Yet more fine and settled weather brought the wonderful cold and crisp conditions for winter walking that we often dream of having, so after a late start I headed over to Langdale to set off amongst some of my most well-known fells. Snow underfoot was hard and in fact, perfect for crampons - so I pulled on the pair I'd brought with me and speedily made my way across Bowfell first, then on towards Esk Pike and Esh Hause. I met only one other group of hikers along the way, who were very friendly and chatted for a while with me but they were going in the opposite direction so sadly I didn't have their company for long! Anyway, after that I continued along the familiar route towards the top of Esk Pike, then down to the haus and Angle Tarn. At this point I was debating whether or not to take the easy way out and just head back down into Langdale, but then I decided on the alternative detour of going across Rossett Pike and Martcrag Moor to the top of Pike of Stickle. It seemed like the perfect way to make the most of such great winter hiking conditions, plus of course I wanted to stay out long enough to see a beautiful sunset so that's what I did. The sun had set by the time I was on Martcrag Moor, but it didn't really get dark until after I'd got up Pike of Stickle, but it was worth every second to watch the reds and purples light up the wispy clouds in the sky. Skiddaw's familiar profile was forming a nice silhouette to the north just before I started the descent back down to Dungeon Ghyll. I had to use my headtorch for the rest of the time though, and was quite well aware of the steep gorge dropping down beside to the right of the path. It was a little bit nerve-wracking with ice-covered rock here and there, but fortunately I only took one slip when I was well past those more exposed spots!
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