A warm and sunny day, too warm really to be out yomping another ten miles over the Lake District, but I think I survived it. The foxgloves were certainly relishing it. Pictured on the descent of Steel Fell, which is up there to the right, and above the valley of Greenburn Bottom (a name, which if unpicked, could result in all sorts of images).
24 hours in Holyhead, Anglesey, planned around the enjoyment of two of my principal leisure pursuits. The footie was yesterday, the walk today. As you can see, the weather was… pretty decent. I seem not to be able to resist the temptation to collect places, and for a while have been preparing to set out to bag the highest points in all the counties of Great Britain, and with Holyhead Mountain, this, almost accidentally, kicks it off… so out spurts another blog, which you may or may not like to check out. While you’re here though, is it me or does that trig point look like the robot from The Day the Earth Stood Still?
Decent weather was forecast for the first time in three weeks and lo, it delivered. I had to get out and expand my horizons somewhat, and the Lake District is a fine place to expand them. This is the view from Low Fell, one of A. Wainwrights Western Fells. The lake is Crummock Water, the two big hills Whiteside to the left, and Grasmoor.
The summit of Caudale Moor is also known as Stony Cove Pike. In the background, the peaks of Ill Bell and its little brother Froswick. Behold, the payoff for working yesterday.
I had to put together a plan for finishing off my book. There is no reason why this had to happen sitting around at home — not on a day like today.
I had two strong candidate pictures for today’s shot, following my walk around Honister Pass and Buttermere, in the Lake District. The other one was flowers, this one industry. I think this shot shows that the latter can be attractive too. The spoil heap looks at first like a stark, grey mountain in the distance, but it appears on no map.
I needed to at least try to clear my head, in various ways. Sometimes I think that my project to walk all the Lake District twice has been over-extended, that I’d like to finish it now, or at least earlier than projected (which is some point in 2021). Then I go, and I remember why I go.
I like the walker visible on this shot, just past where the curving path seems to disappear higher up. Gives it a grander sense of scale. The valley is Borrowdale.
I continue with my attempt to re-cover the whole Lake District, having already done it all once. Hesk Fell is certainly one of the 330 LD peaks that I am now glad I never have to return to a third time; it’s not awful, but as this picture makes evident, it’s just a big grassy moorland, although it does have a decent view. Those are the Scafells in the distance, the highest peaks in England. Someone has made a very great effort to bring those stones up to build the summit cairn, as there certainly aren’t any that occur naturally on the ground for some distance in any direction, so let’s pay homage to their effort with today’s picture (others can be found on my walking blog, if you are interested…).
If you think I was staying in and working on a day like this — you obviously don’t know me very well. This picture is taken from around 3,000 feet up, on Skiddaw, fourth-highest mountain in England, yet with almost no wind today it wasn’t even particularly cold. A glorious day: can the rest of 2019 be like this please?
Little to add except that it was time to get out into some mountains again — even if they weren’t very high. The late December gloom never really lifted all day, but for this shot, it doesn’t matter.
I’m on a three-day weekend (Thursday, Friday, Saturday). I can think of worse places to spend it. In the background: Red Screes, Caudale Moor, Thornthwaite Crag.
