The weather was not brilliant but this did not seem to bother us too much. John was driving his car for a change and sat in the back I was quite uncomfortable and seemed to miss out on a lot of the conversation. Driving down St John's in the Vale we saw much evidence of the recent floods. We eventually parked the car on the other side of the Thirlemere dam and got ready for the walk. Although it was not raining the low cloud looked very ominous so we decided it was full waterproof weather. I cannot remember the last time I have seen such low cloud, visibility was poor and it looked like we were not going to get any sort of views today. I was quite glad that I had chosen a relatively low level walk for today.
We set off walking across the dam back towards the main road. Thirlemere looked very dark and bleak today, it was very grey and uninviting. I stopped to take a photograph of the big plaque and description on the dam wall, John and Sarah meanwhile carried on walking and looking over the dam wall at all the debris and flotsam that had been washed up against the wall, and there was lots of it after the recent storms. The cloud seemed to be getting lower and the day was turning quite cold . We could just about see the outline of High Rigg in the distance this did not look like it was going to be one of the better days walking as far as views were concerned. Even though the weather was yuck, a runner and then a mountain biker passed us as we walked across the dam wall, we were not the only people out trying to enjoy the day despite the weather.
As we passed the caravan site at Bridge End Farm Sarah decided to look around the buildings to see if she could find a toilet block that was open. She had to retire without any success as everything was locked, she was going to be in for a long wait today! We crossed over the main road and joined the footpath that would lead us over High Rigg.
At first the footpath lead quite steeply up a grassy bank towards Wren Crag. This did not last for too long before the gradient decreased and we found ourselves quite high above the valley floor. On the other side of the valley the site of Castle Rock was quite striking. Ahead of us the way forward looked interesting as the path wound its way around and along the ridge.
Looking back the sight of Great How was at about the limits of visibility. I've often wondered about Great How, that and Swinside on the other side of Keswick. Why are they not part of any Wainwright list? Apart from the fact that they are not outlying, it always strikes me that they would be a welcome addition to the outlying fells. Perhaps I answered my own question! As we followed the path above Wren Crag we came across the first signs of damage from the recent storms . As well as many broken branches littering the ground there was a completely up rooted tree. We had a quick look around the area and were surprised to see how shallow the tree roots were. Underneath the fallen tree it was bare rock, the roots had less than a foot of soil to grow in, that was less than the diameter of the tree trunk!
This footpath was a delight to walk on, we kept passing branches that had been blown down, some quite a distance from any trees! The path wound its way along the ridge and away to the right we caught occasional glimpses of some of the gully's and gills that make up the western side of Clough Head, they looked very impressive from here, something to note in choosing a route up Clough Head! The wind started to pickup and it felt quite chilly, we made good time as we chatted away about various things along the way. Eventually I thought it was time for a coffee break and as this coincided with us dropping down into a small col at the start of Long Band and some shelter from the wind we took advantage and settled down next to the wall for a break.
After the coffee break we headed up the steep scree above Long Band, something that looked much worse than it turned out to be and then carried on along the path. The clag dropped down and we had very limited visibility, it was one of those times when you can see nothing at all apart from just a few feet around you, the occasional tarn appeared and looking at the map these were the only thing that helped give an idea of where we were.
I kept a close look at the map and started to feel a bit uncertain as we started to loose height, I had the impression that by following the path we would stay high on the ridge line until we reached the summit, not so! At least the sign of a wall junction and a stile helped me pinpoint our position on the map and I felt much happier. Once over the stile we followed the wall and gained height again and soon came across the large tarn that I was hoping to find, well it was not really large rather more a big puddle that took a long detour around to keep our feet dry ! Sarah and John wanted to head in another direction to me now; their internal sense of direction totally let them down here! Map and GPS in hand I was able to convince them that I really did know where I was going, honest!
