January - Bleaklow

Summit Height:
2077ft / 633m

What?
Bleaklow

When?
23rd January

Where?
Peak District

Who?
Laura, Mel, Nick & Shona

How? No continuous path exists to the summit, and routes were covered in deep snow, so relied mostly on GPS.

Winter conditions were always going to play a part in my choice of summit for January, and since crampons and an ice axe are not things I have lying around, I needed to choose a relatively low and close to home mountain.

Bleaklow is the 2nd highest mountain in the peak district, and the 'bleak' in it's name is perfectly fitting. Bleaklow is not a traditional 'pointy' mountain, and the summit can apparently be quite hard to find on a clear day. Even with the help of GPS, provided by Mel and Nick, we almost didn't find it due to the thick fog.

It ended up being a little tougher than expected, with snow at times literally up to our waists, but despite the navigational difficulties and lack of view it was a really great experience.

The summit itself wasn't much to write home about (a stick in some rocks, amongst some fog), but the highlight of the day was finding (again, thanks to trusty GPS) the site of the crashed Boeing RB-29A Superfortress which crashed in 1948. A shiver went through my spine as it emerged out of the fog, and the weather conditions added an eerie atmosphere to an interesting and sombre moment.



The round trip took us a good 6 hours, and ended with a traditional ale and pub dinner before driving home.