Peak & Lake District Sojourn. Day 44.

Updated: Sep 14, 2022

Mosedale Horseshoe, Wasdale (6xNuttalls).

Looking Stead 627m, Pilar 892m, Pilar Black Crag 828m, Scoat Fell 841m, Steeple 819m and Red Pike 826m.

Summary

This was a horseshoe that I had wanted to do for a while and today was supposed to be only a so so weather day but it turned out dry, cool, had great light for photos (they are pretty good today!) and the cloud was only intermittent. It was a perfect day out!

A stunning anti clockwise route of the famed Mosedale Horseshoe taking in 6 Nuttalls including Pilar. Rocky craggy paths, great ridges, great views, dry weather and a cool breeze, nothing really to dislike!

The gpx track is pretty self explanatory and the paths are in general easy to follow and as described quite rocky. I will add that the steepest longest pitch is the hike up Black Sail Pass and onwards to Pilar. Apart from that the height gain is minimal. I only had to put my hands on rock on the section between Scoat Fell and Steeple and even then I would call it the easiest of scrambles. This section has some exposure but you only need to be careful in high winds or in winter conditions in my opinion.

I would conclude that even though this is a straight forward walk in good weather I can imagine it would be challenging with snow on the ground and in fog/cloud when the paths are obscured. There are cairns at frequent intervals through out.

Parking: National Trust Car Park at Wast Water. £7 per day.

Route: Rocky, craggy but generally easy to follow and distinct. Some easy scrambling going to Steeple. A great horseshoe outing, superb!

Route Statistics: A superb 18.5km outing with 1,070m of height gain done in 6.5 hours.