Seat Sandal
Seat Sandal | |
---|---|
Nuttall, Wainwright | |
Coordinates | 54°29′40″N 3°00′57″W / 54.49456°N 3.01585°W |
Geography | |
Location | Cumbria, England |
Parent range | Lake District, Eastern Fells |
OS grid | NY343115 |
Topo map | OS Landranger 90 OS Explorer 5 |
Seat Sandal is a fell in the English Lake District, situated four kilometres (2+1⁄2 miles) north of the village of Grasmere from where it is very well seen. Nevertheless, it tends to be overshadowed by its more illustrious neighbours in the Eastern Fells, Helvellyn and Fairfield.
Name
The unusual name comes from the Old Norse language, " Sandulfr " being an Old Norse personal name.[1]
The name element ' Seat ' is from Old Norse ' sæter ' . [a]
Toponym
Examples of place names with a similar etymology might include :
- Lake District: (Seat..oller ) " Óláfr’s sæter "
- Lake District: (Seat..allan ) " Aleyn's sæter "
The remains of structures have been found on Seat Sandal that are assumed to have been summer shielings (high altitude dwellings ) where people stayed during the summer months in order to watch over the animals. [d] [e] [f]
Both Seat Sandal and
Topography
The fell's western flanks above
Seat Sandal is distinctive in that its
Dunmail Raise provides the topographical connection between the Eastern and Central Fells, Steel Fell rising on the other side of the pass.
Geology
A hill of andesite lava forms the summit, the rocks beneath being the dacitic lapilli-tuffs of the Lincomb Tarns Formation.[8]
Ascents
The fell can be ascended from Grasmere or Dunmail Raise although a start from Patterdale is quite feasible. The Grasmere or Patterdale starts use the old packhorse route that links the two places; this is now part of Wainwright's Coast to Coast Walk. When Grisedale Hause is reached it is a steep climb to the summit following a broken wall. The ascent from Dunmail Raise follows the bed of Raise Beck until it peters out at a height of 580 m (1,900 ft); it is then a walk south up easy slopes to reach the summit. There is also a direct ascent up the western slopes starting at Mill Bridge.
Summit
The view from the top is limited by the nearby Helvellyn and Fairfield ranges although there is a good view of Lakeland to the west; the Solway Firth and Criffel are seen on a good day as is Morecambe Bay to the south.
References
Notes
- ^ Definition of Old Norse ' sæter '
- ^ " Sandal " is an anglicisation of the Old Norse personal name " Sandulfr "
- ^ Olaf Sandal : The Viking ruler Olaf Sihtricson, King of Northumbria (r. 941 – 943 ), was also known as " Olaf Sandal " .[5]
- ^ Summer shielings : " ...historical sites ...Little Langdale ...Seat Sandal " .[6]
- ^ Summer transhumance " We know from the evidence of Norse farming customs in north Scotland that Norse settlers in Britain continued the system of summer transhumance which was customary in their Scandinavian homeland. " [6]
- ^ See Transhumance > Scandinavian peninsula
- ^ Historic Routes : The routes that the Scandinavian settlers might have used are mirrored by Wainwrights's Coast to Coast Walk from St Bees Head to Keld :[7]
- Buttermere to Borrowdale (via Seat..oller )
- Borrowdale to Patterdale (via Seat Sandal )
- ^ It would be expected that meat and perhaps dairy might have been traded at these locations.
Citations
- ^ Nordic Names : Sandulfr
- ^ Reaney 1969, p. 174.
- ^ Rollinson 1981, p. 34.
- ^ Gambles 1997, p. 4.
- ^ Williams 2017, p. 290.
- ^ a b Gambles 1997, p. 154.
- ^ OS Maps 2000, p. 1.
- ^ British Geological Survey: 1:50,000 series maps, England & Wales Sheet 29: BGS (1999)
Sources
Maps
- OS Maps (2000). Wainwrights's Coast to Coast Walk - St Bees Head to Keld. ISBN 0-319-26090-9.
Books
- Williams, Thomas (2017). Viking Britain - A History. ISBN 978-0-00-817195-7.
- Gambles, Robert (1997). The Story of the Lakeland Dales. ISBN 1-86077-033-9.
- Rollinson, William (1981) [1974]. Life and Tradition in the Lake District. ISBN 0-85206-635-X.
- Reaney, P H (1969). The Origin of English Place Names. Routledge & Kegan Paul.
- A Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells, Eastern Fells, Alfred Wainwright, ISBN 0-7112-2454-4
- Complete Lakeland Fells, Bill Birkett, ISBN 0-00-713629-3
- The Mountains of England and Wales, John and Anne Nuttall ISBN 1-85284-037-4