New Page 1

Accident Black spot

Lords Rake updated 9/10/07

Location - Scafell, approach from Mickledore ridge or Hollowstones on the Wasdale side

A number of incidents including an avalanche - possibly 10 rescues over the last 10 years - current situation is 'passable with care' following the big rock fall at the top of the first ascent a couple of years ago - most recent pictures at top of the following report but full chronological history of fallen block and background follows.

Update 9 October 2007

Very little to report apart from the gulley appears more stable and now the more dangerous ascent/ descent is Foxes Tarn Gulley - see recent rockfall here

Update 22 March 2007

12 months since the last update and not a lot appears to have changed. I went up there yesterday to check on the situation. All looks stable but when it is all frozen with ice it gives a false security - when the thaw sets in is when the scree could move.

This time I have added some video footage in addition to the photos.

Taken March 21st 2007, 4 years after the first one we took - see next one. Spot the differences

This picture was taken December 2002 - compare it with the one above

Update 16 March 2006

This picture taken at 5.00 p.m. on Thursday afternoon 16th March 2006. Lords Rake is the white rake half way down the right hand side of Scafell. The fallen pillar is at the top of the first rake. During winter conditions the rake is full of snow and relatively safe from falling rocks. This particular day, due the the hard neve snow in the gulley it was an easy snow gully climb (Grade 1) in crampons with two climbing axes. Not to be attempted though without axes even if nice steps are cut as there is nothing to stop you sliding you if you were to stumble. You would end up at the Woolworth boulder on the main path up to Mickledore 300 foot below (bruised, battered and unable to walk)

Picture 16/3/06

The pillar remains standing, sentinel of the rake watching over the comings and goings. Very stable today as it is well frozen - however it is still only resting at the top on a small footprint no bigger than the size of the screen you are watching. Wait for the spring thaw and keep our fingers crossed that any movement occurs in the middle of the night when the rake is not being climbed - we will keep you posted on the pillar - one day it will fall. The only thing we can't tell you is when

Update 8 August 2005

There has been a large rockfall which left one walker cragfast see rescue details here

Update 7 August 2005

The Rake remains very unstable

Most of the rake is now completely filled with loose rock

No change to the pillar itself but I am still insure what's holding it together

The most unstable area is the headwall which hangs directly above the path which leads onto West wall traverse, Deep Gill - for pictures of west wall traverse ascent see here

Update 11 June 2005

The rake remains unstable but there have been some interesting changes. I had hoped that 12 months on from the last detailed inspection, things might be a little better. It remains a very unstable and scary place to be with new rockfall continuing to fill the rake after every change in weather. To pass the fallen pillar needs extreme care. Put your weight on it at your peril. The warning signs themselves at the foot of the Rake have been broken, not by vandals but by falling rocks. The photos are here to show that not a lot has changed and to let you at least have a nosey at what's up there from the comfort of your computer.

Notes will be added when I have a bit more time

A mass of signs have appeared, some already broken - by fallen rocks?

Are the National Trust becoming increasingly concerned?

The safest route to the top of Scafell is unfortunately a detour of an hour via Foxes Tarn - a nice route in its own right - back up to the Mickledore ridge and down the other side - Failing that, pick another day and go up from Eskdale (Slightside) or via the boring Victorian Route from Brackenclose

These two walkers were not daunted by us in our helmets getting prepared to go up. Just as well as there were a couple of rocks came down when we were following them up.

Fresh broken rock fills the rake.

The fallen pillar soon comes into view and makes its own quiet statement i.e. "Take care as I am not going to stay here forever".

The two walkers have taken the safest way past the pillar on the extreme right.

Safe at last

I felt a little guilty asking Julian to pose under the most fractured and unstable slope but we needed something for scale. This is the area that collapsed depositing a couple of hundred tons of rock into the rake. It also was the bank with tension cracks that I marked with the wooden pegs on 1/1103 - see very bottom of page

Not sure what Julian is smiling about - certainly from beneath the pillar you can see the compression cracks and shear planes. In the picture below it makes you wonder how it is still standing.

