St. Sunday Crag

Saturday was the perfect day for a walk in the Lake District. We had wanted to do some walking after our trip a couple of weeks ago, so we got a babysitter and headed to Patterdale! You might remember that we’ve been to Patterdale before. We didn’t finish that walk, so we decided to do it from the other side and do all the climbing up first.

It was a cold and snowy day for a walk. As we were leaving the car park, I felt like we weren’t very well equipped for the cold and snow as I saw other walkers kitted out in heavy walking boots, gaiters, and (really serious looking) crampons. So we set out on our walk behind the Patterdale Hotel. We were going to climb St. Sunday Crag, go down to Grisedale Tarn and return by way of Grisedale Valley.

The weather on Saturday was clear. It was cold, but we had fantastic views the entire way up St. Sundays Crag because it was so clear. There was snow on the ground, but we didn’t let that stop us. I kind of felt invincible with crampons attached to my shoes… even though they weren’t the really intense kind.

The climb was to be expected. Hills and I don’t get along when I go up them. At times the snow got deep, and there were drifts. Oh, but getting to the summit was so worth it when we could see the views! It was windy and cold at the summit as well, but we still took a little break to enjoy the view before going back down.

The snow was deeper on the other side of St. Sunday Crag. I felt like a little kid running though the snow, hoping that I’d lose a little control of my running and fall into the white fluffy snow on the ground.

Now, I admit that I haven’t done much walking in the snow, but I was up for it. I’ve done walks with Leon before, and I was dressed warm enough for the weather. The snow made this walk—um—more challenging than I expected. We continued down St. Sunday Crag and we were soon on Deepdale Hause, where we would make our descent to the tarn. The challenge with the climb down was that it was an icy footpath that hadn’t been very well travelled. There was a drift to our left, a steep descent to the right, and only footprints to follow. I was terrified. It probably took us twice as long as it should have to get down because I struggled to get from footprint to footprint at times on my way down. Thankfully, a silly near-face plant I made in the snow relieved some of the tension as we got closer to Grisedale Tarn. :)

So this photo wasn’t from the scary part of our walk, but it might give you an idea of what it was like!

Once at the tarn, the rest of our walk was on relatively flat ground as we walked through the valley back to Patterdale. It was still a bit icy and snowy, but it was nothing compared to what we just went through! From the tarn, our walk was another 4 miles before we got back to the car park where we’d started.

Even though it was a challenging walk and I’m a bit sore now, climbing St. Sunday Crag in the snow was an adventure I’ll never forget! I even find myself thinking about our next walk… but maybe we should wait for warmer weather and not so much snow! :)