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Before I moved to Millom I started planning to do the local Wainwright. Basically it is White Combe cross to Black Combe. That's it. I started working on it when I was staying with Frank Brown. Having got to the top of White Combe I took one look at Black Combe and thought that looks bloody scary for a single walker.
And it does. However, it isn't. The path, such as it is, goes nowhere near the rather precipitous rock face you can see from White Combe. Anyway today I crossed the link between the hill and the mountain (Black Combe, I believe, counts as a proper mountain). I elected not to pot the peak (though it looked pretty easy) since I wanted to concentrate on finding a good route down. I can easily go back for the peak.
Coming down Black Combe proved tricky. Despite excellent directions provided by a group of horse riders, some rather professional looking walkers and most unlikely of all, a band of cyclists (I would not want to cycle there), I managed to get about 5km off track,making the whole trip considerably more exhausting than I expected.
I was very glad to get a pint of tap water (and an accompanying pint of beer) at the Miners Arms in Silecroft. The train then whisked me back to Millom, but having sat for a while, I found walking rather difficult. Still home and a bath: what could be better.
Jonathan Brind