Branstree | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 713 m (2,339 ft) |
Prominence | 137 m (449 ft) |
Parent peak | Harter Fell |
Listing | Hewitt, Nuttall, Wainwright |
Coordinates | 54°28′58″N2°48′31″W / 54.48264°N 2.80873°W |
Naming | |
English translation | corruption of "Brant Street" |
Language of name | Old English |
Pronunciation | /ˈbrænstriː/ |
Geography | |
Location | Cumbria, England |
Parent range | Lake District, Far Eastern Fells |
OS grid | NY477100 |
Topo map | OS Explorer OL5, Explorer OL7 |
Name | Grid ref | Height | Status |
---|---|---|---|
Branstree NE Top (High Howes) | NY487103 | 673 m (2,207 ft) | Nuttall |
Branstree is a fell in the Far Eastern part of the English Lake District. It overlooks the valley of Mardale and Haweswater Reservoir.
A circuit of high fells surrounds the head of Mardale, beginning at High Raise in the north and curving around over High Street and Harter Fell to Branstree and Selside Pike in the south. As the ridge is travelled in this direction, the countryside changes from crag and scree to more rounded fellsides clothed with grass. Branstree is the first fell moving east where grass prevails, and a Pennine character begins to take over from Lakeland. From many directions the fell appears as a smooth domed hill with a wide top.
Branstree has a connection southwestward to Harter Fell: the ridge crosses Gatescarth Pass at 1,900 feet (580 m) which was the route of pedestrian traffic between Mardale and Longsleddale, its well-graded zig-zags still used by walkers today. The ancient trade between the two valleys ended when the level of Haweswater was raised in the 1940s, submerging the village of Mardale Green beneath the reservoir.
Eastward from Branstree is a wide swathe of rough moorland between the parallel valleys of Mardale and Swindale. This runs for about five miles (8 km) before petering out at the valley of the River Lowther. Immediately east of Branstree is a second fell of similar height, 2,207 feet (673 m), and character, which is unnamed on OS maps. At least one guidebook has suggested 'High Howes' [1] as a name, but Wainwright considered this to be a part of Branstree rather than a separate fell. [2] Across Captain Whelter Bog to the north of the unnamed summit is Selside Pike, the final Wainwright in that direction.
South from Branstree a further ridge connects to Tarn Crag, passing between the head of Mosedale and the headwaters of Longsleddale. This depression at 1,650 feet (500 m) is broad and boggy. Mosedale is the upper hanging valley of Swindale, running westwards from the apparent dalehead. Nestled against the lower slopes of Branstree near the head of Mosedale is Mosedale Cottage. This shepherd's bothy, two miles (3+1⁄4 km) from the nearest road, is only inhabited occasionally. Its whitewashed walls provide an important navigational reference in deteriorating weather. Behind the cottage are the remains of a large quarry.
The eastern subsidiary summit of Howes is the subject of a chapter of Wainwright's book The Outlying Fells of Lakeland . [3]
In the depression between Branstree and High Howes is a small tarn and the remains of a survey pillar. This unusual stone and concrete construction is cleft at the top to provide a sight line and was originally surrounded by a wooden frame, now decayed. This is one of four such pillars built during the construction of the Haweswater aqueduct. Below Branstree, Tarn Crag and Great Howe is the first section of the pipeline carrying water from the reservoir toward Manchester. The tunnel, some 1,300 feet (400 m) below this point, required 250 tons of gelignite for blasting, and when constructed in the 1930s was the longest such pipeline in Britain. It emerges into Longsleddale below the southern end of Great Howe, where the spoil can still be seen. [4]
The summit is broad and too flat to allow good all round views. These are further restricted by the higher fells to the west, but there is a fine prospect to the Pennines and Howgill Fells. Walls and fences follow the ridges from Gatesgarth, Tarn Crag and Selside Pike, meeting near the summit. A small cairn is situated a little to the north. A better view of Mardale, and certainly a better foreground, can be seen from Artlecrag Pike. This subsidiary top (Branstree NE Top), a little to the north has two fine columnar cairns built from the nearby outcrop of flaky rocks.
Ascents can be made from the three surrounding valleys. Gatescarth Pass provides access from the roadends of Mardale and Longsleddale. Alternative routes climb from the vicinity of Mosedale cottage and from the shore of Haweswater near the start of the Mardale Corpse Road.
Longsleddale is a valley and civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. It includes the hamlet of Sadgill. The parish has a population of 73. As the population taken at the 2011 Census was less than 100, details are maintained in the civil parish of Whitwell and Selside.
