Last weekend we went North, this weekend we went in the opposite direction; south to Keswick in the Lake District. It’s a fair drive (approaching the 3hr mark) but well worth it. It’s kind of strange to think that on our last visit we only had Beanie – we’ve just got so used to having two dogs now!

The weather reports had promised a moderate, cloudy day with occasional bursts of sun, and on that basis we’d planned to do Skiddaw & Glenderaterra Beck from Underscar – a long climb. Our plans were scuppered by the time we arrived in Keswick though;  it was boiling hot with unrelenting sunshine – in a word, “Scorchio“. Summer had apparently arrived, but it was not a day to be going on a long uphill hike. We needed a backup plan, so Susan nipped into an outdoor sports shop to get a book of local walks while I stayed outside with Beanie & Biggles. I was there barely a minute when one of the shop staff came out to get a quick Beagle cuddle and to inform me that the two Bs would be perfectly welcome inside the shop. That’s something I’d forgotten about the Lake District – it’s phenomenally dog friendly.

Dogs are welcome in most pubs and shops and there are bowls of fresh drinking water out all over the town. On this occasion however  I declined the offer to go inside, fearing that they might have a “if you chew it, you buy it” policy. Shortly thereafter Susan emerged with a fantastic little book of walks (“15 Walks From Keswick” by Paul Buttle) and after a quick flick through the options we decided to go up a local fell called Latrigg.

It was a good choice. It had enough height to give us some beautiful views of the nearby peaks and lakes, enough shade & streams to keep our doggies (Biggles especially) from overheating, and sufficient length to justify a pub lunch afterwards.

The view from the top

Even the return trail was picturesque

The only downside to the walk was that it took us through quite a few sheep. We’ve been working on Beanie & Biggles’ self control lately and for the most part they didn’t react overly to all those unshaven lamb chops on legs. Naturally we still had a couple of short baying outbursts though. If these had been prompted by regular sheep I might have been disappointed in our Beagles’ performance, but as it turned out they were all caused by highly trained undercover sheep. These woolly provocateurs lurk behind trees and around blind corners ready to surprise unwary hounds, setting them on the rocky road to SmackedBottomsVille. The local government naturally denies all knowledge of these bah-bah-black-ops sheep, but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist.

After the walk we had a chill out session in a park, followed by a gentle stroll around the shops. One shop in particular merited closer inspection:

Yes the wallet came out and we now have another couple of expensive toys that Beanie & Biggles will readily discard in favor of a lowly bog roll. Regardless, with the shopping over we headed toward the lakeside for a relaxing boat ride. Beanie’s already been a boat, but this was Biggles’ first time. Sadly as we boarded the captain cautioned us that while dogs were allowed, they had to stay on the floor – no climbing onto laps or seats to get a better view of the journey. It seems that even in the Lake District those with ginger ears and waggy tails can still be treated as second class citizens. Our two didn’t take this lying down though.. at least not for the whole journey. Biggles poked his head up occasionally to catch a glimpse of the ride, and Beanie left a small protest pee under one of the seats.

To finish the day we had a meal in Keswick Lodge –  one of the better dog friendly pubs. Biggles was the model of good behavior, settling down for a nap almost instantly, while Beanie lay in wait for the dishes to arrive then nicked a chunk of Susan’s fish just as it was being served.

The day was almost over. We drove part of the way back home then stopped off at Gretna, where we’d booked a night at the dog friendly Days Inn. Biggles quickly made himself at home and demolished his chew. Beanie delayed her chew a little, preferring to make the room hers in her own special way.

A number of hill walking websites list Ben Vorlich as one of the easier Munros in that it has a clear, well trodden path right up to the summit and doesn’t have any scrambling sections. That doesn’t mean it’s without challenges, just that you don’t need any particular climbing/orienteering skills or gear to get up there.

