Hellvellyn - A Hell of a Sunrise!

I was up at 2:30am this morning with my good mate @BowserMTB to climb the third highest mountain in England, Hellvellyn in the Lake District. Yes I know it was a mad time, but we were determined to get to the top before the sunrise and then just watch it.

The walk started in pitch darkness, you need a head torch to do this properly so don’t try walking in the dark without them, the risk is too great! But probably within an hour or an hour and a half it started to get light and the torches were no longer required, and you could see the bottom of the valley relatively clearly.

The walk started from Patterdale and climbed up then to the famous “hole in the wall” and then along the ridge walk, Striding Edge before making the final tough assault on the Hellvellyn peak. With drops both sides, you can’t afford to take risks and you need to take your time and make sure you have good footing and hand grips.

During this time the sun was rising, at first the sky was a wonderful mix of blues and reds, then as the sun got bigger the red came to prominence and when it finally broke through it was dazzling and absolutely awesome! By the time we were on the summit it was really quite warm and it was almost like the middle of the day.

It really was worth getting up at 2:30am and seeing this majestic view, we were so lucky with the weather.

In this photo you’re looking back to Ullswater with mist on it, Striding Edge and Red Tarn the lake at the bottom of the blip.

You can see more photos of the walk here.

After the views in Yorkshire and today we really do live in a stunning country, so why not get out there and enjoy it? You can walk or run or cycle, or even drive to most of the places. We sometimes forget what’s right on our doorstep and fail to appreciate it the beauty.