The weather may not have been all that great for us humans but I doubt a sheep judges their quality of life with respect to much more than the food spread out around them — and in that regard, this sheep clearly has things very fine indeed, going by the smile on its face. Taken on the very edge of the Lake District, the hill of Cunswick Scar, near Kendal.
Dropping down from Sergeant Man to Tarn Crag, in Easdale in the Lake District, I saw ahead a small herd of young deer, about three hundred yards ahead. I stopped to get the camera out. They stopped and looked at me for a while; I mean, look at this picture, they clearly know I’m there. They sized me up. I sized them up. Got a few shots. Then off they went, to do whatever they do during the daytime, and I carried on my way. Everyone was satisfied with the transaction I think.
I worked Sunday and Monday (I have witnesses) so this was a walk day. Destination, the well-known peak of Great Gable: pictured here, however, is Great End, rising above the stream of Styhead Gill which comes down from Sty Head, one of the major walkers’ crossroads of Lakeland. A very fine day, the sort that makes one glad one has a flexible job sometimes.
The summit of Sail is 2536 feet above sea level but the fell is described by Wainwright as ‘the least obtrusive of the 2,500-footers’ and he has a point, there’s not really much to it. Still, it was the highest point reached on my walk today, and the view is a good one despite the grey clouds: the distinct northern group (Skiddaw and Blencathra) on the horizon, Keswick below. A good walk today — I’m having my weekend Friday and Saturday.
A day out in the Lake District but as you can see, the weather was not good so I stuck to the low-altitude scenery. This is the Derwentwater, and on its west shore stands, or rather lies, this tree — perfectly healthy and seemingly not fazed at all by the fact that it has grown horizontally and now lies permanently half-in and half-out of the water. Look at the root structure, how it’s still clinging on to solid ground.
Three-day weekend, so went out on a walk before the weather deteriorated and I had to go back to work. Steel Knotts is only 1412 feet above sea level but asserts itself ruggedly among the taller fells all around.
Public holiday today, and a beautiful day of weather, so I made the most of it and went on a Lake District walk. The remaining photos will be up on my other blog some time tomorrow morning. Combe Gill is a hanging valley above upper Borrowdale, tucked into the massif that is known as Glaramara. And yes, there’s something, well, intimate-looking about it.
Celebrated the first day of my Christmas break by doing what I often do, go for a walk in Cumbria. But this was not ‘fellwalking’ by any stretch of the imagination: not in the National Park today, even. This picture is taken in the flat hinterlands by Morecambe Bay. Though a bit fuzzy, it’ll do I think — I like its painting-like quality. And anyway, you try taking a picture of deer, particularly when they know you’re there (as these three clearly do) — and through the mist, too.
Having worked five of the last six Sundays, and as I’m going to be working this Sunday too, and with it being the only Friday morning all semester when I wasn’t teaching — I arranged weeks ago to make this a completely guilt-free day off. It could have been raining, misty, foul, all the things it usually is in late November….
…. but it wasn’t. Thank you world.
Back on 7th October 2011 this summit, Bowfell, was pictured from a greater distance on an earlier Lake District walk, and it also popped up on 22nd June this year, which makes it the first mountain to get on the blog three times (excepting the obvious case of Kilimanjaro).
“This is my church. This is where I heal my hurts.” (Faithless: God is a DJ)
Being 42 