The thing that finally convinced them that we were on the right track was the sight of an old sheep pen that AW had drawn on his map of the area, I pointed this out in the Central Fells book and they seemed convinced, it's funny how they can trust a hand drawn diagram done 40 plus years ago instead of state of the art OS maps and GPS technology, mind you that technology was in my hands! They seemed happy with my thought that the top of High Rigg was in the direction that I was pointing, the fact that the clag hid anything and everything from view only bothered me now! So following another small path in the general direction that I felt we should be walking on I was disappointed to find that when we reached the top we headed down again to another tarn, but in a brief clearing of the clag we could then see the top away in the distance, that must be the top surely! It was getting a bit frustrating now, another one of Sarah's secret summits! Well in weather like this it is very difficult to see if there is a higher point than the point where you are at.
Trudging up to the summit I asked Sarah if this had been ok as an easy start to the year walking wise. As we had hardly expended any effort apart from the first initial part of the walk she answered in the affirmative. When we reached the top and a cairn we settled down behind it and had some lunch. Another cairn was visible over in the distance and we played that game again, the one that goes something like “is that higher over there”. We seem to be doing this more often now due to weather conditions, bring on the summer and some visibility!
After the lunch break we headed down off High Rigg towards St John's in the Vale church. The path was a huge green swath that even we could not miss. This path soon got very steep and I wished that I had brought the micro sledges with us, now that would have made for an interesting descent! As it was I was expecting my feet to start playing up at any moment due to the steepness but I was lucky and felt nothing. Then my luck ran out and it started to rain, that rain that just comes straight downwards in never ending drops, yuck!
When we reached the road, well track really as I would not like to drive a car along here Sarah changed into her full waterproofs. Checking the map I began to talk about the possibility of doing Raven Crag as well or calling it quits and heading into Keswick as I could sense that Sarah was itching for some shopping! We decided to carry on and make the decision later on. We followed the road and soon reached the valley floor, passing past a few houses. This was a horrible time as now on the tarmac my feet started to complain, apart from the heads down and get on with it walking due to the rain my toes felt like they were on fire, it was a case of gritting my teeth and getting on with it!
The road suddenly disappeared, that's what happens when you have your head down when walking and we found ourselves on a track. I checked the map and felt ok as far as where we were going, out onto the fell side and heading towards the main road. We still made good time and even though the rain still came straight down we all felt pretty good. When we reached the main road it was decision time. After a few minutes discussion we agreed that we would carry on and do Raven Crag, I was glad of this as I am getting fed up with “leaving out” the odd summit here and there now. To my way of thinking it was going to be an easy walk up a forestry commission track, a short climb up to Raven Crag and then a steep descent straight back to the car. The distance involved was probably the same as walking directly back to the car along the road. Sarah later told me that her and John were not really bothered about doing Raven Crag but I was “determined” in her words to do it, something that perhaps I regret now!
We walked across the main road and up the road towards Shoulthwaite Farm and as Sarah had not eaten anything yet I gave her a banana, yes I had even started to carry these yellow energy sticks now instead of chocolate bars, I thought John would be proud of me! Through the farm yard we followed the sign posts and then up a steep path that led to the forestry commission track that we wanted. We had to pass through some tall deer fences and after a story that John had told us about seeing a deer while out on a run during Christmas we all kept our eyes open just in case we would see one today! The path up to the track was a bit of a killer on the calf muscles and once at the track John changed his clothing as he was feeling warm. It was one of those horrible times when we were too warm but did not want to change clothes at it was still raining, John did but me and Sarah stuck it out with what we had on.
