A little Winter wander on Lingmoor

Lingmoor, in Langdale, draws me back time after time. So when looking for a fell walk to fill a few hours on a cold and showery Saturday in February with two good friends, it was an obvious choice. Overnight snow on the fell tops added to the splendour of the scenery, whilst the heavy shower cloud hung menacingly over the central fells, giving them a mean and moody look.

We started in Elterwater, at the National Trust car park, and headed towards the quarries via the river. This first half mile is very pleasant, and helps to get the muscles nicely warm before the main climb starts. From across the quarry the Langdale Pikes were bathed in sunshine, capped with a light dusting of snow, and surrounded by menacing looking cloud, all adding to the atmosphere of the day. Despite it being Saturday, the quarries were not silent, winning the slate is clearly not a Monday to Friday 9 - 5 job.

From the quarries it is a 1/2 a mile walk along first a bridleway, and then an old quarry track, to reach the old quarry spoil heap overlooking the village of Chapel Stile. I've been here many times before, of course, but what was different about today was the backdrop. Despite heavy cloud all around, there was a bright clearing of blue sky and the sun was glinting on the snow covered mountains of the Fairfield Horseshoe. The Blue Sky did not last.

From the spoil heap, we then headed up the quarry track as it skirts the fell, before turning sharp left to follow the path up the fell to a green gate with a built in stile.

From the gate, we turned right to follow the line of the wall. This wall runs close to the top of the fell, and the path follows it for most of that distance. Behind us, as we climb, the views of Windermere are superb, even on a day such as this.

Half way to the top we are hit by a sharp rain shower. Hail, rain, and strong winds blow in from over Wetherlam. It gives us an exhilarating ten minutes, and the added bonus of this rainbow.  It is not a common view on the fells.

 With the rain quickly clearing through, we are treated to superb views across the fell towards Crinkle Crags, Pike O Bliscoe and Bowfell, all of which were shrouded in cloud.

 Meanwhile, looking north over Great Langdale we can clearly see Pavey Ark and the flat looking top of Harrison Stickle. The occasional gap in the cloud throwing sunlight on one area of fell, whilst others remain in dark shade.

The summit of Lingmoor is Brown Howe, so called because it is clad in a mixture of bracken and heather which for much of the year gives it a brown appearance.  It also has this stunning view of the Langdale Pikes

Still at the summit, this superb view down Great Langdale to Chapel Stile can be seen. Seat Sandal, Nethermost Pike and Dollywagon Pike are in the distance, while the summit of Helvellyn is covered in cloud.

Our route back is via the flank of the fell, passing by the old quarries that dot this region. From the top we drop down the steep slope, following the line of an old wall, that has been supplemented at the top by a wire fence, to this stile over the wall.  From here there is a fine view up Mickleden, with the Band visible to the left, and the summit of Bowfell shrouded in cloud.

We could cross the stile to drop down towards Blea Tarn, but that is for another day. Instead, we turn left, along a barely visible yet boggy path, towards an abandoned quarry, a great lunch stop.

From the quarry we continue along the flank of the fell, passing by other quarry workings. There are several small workings on the side of the fell, with abandoned buildings and spoil heaps the only sign of their existence. In the background, the summit of Wetherlam enjoys a brief interlude from the cloud, before being shrouded in mist again.

 Another abandoned quarry working on the fell side. The small quarrymans hut has what appears to be a chimney at one end, with a gap for a small fire beneath. I cannot have been the best work in bad weather.

As we continue along the fell side, dropping gradually as we go, the views to the south over Little Langdale are superb, with Little Langdale Tarn prominent in the valley below.

The path drops down the fell side, towards a wide track that will lead us back to Elterwater. It is quite steep in parts, and rocky and wet underfoot. A certain amount of erosion control work has been undertaken otherwise it would be considerably worse.

 Looking across the valley bottom, towards Wetherlam, with Little Langdale Tarn looking dark and foreboding. The water in this tarn always has a grey look to it, even on sunny days. I'm lead to believe that this is due to the local geology. A dull day like today does not help though.

A friendly Herdwick greets us at the bottom. Apart from a couple of sheep on the road to the quarries at the start of the walk, this was the only farm animal that we encountered all day. However, we did see numerous birds, including Buzzards and a very cheeky robin. Trouble is, I was too slow to get a picture of them.

Alcock Tarn, or 'A fellwalkers guide to Victorian plumbing'

June 2016. A near perfect day weather wise, and as it turned out the ideal day for shooting a video of the walk from Grasmere up to Alcock Tarn. The views are so good on this walk that a clear day with sunshine and fluffy white clouds is essential.  But this shoot has an added bonus. I have a couple of production assistants (first class, unpaid) to help me out. My good friend Nicola and her son Michael. Nicola is a bright and busy single mum who loves to get out on the Lake District fells whenever she can. Michael has a very enquiring mind, and is developing an interest in history, as well as all things artistic, including videography. It was a chance for them to experience a very different day on the fells, and to also see what goes on behind the scenes on one of my video shoots.

