Bleasdale with BC

Tuesday 12th November 2024 

Kemple End has been a fantasy location for a number of years with its quirky name tickling my imagination. Bowland Climber has mentioned it many times during our years of walking together but it has remained a kind of mystery for me, even to my questioning its actual existence, and somehow we  never passed through or ended up there. 'Tis  a source of humour between the two of us.

My car was booked to have a combined reversing camera and sat nav installed at Base Systems in Preston. They have been there for over 50 years and operate to a high standard fitting quality audio equipment to motor vehicles. They needed a whole day from 8:30 am so, as their location was not far from BC's residence, I asked him if he would like to meet me there and make a walking day of it.

I had left it to BC to devise a walk but as I got into his car I sensed that it was to be a mystery tour, but I think I put a bit of a damper on that. I I couldn't help asking "Are we going to Kemple End?" There was no reply, except for a hint of a grin from BC.

Our first destination was back to BC's house for a welcome coffee, and to give  Seth, BC's seventeen year old cat, the news that we would be coming back after  the rest of the walking that BC had planned. That was  to take Seth to the cattery for his sojourn of a few days while BC would go off next day on yet another multi day LDP walk.

We drove off into the network of attractive roads in the southern bowl of the Bowland Hills and parked at an isolated spot which I would have difficulty in finding again without the aid of a good map and the now gleaned name of the location. We took a  rough path alarmingly near the edge of a thirty foot drop into a now tree grown quarry below.  After a hundred yards or so BC indicated we needed to descend a steep banking of muddy tussocky grass, and steep enough to require us  to turn and face and descend with some difficulty. At the bottom a sweep of impressive rock from the old quarry ran off for around a hundred yards ending in an impressive knife edge arrete that was an obvious magnet for any hot blooded climber. This was Kempel End. BC had been one of the original developers of this excellent rock climbing venue many years ago and he was rightly "proud" to at last show it off to me.

Another car drive took us to start a walk around Bleasdale. That is the attractive vale enclosed by Parlick, Fair Snape Fell and other fells on the southern edge of the Bowland Hills. We had perfect blue sky walking weather, not quite cold enough to need gloves and all was peace and quiet.. BC is knowledgeable about this part of his domain and enlarged on many points of interest. We were also able to look again at part of the route we had walked on 28th November 2018 on our straight line walk between our respective houses. A memorable day involving a rhinoceros. 

Not far from the finish we had a final highlight visiting the Bronze Age Bleasdale Circle.

Back at BC's we picked up Seth and dropped him off at his temporary home - he seemed little fazed having been through this routine many times over the years. BC took me back to my car and off I went home trying to get the voice part of the new sat-nav working. That has been sorted now and all is well.

What a good day. Thanks BC

Tricky descent to get to see Kemple End.

The arete can be seen overexposed in the distance

The Arete. Several E grade routes with stories to tell

Looking back from the arete to the end where we gained access and exit

Seth is always friendly

Bleasdale church - the original goes back to Saxon times

Saxon window, (but not the lintel I was informed)

The stone from the original building has been used elsewhere in the area as required as per the carved lump in this wall

Unusual self catering units with fabric or similar roofing and walls. I didn't search too much on the Internet and couldn't track them down. Could be odd when the wind blows?

Old packhorse bridge on the route from the large Bleasdale Estate house to the school and the church

Fair Snape Fell and Parlick

Well preserved cobbled farmyard. We pondered on the source of these presumably river weathered stones

Bleasdale Circle. There is a notch in the skyline which it is thought aligns the sun with the circle at the solstice

I used tracking on my Memory Map on iPhone for the first time ever. When enlarged you can see the slight variation on our there and back routes to the Bleasdale Circle.