Sauntering 209. From Orrest Head to Ambleside

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Saunterings: Walking in North-West England

Saunterings is a set of reflections based upon walks around the counties of Cumbria, Lancashire and North Yorkshire in North-West England (as defined in the Preamble). Here is a list of all Saunterings so far.
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209. From Orrest Head to Ambleside

West from Orrest Head

For many visitors the Orrest Head viewpoint sparks a love of the Lake District. For those returning after a long absence it may cause a reignition. The excellence of the view from Orrest Head, less than a mile north of Windermere railway station, has long been recognised. Thomas De Quincey, writing in the 1820s (in a style not seen today, so I include the words in full), said

The sublime, peculiar, and not-to-be-forgotten feature of the scene is the great system of mountains which unite about five miles off at the head of the lake to lock in and inclose this noble landscape. The several ranges of mountains which stand at various distances within six or seven miles of the little town of Ambleside, all separately various in their forms and all eminently picturesque appear to blend and group as parts of one connected whole; and, when their usual drapery of clouds happens to take a fortunate arrangement, and the sunlights are properly broken and thrown from the most suitable quarter of the heavens, I cannot recollect any spectacle in England or Wales, of the many hundreds I have seen bearing a local, if not a national, reputation for magnificence of prospect, which so much dilates the heart with a sense of power and aerial sublimity.

Thomas De Quincey (1785-1859) is a strange character to encounter in a history of the Lake District. He was born in Manchester, moving to Bath, and soon became enamoured with Wordsworth – or at least with his poems. At the age of seventeen he wrote to Wordsworth that he was a disciple "ready to sacrifice even his life". Wordsworth replied cautiously, as anyone would. Undeterred, De Quincey set off (twice) for Grasmere only for his nerve to fail him almost at Wordsworth's doorstep. Four years later, he tried again, with more courage. The Wordsworths 'adopted' him and a few years later De Quincey took over the tenancy of Dove Cottage, which the Wordsworth Museum is now adjacent to.

De Quincey was not considered one of the 'Lake Poets'. He couldn't complain: he didn't write any poems. He didn't write much prose about the Lake District either, although he did pen some frank portraits of Lake District celebrities, including Wordsworth, with some of the subjects considering them too frank. De Quincey is best (or only) known today for Confessions of an English Opium-Eater (1821), which appalled and appealed to readers of the time.

Perhaps he was under the influence when he wrote the words quoted above. A hundred years later the most popular guide-book of the time (Baddeley, 1880, 1922) gave a more straightforward assessment of Orrest Head, which it considered to be:

The finest extensive view-point in the Lake District, and, perhaps, the finest in Great Britain.

I duly reached the top of Orrest Head (only 240 metres high) and found a score of people already there admiring the view, with almost as many benches for us to sit on. Clearly, this is a place to walk your grandparents – or if you are a grandparent to walk yourself.

North from Orrest Head

There are distant hills to see to the east but it is, of course, the western panorama that holds the attention. On the skyline, from the north, can be seen Red Screes, Wansfell Pike, Fairfield, Great Rigg, Ullscarf, High Raise, Harrison Stickle, Great Gable, Great End, Bowfell, Scafell Pike, Crinkle Crags, Wetherlam and the Old Man of Coniston. On this occasion, the view was not crystal clear but the beguiling softness of the scene lent a depth to the fells, including the ones below the skyline. Nearer, almost the full length of Windermere was displayed below.

I then began a trek north. I passed Near Orrest and Far Orrest, crossing many green sheep fields, with occasional sights of the lake and of the Langdale Pikes and the Old Man ahead. A view of the valley of Troutbeck opened out and I was struck by how the white houses strung out along the village add to the charm of the scene. Wordsworth was not in favour of white houses on the fell. He made an aesthetic argument that in nature white is seen only in small quantities (on flowers, for example) or evanescently (on clouds, for example). I think he would have approved of those green sheep I just mentioned.

Troutbeck

I suspect that it was really that Wordsworth didn't want to see any sign of other people spoiling his fells. Although he was a Cumbrian, Wordsworth was not a man of the local people – or at least less so than De Quincey, who had to marry one of them. Wordsworth disapproved but perhaps more because of the marrying than the fathering, since he had himself managed the latter but not the former in France.

I crossed Trout Beck at two footbridges, as the path foolishly crosses the beck where it has split into several channels. I then walked up to join Robin Lane, a popular track that skirts the hillside and provides excellent views of the lake and beyond. But first I was pleased to find a bench expertly placed at the junction with Robin Lane, in the shade, with the sparkling Windermere ahead.

Windermere from my bench

After rest and refreshment I walked on to Ambleside. All walkers form memories of and associations with the tracks they walk along. For me, for us, Robin Lane will always be Sheena's path. She bravely insisted on walking all the way to Ambleside although clearly in difficulty. The plan had been that we'd all walk from Troutbeck along Robin Lane to a good view of Windermere (to about where my bench was) and then Sheena and a driver would return to the car and proceed to Ambleside to meet up with the rest of the group who would continue along the track. Sheena wasn't having that. She wanted to continue as if it were normal, for as long as she was able. It is not a difficult track but it becomes so if you do not have full control of your legs. I doubt that Sheena ever walked as far again. She died four years ago today as I write.

Windermere from near Ambleside

    Date: September 17th 2024
    Start: SD414987, Windermere bus stop  (Map: OL7)
    Route: (linear) N, E, N – Orrest Head – N – The Causeway Farm – NE, NW – Far Orrest – N – road – N, W over Trout Beck, SW, NW – Robin Lane – NW, W, NW – Ambleside bus stop
    Distance: 6 miles;   Ascent: 180 metres

The following item:
     210.   The Arnside Tide
The two preceding items:
     208.   Trials on Clougha
     207.   Eel Entrainment by United Utilities
Two nearby items:
     146.   A November Day around Grasmere and Rydal Water
       43.   The Red Screes - Wansfell Question
A list of all items so far:
               Saunterings

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Top photo: Rainbow over Kisdon in Swaledale; Bottom photo: Ullswater