" First Week Back and the Lakes have Snow "

Date & start time: 30th Jan to 2nd February 2012.

Location :Across the Lakes to Loweswater, Cumbria, Uk. ( NY 143 211 )

Places visited : Thirlmere, Friars Crag, Rannerdale Knotts and Ling Fell ... all separately.

Walk details : The end of the drive home plus local walks.

Highest point : The sunny weather and the snow on the tops.

Walked with : Ann and the dogs, Harry and Bethan . . . plus Ian on the Rannerdale walk.

Weather : Blue skies and sunshine with a cold, winter high pressure over the country.

After visiting family, we return to the Lakes on a brilliantly sunny day,

soon after a short period of heavy snow covers the high fells.

This is the Lake District at its winter's best.

We drove through the Lakes from Kendal and the M6 so as to enjoy the views this fine day.

Quiet roads and lovely views eventually brought the camera out despite having spent six hours on the road already.

Such beauty, such peace and quiet !

There was a roar of two jets over the car as I parked and two minutes later . . .

the thump, thump, thump of rotors as this helicopter flew passed us at just above road height.

Peace . . . in military terms . . . but certainly not quiet !

Zooming in as he flew down Thirlmere . . . I wonder if it is Prince William ?

No . . . he's RAF and has just landed a job with RAF Rescue in the Falkland Islands for a short while.

St Johns in the Vale.

Blencathra is looking good at the end of the valley.

In Keswick it is the end of the school day too as the pupils walk home into town.

The crane is working on the flood prevention scheme.

The distant Helvellyn Range that runs alongside the Thirlmere road, is well covered in snow.

The big turn of the River Greta as it rounds the old Pencil Factory and heads for the main town bridge.

Stepping down from my photographic perch . . .

the same view taken from pavement level, through the new glass windows of the flood prevention scheme.

Home is a short drive over Whinlatter . . . we stop at the Knoble Knott viewpoint to look across at Skiddaw.

Click here or on the photo above for a wider Loweswatercam annotated panorama.

- - - o o o - - -

Tuesday was a little dull and grey but Wednesday dawned fine and dry again.

As luck would have it I was in work . . . but Wednesday often starts with an hours training or discussions before the shop is fully open.

If you can hold a staff meeting in the sunshine at Friars Crag rather than in the shop . . . wouldn't you want to do it too ?

As it wasn't a planned walk I only had my small, steam-driven mobile phone of many years standing.

A slight sharpening of the image and hey-presto !

Catbells from Friars Crag.

Causey Pike and Grisedale Pike from the boat landings.

The launch is almost surrounded by a thin layer of ice.

Down by the shoreline . . . with a clear view of Skiddaw.

The hotels on The Heads behind the 'pitch and put' golf course in Crow Park.

Times up . . . back to work !

- - - o o o - - -

Wednesday Ann was also able to get out.

Ian was up from Seascale and together they took the dogs up to Rannerdale Knotts for a walk.

Looking down Crummock Water . . . past Mellbreak towards Low Fell at the far end.

Ian wasn't slow . . . he'd just been up on the crag to look for Bethan.

"Hey . . . I'm up here already !"

Improving views as the path climbs up the fell.

The pitched path up alongside the middle crags . . .	. . . where the stream has developed icicles.

Just one more climb and the top will be in sight (somewhere up there below the afternoon moon).

This was Ian's first climb up the steep front of Rannerdale and he thoroughly enjoyed it.

It was much easier than it looked from below . . . and the views were superb.

The snow covered tops of the high fells really start to show from this height.

" Just a short way now " in dog-speak !	" I'm just looking at the view "

Loweswater comes into view beyond the end of Crummock . . . it certainly was worth looking at today.

Up at the viewpoint on the end of Rannerdale Knotts,

looking up the valley to the sunshine on Great Gable and Fleetwith Pike and down into deep shadow of the Buttermere Valley.

Time to relax.	Bethan and Ian share a cuddle.

The true top of the Rannerdale Knotts . . . I see the cairn has collapsed again !

Harry seems to be chewing part of it.

Behind him the snowy top of Robinson and the brown shoulder of High Snockrigg.

Rannerdale Knott's crisp shadow is cast across the face of Whiteless Pike.

To the left the Lad How Ridge leads up to the top of snowy Grasmoor.

Working their way along to the second summit . . .	. . . ready to continue along Low Bank.

In order to stay in the sun, they drop down the front of the fell rather than over into the Squat Beck Valley behind.

Eventually of course, they lose the direct sunlight as they near road level down in the valley.

Not before Bethan has time to enjoy a dig in an old rabbit warren.

What doesn't fall off in the back of the car will have to be wiped away once she gets home.

A little extra care was necessary on the final path back down to the car.

The normally damp path has frozen in several places and there was a lot of hidden ice in the grass.

- - - o o o - - -

Finally today . . . Thursday the 2nd . . . Ann was out again, this time up Ling Fell.

Just two photos, one from the top looking across to Grisedale and the North Western Fells . . .

And the other, a wide view encompassing Sale Fell, Skiddaw and round to Hopegill Head.

Click here or on the photo above for a wider Loweswatercam annotated panorama.

We weren't able to get up on the high fells and into the snow . . . but the views were beautiful nevertheless.

- - - o o o - - -

Technical note: Pictures taken with either Ann's Fuji Finepix Compact, my Canon 1100D camera or the old mobile phone !

Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder.

This site best viewed with . . . a few non working days . . . but then I've just used them up last week visiting Angie and our family.

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Previous walk - 28th January 2012 Camberley and a Party

A previous time up here - 4th April 2008 Ling Fell after a dull morning

Next walk - 4th February 2012 Tickhill and the Snow