This is probably the safest way past it - hard over to the right

Always a relief when you have got through without dislodging it.

This is as close as I dared to venture. One of the pegs is still there but the other one that I carefully placed in November 2003 exactly 500 mm from the other (see inset) has gone forever and probably somewhere under the rubble 50 foot below where I am standing. West Wall traverse path can be seen in the top left corner of the photo and is still a safe (ish) way of avoiding the pillar and getting to the top.

Update 19 July 2004

The rake remains unstable but there have been some interesting changes. Photos are poor as the mist was down when we visited the rake on Saturday the 17th July. The following photos show how things have changed. The most important point is that the wall to the Scafell side of the pillar has now completely collapsed. We specifically went up there with the tape measure in order to see if the 600mm distance between the two wooden marker pegs had changed. I was slightly surprised to find that the pegs had completely gone, along with the 60 cubic metres of bank ( approx. 100 - 150 tonnes) above the pillar. This explains why the small rock step just below the fallen pillar is no longer a rock step but a slope of new scree! I will admit that it made me think about that day in November 2003 when I carefully placed the two posts ( see photos below). It also means that the high level path onto the West Wall Traverse is no longer there. The lower path remains relatively untouched (about 5 metres before the pillar).

This is not the place to take your family (note the helmets are not being worn for show).

	Warning sign at bottom of the rake - note that the warning sign at the western exit of Lords Rake on the flank of Scafell has been removed - hole is still there but I couldn't find the sign!)		Nearing the top of the first rake with the pillar looming in the mist

	Not the safest place to be stood but I needed Stas to stand there for scale

	There is now a by-pass route to the right of the fallen pillar bit try not to touch it		Looking down on the pillar from above

	The pillar is now in a pretty sorry state, very cracked and ready to drop on you as you clamber through

	Stas is stood on top of the pile of broken rock which has fallen down since November 2003		You can clamber across the loose rocks onto the West Wall Traverse path from the base of the pillar but its a lot safer to use the original path which is 5 metres below this

	This is the same shot taken 17 July and there is a large hole where the posts were - I estimate an area of 6m x 5m x 2m has collapsed into rake below i.e. 60 cubic metres or 150 tonnes of rock		This is the original photo I took 1st November 2003 and shows the bank slippage and wooden marker posts

Update 23 June 2004

The rake remains unstable with more loose rock coming down it's length all the time, the warning signs at the bottom have been buried but are still there. The area is very loose and the national trust are advising walkers to find an alternative route.

		View from bottom of rake taken by Andy Fellwalker

The pillar is its fallen state

Update 20th December 2003

The first snow of the winter and the following photo was taken Saturday 20/12/03, 12 months on from the similar photo taken 19/12/02 and shown further down the page. However, there has been little change from the last significant collapse in March 2003.

Updated 1/11/03

		Approaching the pillar from the Mickledore side. There is an alternative route through to the right hand side but take great care as its a bit of a scramble, slippery and one slip is not good news.

Standing on the uphill side. If you do come through the gap then do not touch the pillar. Also check the soundness of the boulders you are balancing on / pulling through on. The area where my hand is used to be the home of the large boulder abut the size of a 4 drawer filing cabinet which dropped off last spring (see past photos below). Compare this with the next photo which was taken 9/1/03



		This is the land slip viewed from just to the edge of it, looking north-west and directly above the leaning pillar (about 4 vertical metres) . The two pegs are markers placed and photographed so we can monitor movement. As at 1/11/03 they were set at 600mm between the two nails. I can assure you that great care was taken placing these posts.

This is the land slip viewed from the West Wall traverse, looking north-west

		This is the warning sign at the western exit from Lords Rake on the flank of Scafell.

Updated 14 May 2003

The above photos were taken by a team member recently (14 May 03) and show the poor state of the crag directly above the fallen pillar, indeed this is the ground the pillar is propped against. When this bank collapses it will most probably fill the rake. National trust are investigating.

