š„¾ā±ļøThe Eastern Fells Finale: 11 Hours, 9 Summits, and One Phantom Path
- bootsandbanter
- Aug 21, 2025
- 5 min read
Updated: Nov 19, 2025
The day I did Striding Edge, Swirral Edge, and invented the Blea Cove Crawl
Date: August 16, 2025
šRoute: Ā Glenridding ->Blea Cove/Nab Crag (phantom path hell) -> Birkhouse Moor -> Striding Edge ->Helvellyn ->Swirral Edge (down) ->Catstye Cam ->Swirral Edge (up) -> Helvellyn plateau ->Nethermost Pike (repeat) ->Dollywaggon Pike (repeat) ->Grisedale Tarn -> Seat Sandal ->St. Sunday Crag ->Birks -> Arnison Crag -> Patterdale ->Glenridding
šDistance:Ā 26.26 km
ā¬ļøAscent:Ā 1846 m
Weather:Ā Overcast start with cloud on the tops, clearing within minutes to full sunshine. Bone-dry rock, clear visibility, and not a single breath of windĀ on any summit - rare perfection in the Lakes. The sun was relentless all day.
Mood:Ā Began with cursing, crawling, and disbelief on Blea Cove, then flipped to joy once the clouds lifted. The rest of the day I was chatty with anyone I met, grinning, and soaking in the views. By Catstye Cam I was lying on the grass like it was a beach holiday.
š The Start at Glenridding
8:30 AM, Glenridding.
Overcast skies.
Clouds on the tops. Everyoneās taking the main path left.
My OS Maps line is going right. So naturallyā¦ I go right. Because why follow people when you can follow a potentially dodgy GPX file instead?
At first, fine. Then I looked up. And my day went feral.
š§± Blea Cove/Nab Crag: Where Hopes (and Glasses) Go to Die
Blea Cove/Nab Crag. Remember the name. Because this āpathā does. not. exist.
Instead, itās a vertical grassy, muddy wallĀ that OS Maps tricked me into thinking was a route.
Spoiler: itās not.
I was on all fours, cursing, mud under my nails, crawling like a mountain goat having an identity crisis.
After a certain point going back down wasnāt an option unless I fancied cartwheeling into Patterdale.
Somewhere there, my glasses bailed on me. Canāt blame them. Honestly, theyāre gone forever, may they rest in peace somewhere in the abyss of Blea Cove/Nab Crag.
Verdict: Never again. Burn it from the maps.
āļø Clouds, Then Redemption
Finally popped out onto the actualĀ path. Looked down, couldnāt believe Iād just survived that nonsense.
At Birkhouse Moor, it was all cloud. No Striding Edge. No Helvellyn. Just me, swearing at Blea Cove under my breath.
Five minutes later - BAM. Clouds vanished. Views everywhere.
Striding Edge laid out in front of me, sunshine, and suddenly I had a spring in my step.
It really doesnāt take much to make me happy, just a bit of blue sky and a ridge line will do the trick every time.
šŖ Striding Edge vs. Swirral Edge
There it was at last: Striding Edge, laid out like a blade against the sky. Itās everything a ridge should be. Long, narrow, dramatic, the kind of line that makes you stop and stare. From a distance it looks fierce, a perfect ridge that screams danger, drama, adrenaline.
Up close, it really is beautiful, one of the most iconic sights in the Lakes.
Quite a few people on it but no queues. Straight onto the crest. Those sneaky bypass paths? Cute. Not for me.
And hereās the kicker:
Striding Edge wasā¦ from afar: the ultimate adrenaline ridge. Up close: a catwalk with views. Adrenaline? Zero.
My stomach didnāt even flutter. I was just prancing along the crest like, āis this it?ā Turns out perfect conditions, like dry rock, sunshine, zero wind kill all the drama.
It looked every bit the dramatic monster itās known for. It just didnāt feel like one.
ā°ļø Helvellyn: Take Two
This was my second time on Helvellyn.
First time? A whiteout where I saw nothing but my own bad decisions. This time? Sunshine, 360Ā° views, no wind. Honestly, one of the best viewpoints in the Lakes.
I couldnāt stop smiling. The āluck of the Lakesā finally decided to cash me in.
From the top, I dropped down Swirral EdgeĀ for the first time to grab Catstye Cam.
Later, I had to climb Swirral again because my route swung me back to the Helvellyn side. Down was bouldery and easy; up I took the crest. It was much better, spicier, fun, and it spat me back onto Helvellynās plateau like nothing happened.
š§ Catstye Cam: Peak Happiness
Catstye Cam was where the day peaked for me. Sunshine, not a drop of wind, views for days. Only one other guy turned up, and we chatted for far too long.
Then I lay down in the grass, demolished a cheese sandwich, and thought: yep, life complete.Ā
I didnāt want to leave.
Ever.
ā The āMight as Wellā Peaks
From there, I did the classic Mira thing: āwasnāt planning this, but Iām here anywayā¦ā ā Nethermost PikeĀ and Dollywaggon PikeĀ (both repeats).
Because clearly seven summits in a day isnāt enough without extras.
šŖØ Seat Sandal & St. Sunday Crag
From Dollywaggon Pike I dropped to Grisedale Tarn š„“, crawled up another horrid scree/grass slope to Seat Sandal.
Dropped back down to Grisedale Tarn š„“ then came a long way up St. Sunday CragĀ and the solitude. From the Crag to the end, I didnāt see a soul. The ridge felt remote, even if itās basically central casting for āpopular Lake District.ā
Sunshine. Views. Silence. Perfection.
š± Birks & Arnison Crag: The Finale
The last two, BirksĀ and Arnison Crag, wrapped the day.
That stretch felt particularly long but then again, I was already in hour nineĀ of the day.
Dropped into Patterdale, then dragged myself back to Glenridding.
My bottles were nearly empty, again.
Food wasnāt the issue. Water was. Water always is on a day like that.
Back at the car park, salvation came in the form of a takeaway van. I grabbed fish and chips, plonked myself on a bench at the side of the car park, and ate them with a bottle of water like it was a Michelin-star feast. Pure bliss after an 11-hour shift on the fells.
š The 11-Hour Fell Shift
My Garmin thinks Iām employed by the Lake District and honestly, I wish I was. Forget office/home shifts, give me 11 hours of summits, sunshine, and cheese sandwiches any day. No HR, no emails, just me clocking in on the fells and clocking out with fish and chips in the car parks or, if Iāve pulled a late one and missed every food place, those glamorous tuna pasta pots back at the Airbnb.
ā°ļøPeaks: Birkhouse Moor, Helvellyn, Catstye Cam, Seat Sandal, St. Sunday Crag, Birks, Arnison Crag
ā°ļøExtras: Nethermost Pike, Dollywaggon Pike
š Eastern Fells: Completed!
And just like that, the Eastern Fells are DONE. Another whole region finished.
Just four Wainwrights left overall.šĀ A mix of emotions: happyĀ to have wrapped up such a huge section, a little sadĀ that itās nearly over, but mostly excitedĀ for the grand finale.
What did I take away from that day?
That Blea Cove/Nab Crag is the devilās driveway.
That Striding Edge is more scenic catwalk than adrenaline rush if the weatherās perfect.
That cheese sandwiches taste like Michelin-star dining when eaten flat on Catstye Cam.
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