For us, the first challenge was getting reliable instructions on where to park and how to access the route up. It doesn’t help that there are in fact two Ben Vorlichs; one by Loch Lomond, and one by Loch Earn. We were interested in the latter, and after much googling I came across this site:

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/perthshire/ben-vorlich.shtml

It has precise satnav coordinates to one of the very few parking spots, a layby near to Ardvorlich House:

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/directions.php?w=51

This is a big help because the loch-side road is very narrow with few passing opportunities – not a good place to be driving back & forth hunting for a parking space. Once you’ve parked up, you get a nice view of Loch Earn, and a first proper look at your opponent..

Ben Vorlich – it’s the far off peak in the middle

To get to the trail, you enter the Ardvorlich estate and follow the signposts. Soon after that you hit the next challenge, or at least you do if you’ve got two Beagles and one of them has a farty bottom and a name that rhymes with “Tribbles”. Yep, you guessed it – the first part of the walk is packed with sheep, loads & loads of ’em. Somehow we got the Bigglet and his sister through the woolly gauntlet without too much baying, and soon we were on our way up to the summit of Ben Vorlich.

One of the reviews of the walk describes it as “unrelenting”. That’s not quite fair; the way I see it, there are three sections. There’s a mild, meandering introductory bit, then a steeper second section that gets you to a grassy plateau. This a great place for a breather and a chance to take in the already impressive views.

Then there’s the third and final section which is I have to say absolutely merciless. It just keeps on hammering your legs all the way up. As advertised there’s no scrambling, but the incline just doesn’t let up, and by the time you hit the top you could cook an egg on your quads.

When you get to the top you see an obelisk thingummy which is apparently a “trig point”, but it’s not the true summit – that’s some yards further on and is marked by a cairn (pile of stones). In fact it’s marked by two stone piles.

Two for the price of one

Come to think of it, everything about Ben Vorlich is doubled up. There are two Ben Vorlichs, and the Loch Earn one has two summits and two cairns. Maybe it’s Munro two-for-one month. Either way, even with the somewhat cloudy weather we got, Ben Vorlich has the best mountain views I’ve ever seen.

Here are a few panoramas from the summit. I’m quite pleased with how they turned out, but they still don’t do it justice. Click to see larger versions.

And a few more piccies:

Yep, it’s high enough to still have snow!

Of course if you’re a Beagle views count for nothing – it’s all about the snacks. After setting a personal best for speed-eating their favorite fish treats, they graciously helped us with our sausage rolls.

In fact Beanie nearly gave me a whole lot more help than I needed:

We hung about on the summit a bit longer, then eventually gathered up enough courage to head back down. If you’re not doing the longer version of the walk which takes you on to neighboring peak Stuc a’Chroin, then the only way down is back the way you came. If that steep third section looked daunting on the way up, it looked positively scary on the way down, and almost the second we got moving our beaglets decided that now would be a good time for a baying frenzy. The noise is bad enough, but it’s the pulling that accompanies the baying that really gets to you. And being beagles, they don’t pull consistently. One minute they’re lunging forward upsetting your balance, then abruptly they stop causing you to stumble as you desperately try to avoid standing on ’em. Not at all what you want when you’re trying to negotiate a steep gradient, and a very poor way to show gratitude for getting to nibble on your sausage roll!

The one good thing about the bayfest was that it caused Beanie to do her first proper fart. I’m not talking about the silent but deadly Biggle-bum emissions that are so meaty you could carve ’em up, put ’em between two slices of bread and call ’em a sandwich. Nope, I’m talking about a one-note recital on the world’s oldest wind instrument. As the old Yorkshire saying puts it, “It’s a poor arse that never rejoices”, and Beanie’s botty certainly made merry today.

With all the baying and pulling it took us a long, long time to get back to the car and when we did, we were absolutely knackered. We loaded Beanie & Biggles into their crates then collapsed into our seats. It took a good few minutes for me to summon up the energy to fire up the engine and head back home, and when I did Beanie actually made a grumbling noise as if to say “Hey! Keep the noise down, I’m trying to get some sleep here”. The nerve of it! But I suppose that’s Beagles for you; contrary, stubborn, relentlessly naughty *and* hypocritical. I still love the little buggers though.

The full set of shots from the Ben Vorlich walk is here.