15°C, rain. This is a replacement for a trip to Scotland recently cancelled (this morning actually). I woke this morning with a strong feeling that I couldn’t face a 6 hour drive to Kintail. After some suggestions from friends I settled on The Howgills. A quiet range of English hills only 70 miles from home. Ideal.

Rain set in during the evening but a spectacle came late in the night. I got out of the tent about 3am and was stunned by clarity. The Milky way arched overhead behind vivid stars. A couple of planets were in plane sight too.

Sunday; 6h 12 mins walk time. The Howgill Fells are a distinctive range sandwiched between The Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales. My campsite lies to the east of the hill which is near the waterfalls of Cautley Spout. Climbing here put you up neat the main summit of Calf Top.

The falls were spectaular, more so after recent heavy rains. From this view, the land was laid out below in geological layers, glacial moraines and deeply cut river erosion which reminded me of Bohuntine .

Monday, walktime: 7h 15′ /sunny and warm after a cool start. I had time in the morning while waiting for a phone call, to plot a route up Baugh Top. A convenient carpark is at the north, Rawthey Bridge by 2 bridlepaths which gives gives a long lead-in and out. This turned out, in contrast to yeaterday, to be a most beautiful day.

This was a long walk over relatively easy terrain. There was no exposure and height gain was never huge. There could have been more wildlife, I saw mostly voles and a few raptors. The only real impediments were boggy ground and frequent flooding. Saw two hikers on the hill, they were on the horizon about a kilometre away. That was all, nobody else. How ideal is that!

I’m really taken by the North Pennines, I shall revisit!
Once back at the car, hunger set in but I had enough camping food to make supper in the carpark before the drive home.