s annual racing extravaganza, the Birkett Trophy, to watch the racing on the lake from above (photo below from July 2022 featuring many small boats in the background of the upside-down girls). It’s also the place our brother-in-law proposed and re-created the moment last summer as part of a brilliant 3 peaks event in memory of a much-loved family friend.
Useful planning notes:
Walking from lake level to the top would be the purist way to bag Hallin Fell, however we tend to park at the Martindale church at the top of the zig zag up from Howtown, then take the route uphill directly opposite (across the road from) the church that totals about 1.7km. It’s well worth the short drive from Rose Cottage - 7 miles, about 20 minutes with the second half of the journey on largely single-track roads – and also easy to stop off in Pooley Bridge on the way home for a sweet treat reward in one of the many lovely cafes and eateries.
