108 
the Helm Wind, it would be necessary to have observations made 
on a systematic plan. 
The contour of the country is as follows :— 
The Cross Fell range of mountains forms part of the Pennine 
Chain, which runs from north-north-west to south-south-east. The 
7 Pe on “ 
range from Hartside Fell on the north to Hillbeck Fell on the ~ 
south is high and continuous, and is not cut through by any valley. 
Behind this range on the east there is a high mass of land deeply 
cut by dales and valleys, but the tops of the mountains form a 
high table-land. Cross Fell is 2,900 feet, Dun Fell 2,780 feet, 
Dufton Fell 2,292 feet, and Hartside Fell 2,046 feet above sea- 
level. On the west there is the Vale of Eden, a plain some twenty 
miles broad, extending to the hills in the Lake District. From 
the top of the mountain to the plain on the west there is an abrupt 
fall of from 1,000 to 1,500 feet in about a mile and ahalf. At 
the southern end of the range the fall is but slight, there being a — 
gradual fall of from 800 to goo feet in five miles from Hilbeck to 
Winton. 
At times when the wind is from some Easterly point, the Helm 
forms over this district; the chief features of the phenomenon 
being the following. A heavy bank of cloud rests along the Cross 
Fell range, at times reaching some distance down the western 
slopes, and at others hovering just above the summit; while at a 
distance of three or four miles from the foot of the Fell a slender 
roll of dark cloud appears in mid-air and parallel with the Helm 
Cloud; this is the Helm Bar. The space between the Helm 
Cloud and the Bar is usually quite clear, while to the westward 
the sky is at times completely covered with cloud. The Bar — 
does not appear to extend further west than about the river Eden. 
A cold wind rushes down the sides of the fell and blows violently 
till it reaches a spot nearly underneath the Helm Bar, when it 
suddenly ceases. 
On August 19th, 1885, Mr. Benn and I ascended Cross Fell in 
company with Mr. R. W. Crosby* and his nephew, and when 
* Since this Paper was read I have heard with much regret of the death of 
Mr. Crosby, He was a most careful observer, and rendered very great assists 
ance in the Helm Wind inquiry. 
