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<\/a>Rosthwaite-Keswick<\/em><\/p>\nIt might sound a little more like a journey in the Lord of the Rings than the Cumbria Way, but we were neither beset by orcs nor tempted by an accurs\u00e8d ring, and we strode toward Skiddaw rather than Mount Doom.<\/p>\n
Unlike characters from a fantasy journey, we parked in the pay and display carpark (in Keswick). It was only a brief walk round to the bus-stop and we had\u00a0five minutes to spare for the No.78 to Rosthwaite. Despite this\u00a0well planned timing however, the bus was just driving away as we turned the corner, so it was our fate was to wait for the next one.<\/p>\n
The weather squaring up to\u00a0give us a sunny day so I used the time to apply some sunscreen. But five minutes later the No.77 \u00a0(Buttermere via Honister) arrived and offered a useful alternative to waiting in Keswick, and as it turned out, the 77 gave us better views than the 78 (which we had sampled a couple of weeks earlier). I would definitely recommend the 77 over the 78 (a phrase that would be so much more impressive were\u00a0I discussing wine vintages rather than Cumbrian buses).<\/p>\n
Our walk proper started in Rosthwaite, a small village on a wide flat valley floor, bounded by craggy fells to the east (Scawdel) and west (Watendlath), with Catbells just visible along the Borrowdale valley to the north and the Borrowdale Fells to the south.<\/p>\n
Borrowdale (Borgar-\u00e1-dalr<\/em>) is the valley of the fortress, which presumably had once stood on Castle Crag, while Rosthwaite’s naming is less certain. Thwaite (\u00feveit<\/i>) is old norse for a clearing, but there seem to be several interpretations of the Ros- including\u00a0cairn\/heap of stones\/cave (hreysi<\/em>), horses (hross<\/em>), or Hroarr<\/em> a personal name, but in modern Icelandic hreysi<\/em> is a hovel\/crude hut and I wonder if that might have been its provenance. But who knows if Hroarr cleared some\u00a0forest, the clearing stood by a cairn, or when hreysi<\/em> came to mean a crude building? Or perhaps diminutive versions of\u00a0hreysik\u01ebttr<\/em> (wildcat), or hreysiv\u00edsla\u00a0<\/em>(weasel) described the clearing?<\/p>\n Catbells, in the distance, from Rosthwaite<\/p><\/div>\n Rosthwaite no longer looks like a clearing in the woods. Only small stands of trees remain. The buildings cannot be be described as wretched hovels, there are neither wildcats nor weasels to be seen, nor horses\u00a0for that matter.\u00a0If there were cairns remarkable enough to name a place they are now gone, perhaps incorporated in the dry stone walls. As we set off, a race looked to be finishing at the village hall. They must have started early.<\/p>\n River Derwent<\/p><\/div>\n We followed a farm track which led us to the River Derwent (alternatively said to derive from dwr-gwyn<\/em>, white water, and derwa<\/em>, oak tree). The track reaches\u00a0the river at a ford which has stepping stones, but our route remained this side of the river and we crossed at a stone footbridge a few hundred metres further on. We then walked in sunshine through grassland with Low Scawdel above us.<\/p>\n High Hows Wood allowed us to swap direct sunlight for cooler dappled light beneath its\u00a0trees. Crab apples hung over the path but were small enough that even I wasn’t tempted to eat any. After crossing a narrow bridge we emerged into the sunshine at a wide curve in the River Derwent. It was still a little early for paddling though.<\/p>\n Old Rover<\/p><\/div>\n A little further on we passed a purple Rover. That’s not a flower, but an old car with 1964 plates, parked beside the path. \u00a0The next clearing was at Hollows Farm, the half way point of the Cumbria Way (by my estimation). The open ground allowed us a\u00a0glimpse of Skiddaw,which we had last seen from Stake Pass above the Langstrath. And looking back along Borrowdale gave us a good view of\u00a0Castle Crag, guarding the valley.<\/p>\n Castle Crag<\/p><\/div>\n Being in the open there were more wildflowers by the path: fox and cubs, yarrow, foxglove, bedstraw, bell heather, bird’s foot trefoil, horseshoe vetch, yellow corydalis, and spotted orchids. By now we were looking for a shaded spot for a short break, and after walking across a slope covered with wild thyme, with Blencathra making its first appearance in the distance, we found\u00a0a shaded tree stump.<\/p>\n This tree stump had coins hammered into it, and I decided to get into the swing of things by pushing in a coin using a handily placed rock. Hopefully it will bring me some luck.<\/p>\n Lucky coins in the wood<\/p><\/div>\n After \u00a0a brief rest and a cup of coffee we walked a short way to join a minor road for half a kilometre. This was the way we had come on the bus and as we walked the 77A bus came by again. It was getting quite busy around here with plenty of walkers from the nearby Borrowdale Hotel.<\/p>\n The 77<\/p><\/div>\n The road walking was soon over and we\u00a0left the road to head down towards the Lake. The ground here was moorland with bracken and bog myrtle but then became wet enough that boardwalks had been built to carry the footpath. The dry days though meant it was possible to leave the path to have a closer look at the orchids and asphodel growing there.<\/p>\n Spotted Orchids<\/p><\/div>\n Catbells was now visible and as we drew\u00a0closer,\u00a0walkers on the ridge gave us a better idea of its size and distance from us. Larger and further away than it would have otherwise appeared.<\/p>\n The path then led us down to Derwent Water, with Skiddaw and Blencathra on it far side. Just being beside the water seemed to cool the air a little and knowing we had completed the first half of the day’s walk was a morale booster.<\/p>\n Derwent Water<\/p><\/div>\n The path beside the lake was easy walking, and for the most part easy navigation as well. There were open areas filled with bog myrtle and \u00a0bracken and then broadleaved woodland. Near Brandlehow Bay we found\u00a0a sign informing us we were at Rupert’s Wood which had me reminiscing about Rupert the Bear annuals when I was a child. And a little way beyond this wood we found the Teddy in the window, a small teddy bear in the window of a large shed. Walkers had taken the trouble to send him postcards and\u00a0several\u00a0were on show in his window.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>