Corridor Route to Scafell Pike

Another cold but dry day was begun with a large breakfast at our B&B. Once that was finished, we set off towards Borrowdale and parked at the small hamlet of Seathwaite. The plan was to follow the Corridor Route up to the summit of Scafell Pike, the highest summit in England.
Following a path up Styhead Gill and passing Styhead Tarn, we stopped for a short drinks break at the Mountain Rescue box at Styhead Pass. So far though the weather was cloudy, visibility had been good so even though the ground was totally covered with several inches of snow, we had no problems following our intended route.

En Route to Corridor Route

Now the clouds had begun to lower and the the route on the ground wasn't to be seen, There were quite a a few footprints leading in one direction and a small group of walkers, including a completely bonkers Cocker Spaniel, heading in the same direction. For no reason in particular, after having a look at the map, Keith started following on set of footprints heading upwards, while Karen and I followed a separate set which seemed to agree with the direction indicated by the map – plus some cairns could be seen.
Anyway, after a short distance, Keith and Pete ended up veering towards our route and we were together again.
Continuing onwards, there were squally showers of snow and visibility worsened. Since none of us had been up this route before and because it wasn't easy to follow in the weather conditions we were experiencing, we decided to forget about the Corridor Route and Scafell Pike this time and just follow down Ruddy Gill and Grains Gill back to Seathwaite. We were near Sprinkling Tarn and headed towards its Eastern shore towards Ruddy Gill. The ground beneath our feet seemed unnaturally flat and we realised that Keith was walking across the frozen Tarn and we were following him as well!
We shouted for him to return and decide to make the best of a bad job and just return via the way we had come.
We were soon back at the Mountain Rescue Box at Styhead Pass and finished off the hot drinks in our flasks and had a small snack – at least Karen and I did, Keith and Pete had brought nothing themselves.
Soon we continued on the way we had come and were back at the cars in Seathwaite. Even though we hadn't achieved our goal for the day, it had been an enjoyable walk anyway.

Keith and Pete in the Distance on Returning

We ate in a large pub – very good food but served on cold plates so it didn't stay hot for very long.
I wore my Paramo Cascada trousers, Paramo Summit Hoodie and Paramo Fuera Ascent jacket. Also Polar Buff as a hat, Asolo Powermatic 200 GTX boots and Osprey Kestrel 38 rucksack.