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Wetherlam, via Lad Stones ridge and Black Sails

Whilst climbing The Old Man of Coniston have you looked over to your right and noticed that Wetherlam throws out two southerly ridges. One passes over Lower Howes to Hole Rake and is generally known as Lad Stones. The other heads directly south from the subsidiary top of Black Sails and falls over numerous crags ending abruptly at Kennel Crag.

These two ridges make for a surprisingly easy and pleasant walk from Coniston given their distant impression. The gradients are never too severe to be problematic, nor so gradual as to be tediously drawn out. Rough mountain paths, with a minimum of stone pitching, encourage you aloft - and so inevitably into the clouds.

Coniston is closely associated with two people. John Ruskin lived at Brantwood on the eastern bank of Coniston Water which is now owned by the National Trust and Donald Campbell who died on Coniston Water whilst trying to set a new water speed record on 4th January 1967. The Ruskin Museum in Coniston house the remains of Bluebird K7 in a dedicated wing built specially called of course the Bluebird Wing which was opened in 2008.

This walk starts at the Tourist Information Centre, next to the Lake District National Park Authority pay and display car park. The sports centre also allow all day parking for a small fee.