Great Mountain Days in the Pennines. Terry Marsh

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      Brown Hill and the upper reaches of Ardale Beck

      From Tees Head (NY697339), a cairned path (not immediately obvious, narrow in places and crossing numerous spring streams) heads south-west across what is initially bouldery terrain to the edge of Wildboar Scar (NY679326). This stretch is open moorland, and there is an invigorating sense of freedom, with the whole place to yourself (more than likely), the Eden valley rolling away ahead, and the Lakeland fells sitting like a frieze on the western skyline.

      Wildboar Scar is nothing more than an abrupt escarpment, grassy, rounded and sporting a much clearer path curving below it. Ahead lies the mound of Grumply Hill, and the path keeps north of it (right) to enter Littledale, one of the tributaries of Crowdundle Beck. At the right time of year this enchanting section of moorland resounds to the piping call of the golden plover, as white-rumped wheatears dart about and chatter busily, and curlews bubble a constant accompaniment.

      Onwards the path descends easily to and through a sheepfold and across a wide, walled tract of rough ground, scented in spring and early summer with gorse, to a large ruined barn and farm building at Wythwaite (NY654317), from where there is a fine retrospective view of Great Dun Fell in particular. Once at Wythwaite, turn through a gate and follow a surfaced lane to pass a curious feature marked on the map as the Hanging Walls of Mark Antony.

      Precisely what are, or were, the Hanging Walls of Mark Antony is open to question, but the generally accepted view is that they are cultivation terraces, possibly as much as 3500 years old. There is a contrary view, however, which suggests that while they are indeed agricultural terraces, they date only from the seventh century, and that the naming of them on maps is a mistake, which ought to place them nearer to Culgaith. William Camden in Britannia refers to ‘the river Blencarne’ and ‘the confused ruins of a castle called the Hanging walls of Marcantoniby’.

      From this enigmatic place it is only a short walk along the access lane, and back to the church at Kirkland.

      The stone shelter on Cross Fell, looking north to Scotland

WALK FOUR

      High Cup Nick and Backstone Edge

Start point	Dufton NY689249
Distance	15.5km (9½ miles)
Height gain	592m (1940ft)
Grade	strenuous
Time	5–6hrs
Maps	Ordnance Survey OL19 (Howgill Fells and Upper Eden Valley)
Getting there	Dufton village car park (toilets)
After-walk refreshment	Stag Inn in Dufton; pubs, cafés, snack bars and restaurants in Appleby

      High Cup Nick will be no stranger to those who have walked the Pennine Way, and its dramatic and sudden appearance for those travelling south to north on that route is a memorable moment. For walkers ascending from Dufton, however, this remarkable geological phenomenon eases into view gradually, but reserves its full impact for those who continue to its head, where sometimes a river cascades down the shattered rocks of the Whin Sill.

      The Route

      Unlike many mountain ranges, the Pennines, being gentle, moulded moorland hills, offer few dramatic, sharp-edged profiles to catch the eye and lodge in the mind. One of the few exceptions to this is the impressive sculpted escarpment of High Cup Nick, formed by forces cold, wet and windy, where outcrops of igneous Whin Sill dolerite have intruded into the thick layers of mountain limestone and gritstone.

      The walk starts from the rural cluster of cottages that forms Dufton, a charming, friendly oasis, contrasting sharply with the mountain wilderness high above it, and owing its place on the walkers’ map to an idiosyncratic kink in the Pennine Way, which here quits the high ground for an overnight halt before pressing on to the highest Pennine summit, Cross Fell. Ironically, the day which transports Pennine Wayfarers heading north from Teesdale to Dufton lands them further removed from their destination, Kirk Yetholm, than when they began the day.

      Pennine Way signpost

      From the small car park, turn right and follow the road through the village. At the bottom of a dip, the Pennine Way is signposted and leads up along the lane to Bow Hall Farm, set on gently sloping pastures. There is invariably a red flag mounted at the entrance to Bow Hall Lane, signifying activity on the Warcop Artillery Range, part of the Warcop Principal Training Area.

      Firing on the artillery range is unlikely to affect anyone ascending to High Cup Nick, but walkers tempted to stray onto Murton Fell could be walking into trouble. Activity, with no concession to walkers, occurs every day except Mondays.

      The onward route beyond Bow Hall lies along a walled green lane, and beyond climbs high onto the hillside. On passing through the intake wall, the views open up across the Eden valley to the fells of Lakeland and southwards to the Howgills. The path eases up to a sheepfold. Pass through this, and a short way on enter a natural hollow with a large cairn at its centre, just below Peeping Hill. From here, take the high route up to a cairn, from where the ongoing Pennine Way route is clear throughout.

      Continue easily along the edge of a developing escarpment, which drops in precipitous green slopes to unseen High Cup Gill. As the gill narrows, so the scenery assumes a more inspiring and dramatic aspect, and the Pennine Way, crossing a couple of cascading streams, then relaxes to form a gentle greenway around the craggy amphitheatre to the Pennine watershed ahead. The path, as if possessing no head for heights, maintains a respectable distance from the escarpment, but as the crags become more evident a cautious diversion will reveal an architecture of shattered pinnacles and precarious columns of basalt.

      Nichol’s Chair

      High Cup Head

      The most notable of these pinnacles and columns, Nichol’s Chair, is named after a cobbler who used to live in Dufton, and who not only climbed the pillar but is reputed to have repaired a pair of boots while on its top. Any ascent now runs the risk of precipitating the collapse of the whole column.

      For all its comparative lack of stature, the stream that flows (sometimes) lemming-like over High Cup Nick will, when caught by a westerly wind, often plume high into the air, reminiscent of Kinder Downfall in the Peak District, and nearby folds in the grassy shoulder of the escarpment offer lunch-time shelter. While recovering from the effort required to reach this point, it’s worth bearing in mind that the best fell-runners start in Dufton and come up to High Cup Nick, and back down, in just a fraction over one hour!

      High Cup Nick is a classic U-shaped valley on the western flanks of the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. A deep chasm on the Pennine fellside, this famous geological formation at the top of High Cup Gill is part of the Whin Sill and overlooks СКАЧАТЬ