Lake District Weekender

Hello once again.
My first blog entry of October recalls our August Bank Holiday camping trip to the Lake District, where we had three days of constant sunshine and high temperatures, which is quite a rarity in Lakeland. We pitched our tent at Castlerigg Farm, on the outskirts of Keswick, after taking up the very last plot on the site before the 'Site Full' sign was hoisted. Once our tent was pitched and loaded, we were back in the car and exploring Lakeland once again, travelling to such places as Bowness, Ambleside, Buttermere and Castlerigg Stone Circle. The region was packed with tourists, which was inevitable on a Bank Holiday weekend, and especially with the weather being so kind. here are some of the photo's I took during a brilliant weekend, which certainly won't be forgotten in a hurry.

Speak soon, Ash

Buttermere Dawn, winner of 'BBC Look North' August weather photograph 

Sunset, from our base at Castlerigg Farm Camp Site

Rowing boats, early morning at Derwentwater

Keswick Launch, Derwentwater

Derwentwater, shortly after Sunset

The top of Honister Pass, near the Slate Mine (Via Ferrata)

The Peaks at Dusk, from Ambleside

Surprise View over Derwentwater, near Ashness Bridge

Buttermere at Dawn - The sheep arrive and take an early morning drink 

Buttermere Dawn, as the mist rises

 

More TV Exposure! (Parts 60-62)

Last weekend, Bank Holiday, was spent in the Lake District as part of a two night camping trip. The weather was brilliant throughout, with not a single drop of rainfall, which is quite a rarity in Cumbria, even in Summer. We pitched our tent at Castlerigg Farm, Keswick, which was our fourth visit to the site over the last two years and certainly one site we'll be revisiting in 2014. On Monday morning I was up early and heading out in pitch darkness for a sunrise at Buttermere. A 5am alarm call started the show, before the 40 minute car journey through Seatoller, then the climb onto Honister Pass, before descending through the valley and into Buttermere. Upon arrival visibility was very poor. I stuck around though, being a patient and persevering type of photographer (he he), and was duly rewarded with one of the best scenes I've ever witnessed - it really was something else. The Buttermere pines, reputed to be the most photographed set of trees in the UK, along with a still lake, giving a glass like reflection that was screaming out to be photographed. The mountainous backdrop added to the picture, so there was no time to stand on ceremony as the scene in front of me only lasted a short while before the water began to ripple and the reflection disappeared. By the time that eventually happened the shots were in the bag. I'm looking forward to opening the folder with the other shots in, to see if there are more gems to work with. Here is one that I sent in to regional TV, as a weather shot. My photograph, which is titled 'First Light, Buttermere', was shown on ITV Border at 6.30pm on Wednesday 28th August, then again on BBC Look North 30 minutes later! 48 hours later it resurfaced on BBC once again during another weather forecast. Here are the screenshots, along with the original, converted from RAW to JPEG and downsized for the web use.

A full blog entry of my Lake District camping trip will appear here shortly. Until then...take care

Ash

Another Fell Walk - Catbells, English Lake District

After an enjoyable fell walking debut (Blencathra) in the English Lake District, I was more than keen to visit the National Park for another visit to the fells. During our recent 'Blencathra Weekender' I made a mental note of the position of the sun during different times of the day, keeping in mind the best area's of the Northern Fells where the sun would be behind me. My photography rarely involves shooting into the sun during the day - I only attempt this type of shot at dawn or dusk, so an idea of what I wanted was quickly forming in my head. I wanted some 'Big Shots', broken cloud, blue sky, fells bathed in sunshine, a lake or two - not asking for much is it? Naturally I followed the weather forecast during the days leading up to my visit, even though the Lake District weather can be very unpredicable and changeable to say the least. I was to make this trip on my own - no family, no friends, no workmates, just me. I find this tactic works best for photography - total focus, no distractions. I made the trip West along the A66 once again, a route I've become very familiar with lately. My homework was done and I'd selected another of the Northern Fells for my second climb - Catbells, a simple ascent with rewarding views across Derwentwater towards Blencathra and Skiddaw towards the Solway Firth - on a clear day of course. And a clear day was what I had. I arrived at Keswick mid-day, then made the twenty-minute journey via Portinscale to Catbells, parking in a nearby field for the sum of 'Three Squid'. With no OS map to follow I figured that the old-fashioned 'Follow The Sheep' tactic should do the trick. With camera in the backpack and drinks onboard it was time to leave the motor behind and begin the trek to the top.

