Thursday 31st March 2011 A visit to Haweswater

After a wet and very windy night, the morning carried on in the same fashion, so we had a lazy time and went to have lunch in Booth's supermarket cafe before driving over to Haweswater, and we timed it just right as the clouds started to show signs of breaking and the sun peeked through. Needless to say this was the moment that  the battery in the FZ100 went flat, and surprisingly the spare I carry was flat too!
No problem, said I reaching for my Nikon D60, guess what? Flat battery!
Fortunately the spare for this camera had a full charge!

This is my favourite view of the lake, the lighting was changing minute by minute and this was the effect I liked best

I could hear the sound of rushing water behind me and this was the source of the noise

The stream passed under the road and tumbled down into the lake far below

Interestingly behind the island that just into view on the left hand side of the picture, and close to the shore on the far side of the lake, is the site of a sunken village that was swallowed up by the waters when this seemingly natural looking lake was created by building a  dam and flooding the valley.

This area is so moist that the trees become not only covered in moss, but ferns and other plants grow quite happily on the trunks and branches, as they do in a tropical rain forest

We travelled back via country lanes and passed along the side of Ullswater where the lighting tempted me to climb down to the waters edge to shoot the view. Since this was directly into the sun a little flare was unavoidable, but I wanted the shot!

Then it was back to the caravan for tea, and after that a walk down to the lakeside: this is the view about a hundred yards from the caravan, through the gate to the lakeside

Gorgeous, isn't it? and a mile or so further along the path this view across the lake to the Lodore Arms hotel is my final image of the day.

Wednesday 30th March 2011 Rain and more rain!

Well, what can you expect from the Lake District?
Pat wanted to buy a "memory foam mattress topper" and we went in search of an Argos store that stocked one, We found what we wanted at Whitehaven, and I managed to dash of a couple of photos despite the rain!
Here is  the "herring shoal" sculpture at the end of the harbour

The Marina still has lots of moored craft at this time of year, but there are few signs of life.

 Never mind! we had a great meal at Crosbys Fish and Chips cafe, Scampi and Chips with about twice as many pieces of Scampi as you will get anywhere else!

I was amused by the imaginative cartoon on the way that depicted the various Whitehaven properties as a tower, very good, methinks!

The weather did pick up a little in the afternoon, so we sallied forth into Keswick as we needed a new small battery for the caravan clock, I took one shot of the "Moot Hall" (Town Hall) before the rain stopped play!

We did get brief glimpses of blue sky after that, and hopefully a little more sunshine tomorrow, please?

Tuesday 29th March 2011 A little rain this morning

Not the usual Lake District deluge, but  a sort of "Mizzle" so went shopping in Penrith than took a drive down the side of Ullswater. The Lake  was very still, as here

It was very misty too, which didn't make ideal photographic conditions, so we dropped down the hill names rather aptly "The Struggle" into Ambleside, then headed north for another supply of Grasmere Gingerbread on our way back to camp.

During the afternoon the weather improved, Pat wanted to work on her crochet, so I went off to Grange for a walk around the village area. 

For once it was possible to get a reasonably clear view of the bridge and the pub behind before the new leaves obscure the view.

The pussy willow was out by the Bridge

At least I think that's what  it was! heading towards Kendal I climbed down the bank to the lake shore, you could see that the level was very low as there hadn't been much recent rain.

There were many strange tree stumps along the shore line, like some alien monsters as here

The weathering revealed some very fancy grain structures that would please anyone interested in wood carving

  Then it was back to site for tea and a lazy evening (what a hard life!)

Monday 28th March 2011 Ennerdale

Heading south through Grange we spotted some lambs in a field and Pat just had to photograph them!

We set off through Grange and Honister Pass where we stopped for our morning cuppa,and piece of Grasmere Gingerbread.
The car was dwarfed  , not just by  the hillside, but the great fallen rock we had parked next to!

 Then through the village of Buttermere, stopping at the end of the lake to photograph this view, the reflections were wonderful due to the stillness of the water

This tree was heavily damaged by a storm many years ago, yet every spring the remaining branches put forth a good covering of leaves, a reassuring sight in the face of great adversity!
Crummock water was  just as still, and as smooth as a mirror

Pat was enjoying herself and tool this one of the marvellous reflections on the lake, it was so still!

This view is one Pat had wanted very much to Photograph, so we stopped and out she went!

What happened to Ennerdale? we found that on the coast side of the hills there was a fog! so we had a very nice lunch in the cafe in Gosforth, and came back via Newlands pass, leaving Ennerdale to a day with clearer weather where we can get some good photo's!
Though the day had started with a heavy frost it had turned into a lovely spring day, we even saw some Rhododendron bushes in flower, which seems very early to me! Here is the picture Pat took

27th March 2011 First Holiday in the Lakes

We had an easy run through from the weekend meet at Holme on Spalding Moor, and were on site just after 12 noon, reaching Keswick in the rush hour, it was busy, though not as much as it will be as the summer advances!

We found the caravan site was about half full, so we were able to get the pitch we wanted, then set off to go to Grasmere for some "Grandma Nelsons" gingerbread, something that you really have to try if you go to the lake district!
We had to drive back to Keswick to do this and chose to return along the western side of  Derwentwater so that I could get a view of my favourite house, down on the lakeside on it's own promontary. I'm not normally someone who has any interest in houses of any kind, but for this one I make an exception!

Having sampled our favourite confection we stopped at Booths Supermarket to buy some of another favourite Cumberland Sausages, for tea and after that I went for my usual lakeside walk, noticing that there were still patches of snow on the distant peaks near Seatoller.
It has been a great first day, and so nice to be back!