A reminder of Summer

It is almost a third of the way through April and we are celebrating the fact that today there is wall to wall sunshine and a temperature of - wait for it - 8 degrees. Compared with March that is positively balmy, but this time last year the landscape had already started to come to life. The daffodils and crocuses had given us a fine show, the first of the bluebells were starting to appear, and the scenery had that fresh, spring feel to it. Today the Lake District is still wearing it's winter coat. The snow capped mountains look lovely, but how we all long for the fresh green leaves to appear.

I took advantage of the weather this afternoon to do a walk that is a joy at any time of year, - Holme Fell, with a return via Tarn Hows. However, instead of publishing the pictures of today's walk, I've delved into the archive and dug out some pictures from a previous visit over the same route in August 2007.

We started from the car park at the bottom of Tom Gill, just beyond Yew Tree Tarn on the A593 Ambleside to Coniston Road. To avoid the road, the first part of the walk is through an adjoining field, and at the other end one of the locals decided that we were not allowed to go any further!

After tough negotiations during which I had to give up part of my sandwich, we were allowed to pass, and crossed the road to Yew Tree Farm.

From the farm we headed along a farm track, before going through a gate and then following a path along the side of the fell. After a short distance this rock (below) was reached. Not being a geologist I have no idea why it stands here. My worn out old copy of Pearsall and Pennington's excellent book on the Lake District has no mention of it. An amateur geologist friend of mine claimed it was due to erosion causing a large lump of rock to break off the crags above and roll down the fell side. I'm not so sure about that, so answers on a post card please

Just beyond the rock, we get a lovely view of Yew Tree Tarn, which is a popular spot for passing motorists to stop and admire. We waved, but no one waved back!!

Not far past the rock the path bears left and starts to climb the wooded fell side. Before long we come across a beck and follow the line of it up the fell. It's not too steep and luckily carries barely a trickle of water. After reaching the top of the slope we bear left again to clamber up the craggy fell to the summit, where a superb view of Coniston Water awaits.

One very noticeable feature of this trip was the abundance of wild heather, coupled with a lack of sheep. The two are linked, since the sheep are more than happy to munch away on the heather, however, the absence of sheep on the fell at this time is an indication that when left alone the heather recovers nicely.

From the top of Holme Fell, Coniston Water is not the only key landmark to be seen. To the north lie the Langdales, with the pikes prominent on the horizon.

We are not returning via the same route. Instead we are heading down the fell towards Hodge Close Quarry, where we can join up with the Cumbrian Way for a short distance. Being a couple of total sissies, we keep well away from the edge! Out of camera, a party from an outdoor pursuits centre are abseiling down the old quarry walls. From the sound of it, they are having no end of fun.

There's a bit of road walking now, along a minor road leading to a farm, and offering superb views of the fells over the wall!

We soon  reach the main A593, and cross over to take the short road up to a gate leading to the track to Tarn Hows. This is not only a popular route for walkers, but also mountain bikers, who like to test their skills on the rocky path. Today however, despite it being the middle of the holiday season, there is no one else in sight.

Tarn Hows is not so peaceful, with families enjoying the fine August weather. That having been said, there is plenty of space for everyone, so it is not difficult to take a picture that makes it look as though we have the place to ourselves.

From Tarn Hows we head down a footpath following the line of Tom Gill, the beck that drains the tarn.
Nowadays this is known as "Glen Mary", after the wife of James Marshall, the man who first developed Tarn Hows by damming the stream at the top of Tom Gill to make one large tarn from three smaller ones. It is reputed that John Ruskin was responsible for persuading Marshall that the name Tom Gill was not suitable for a place of such beauty, and suggested the name "Glen Mary" instead. Whether the story is actually true or not remains open to speculation. Marshall died in 1873, not long after Ruskin moved to Brantwood.

Midway down the slope is "Glen Mary" waterfall, which, because the flow of the beck is controlled by the dam at the tarn, always seems to have roughly the same amount of water flowing over it.

From the falls, it is a short distance down the hill to a bridge at the bottom, and beyond, the main road, the car park, and a freshly brewed cup of tea.

Roll on Summer!!!

A Scientific Cure for Wardrobe Damp.

Autumn is well under way, soon winter will be upon us, and in preparation I've been doing some research on t'internet. I entered the words "damp in wardrobe" and came up with some remarkable facts.

Why "damp in wardrobe" I hear you ask? Well the simple fact is that all over the country wardrobes are being plagued with damp, and it seems that the problem gets worse in the winter, and is especially troublesome around Christmas time. Many people have experienced it. They hang their day to day working clothes up on 23rd December each year, and then on the 2nd of January get them out again to wear, only to find they have shrunk. Damp can be the only cause. Unless ....