Alcock Tarn

 Alcock Tarn is on the western side of Heron Pike, overlooking Grasmere. On the face of it it's a nice walk through the woods and then up the fell side to a pretty little mountain tarn. But things are not all they seem. This is not just a scenic walk, and believe me, it is very scenic, it is also a stroll through the world of Victorian plumbing, and one of the very best examples of hidden history in the Lake District. So it makes not only the perfect subject for a ten minute video, but also was ideal for a fell walking enthusiast and her history loving son.  This is the story of our day. The pictures are low resolution stills from the finished video. If you want to see that, scroll down to the bottom.

St Oswald's Church Grasmere

We started from the church in Grasmere, close to Wordsworth's Grave, and headed out towards his old house at Dove Cottage. Once there we headed up the old road towards White Moss Common before turning left to follow the path up to Brackenfell Woods. Up to that point the walk had been at a normal pace, with a couple of short stops to take establishing shots. We soon reached the seat just before the entrance to the woods, and the first major stop for filming, a piece to camera about the plush 18th and 19th century villas visible on the other side of Grasmere. It was at this point that the benefit of having a production assistant really paid dividends. Normally, I work alone, so have to spend time setting up the shot and ensuring all the camera settings are as they need to be. But not today.

With script in hand, Nicola took to her new role as though she'd been doing it all her life, whilst Michael put himself in charge of the camera. I'd already done the settings, so all he had to do was actually push the red button. Even so, saying the word "action" gave him a feeling of being in control.

Heading into Brackenfell Woods

With this first filming stop complete and the footage checked, it was time to head up into Brackenfell Woods. This route is along a wide sweeping path which follows the line of an old pack horse route, but that is not the reason it is so wide. Pack horse routes were narrow, often little more than the width of the horse and pack. Similar in fact, to a normal footpath today. This path is considerably more substantial, and was clearly constructed for much wider traffic. The answer to the question of why it is so wide is very simple. What is now Brackenfell Woods was, in Victorian times, a landscaped garden, complete with woodland trails, waterfalls, artificial streams and, to facilitate ease of access, a wide carriageway. This allowed the owners to convey their guests to the top of the garden by carriage from where they could stroll back down, admiring the various features as they went.

The remains of an ornamental pond, dating from the days when Brackenfell woods was a garden.

It was late morning by the time we had finished filming on the path and woodland, and as we proceeded to climb the fell, carrying the camera and tripod in the heat of the day up the steep slope was beginning to take it's toll. Michael decided that his mother and I were just too slow, and raced on ahead, leaving us to struggle on behind. We arrived at Grey Crag to find him sitting smugly on the stone viewpoint admiring the view. There was another filming stop here. Not to show the views from Grey Crag, which are very good by the way, but for me to make a confession on camera. You see, I've been telling tourists little fibs for some while now. It was time to come clean. Progress was then halted by the laughter that followed as Nicola and Michael could hardly believe what I had just come out with. (If you want to know more, you'll have to view the video).

Alcock Tarn, which was formerly known as Buttercrags Tarn

Lunch was taken at Alcock Tarn. Not only was it a chance to enjoy a break, but also a paddle. I may take my video making seriously, but it is also a day out with friends, and there is a certain amount of fun to be had. So having fought against a bracing wind to deliver the story of how this tarn is not all it seems, and having made the occasional error necessitating at least 4 takes, it was time to relax and enjoy the sunshine. All good things come to an end however, and the time to leave came too soon. The second half of the video, and arguably the most demanding, remained to be made.

Leaving Alcock Tarn

Having assistance has great advantages. The shot of me leaving the tarn, taken from one of it's many viewpoints, would not really have been possible had I been working on my own. The time taken to set up such a shot, as well as executing it, would make it prohibitive. But with Nicola and Michael keen to add their input the shot was captured in less than 10 minutes.

Heading off down the northern edge of the fell, a steep and rocky slope.

We didn't return by the outward route. This is a circular walk, and although the descent is steep, and rocky in parts, it is very scenic, with stunning views north west up Easedale and towards Steel Fell.

Thirlmere to Manchester Aqueduct

At the bottom of the slope is the Thirlmere to Manchester aqueduct, the longest gravity-fed aqueduct in the country. It supplies water to the city of Manchester from Thirlmere, which is just 3 miles north of here. It has a fascinating history, yet most people pass by without paying it any attention. Telling the story of the Aqueduct was to make an interesting final segment to the video, but first we had to get down to it. The normal way would be to follow the path to the bottom of the fell, cross the bridge, then turn right to follow the stream up to where the Aqueduct crosses it. But in June 2016 there was no bridge, it having been washed away by the winter floods caused by 'Storm Desmond'. (Incidentally, such was the damage caused by that one storm, with over 350 mm of rain falling in just over 24 hours, that the replacement bridge was a long way down the pecking order when it came to repairing the damage. It was spring 2019 before a new bridge was finally put in place.)