High Street is a fell in the English Lake District. At 828 metres (2,717 ft), its summit is the highest point in the far eastern part of the national park. The fell is named after the Roman road that ran over the summit.
The Nab is a fell in the English Lake District. It has a moderate height of 576 metres, and lies in the quieter eastern high ground between Ullswater and Haweswater Reservoir. The Nab is included in Alfred Wainwright's list of Lakeland fells and many walkers feel compelled to climb it to complete their list of 'Wainwrights' even though it is not a significant fell and is awkward to reach.
Kirk Fell is a fell in the Western part of the English Lake District. It is situated between Great Gable and Pillar on the long ring of fells surrounding the valley of Ennerdale, and also stands over Wasdale to the south. However, it is separated from its two higher neighbours by the low passes of Black Sail and Beck Head, giving it a high relative height and making it a Marilyn, the thirteenth highest in the Lake District.
Harter Fell is a fell in the far eastern part of the English Lake District. The summit at lies the meeting point of three ridges, and Harter Fell forms the head of three valleys: Mardale, Longsleddale and the valley of the River Kent.
Shipman Knotts is a fell in the English Lake District in Cumbria, England. It reaches a height of 587 metres (1,926 ft) and is situated in one of the quieter areas of the national park, 2 kilometres north-east of Kentmere village. Although not one of the best-known Lake District fells, it earned a separate chapter in Alfred Wainwright’s Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells due to “Its characteristic roughness. .. rocky outcrops are everywhere on its steep slopes”.
Red Pike is a fell in the English Lake District. It is 826 m or 2,709 ft high and lies due north of Wast Water. It is often climbed as part of the Mosedale Horseshoe, a walk which also includes Pillar.
Scoat Fell is a fell in the western part of the English Lake District. It stands at the head of the Mosedale Horseshoe with its back to Ennerdale. Paths lead to Scoat Fell from Ennerdale over Steeple, from Wasdale over Red Pike, and along the ridge from Pillar.
Wether Hill is a fell in the English Lake District, between Martindale and Haweswater. It lies on the main north-south ridge of the Far Eastern Fells between Loadpot Hill and High Raise. Lesser ridges also radiate out to the east and north-west. It should not be confused with Wether Hill in north Northumberland.
High Raise is a fell in the English Lake District, standing to the west of Haweswater Reservoir in the Far Eastern Fells. Note that another High Raise is the highpoint of the Central Fells.
Kidsty Pike is a fell in the English Lake District, standing to the west of Haweswater Reservoir. It is a subsidiary top of Rampsgill Head, but has long achieved the status of a separate fell, thanks to its classic peaked profile. Wainwright followed this convention in his Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells.
Mardale Ill Bell is a fell in the English Lake District, rising to the south west of Haweswater Reservoir. It stands on the watershed between Mardale and Kentmere and is the highpoint of the south-eastern ridge of High Street, midway on its course to Harter Fell.
Selside Pike or Selside is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands between the valleys of Mardale and Swindale in the Far Eastern Fells.
Tarn Crag is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands to the east of Longsleddale in the Far Eastern Fells.
Grey Crag is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands to the east of Longsleddale in the Far Eastern Fells.
Great Carrs is a fell in the English Lake District. It stands above Wrynose Pass in the southern part of the District.
The Far Eastern Fells are a part of the Cumbrian Mountains in the Lake District of England. Reaching their highest point at High Street, they occupy a broad area to the east of Ullswater and Kirkstone Pass. Much quieter than the central areas of Lakeland they offer in general easier walking as the fells merge mainly into the surrounding moorlands.
The Naddle Horseshoe is a group of summits in the English Lake District, south of Mardale valley, Cumbria. It is the subject of a chapter of Wainwright's book The Outlying Fells of Lakeland.
Howes is a subsidiary summit of Branstree in the English Lake District, south east of Selside Pike in Cumbria. It is the subject of a chapter of Wainwright's book The Outlying Fells of Lakeland. Wainwright's route starts at Swindale Head and follows Swindale Beck, then passes over Nabs Moor at 1,613 feet (492 m) to reach the summit of Howes at 1,930 feet (590 m), dropping down to Mosedale Beck to complete an anticlockwise circuit. Wainwright states that Howes is "merely a subsidiary and undistinguished summit on the broad eastern flank of Barnstree. There is nothing exciting about it" but commends the sight of Mosedale quarry and the waterfalls of Swindale Head which he describes as "extremely fine, up to Lodore standard".