A trip to the stunning Lake District this summer was my first visit to Buttermere, a hike up one of Wainwright's favourites - Haystacks, along with some of the Raven Hill ambassador team and a camp out with an amazing view!
The day started off at Buttermere, not the easiest of locations to get to with long narrow roads but don't let that put you off as there is plenty to do there! We walked alongside the idyllic Buttermere lake which looks like the perfect place for a swim or paddle boarding (if you wanted to make the hike shorter you can start at Gatesgarth car park). From here we followed the counter-clockwise route up to Haystacks, looking back at a beautiful view over the lake. Unfortunately we had quite misty and rainy weather so the view from the very top was all clouds with parts of the dramatic mountains poking through so although we couldn't see the bottom of the mountain the views of the surrounding landscape were quite mystical!
We made it to the top of the 597m hill without too much difficulty, there was a small scramble at the top and with the rainy weather it got quite slippery so would advise hiking/trail shoes with some grip in wet conditions. Also, doing the hike counter-clockwise avoids coming down on the scramble so it's much easier!
It was all smiles from the summit down, the next highlight you will come across is two tarns. Which in the summer I assume are very lush, I would have been tempted to take a dip in myself if it wasn't already raining. As much fun wild swimming is, I'm not too keen on hiking in wet boots! We stopped by Blackbeck Tarn for a snack and to take a few pictures with a friendly duck and carried on our route. Walking around Warnscale Bothy and following the path down alongside Warnsdale Beck, we reached the usual starting/finishing point of Gatesgarth and hopped along our final walk to Buttermere.
The route from Gatesgarth to Buttermere finished at the perfect place: (Surprisingly no, I'm not talking about a pub... this time) Syke farm tea room, although it was a chilly hike there was no saying 'no' to a refreshing nutella ice cream. There are also plenty of options for savory foods, cakes, buns the lot! With quite a few vegan options. Look out for Sam the retired farm dog, usually found sat outside the café looking all handsome and curious.
After reaching the campsite at Sykes farm campsite it was finally time to crack open the post hike brews, and of course, they were Raven Hills! My beer of the day was a Canopy, a Kolsch style beer inspired by the Black Forest in Germany which has given me another reason to choose Germany for one of my next holiday trips abroad post Covid restrictions. The hiker of the day goes to Oscar, the certified good boy and Raven Hill mascot of the day!
The campsite was perfect, surrounded by an amazing landscape and with actual showers and toilets, it cost £12 at the time for tent space and parking for the day. We finished the day off in the The Bridge Inn for food (which was fantastic!) and more drinks, the Inn doesn't take bookings and can get quite busy in the weekends so get there early to claim your spot. And finally back to the campsite for a late night chatter before hitting the hay.
Check out Raven Hill's website to grab yourself some refreshing beers for your post hike adventures or weekend chill! https://www.ravenhillbrewery.com/
For more adventures check out my Instagram page, Raven Hill's as well as some of the ambassadors, that came along on the Buttermere trip!