Bob Graham leg 3 report

Navigator - IanDarkpeak. Pacers - Gerry Dewhurst, Ian Fellgazelle, Steve Foster. Accompanying fell hound – Lilly Dewhurst (Staffordshire Bull Terrier, white with black patches, softer than she looks but not much, a bit like Steve really)

On Leg 3 you climb initially up Steel Fell before what’s best described as a moorland trudge to the Langdale Pikes, on to Rossett Pike before joining the proper big lads: Bowfell, Esk Pike, Great End and ultimately Scafell Pike and Sca Fell. The first part of this leg is my least favourite chunk of the BG. The second part is a magnificent run

Steel Fell is always a horrible climb and not made easier by a large bacon cob and two mugs of sugary tea. As it was we made the summit on schedule and met Linda’s group there after they’d taken an unconventional approach one gully over to the left of the normal (and now complete with trod) way

The trudge went better than I could have hoped but our problem was IanDarkpeak was struggling with a bad back. He had to drop out but Ian Fellgazelle was more than happy to pick up the map and compass. It has to be said he did well and we were lucky to have Linda’s group including Calder Valley’s Mike Wardle with us for much of the remainder of the leg. Mike was excellent; never once needing to revert to the map and offering constant encouragement to us all

The area around the Langdale Pikes was probably the bit of the round I found hardest going. It was one of the strange grey Lakeland mornings when it never seems to want to get light. However, around Thurnacar Knott the sky brightened suddenly and with it so did my spirits. The doubt and tiredness left me and it was like starting a brand new day

I’ve found the mini-scrambles up the rocky peaks of Harrison Stickle and Pike O’Stickle tough in the past but my now good spirits and the great grip afforded by the Inov-8 Mudclaw 270s I wore all day helped massively. Gerry, Steve and Lilly helped here in a huge way too with feeding, watering and general good doggie company

The section after the Langdales is great. I love the climbs of Rossett Pike and Bowfell; ingenious, elegant routes off the main tourist paths. Rossett Pike is half way round the BG and we were there at exactly 7a.m i.e. 12hours on from the start. The climb up Billy Bland’s rake up to Bowfell went really well and we were soon away from the moorland and onto what’s probably the most rugged area of the Lakeland fells

Getting to Great End via a really smart line a veteran Bingley Harrier showed me and Geoff on a recce was an important landmark for me as this is where I had to pack on my first attempt. No problems this time though and we were soon on Scafell Pike having ticked off Ill Crag and Broad Crag ahead of schedule

The gully scramble up to Foxes tarn was okay but I struggled badly on the final climb to Scafell, moving well for short sections then stopping to talk to Steve and Gerry. However, we made the summit just as Linda, who’d done Lords Rake was clambering down. The climbing on leg 3 was all done and I could start thinking about late breakfast in the best valley in the country

I’d only done the descent off Scafell (the biggest descent on a clockwise BG) once with Paul on ‘Cockley Beck week’ and wasn’t looking forward to it. As it was the top rocky / scree section went well as I passed some of Linda’s team and Ian took us out to the left to pick up a fantastic grassy path down. It didn't seem long before we were in the National Trust car park and I was scoffing another huge bacon cob made by Dave the Gaffer and feeling much better than I expected to an hour or so earlier!