My search took me on a journey,  as they often do, and I ended up finding out the best way to banish the scourge of winter damp and ensure that your clothes fit as well in the Spring as they did last Autumn. And it is not to simply buy another, brand new, damp proof wardrobe.

We are talking weight here, and evidently it is not so much what we eat, but how we use the fuel our food gives us, that causes excessive growth in the waistline region. Put simply, during the winter many people simply are not active enough.

Two things are to blame. Work, and play. More people sit down to work than ever before. Computer screens are stared at, 'phone calls taken or made, and vehicles driven. And very often a whole day is spent sitting down either working or eating.

After work we come out to play. On long summer evenings that might entail getting out and about, but in winter, when it is cold and snowy, it is a different matter. Televisions are sat in front of, nice warm cinemas are visited, restaurants are eaten in, and when we are tired and hungry after a hard day at work and a struggle home in the cold, it is all too easy to get a takeaway. Then it is a comfy sofa, in front of the fire, with a nice curry, or whatever takes your fancy, and a few hours in front of the telly.

As a nation, a lot of what we do is done sitting down, especially in the winter, and it is not doing us any good. It is time to get off our collective bums and become a bit more active. But how? Join a gym?

Actually, it turns out that you don't need to splash out a few hundred quid on a gym membership if you don't want to or can't afford it. Most gyms offer good value for money, and they will get you fit as long as you go regularly, but not joining one will not condemn you to a life of obesity. The point is that all you actually need for a relatively healthy lifestyle is a good diet and to be physically active. And one of the best ways for you to stay physically active is to go for a daily walk. If you get yourself wrapped up warm, putting those gloves and scarf that Auntie Doris gave you for Christmas to good use (admit it, you have three pairs already, you never thought you'd use them, did you) you can enjoy the best that the British countryside has to offer all year round, and the best news of all is that, by and large, it is free.

It turns out that the reason why walking is so good for you is that it helps you to not only stay physically fit, but also mentally fit as well. A brisk country walk will get the heart pumping, but it can also help to relax and soothe the mind. It can help you to deal with the stresses and strains of everyday life. And if the scenery you are walking through is particularly good it can really lift your mood and help you to beat the winter blues.

But don't just take my word for it. Have a quick look at the walks on my You Tube channel web and then imagine yourself walking beside me through the Lakeland landscape. It may not be the same as actually being here, but if it inspires you to go and seek the finest views where you live then it will have done it's job. Close to most urban areas there are landscapes with their own natural beauty just waiting to be explored, usually for FREE. And walking through them comes with the added bonus of  actually being good for your mind, body and soul. How cool is that!

Drawing inspiration from the telly

There is no getting away from it. This year the  Lakeland fells have been quieter than normal. Only just last week, in the middle of the holiday season,  I set off down the Langdale Valley and actually managed to walk from Side House to Elterwater without meeting another person. True, it was raining, but this is the Cumbria Way, after all, and there is usually someone about, even if it is only a local walking their dog.

Lingmoor was also eerily quiet, although it is not unusual to have the fell all to oneself. But looking down the valley from Side Pike I was struck by just how quiet it was. Through the mist I could make out the outline of one solitary walker plodding up Mickleden, and wondered whether he or she was heading for Bowfell, or going over the the pass towards Borrowdale. The rain had stopped, the mist was clearing, and there were plenty of cars on the road, but walkers were in short supply.

Actually, as I tucked into my apricot jam and sausage sandwich (don't ask!) I started to imagine that the silence of the fells was a result of something I had missed. Everyone was, I decided, somewhere else. Somewhere that I should also have been, attending an event I had forgotten. Trouble was, I couldn't remember what it was. But I started to become convinced that over the fell in Borrowdale, hundreds of walkers were gathering to celebrate the majesty of the Lakeland Fells at a walkers convention that I knew nothing about.

It was a logical explanation, and as I plodded down towards the camp site I had almost convinced myself that I was right. Until, after 4 hours on the fell, I met a couple going the other way. They were not tourists out for a walk, but fellwalkers pursuing their love of walking. Both are commonplace, but you can tell the difference. Fellwalkers don't tend to be wearing new gear, and they carry maps and compasses. Actually, some  tourists don't wear any proper walking gear at all, as anyone associated with the Mountain Rescue service will tell you.  However, I digress.

I stopped to pass the time of day, as you do, and during the course of the conversation a theory as to why the fells were quieter than normal this year was put forward. Quite apart from the rain, the recession and a certain sporting event taking place elsewhere, the lack of people on the fells could also be put down to the Julia Factor, or rather the lack of it.

