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When I go on a trip by myself, I usually do some research on where to stay and eat, where to visit, how to commute from one place to another and so on, and then make a plan which I stick to every detail. It is out of my fear of being in unfamiliar places with lots of unknown variations. However, when I visited Lake District in England, I decided to be more spontaneous. What I experienced during the walk to the Old Man of Coniston was, therefore, unexpected, and it made the trip more memorable. I left Windermere in the morning to catch a bus to Coniston. At first, I was only going to walk around the village. I did not plan to go hiking that day because the day before, I walked up Cat Bells in the rainy and windy condition, which was quite adventurous and could be dangerous. It was grey with dark clouds although it was not too bad at the beginning. The grass was slippery, and I slipped while climbing up. I grabbed hold of the grass and hung on to it for my dear life while trying to find a footing. There was narrow ground below me, but I was too afraid of slipping on the mud and falling off the cliff to let go. Luckily, a couple on the trail ahead of me heard me calling, pulled me up, and probably saved my life. Thanked to them I could continue the hike up to the top to see the view of the fell as far as the sky that day would allow. I was, however, still a bit spooked the next morning. So, I did not study the trail up to the Old Man or buy any map before going there. Wanting to be more spontaneous, I just walked, following the trail at the foot of the mountain without any clue where it led to. I was going to turn back at some point, but I kept going further and higher to see more. Before I realised, it was too far to turn around. It was a lovely day in early June. The sun finally came out. The trail was pretty with greenery, ferns, foxgloves, streams, and sheep grazing on the sides. After a while, I wanted to know where I was heading to. I asked a group of people walking towards me. They said the Old Man. I was thinking ‘alright, I’m doing this’. There were more people on the way up. Basically, I just followed them. There was a small lake on the way, an ideal spot for a break, and an archaeological site whose ground covered with slates. The trail was easy until the steeper and more difficult part towards the top. Although it was sunny, the wind was very strong. I had to be very careful climbing up. Finally, I reached the summit. I was glad I made it. A view from the top of a mountain earned after a long walk is always rewarding. The problem then was how to get down. Going down the same way was daunting, but I did not know the other ways. Then, I saw a couple heading down. I hurried towards them and asked if I could join. Fortunately, they did not mind. We introduced ourselves and chatted. The lady was good at reading map and direction. She led us down the mountain. We took a break on the bank of Coniston Water, drinking in the scenery. We continued the walk to the village and stopped by a café where they bought me hot chocolate. When I found that the bus has gone, they volunteered to drive me to another stop to catch a bus to Windermere. I felt bad crashing their walk but also happy and grateful I met them. I did not expect to see such kindness towards a complete stranger on both days. It was unwise to go hiking without a map, but it might not always be necessary to plan every detail. Leaving space for some random unknown variations might lead to an unexpected encounter or a more satisfying journey. Who knows? Things happen even when we plan.