The weather is beautiful and the next best thing to a walk
in the snow, is a drive in snowy scenery.
We head out, ostensibly to call into the shops in Keswick,
but end up by extending the drive and shopping a different day.
In the sunshine and with a good covering of snow the high fells
were looking superb.

Cattle grazing on summer silage on the fields adjacent to Whinlatter
Pass.
The fell in the photo is Swinside End, with the slopes behind
leading up towards Ladyside Pike.

Traffic has used the road so there were tracks which showed
clear tarmac most of the time.

When we reached the Whinlatter Centre the road suddenly cleared
due to recent gritting by the Council.
It's a shame the gritter didn't carry on in a straight line
and grit the road down to Lorton.
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The snow
amplifies the grandeur of the trees . . . |
. . . no more so than
here at the top of the pass. |

Part way down the Keswick side we stopped for
a short stroll.
There's a forestry track leading across to the
top of the Comb Beck Valley where small ponds have been built.

The track here offers wide panoramas across
to Skiddaw and distant Helvellyn, now that most of the trees
have been harvested.

The houses of Seldom Seen and Thornthwaite below.
On the corner the view now extends across Bassenthwaite
Lake and over to Binsey Fell.

The pools here were first built to store water
to power the lead mines of the valley below.
Today they are redundant and frozen over, on
the surface at least.

Dougal considered a dip, then re-considered
. . . that looks like unknown territory !

Now no longer used as a reservoir, the pools
have been maintained as a visitor attraction.

The track beyond heads up the valley towards
the Whinlatter Centre,
but I'll return with Dougal to Loes who is still
in the car.

In the time it took for our small diversion,
the cloud cover on Skiddaw has changed, leaving the summit barely
visible.
- - - o o o - - -

Back into the car and across to Keswick, where
we take the road up to Castlerigg and the famous Stone Circle.

The stones, thought to have been placed here
over 5000 years ago, were looking lovely in the sunshine.
Cloud shrouding the summits disguise the tops
but add to the atmosphere of the day.

The central area includes an extra rectangle
of stones,
possibly a grand entrance or alternatively
a high alter or some other focal point of the circle.

The air is really clear and all the peaks around
are visible.
This is looking west towards the Newlands Valley.
You should see Hindscarth , Robinson (with Catbells in front),
Ill Bell and Grisedale Pike(behind the fir tree).

To see what they look like from the centre of
the circle . . . the act of taking the panorama changes the
circle to a straight line of course.
Click
here or on the photo above for a Bonus
Loweswatercam 380 degree annotated panorama.

We got chatting to some overseas visitors, Peter
and Margaret, who were on a six week tour of the UK.
They were able to see The Lakes in perfect conditions.
Great to meet you and thanks for the chat.

Loes and Dougal this time, with the wide and
white slopes of Blease Fell leading up to the summit of Blencathra
behind her.
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A winter
migrant to the area. |
Great Mell Fell behind
one of the larger stones of the circle. |
- - - o o o - - -

Leaving Castlerigg we chanced the small side
roads but found no great problems at all.
The road skirts around the northern flanks of
Low Rigg and across to St Johns in the Vale.
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A view of
Blencathra with more bales of wrapped winter silage
for the animals. |
Castle Rock ahead, taken
as we stop close to Fornside Farm. |

The snow adding grandeur to the fells.

After calling in on a friend in Thirlmere Green,
we drove on and found ourselves passing the pub at Thirlspot.

It was lunchtime and they were open and serving
. . . it would be churlish not to support them.
The Kings Head is a dog friendly pub, so I returned
to the car to fetch Dougal, to save him waiting outside in the
cold.

The beautiful, smaller back road around the
lake is open once more,
so after our lunch we turned right at the head
of the lake and drove past Steel End Farm, Wythburn.

Looking across Thirlmere at the slopes of Helvellyn
itself.

Looking south up the lake to the Pass of Dunmail
Raise.
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The steep
sides of Rough Crag, unstable in recent years. |
Looking through a gap
in the trees at the Dale Head Hotel. |
This was the view back to Brown Crag across
the water.
The path from Swirls to Helvellyn climbs the
mountain from the car park behind the trees.

The view of Blencathra in our sights once again,
as we eventually find a gap in the trees to take the picture.

That's a clearer view now that we are back on
the main road to Keswick.

It's been a great drive and has taken advantage
of the best part of the day.

Rather than repeat the drive over Whinlatter, we drove the
short extra distance alongside Bassenthwaite Water and round
to Embleton on the A66.
This was the view as we entered home territory, albeit the
Lorton Valley, from the Hundith Hill Road.
The pointed peak in the distance is Buttermere's Red Pike.