Kicking off “5 Hikes” with a long overdue hike…
Cockermouth Forest is part of the Forest Society’s Forest Reservation Challenge for the Lakes Region. However, as it’s over an hour drive from home, I had perpetually avoided it for bigger priorities or more convenient trails. All the other FRC hikes have been checked off for several years, except this one.
I was determined to finish it this year. And at last Hummingbird and I tagged it today, just in time to count it as a dual checkmark for the annual 5 Hikes Challenge. I am glad to finally have Cockermouth done, and as always was grateful for the company.
The trails around the summits of Bald Knob and Mt. Crosby were surprisingly steep in both directions. A little tough on a “bad body” day (which we both had some degree of). But I thought the multiple viewpoints were nicely rewarding. We even met a hiker who showed us a “secret” viewpoint with a clearer view of the lake. (That was an adventure. LOL)
There were a few other interesting sights along the route, including ledges and some attractive woodland spots, though the majority was a pretty standard walk in the woods. (Mostly a walk on an unrelenting slope.) I saw lots of dragonflies, which is always a welcome sight.
Fall colors are beginning to show up north! 🍁 Or perhaps more likely the foliage is just dying from the drought. 🙁 At least visibility was good so the views of the surrounding mountains were clear.
The rest of the trails leading to and from the summit areas were fairly decent overall, but felt longer than they appeared. We missed the junction to go to the pond & cliff and ended up continuing down towards the parking lot. At that point our energy levels were flatlining, so we were ready to wrap it up anyway.
Hummingbird would probably give the hike 0 stars 😂 but I think it deserves 3 or 4 (in good conditions, at least). I just probably wouldn’t drive that far again for it. But have I mentioned we’re a little spoiled? 😉
Bald Knob lake view
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| Mt. Crosby |
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| your really can't deny it's pretty |
Another hiking challenge in the books! I’ve lost count at this point. But I’m glad I’ve done all of them, even when some include unfavorable trails or tricky accessibility. Not that I liked those parts, but I guess that’s part of the challenge. And most have a few gems to make up for the others. I’d probably rank Cockermouth somewhere in the middle.
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