Update 26/3/03
		Photo taken 5/1/03
Photo taken 26/3/03 - spot the difference

		The new profile as you approach from the bottom

The piles of loose broken rock that could have landed on your head!!
Comment: The team members who took these photos are convinced that the block will move again in the next 4 weeks as the drift of old, hard snow under the base thaws fully. We will keep you updated with it's progress.


Updated 5/2/03
Photo taken 5 February 2003 showing boulder still in same position. Guy couldn't get up to it due to the bank of soft snow beneath it.


Updated 5/1/03
		Frozen ground has stabilised the rake below the pillar but the block itself and surrounding rock walls are highly suspect. The considered personal opinions of two team members, one a qualified Geologist, the other a Chartered Civil/Structural Engineer is that the pillar will not survive any further movement and its collapse is imminent. The rock wall to the left of the photo is also severely fractured and ready to come down. If you do venture up the rake and notice any further movement please contact the team or the National Trust

The fracture lines are easy to spot.


Checking one of the compression cracks

		It's difficult to see what is actually holding the block together. A classic compression crack.


		This 1m x 50cm x 40 cm block is now ready to drop and fill the archway. If you do climb through, avoid pulling on anything, especially the block.



		The summit of Scafell looking south east. Worth the climb and well away from the dangers of the block, 200 m below

Photo History in Chronological Order

The Whitehaven News - (Thursday 2nd January 2003)

WASDALE Mountain Rescue team is warning of a massive rock fall on Scafell, making conditions very dangerous. Lord's rake approached from Mickledore Ridge or Hollowstones, on the Wasdale side, is an accident Blackspot - there have been around 10 rescues over the past 10 years.

Last year a pillar collapsed, making the situation dangerous and prompting the National Trust to place warning signs around the area about loose and unstable rock. Now a wall to the left of the detached block has collapsed, making the situation even more dangerous. As a result, a lot of rock has been left at the top, ready to fall down, and the pile is very loose and unstable. It has also caused the leaning block from the last fall to drop a further few feet into the rake and has now cracked at it's base.

This area is the scramble route to the summit of Scafell, which is usually only used by the more adventurous. But Guy Newbold, of the team, is warning people to exercise extreme caution if they are going to attempt the route. "The leaning block, which looked like it was starting to become stabilised, must now be treated with considerable caution due to it's recent movement and new crack formation," said Guy. "Given a choice I wouldn't go up the Rake again until after all the loose rock has come down, hopefully over the course of the winter. But if you must go into the Rake please ensure there is no one else in it above you, there is a lot of loose rock ready to topple."

		Photo taken from start of the Rake looking west. The toppled block at the top of the first ascent is a recent feature (since ~Jan 01 - if anyone has seen it before this date please let me know as we are trying to establish when it fell, blocking the normal safe route - email rawarren@freenetname.co.uk )

Toppled block at the top of the first ascent, Lords Rake - this block has recently fallen across the route and is fractured and extremely loose. Dislodged rocks beneath it will bring it down, cleaning out the rake (and anyone in it) and sending boulders crashing down to the tourist path which leads from Hollowstones to Mickledore. WARNING UPDATE - 5/12/02 the rock wall where the gentleman in red has his right hand has now collapsed (this week) and sent a pile of fresh, loose rocks down the Rake. Extreme care was already required before this latest fall to avoid dislodging the toppled pier so please avoid / treat with the greatest of respect. The Park Authority have already placed warning signs. They will now be approached again by the team to update them on the situation. The cold spell this forthcoming weekend will not help the situation. WARNING UPDATE - 13/12/02 Updated photos added at the bottom of this page showing the massive rock fall - new photos provided by Guy Newbold - more on his website http://www.felltreks.co.uk

		Start of West Wall Traverse which leads directly to the summit col of Scafell. A relatively safe scramble but has seen at least 3 rescues in the past 20 years. This photo is taken from the new toppled block and shows where the blocks initial impact will be.

The toppled block looking back towards Scafell Pike - access is either through the arch (loose and ready to collapse) or to the left of the block as you look at it - very steep and loose - not forgiving if you slip.