A long weekend in the English Lake District. Weather forecast says 'Unsettled'. Nothing new there then. Our family 'Weekender' was booked weeks ago and we were really looking forward to this one. Despite the cold, and the unsettled weather forecast for the whole weekend, we were determined to make the most of our break. We had a great time, staying on a lovely site just outside of Keswick. We were staying in a nice caravan right on the river and the place was very quiet. For the most part the weather was very much as predicted, although each late afternoon saw the sun breaking through the clouds and the whole place was transformed. The Lake District is a place of outstanding natural beauty and if you're gonna see it at its best then the weather has got to be kind. Over the Easter weekend we visited Bowness On Windermere, Keswick, Hawkshead, Coniston, Ambleside and Elterwater. With the weather acting itself I didn't bother with the camera, apart from dozens of family shots - opting to wait for the cloud cover to disperse and the sun to finally show up. It didn't disappoint!
The first three photo's (shown here) were taken at Keswick Launch, a popular place where visitors can take their own boat trip across the waters of Lake Derwentwater. The mountains in the distance had a covering of snow that added that extra something to my photographs. Giving an almost Icing Sugar effect it certainly made for a picturesque scene and after visiting Hawkshead during the day I eyed-up an excellent viewpoint at the top of the hill next to St Michael and All Angels Church. The scene had a bit of everything - all that was missing was the sun. The sky was overcast and on a better day I would had an opportunity to bag a great postcard shot. After returning to the camp site the weather took on a dramatic change - typical really. The clouds had parted and the sun was shining brightly. After half an hour there was a big break in the clouds and lots of blue sky was present. That was when my mind started working overtime and I was having flashbacks of the church at Hawkshead and the mountain backdrop. That was it, time to revisit. The fifty mile round trip was a bit of a gamble as the sun might well have buggered off by the time I hit Hawkshead. But luck was very definately on my side and the gamble paid off. On arrival I headed up the hill towards the church and round the back where I'd walked the earlier path. What a view! In my own humble opinion this is without doubt one of the best landscape shots I've ever taken...
Thanks again for reading. Ash