The track was easy to walk on but uphill all the way with no respite, it was gradual but monotonous! We started to come across signs of fallen trees and branches. At one point we could see where a large tree had fallen across the road, all that was left was the uprooted stump, a large groove in the earth that went straight across the road where the tree had fallen and a few cut up branches on the other side of the track, it had obviously been cut up and removed, quick work but it must have blocked access to the whole of the forest if it had been left. John started on the puns now, things like “ I wonder if the price of wood has fallen?” well it was funny at the time! This track was hard work, at least it stopped raining and we were treated to a view of Iron Crag and one of the streams that came down the fell side, the higher reaches of this stream looked like a good scramble, something else to note for the future! The GPS track log showed us very near to the car, I showed Sarah this and it was funny to think that the GPS showed the car less than a mile away but on the other side of the ridge that lay between us, I think this cheered Sarah up a bit!
The track eventually made a few zig zags as it gained a lot of height below Sippling Crag. Looking straight up the crags looked very imposing with the trees and rock, the poor visibility helping to concentrate the sight onto the immediate area. Another downed tree offered a seat as I needed some liquid refreshment. By now we had gained sufficient height to be back in the clag and the visibility was terrible. I kept checking the map and GPS to try and ensure we did not walk past the path that led up to Raven Crag, in this visibility this was a real possibility as we could barely see the edge of the track that we walked on! Eventually we came across a sign post indicating the path both up to Raven Crag and down to Thirlemere, I felt very relieved at this! This path led up between the trees and it was as if someone had turned the lights off! All of a sudden we went from gloom to darkness. At one point the trees crowded the path so much that I was considering getting out my head torch, luckily in this “tunnel” of trees there was some logs laid on the ground like kerb stones, very helpful. After this tunnel the path turned into a stair way of logs and steps as it made its way steeply upwards. At one point another fallen tree totally blocked the path, John came out with another pun here “we are stumped now!” commenting on the tree blocking the path, again it really was funny at the time. I think we needed a bit of laughter now as it was hard work up here. Sarah was struggling to keep up, I was feeling very warm but still could not be bothered to remove any layers and John was just being John, getting on with it and still cracking the jokes!
Not long after the fallen tree we came across a cairn, at first me and Sarah thought that this must be the top. We waited for John but he had disappeared. A couple of minutes passed with us shouting at John and he ignoring us, we carried on the faint path and soon saw him through the gloom at the proper top and summit cairn. This must have been one of the most frustrating summits that we have been to yet. Getting here had been a long slog with no views and rubbish weather. I have been up here once before and I was looking forward to the view of Thirlemere, no chance today!
We retraced our steps back along the path and through the tunnel in the trees eventually reaching the main track and then followed the path down to Thirlemere. Sarah was slow coming down and my toes were burning again which made me walk in a stop start way down the path. The path was very hard to follow as much of it had been eroded by water damage. Once back onto a more substantial path we made better time. We followed a path through a young plantation that was protected by another deer fence, in normal weather this would have been enjoyable but by now all I wanted was to get back to the car. Usually it is me walking slowly down hill but today it was Sarah's turn. She later told me that I was like a man possessed going down here! Once through this young plantation we came out onto another forestry commission track and soon saw the road. Sarah asked the question as to why we were following this track as even if it was going down it was heading away from the car, good point so we headed straight downwards towards the road, very hard work! Sarah was very gingerly trying to find her way down, I was doing my stop start thing due to sore toes and John had already reached the road!
It was only a few hundred yards back to the car and as I got nearer I suddenly realized that I felt unwell. It is hard to put into words but I felt exhausted, my upper body ached, I felt very warm and then cold and then warm again and all I wanted to do was get changed, sit down and try and get comfortable in the car. Getting changed took me an age and once in the car I tried my best to get comfortable, no joy. John and Sarah looked at me and asked if I was ok, I told them how I felt but conversation was not on my list of priorities at the moment as I tried all ways to get somewhere comfortable! I asked John to pull into the garage at Rheged to get me a cold drink and Sarah again asked me how I was doing. I foolishly replied that if I did not know better I would say that I was having a heart attack, I just felt lousy! The cold drink did not help and I spent a very uncomfortable drive back down the M6 wondering what the problem was with me. I have never been comfortable in the back of John's car but this was ridiculous! At Preston Sarah wanted to drive my car back home as she did not feel that I was in a fit state to do so, I was adamant that I was ok and headed back home, apparently I was a right grumpy old git, sorry!
