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A dry morning if not actually a "White Christmas" (the snow would come on Boxing Day to the high fells). 

We take a walk out onto Rannerdale Knotts to exercise the dogs

as we had a lunchtime invitation to Christmas meal at our neighbours.

The old tree at Hause Point sets the scene for the start of this Christmas Day walk.

The rain and high winds of the last few days have gone, or nearly gone and left rather overcast skies over Crummock Water and Mellbreak.

Over the high fells the cloud was thicker and lower, but hopefully the occasional morning rain showers mentioned in the forecast had passed us by.

Time to take the high road . . . the footpath, as opposed to the bridleway, as opposed to the road around the base.

Ten am. and time in hand to reach the summit before we had to return home and get ready to go out for Christmas lunch.

Brighter skies to the north west

which is where the weather is supposed to be coming from.

From the first rock platform on the way up, Harry and Dylan stop for a photo.

Ahead, the steep climb up the front of Rannerdale and on the skyline a rock pinnacle reminds us of our old dog Bethan.

She always used to be first up to the top and sit on the viewpoint rock, so we scattered her ashes up there.

Hold your cursor over the picture to seen the pointed rock a little closer.

As we climb the sun breaks through the cloud above the central fells.

The light improves and where the sun penetrates the cloud at the head of the valley

a ray of sunlight shines down the valley and highlights a field or a small patch of the fellside.

Light this time on Low Fell at the foot of the lake.

Ann reaching the top of the pitched path

constructed in recent years up the steepest part of the climb from the hause below.

A patch of sunlight illuminated Scale Hill (also known as Lanthwaite Hill) this time.

The viewpoint rock on the summit of Rannerdale.

It wouldn't be Christmas without the hat photo !

The true summit cairn set back a short distance from the end of the fell.

That sun has gone again as the weather closes in slightly at the head of the valley.

No time for the complete round so we cut down the front of the fell.

Read the slope and take a gentle line down through the old bracken.

We thought we could take a more gentle line across to the bluff where we had that first picture of the dogs,

but the slope became steeper and the gorse bushes forced us to descend earlier than expected.

Easier walking once we reached the green track near the base.

This would have been the "main road" before the current route was cut out of the headland below.

[ When people visited friends and relatives in Buttermere, the horse drawn coach would have dropped them at the other side of Hause Point

and a pony and trap would have been dispatched from Buttermere along this track to collect the visitors and carry them back to the village.]

A short walk in a slight drizzle found us back at Hause Point

and it was a brief descent back to our car waiting at the parking area below to complete the walk.

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Time for a wash and a scrub up and we were out to Ross and Susan's for Christmas Lunch.

Their family enjoyed a full turkey roast but appreciated our desire not to eat meat

so we contributed a main course dish to the table for ourselves . . . and anyone else who wished to give it a try.

A Christmas Beetroot Pie . . . a pastry topping hiding the bright red filling inside.

Very "Christmassy" with the real red current bauble decorations courtesy of their garden earlier in the year.

Thanks to Ross, Susan and family for a very sociable afternoon.

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