Last updated at 16:53, Thursday, 19 March 2009

Enjoying the magical silence of a walk around Talkin Fell

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MAP: OS Explorer map 315.

START AND FINISH: Talkin – please park considerately in the village.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: Bus 97 is a limited shoppers service only (telephone 0871 200 2233).

REFRESHMENTS: Blacksmiths Arms, Talkin.

DISTANCE: 6¼ miles

TOTAL ASCENT: 1,280ft

TIME: 3½-4 hours

GRADE: Intermediate

OVERVIEW: They say good things come in small packages and that seems particularly apt for this relatively short walk on low-lying fells at the foot of the Pennines. After a fairly gentle climb from Talkin village along quiet roads, a rough track and quiet fell paths, you reach one of the best viewpoints in this part of Cumbria. Topped by a collection of tall cairns and a trig pillar, Talkin Fell (1,250ft) is a wonderful place to stand at the end of a sunny spring afternoon, admiring the views and listening to the curlews returning to their nesting sites.

When I last did this walk, I had originally intended to return to Talkin after visiting the trig pillar, but I was enjoying myself so much that I decided to continue on to Simmerson Hill. The views may not be as spectacular, but the route around its edge is magical in the late afternoon light.

Most of the walk is on clear tracks, but the middle section uses quiet paths that can be wet in one or two places.

THE WALK: If you’re facing the Blacksmiths Arms, you should take the quiet road to the left of the pub – towards Forest Head. After about a third-of-a-mile, take the road turning on your right, which is signposted Talkin Head.

The road swings sharp left and then comes to an abrupt end just after the buildings at Talkin Head (0.65 miles from the start). Continue straight ahead on the rough track, which climbs steadily uphill. As the gradient eases slightly, you get your first view across to Castle Carrock Fell on the other side of the valley. In the distance, on a clear day, you can also see the Lake District’s Northern Fells.

As you reach an area of woodland to the right of the track, you catch your first glimpse of the tall cairns on top of Talkin Fell. You also pass a signposted bridleway to the right of the track (1.1 miles from the start). Ignore it at this stage, but this will form part of your return route later in the day.

Surprisingly quickly – it’s only been a half-hour drive from Carlisle and a half-hour walk from Talkin – your surroundings take on a much wilder nature as you look up into Geltsdale. Eventually, you will lose the fence/wall on your right. About 250 yards after going through a gate to the left of a sheepfold, the wall on your left swings left. You soon reach a fork – bear right here, away from the wall (2.2 miles from the start). Step across the wooden gate in the fence and then continue in the same direction for just a few more feet – across a boggy area – and then turn left to head up the fellside on a narrow path.

When you reach the wall, you are joined by another faint trail coming in from the left and the two now make their way to a ladder stile. Cross this and you will see Talkin Fell’s trig pillar straight ahead (2.5 miles from the start). Just beyond this are the decidedly eerie tall cairns, standing guard along the western edge of the fell.

Having visited the summit and spent some time taking in the wonderful, far-reaching views in all directions, retrace your steps – across the ladder stile and down the peaty path, remembering to fork left when the path splits. When you reach the bottom of the slope, do not re-cross the wooden gate; instead, keep straight ahead, walking parallel with the fence on your right. Go through the metal gate in the fence and then turn left along a narrow path to the right of the fence.

As soon as you have climbed the small jumble of rocks that forms a rim running around the entire western edge of Simmerson Hill, turn right along a faint path. It soon becomes obvious that you are following quad bike tracks. These follow the edge of this heathery fell.

On reaching a fence, bear right to head downhill (3.3 miles from the start). The track is less obvious now, but it follows the line of the fence down to a much wider, clearer track, along which you turn right.

About 500 yards after you join it, the track forks. Keep left here and you will soon join a path coming down from the right (4.1 miles from the start). Far below, the noisy Gelt rushes through the wooded valley and, before you know it, the track begins gradually to drop. It reaches the water’s edge near some buildings (4.7 miles from the start). Do not cross Hynam Bridge; instead continue along the clear track on the northern side of the river. The gorge here is particularly spectacular – as a huge volume of water tries to make its way through the narrowest of gaps.

When you reach the gate to private land at Low Hynam, bear right to head along a gated track that climbs steadily through the woods.

This emerges on the track that you followed earlier in the walk. Turn left along it and down to Talkin Head. From here, simply retrace your steps to Talkin.

POINTS OF INTEREST: Geltsdale is part of a 12,355-acre nature reserve run by the RSPB. It is one of the few sites in England where the rare hen harrier can still be found. Other breeding birds include the merlin, golden plover, black grouse, ring ouzel, curlew, lapwing, redshank and snipe. More than 300 species of flowering plants have been recorded, including national rarities such as pale forget-me-not and spring sandwort.

As you descend from Simmerson Hill, you may spot the old mine workers’ cottages at Gairs in the valley below. The Gairs mine formed part of the East Cumberland Coalfield. One of the oldest in England, it was probably even worked by the Romans.

At its peak in the 1920s, almost 200 men worked at Gairs, producing around 70,000 tons of coal per year. It was abandoned in 1936. The mine’s rail line, which forms part of one of the earliest industrial railways in the world, ran to nearby Hallbankgate.

First published at 15:53, Wednesday, 18 March 2009
Published by http://www.whitehaven-news.co.uk