The Julia to which I am referring is, of course, Julia Bradbury. She still adorns our television screens on a regular basis, but not walking around the Lake District. And there is no doubt whatsoever that being featured on mainstream television does have an effect on the numbers of people taking to the fells. I well remember walking up Castle Crag the week after that fell had been featured on "Wainwright's Walks". OK, I will admit that it was a nice day, but even so I was surprised to find well over forty people on the summit enjoying the sunshine and views. Not only that but there was a steady stream of people heading up the fell as we were heading back down. By contrast, Catbells, which is normally very popular, but had not been featured on the telly the week before, was strangely deserted.

Coincidence? I don't think so. Just look at the effect that the Olympics has had. The Saturday after the games ended sports clubs up and down the country reported an  increase in the number of people wanting to join. They'd watched the games on the telly. Now they wanted to get involved. And whilst some will no doubt give up as soon as they get out of breath, others will go on to become future champions.

In the nineteen thirties Alfred Wainwright was inspired to walk the fells after climbing Orrest Head and seeing the whole of the Lake District laid out before him. In 1970 I was inspired to walk the fells after climbing Black Combe, the bulky hill that lies on the South West corner of the National Park, and discovering that "another world", lay on the other side of the mountain.

Nowadays, it seems, hundreds of people get their inspiration by tuning in to BBC4 of a Friday night.

Nuneaton here I come!!!!

The news last week that Nuneaton is now part of the Lake District gave me good cheer. I've got relatives who live in Nuneaton. I can visit them of a Sunday afternoon now that it is a stone's throw from Windermere.

For those slightly confused by the above, allow me to explain. Last week, that esteemed travel web site "Trip Advisor" made a bit of a mistake with one of it's maps and gave the impression that Nuneaton was in fact, the gateway to the Lakes. It's an easy mistake to make, after all, there are huge similarities between the two. Both are quite close to the M6 and both have hills, although it is a fact that the hills in Nuneaton are not very high, or topped by cairns, but who cares about a mere technicalty like that?

Nuneaton also has 18 lakes. That's 17 more than the Lake District. And they are surrounded by trees, contain fish, and you can hire a rowing boat. Unfortunately, they are a bit short of Meres, Tarns, and Waters, but you can't have everythng.

It has a rich literary history though. George Eliot was from Nuneaton. And he was a lady, just like our very own Beatrix Potter, who may have actually been to Nuneaton, but nobody really knows for sure.

The town has several other famous sons. Like Ken Loach, the film director and Larry Grayson, who never shut that door on the town.

Now, the Lake District Hospitality Association, another esteemed organisation, has joined in by granting Nuneaton honorary Lake District Town status, thereby making the repositioning of Nuneaton official. It is no longer an Internet gaffe. It is now part of the Lake District. Evidently, someone in Nuneaton held a party to celebrate.

It would seem that quite a few people who live in Nuneaton have actually been to the Lake District on holiday. Now they won't have to. They can stay at home, enjoy the wonderful scenery and then truthfully tell their friends that they holidayed in the Lakes. And those of us that live in the Lakes can pop over to Nuneaton to do a bit of shopping, so watch out Kendal and Penrith, there's a new kid on the block.

It is also good news for house owners in Nuneaton, as prices are set to soar with new buyers flooding into the town to buy up cottages as second homes. This will also have a positive effect on the town's traffic problems, reducing the number of cars on the road and thereby doing away with the need to upgrade the one way system. And Christmas shopping in Nuneaton will now be a doddle as all the tourists will have gone home.

Nuneaton's tourist attraction will also find itself extremely busy as bus loads of Japanese descend on the town to photograph it from every angle. The Nuneaton Post Card Emporium will be taking on extra staff shortly.

Yes, it is good news all round for Nuneaton, in all but one respect. The good people of that fine old Warwickshire town are going to have to get used to the rain. And if they think that this year has been wet, they are in for a surprise when they experience a really good Lake District Summer.

And now I need to buy a new map, and get to work planning next years edition of "Walks around Nuneaton"

Watch this space!!

How the call centre man got his name

After a couple of weeks confined to the office sorting out all sorts of material for inclusion in our new walking pages, which are being updated throughout the winter, I have got used to the fact that many of the operatives who work in Indian based call centres call themselves by an English name when quite clearly they are not English.

I am also reliably informed that in order to help them better communicate with the people they are supposed to be selling to, call centre workers are shown English television programmes such as Eastenders. Not only do they watch, but they are encouraged to adopt the christian names of characters. Very often, if seems, a group of workers will be formed into a team, and everyone in that team will adopt the name of a character from the same television programme.

Clearly this may cause them more problems than they might think. If a guy calling himself "Alfie" rings you from Mumbai to try to persuade you to change power supplier he is hardly likely to inspire confidence, especially if a day earlier a woman called "Kat" also rang from the same company.