Back home I immediately had a hot bath hoping for some relief but that did not help. My wife wanted to take me to hospital as she thought I looked terrible, my reply was that I always look like this when I return from a walk but she was having none of that and phoned my parents. When they arrived my mum, who used to be a nurse, agreed with my wife and the next thing I knew I was on my way to A&E. I did feel terrible still, very achy from one shoulder to another and breathing very shallowly.
So that was that.
Once in the hospital it was like getting on a roller coaster for me, there was no getting off now! Blood tests, heart monitors, questions and answers and the next thing they had admitted me, I hate hospitals! The doctors still did not know what was wrong with me so they explained that a second blood test 12 hours after I first experienced pain, not that I had any pain I kept explaining, and they would be able to tell if I had had a heart attack, this was all going a bit too fast for me now! Some drugs and a comfy bed helped me get comfortable and I eventually fell asleep in the Medical Admission Ward. They woke me up at 4am and took some blood. I then enjoyed a nice sleep again until 5am when I was rudely awoken by the doctor and told that I had definitely had a heart attack, definitely going a bit too quick now! I sensed a bit of panic and lots of rushing about now, I was still half asleep and not really with it, that was until they injected something straight into my stomach, that woke me up! and gave me some Morphine, then I was soon in the land of nod again! The next morning I was moved onto the Coronary Care Unit and plugged into something from a Star Wars set, at least I had a room to myself and directly opposite from where the nurses sat as well. Lucky me!
A couple of days later I was moved into a normal ward in the middle of the night as my bed was needed by someone in a worse state than me. When I woke up in the morning the first thing I saw was an elderly gentleman in the next bed who said “blimey, you are a bit young to be in here”, cheers mate, that really made my day that did!
The cardiac rehabilitation nurse sat down with me one morning and discussed in great detail what had happened to me and how I was going to get well again. When we discussed the reasons for my heart attack things like smoking, drinking, eating habits and exercise habits were all discussed, why am I not surprised that my lifestyle has led to this! That coupled with the fact that my dad had a similar experience on Coniston Old Man once, they do say that these things are hereditary.
5 days later I left hospital after completing a cardiac stress test, walking on a treadmill at ever increasing speed and angle, I was looking forwards to that all day!. This showed a problem 12 minutes into a 15 minute test. As a result of this I was allowed home but must go back for an angiogram to find out the extent of the damage. In the mean time I am following an exercise regime meant to get me back into shape, walking can you believe! That and strict instructions to stop smoking and eat healthy food etc etc etc.
John and Sarah visited me in hospital and talking about the walk I was surprised to hear how my memory of the walk differed from theirs. Apparently I was stubborn and spent most of the day, especially the later part walking like a man possessed!
Well I have learnt my lesson and while it has been relatively easy for me my family and friends have had a right scare, so for that I apologize to them. For me it has been like getting on a roller coaster with no way off. The first week back at home I did nothing apart from spend days trying to repair my PC, I missed t'internet! The second week has been hard, as in the words of my wife ”you think you are better than you actually are”
So lesson learnt, I am trying to take things easy, not easy for someone used to doing things at 1000mph all the time! For the time being I am joining the “hobblers club” and trying my best to do all the right things even though it is very hard. There might not be any additions to the walking diary for a while, that is if you don't count walks around my local area! But I will be back, and with a vengeance because John and Sarah refuse to go walking with me until I have developed a “six pack”, it will be a long wait then!
One thing that really bugs me at the minute is that if I did have to have a heart attack why could I not have had it on a proper mountain like Scafell or Great Gable instead of lowly Higg Rigg and Raven Crag? (some people are just never happy!) I also think I was right in my comment to John after our last walk up Blencathra in winter conditions "You might as well shoot me now as life does not get much better than this!"