enjoy the view

NOTES

www.walkscene.co.uk

Dow Crag

The Old Man of Coniston
via Goats Hause

Notes and points of interest

Coniston - is a popular tourist village with a wide range of facilities for such s small community. It is well provided with pubs, hotels, guest houses and shops, including a couple specialising in outdoor and walking gear. The village is set back from Lake Coniston and does not have a frontage to the water.

Coniston Water - was known as Thurston Water until quite recently, but became internationally famous under the "Coniston" name when Donald Campbell chose it for his assault on the world water speed record. His fatal accident there in 1964 was back in the news in 2001 when his boat "Bluebird" and his body were finally recovered from the depths of the lake. It is a tree-lined, long and beautiful lake with some boat traffic, but not too much to disturb its tranquillity.

Dow Crag - at 778 metres (2529 feet) is not much lower than The Old Man, but less bulky overall. However, the steep cliff that looks down on this route is craggy and forbidding - an unforgettable profile.

Lows Water - is the grass banked tarn you pass on the return route, following your descent from the summit via the zigzags

Goats Hause - is a pass lying between the peaks of The Old Man of Coniston, Dow Crag and Brim Fell and is the meeting point for paths leading to these peaks and across to Seathwaite Tarn and the Langdale Pikes.

Goats Water - is an isolated tarn lying under the shadow of Dow Crag.

Mine workings - Stone quarrying ended here in the late 20th century and the mine buildings and much of the equipment remain here on the mountainside, gradually crumbling away. The ruins are accessible - but be careful!

Summit sheep - they look sweet, with their curly horns and innocent faces, but watch out for these practised robbers! The sheep at the summit are accustomed to people and have learned that walkers carry sandwiches. They will boldly sneak up behind you and steal your lunch from the rucksack, or even snatch it from your hands.

Walna Scar Road - is a green road that runs over several low passes to Seathwaite and, via several linking green roads, to many other destinations in southern Lakeland.