From the makeshift car park I headed up a slight incline and over the cattle grid, which brought me to my starting point. According to the research I'd done the day before, an 'Obvious zig-zag path' is where I should have started my ascent up Catbells, but it wasn't so obvious to me - I missed the bugger completely! Obvious path? What Obvious path? Ah well, I found myself walking along a straight path along the bottom of the fell, just above the road, which I later learned was the 'Allerdale Ramble'. As I walked further it was clear to me that I was heading away from the Catbells summit and towards the nearby peak of High Spy, which is joined to Catbells at the top via Maiden Moor. Between the two peaks, along the Allerdale Ramble I noticed a very steep path to the top, so off I went, stopping to take a few photographs at more than regular intervals. The first shot (above) was taken where the Allerdale Ramble meets the steep path that I chose to climb - a panoramic effort looking over Derwentwater towards Blencathra. The second shot (shown here), and undoubtedly my favourite of the visit, was taken on the approach to the first scramble on High Spy. I remember stopping for a short breather before beginning the scramble, looking behind me along the Maiden Moor ridge. It was an excellent view, offering just about everything I'd visualised in my head a couple of days earlier. There was even a couple of fell walkers in the frame, finishing off a spectacular view. No point in admiring it for too long though - time to transfer this landscape vista to Compact Flash!

After negotiating a very straightforward scramble on High Spy I paused for a few more shots across the Newlands Valley. Another viewpoint that offered plenty in the way of landscape.
Sheep sat around me as I ran off a few frames. They appeared totally at ease in my company, which is not surprising considering the volume of people that cross their path on a daily basis. Mind you, with the wind creeping up and a steep drop below, I wasn't hanging around for too long so I scrambled up the final outcrop to the summit, where at least 20 people had already gathered. It was blowing a gale up top. A young lad was entertaining folk
by riding a monoclycle on the rocky summit. The entertainment value lay in the fact that he couldn't even perch his arse on the seat before being blown to one side, at least six times. He gave up eventually. Top marks for effort though.

After spending 20 minutes or so on the summit of High Spy, I made my way back down to Maiden Moor via the double rock scramble I had managed earlier. Once on the Moor I took the path that lead me along towards Catbells summit. More excellent views across Derwentwater and Bassenthwaite towards the Solway Firth in a North-Westerly direction. The sun had gone behind large clouds by this time, offering very little to no sunlight on the surrounding fells. Causey Pike stood to my left, looking every bit the next mountain on my list. Surprising how cold it gets up top when the sun goes in. I chatted to an American couple on the Catbells summit before reaching another rock scramble on the way down to the car park. They struggled with the scramble but I wasn't ready to hang around as the sun disappeared completely behind more cloud. Once over the rocks I paused to get my bearings, amazed at how tiny the cars looked in the field below, even though I was almost half way down the hill and now walking a zig-zag path. Ohhhh, so this is the zig-zag path I was supposed to follow on the way up !!! Ah well, better to be going down it than climbing up - it was a nightmare on the old joints! Two hours after leaving the car, I was back. By this time the sun had re-appeared and at ground level the heat was sweltering. Time to sit and take a well earned breather. Cool bag came out of the boot - freezing cold Coca-Cola went down without touching the sides. Another enjoyable walk - stroke - climb - stroke - scramble.
And that was that. Job done. Second one ticked off the list.

A few days later I sent my Catbells shot (no. 2, above) to Tyne-Tees Television, who presented it on one of their daily weather bulletins. The video clip can now be viewed in the monitor below - press the arrow on the control panel to view the footage. Until the next time, cheers!
Ash