Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum), July 2018 Derwentwater, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Category: Derwentwater
Watching The Geese
I think this goose was actually watching me! It was a beautiful start to the day again down by the lake. An easier day beckoned after walking up and down Walla Crag the day before, so what better way to spend but down by the shimmering waters of Derwentwater.
The Greylag geese were certainly enjoying themselves and cooling down.
This was beautiful stretch of shoreline, looking down the length of the lake, the humpy Catbells to the side.
Along with the geese folk were out on the water, all having some fun in the morning sun.
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July 2018, Derwentwater, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Meadowsweet
On a stroll around Derwentwater I saw drifts of this most beautiful flower Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria). It was even growing amongst the rocks on the shoreline. It is a member of the rose family Rosaceae, and it thrives in wet and damp places. It is commonly found in damp meadows and has a very sweet fragrance, hence its name.
July 2018, Derwentwater, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Reflecting On Sheep
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July 2018, Derwentwater, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Into The Marsh
You may be wondering what this is a photograph of, huh? Well it looks kind of like very fine green barbed wire, but no. It’s not a kind of grass, either. It is does not have any Photoshop jiggery pokery either, this is as I had taken it near the shore of Derwentwater. It was difficult to get at because of a dense screen of trees, so I used my extended zoom. Any ideas, yet?
Well I know it is a Horsetail, and I think it is the Water Horsetail (Equisetum fluviatile).
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July 2018, Derwentwater, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Meeting An Old Friend On The Shore
On my walk to Wall Crag I strolled along the shores of Derwentwater and came by an old friend I hadn’t seen for 18 years. We will just call him ‘The Boulder’. I don’t know why but he made an impression on me back then, and I was quite delighted when I came across him once again. Last time I visited the lake was curling around the base of him, which just shows how little rain there has been here in recent months. In the background we can see the distinctive spine of Catbells.
It is hard to tell from a photo, but this stone is fairly huge, and it kind of reminds me of one of those ancient and colossal stone-carved Olmec heads of Mesoamerica.
So to get an idea of scale yours truly has stepped into the frame. I suppose I should have taken my hat off.
The views from this side of the lake are quite spectacular with the wooded slopes of Castle Crag in the centre. It is apparently the site of an old hill fort.
And we have Catbells again with some folk relaxing around the shoreline. Onwards to Walla Crag, but you know all about that already 🙂
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July 2018, Derwentwater, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Walla Crag – The Descent
On the way down from the fell and passing by a traditional dry stone wall we see Clough Head on the right beyond rollling green pastures.
I thought how lonely and lost those horses looked amidst the enormity of the landscape, and had to try to capture the moment. You may have to click and double-click to see them.
Following the wall and a stoney path down the fell the vista opens up to the valley of Borrowdale where the Brockle Beck runs wild. (This all sounds kind of Lord of The Ringish, don’t you thnk?). I was so taken with the view before me which stretched out for miles and miles into the distance. Clough Head can still be seen on the right.
A glimpse of the stone wall and the path we travel, and can you see how the clouds cast shadows on the fells? I am fascinated how the changing light can transform the landscape.
Looking across Borrowdale we see the Blencathra fells, which are the most northerly in the English Lakes. It is also called ‘Saddleback’, and you can see why. Again amorphous cloud shadows shift over the face of the land.
The path takes us down the slopes towards Rakefoot. Shall we go through the gate? After you …
I had to take this shot just beyond the other side of the gate, leaning on an old dry stone wall, for besides the beauty of the scene, I was taken by all the different layers in the landscape, and the various shades of green. We see the mountain Skiddaw rise up before us like a humped behemoth, and the gentle wooded slopes of Latrigg.
Let’s keep on moving. Crossing the Brockle Beck, now on Chestnut Hill. Keswick is still 2 miles away, but it is still all downhill 🙂
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July 2018, Walla Crag, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Walla Crag – The Ascent
I had walked a fair way around Derwentwater before getting here on the start of our journey up Walla Crag. We begin at this rather quaint and charming stone bridge called Ashness Bridge. Barrow Beck which flows beneath its arch was but a trickle after almost two months with hardly any rainfall. This is an old packhorse bridge which is said to be one of the most photographed in the Lake District.
A narrow, stoney path takes you up Walla Crag amidst lush green ferns despite the extreme dry weather. Soon the path steeply rises and magnificent views of Derwentwater and the mass of Skiddaw rising above Keswick can be seen. This panorama can suddenly take you by surprise and it does take your breath away.
Climbing higher above the lake the vista opens up further, and beyond Derwentwater can be seen Bassenthwaite Lake and an open window into Scotland on a clear day. The two lakes have merged during past flooding.
This ash tree offered some welcome shade from the baking heat of the day whilst I rested and had a spot of lunch. I couldn’t help but drink in the views.
Turning back we can just about see Ashness Bridge down below towards the left, and the magnificent splendor of Falcon Crag And Maiden Moor rising from the far shore of Derwentwater.
Further on and levelling out, and not far from my sighting of the Dark Green Fritillary butterfly (see previous post), we once again see (not that we entirely lost sight of it) this mighty mountain range rise up above the landscape. Skiddaw is the sixth highest mountain in England and it is 931-metres (3,054 ft) to the summit. It offers some of the finest views in all of the Lake District, and one that is definitely on my to do list in cooler climes in another year.
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July 2018, Walla Crag, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
On The Shores of Derwentwater
On a small stretch of the shore between the Keswick Launch and Friar’s Crag I stopped to take in the views. Above is the distinctive humps of Catbells, a name I remembered from 18 years ago, surprisingly for me. The fell rises from the western shore of the lake. The name is derived from ‘cat bield’ a place where wild cats shelter.
We have Catbells again on the left in the above and below images, showing the well-worn pathway up Skelgill Bank. On the right is Causey Pike leading out of frame, which dominates Newlands Valley where it is set. You can just see the summit ‘knobble’, even in the bottom image where Causey Pike is partly obscured by trees.
Below is looking along the lake towards the jaws of the beautifully named Borrowdale. We have Catbells again on the right and Castle Crag down the centre in the distance.
Gliding by near the water’s edge came a family of Greylag geese.
And set where it has come to lie some gnarled driftwood, like the bones of something long dead, cast near the shore’s edge.
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July 2018, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
Views From Friar’s Crag
Friar’s Crag is a viewing promontory jutting out over the lake of Derwentwater which offers wonderful views of the surrounding fells towards Borrowdale. The top image is of Walla Crag, and will feature in a future post.
There are four islands scattered about the lake, and of these two the one on the right is called St Herbert’s Island. It is believed the name of the promontory came about by monks who embarked from the point on pilgrimage to the island.
A few yards from Friar’s Crag is a monument to John Ruskin, the artist and painter, who had very fond memories of the area which made a big impression on him. He described the view from here as one of the three most beautiful scenes in Europe. Castle Crag can be seen centre of the image below.
The images were taken on an evening as the sun was gradually lowering, and the views and atmosphere of the place certainly made a lasting impression on me. I hope you get at least some sense of what I witnessed and experienced.
July 2018, Keswick, Cumbria, England. © Pete Hillman.
View From The Shore
This is one of the views from across Derwentwater, a large body of water in the Lake District National Park, Cumbria. The last time I visited here was 18 years ago. I wonder why I left it so long when there is so much beauty here amidst nature.
July 2018, © Pete Hillman.
Nature Journeys 