Hill: Ellson Fell
Type: Sub2k
Height: 537m
After a disturbed nights sleep and my early morning start, due to the trauma of losing and thankfully finding my phone (see Wisp/Pykethaw Hill blog), I was mentally a bit drained. But I wanted to bag this hill. I had scheduled it for today anyway with the weather forecast being fine today but sadly the forecast for tomorrow not so.
Mindset said go for it and if I decided on the hill that my body said not good I could always retreat and come back another day. We might go away but the hills don’t.
 |
| View from parking area |
I drove along the single track and parked my car at the entrance to the still active deforestation area. Hopefully parked out of the way far enough should any of the giant timber lorries come up or down. Some walkers do this as a loop but I did not fancy the descent from Ellson to the A7 and walk back along its fringes so chose to do a there and back.
As I walked the short distance to the start of the ramble I could see sheep on the hill. My only worry apart from fatigue was that a farmer might come along and give me aggro about pregnant ewes, it has happened hereabouts read the reports.
 |
| The Start |
In my less energised state the start of the hill to the top of Castlewick looked like a proper slog. Not because of the terrain as it was nice and grassy. There was also an ATV track going up so no tussocks to tackle but I knew it was going to be a case of head down and grind it out from the start.
I thought I could see people up on the high point of the approach but probably sheep.
There is a cottage beside the start and as I slowly ground my way I imagined that a pair of old codgers were sitting in their living room, enjoying a cup of tea and a scone and having a right old laugh at me. My backside would have been in their sights for a while, not pretty.
As said one of those head down, bent over, step by step plods grinding my way up the hill ignoring the mocking stares of the sheep who did not even bother to run away.
As it turned out height was gained quickly and when I stopped to look around the views were getting better and better, well worth the effort. A good view looking over to where I was finding my phone earlier in the day.
As expected there were a few false summits before I spotted what I earlier thought might be people. On the top of Castlewick there is a small solar panel installation. Possibly for the shepherds or boosting a signal to the farms and homesteads below.
 |
| A fine undulating ridge |
Recovering my puff I surveyed the undulating ridge ahead. I counted four small rises and falls to a large cairn in the distance. Not for the first time I was not paying due attention to the map as that cairn was not the summit. Indeed from here I didn’t appreciate that with the contours of the landscape I could not actually see Ellson Fell.
I progressed along a nice high level ramble still on the ATV track. As a stand alone hill/ridge this route had great views in all directions.
 |
| Now a proper view and Ellson was on the left not continuing the ridge walk |
When I reached the 1st cairn I had a clear view of the way ahead and it was now obvious that Ellson Fell was not the cairned point I had seen from the solar panels. It was slightly on my left at 10 o’clock. Disappointingly the track looked to be descending sharply before reascending towards Ellson. My legs and brain were protesting but I was not giving up now.
As per the norm it was not as bad a descent as it looked. Back on the high point the ATV track turned away so I was left with a short moorland crossing to the summit of Ellson Fell.
 |
| Looking to the highest point locally the Donald of Cauldcleuch Head |
 |
| Pikethaw Hill on left and Wisp Hill directly ahead |
The ridge I had walked had two visible cairns but here there was nothing to mark the summit of Ellson despite it being the highpoint hill, what a disappointment but not surprising for regular Border hill ramblers. The views had been better walking along the ridge but on the summit it was still not too shabby for a Sub2k. Mentally it felt that I had done a lot today already and indeed I had, but when I looked at my watch it was just after 11am, I just wanted my bed.
 |
| View back to my return and the high point a 494m |
I returned exactly the same as my inward route. But now it was weird weather. It initially got very cold and windy then soon after the skies changed to high clouds almost clear blue and I was shedding clothes as the warmth of a southern wind arrived.
 |
| Pt 494 |
This is indeed scenic Scottish Border countryside although the local place names are more in keeping with nearby England than Scotland.
As I descended I had mixed feelings. I experienced both joy and melancholy. I reminisced about the full journey I had undertaken, not just todays objective on Ellson. I thought of the many hills that I had climbed, the views I got and the places I stayed. There was a lot of sweat and tiredness but plenty of euphoria. Most locations were new to me so this was a journey of learning in more ways than one. A very happy and fulfilling journey full of great memories.
 |
| Nice view and I can see my car at the junction of the roads. |
So after all that I had a drive back to my digs and looked forward to a hot shower and then a siesta, as said, a lot packed into this busy morning.
NB: the reason this is a milestone hill is significant to me and nobody else. As one of my hillwalking targets that I set many years ago I wanted to turn all the hills on the Walkhighlands site that lay below the Clyde and Forth valleys from red to blue. I never really thought that it would happen but it did. Today was that day. The final balloon changed from red to blue and I am well chuffed. It has been a magnificent and memorable journey.
Ascent: 446m
Distance: 5.7km
Time: 2.12
Wildlife: Raven; Buzzard; Great Tit; Meadow Pipit; Skylark
No comments:
Post a Comment