Fairfield on a fair day

Summer really has arrived. It's scorching in the valleys. We park up on the outskirts of Grasmere and head up Tongue Gill

As soon as we start to climb, there is a nice breeze to keep us cool. Another nice Breeze keeps coming back to see what's taking us so long as well!

We are heading for Grisedale Hause - the dip in the skyline, where we are aiming to stop for lunch before making the steep climb up onto Fairfield

Looking back into Tongue Gill. We have climbed up the path you can see on the lft of the gill

Grisedale Tarn comes into view as we reach Grisedale Hause

Time for a lunch stop (and a cuddle)

It's a steep climb up from the Hause

But the views are never ending today

Helvellyn from Fairfield

Looking west as we walk over Great Rigg

With zoom

Looking back you can see the distinctive pyramid of Catsycam in the background

Ahead to the left is Heron Pike and to the right is Stone Arthur, which is the way we will go and then descend back into Grasmere

After all that it's home for a quick shower, slip into something more comfortable before a beer in the garden

and a snooze.

About 7 miles and a few more people than we normally encounter, but most of those were actually on fairfield. That's the price you pay for venturing a bit further south!

Silloth Sunset

Wednesday evenings are a regular get together for a whole bunch of us at one of our local pubs, but this week there are hardly any of us available so we decide to cancel it. We've had a plan for over 12 months to head over to SIlloth one night and watch the Sunset. As summer finally arrived today and we suddenly have an evening free, we seize the moment!

We sat on the sea front at Silloth at 8:30pm with our Fish and Chips, to watch the sun setting behind Criffel

Just as we sat down, the Silloth Inshore Lifeboat cam in from training

Amazing the effect of sunlight on the camera. This is taken at the same time, just looking away from the sun. What a beautiful evening to have finally got round to doing this. We sat here until the sun disappeared behind the cloud,

 then hot foted it to our normal spot to give Breeze a run on the beech while we watched the rest of the suns display

Threlkeld Knotts

Commitments this morning but nothing pressing this afternoon seemed like a good enough excuse to sneak in a little local walk.

Parking at Wanthwaite we headed up the Coach Road to skirt round Hilltop Quarries. One of many disused quarries here.

Blencathra is in view all the way on this route

Skiddaw too. 

Not much sun, but plenty of views

Once we are over the top of \Threlked Knotts, we head down the gully to join the Coach Road

And follow it back to the car

Just over 3.5 miles and as is often the case with small fells, amazing views for so little effort. The other benefit of unfrequented routes like this is that we only saw one other person - a cyclist on the Old Coach Road as we set off.

A Sunday Miscellany: birds, hounds and terriers (and maybe a spaniel or two)

We are getting a real show of birds at the moment. Amongst all the regulars we have at least two pairs of Great Spotted Woodpeckers visiting constantly through the day

A Nuthatch is back and forth all day

And a clutch or two of baby Tree Sparrows are still being fed. The fledged just before we had a really stormy night and we worried that they might not make it. They seem to have survived! 

 This afternoon, we popped along to the Ullswater Annual Field Day, held at Stainton.

The Best Spaniel on the field

Nick befriends a Patterdale while Rose quizzes its owner as to it's breeding

Ian of the Cumbria Beagles keeps his couple focussed on their job in hand

The Crook competition (have you spotted the pair of crooks at the back!)

Still the Best Spaniel on the field (there was one other by this time!)

Mummie's Little Princess gets a cuddle from Aunty Rose as we watch the Show Champion being judged

And it goes to our butcher, Ian with his lovely Border.