This week we have had three calls into our office from the same telesales team in India trying to persuade us to change our mobile phone contract. Nothing wrong in that, I suppose, and the people who rang were perfectly nice, hard working individuals. But I cannot help but feel that they may stand a better chance of success if they just introduced themselves by their own name. There is, after all, absolutely nothing wrong with being called Amir or Mallika, so why hide their own name in favour of John or Jenny. I for one would be far more likely to respond to someone calling themselves by their own name, or at least one that sounds like it could be their own name, rather than something that I am fairly certain has been adopted for the purpose of trying to gain my confidence, but which is quite clearly false.

The three calls to our office this week, all selling the same product,  are a good case in point. On Monday we were called by John, on Wednesday it was Virgil, and today we were called by a chap calling himself Parker. I could not resist engaging him in conversation with regard to his name and after a short while did indeed ascertain that he and the other members of his team have adopted names used by characters in "Thunderbirds". Which means that in all probability there is a guy  ringing people up to sell them a new mobile phone contract who is quite happy to tell you that his name is Brains and he can save you money on your mobile phone calls.

Any women on the team may also be in for a hard time when they introduce themselves. Penelope may well get away with it, but I for one cannot wait for the day when the person on the other end of the phone announces, "hello there, my name is Grandma."

It didn't turn out too bad after all!

OK, my aforementioned video complete with voice over has been on You Tube a while. Just in case you missed it, here it is.

All in all I am quite pleased with the outcome. OK, so it is a long way off being a Hollywood blockbuster. The camera shakes have not gone away and I have learned one very important lesson about that:- just because you use a tripod it does not mean that the camera will always be steady. Even so, practice makes perfect.

As for the dreaded voice over, well actually I am quite pleased with it. I only use basic equipment, so no audio compression or anything like that, but even so it has not come out too bad. As one reviewer has already told me, it is the words and how much enthusiasm you put into speaking them that is the most important thing.

So the decision has been made. It is out with the captions and in future all our videos will have a voice over, unless I decide that a bit of Mozart or the like is more appropriate.

I am just starting to look at Octobers calendar and work out which walks are worthy of being turned into a video. I don't have the time or resources to do it for each one, so a careful choice will need to be made. Up to press it is going to be Grasmere and three others, two short, and one longer.

I'll keep you posted.

Why do we hate the sound of our own voice?!!!!

I've just finished doing something that I have never done before. Recording a voice over for a video. You would think that would be an easy job, after all, all I had to do was talk for 6 and a half minutes. OK, so it is reading a script and I did get told off for not following the script and also for not putting enough emphasis into my voice, but even so it should have been a doddle.

Which begs a couple of questions:

1   Why did it take 1 hour and 45 minutes? It is not as though I am recording an album. Our recording equipment is basic to say the least, but the microphone works fine, the sound is being recorded digitally, so no hiss or anything like that. The thing was, try as I might I just could not seem to get the words out properly.

2   Why did doing it make me nervous? I've done public speaking. I've got up and made speeches and not had so much as a hint of nervousness. Never a stumble, totally flawless. And yet sit down in a room with headphones on and no one else there, and as soon as the little red light comes on I feel like a condemned man being led from his cell to the gallows. It is the last place I want to be, the butterflies in my stomach have turned to frogs, very active frogs, and I cannot hold the script without shaking. As for getting my words wrong, well we won't even go there!!!!

The answer to these questions is, I think, very simple. I hate the sound of my own voice. And the fact that it is being recorded, with every stutter and mistake being saved for posterity, just makes matters worse. I am not alone. I know lots of people who hate the sound of their own voice. Which is a tad irrational if you think about it. After all, we spend hours talking to others without thinking about how our own voices sound. Never once when holding a conversation with someone have I thought "I hope my voice sounds OK". I've adjusted the volume, or maybe put a bit of emphasis into what I was saying, or even added an accent for effect, but the overall general sound of my voice has never been a consideration for me.

The answer, I'm told, is to relax, be natural, forget that the voice is being recorded and just be yourself. I was told by my wife, she who guides me in all things and is seldom wrong, to think about it rather like I might think about going on a date. Don't be nervous, be natural, be yourself. That's all well and good, but it is 37 years since I last went on a date, and then I was too frightened to speak. Not that I told her that. I think she just thought I was a bit shy, although she's long since discovered that is not the case.

So I tried today, I really tried, to do a good job. The result I find slightly comical. My voice has a slightly over the top edge to it. In fact it sounds a bit false, like one of those fifties travel programs. Anyway,  judge for yourself, because the video is now on You Tube, and I've embedded it below. And depending upon the reaction I'll decide whether to do any more with voiceover, or stick to putting captions on the bottom of the footage.