THE COUNTRY 13 



Although all such happenings are possible, the 

 use of a Uttle care and common sense will carry one 

 through a score of seasons in the fell country 

 without the sUghtest mishap. One should always 

 remember that the climatic conditions in winter 

 and early spring are very different on the high tops 

 from what they are in the country far below in the 

 dales. 



I have come down off the top of Fairfield in 

 April, after being white from head to foot with 

 hoarfrost, into a warm summer atmosphere near 

 Windermere Lake. People generally look at you 

 in surprise if you tell them that 2000 feet above 

 the dales the tops are still well within the grip 

 of winter. 



One possible danger that I have so far omitted 

 to mention, is the chance of being overtaken by 

 darkness on the fell. No matter how w^eU you 

 know your way down, on a dark night, it is a 

 thankless job striking matches or peering about 

 with a flashlamp in the rough ground. With a 

 moon and a clear sky you are safe enough, while 

 there is a novelty about walking the tops under 

 such conditions. A night spent on the open fell 

 is bound to be a chilly one, for at a high altitude 

 there is little or no material to make a fire. Still, 

 if you should be caught in the dark, it is better to 

 wait for daylight than risk breaking a leg or your 

 neck over some crag. I have had one or two 



