A FULL-SCALE mountain rescue was launched for a man who had been reported missing after deciding to walk up Scafell Pike.

Wasdale Mountain Rescue as well as four other agencies were called out to the man on December 27 who had managed to descend by himself after spending the night on the fells.

The team members involved: 16 Wasdale MRT, 12 Duddon and Furness Mountain Rescue Team, 5 search dogs (4 from Lake District, 1 from SARDA England – Yorkshire Dales), Maritime and Coastguard Agency Rescue 912 helicopter.

They were called out at 1.19am and the search concluded at 2.40pm - lasting 13 hours and 21 minutes.

A spokesman for Wasdale MRT said: "We were contacted by Cumbria Police when a friend of a lone walker said he had not heard from him after a walk on Scafell Pike. No messages had been delivered to the walker’s phone and it was not possible to make contact with him.

"A search was initiated, with limited resources as many team members were unavailable. As the search progressed without success, more resources were called for from further afield. A Coastguard helicopter was about to depart from Humberside, having been waiting several hours for the weather to improve and the cloud base to lift, when a message was received to say the walker had been found in the Upper Esk area. Amazingly he was able to walk off unaided, having spent the night out.

"Very many thanks to Duddon and Furness MRT, to R912 and the search dogs."