With a camera and tripod to carry, I didn't want to get down to the bottom of the fell only to find no way across. So the decision was made to make our way down through the bracken, which thankfully had yet to reach full height. Michael volunteered to lead the way, acting as some kind of jungle explorer as he hacked his way down the slope. He loved every minute of it.

The top of the Aqueduct turns out to be about a foot deep in rubble from the December flooding

First job when we got to the aqueduct was a check for ticks. It turned out to be a good decision as Nicola had one on her leg. Luckily, it had not sunk its jaws into her, so brushing it off was easy. We also found that she had a nasty case of greenfly! It all added to the fun of the day, but as you all know, it could have been different. Ticks are nasty little creatures and if they burrow into your skin and start to feed on your blood there can be bad health consequences as they can carry Lyme Disease. It is always worth a quick check when you've been through high bracken.

The Aqueduct crossing Greenhead Gill

Telling the story of the Aqueduct and it's construction took longer than I envisaged, mainly because it was a complicated script that contained facts and figures that needed to be delivered correctly. Not only that but I also had a sound problem as the nearby stream was fast flowing and the noise from it threatened to drown out my voice. So I took double shots. One set with pieces to camera, and another set without me in them, or with me just looking at the Aqueduct or into the stream, the idea being that if the pieces to camera were not usable, I would have enough footage to accompany a voice over. Nicola was excellent at this point, ensuring that I got the words right and prompting me when necessary. Michael, meanwhile, continued to make an enthusiastic and first class cameraman.

Time for a paddle

With all footage in the can, it was time for a break, a drink, and another paddle. I always think that on a hot day on the Lakeland fells, a towel and a clean pair of socks is a good thing to pack. The feeling of cool water on the feet is as refreshing as any drink. We sat reviewing some of the footage we had taken, although in truth we had checked it at the time of shooting, but it was a nice way to re-live what had been a lovely day.

The riverside walk in Grasmere

From the bottom of Greenhead Gill we enjoyed a nice stroll back to the main road, then across the fields to Grasmere. I'd decided to finish not by road, but with a walk along the river back to the church yard via the daffodil garden, which turned out to be delightful. Just 4 days later, the video was published on You Tube. Another benefit of having an assistant with me was that I was able to organise the walk and filming in order of shot, which made editing so much easier. Some nice jaunty music rounded the video off nicely, and I have to admit that I was very pleased with the result.

It will definitely be alright on the night.

Over the course of this year, I have accumulated a lot of video footage, and along with it, a few out takes, or 'bloopers' as they have come to be known. There was a time when I used to delete out takes whilst filming. That is, after all, the beauty of digital. I can instantly review and assess the footage I have so painstakingly taken, to see if it is good enough to be considered for the final video. Sometimes there is no need to assess it, I just know it is not right. Such as when I stumble or fall over on camera. Or fluff my lines.

Sometimes those words will not come.

There was one simple reason for deleting such scenes on the spot. Space. Video takes up a lot of memory, and there is nothing worse than a 'card full' message when you are close to the end of a days recording. Carrying a spare card is the answer, of course, and I have always done that, but downloading clips that are not needed to the computer always seems to be a waste of time, especially when they are then instantly removed. Better to keep things uncluttered from the start. So unwanted shots have always been deleted. Until last April.

I was making my Loughrigg  videos, a feat of forward planning of which I was quite proud. The idea was to film on two days, one set of shots from the Langdale and Grasmere side of Loughrigg, and the other set from the Ambleside end. These would then be combined to make two separate productions. I did it this way to ensure continuity, an idea that backfired quite spectacularly as the weather intervened. Day 1 was cold, dry and clear with a dusting of snow on the tops. Day two was warm and humid, and the warmth brought out the foliage. From looking drab in it's winter coat the landscape was transformed in just a couple of days. Then, near the end of day two, the cloud set in. And I made a mistake that I did not have time to delete.

Strolling down to Blea Tarn. But what happened next?

Upon getting home I decided not to delete the mistake, but to put it on Facebook. I thought others may enjoy it as it made me laugh. I expected a moderate reaction, a few comments, and that was all, but it was soon clear that there was an appetite for the sight of me getting it wrong. Ever since, out takes have ceased to be taken out. Instead they are being compiled into a short, but hopefully amusing video that should be ready for the festive season. So, if you like seeing me make a fool of myself, watch this space, or better still, subscribe to my You Tube channel.