Wainwright Routes - Froswick Route One

Froswick - Route One

Start - Town End NY 414 039

Distance - 4 miles

Ascent - 1,970 feet

Time - 2 hours : 30 minutes

The Queen's Head Hotel in Troutbeck at the start of the walk. There is lay-by parking available to the north and south of the hotel

Opposite the hotel a narrow lane descends steeply through the hamlet of Town End to meet Ing Lane

Walking along Ing Lane towards Troutbeck Park Farm. The route passes to the right of Troutbeck Tongue, seen here above the barn, and into the shadowed valley of Hagg Gill. On the right skyline are Yoke, Ill Bell, Froswick and Thornthwaite Crag

Looking back along Ing Lane

Approaching Ing Bridge which spans Trout Beck

Troutbeck Tongue from Ing Bridge

As the lane approaches Troutbeck Park Farm a fingerpost sign directs walkers across an open field towards Hagg Gill. The stile may seem superfluous but quite often there is a single strand electric fence in use here, not today though

It's lambing time and there were a lot of new born lambs and anxious ewes about. I tried to avoid them by taking a meandering course through the field

Looking across the lambing field to Troutbeck Park Farm

A gate at the top of the field gives access to a cart track which leads from the farm towards Hagg Gill

Looking back to the Troutbeck Valley from the gate

Froswick and Ill Bell from the cart track

Looking across to Dodd Hill on Wansfell from the cart track

The track descends into Hagg Gill coming close to the stream at this point where another path joins it from the old quarry road on the opposite bank

Looking back along the cart track

Looking up to Froswick from Hagg Gill

The cart track ends as it approaches the upper part of Hagg Gill where a path rises to meet the intake wall. The start of Scot Rake can be seen above the wall corner leading across the western slopes of Froswick to meet the ridge south of Thornthwaite Crag

Looking up to Threshthwaite Mouth at the head of the valley with Threshthwaite Crag on the left and Thornthwaite Crag on the right

Looking back to the end of the cart track

Climbing to the wall corner below Scot Rake with the ravine of Blue Gill ,which is the main feeder of Hagg Gill, on the right

Looking back along Hagg Gill from the wall corner

Looking up from the wall corner to Scot Rake crossing the western shoulder of Froswick

The start of the Scot Rake path

Looking back the lower part of Windermere comes into view

Looking across to Threshthwaite Mouth from Scot Rake. The path follows a series of grooves which are thought by many to be the start of the Roman road over High Street which connected their forts at Ambleside and Brougham. Excavations on the summit ridge have revealed the original road was constructed with layers of stone and gravel bounded by drainage channels

Looking over the south ridge of Caudale Moor to the summit of Red Screes

Windermere from the middle section of Scot Rake

Looking up to the summit of Ill Bell from Scot Rake

After crossing the steep western shoulder of Froswick the rake continues over easier slopes towards the ridge line. There is no need to follow it all the way to the ridge, a faint path turns off it near this point to reach the col between Froswick and Thornthwaite Crag

The path to the col . . . it is much easier to spot from above! The summit of Froswick appears on the right

Looking over Troutbeck Tongue to Windermere from the path to the col

Looking up to the summit of Froswick from the col. This section of the ridge path, which is part of the popular Kentmere Horseshoe walk, has been repaired in recent years using an excavator to raise it above the peat