Beacon Fell

This walk was really a back up walk. we were supposed to go and climb the Old Man of Coniston this day but it had rained so much that we decided against it and decided on a small walk around Beacon Fell which is never the toughest of walks. me and gary found that even though alot of the walk was on paths we still got pretty wet as it was very muddy and the ground was soaked. not one of my favourite walks but better than nothing! :)

Gisburn Forest

me and Gary drove to Gisburn Forest in September 2008 and as you can see the weather was fantastic :) something serene about this place. its a huge forest with tracks all over the place and Stocks reservoir on one side of it. its also incredibly quiet and almost eerie. you see a few walkers and mountain bikers but little noise. and although i have a good sense of direction its hard to know where you are as you are surrounded by tall trees all the time and the path twists all over the place. i think we walked 6 fairly flat miles in around 2 1/2 hours which isnt bad going :)

Nicky Nook - Grizedale valley

myself and Simon did this walk on the 10th March 2009. we both had days booked off work to go to Scorton and have a relaxing woodland walk. this was my first walk for nearly 6 months.

we went in the gift shop first and had a coffee then set off in the sun. the weather was perfect and i had my new walking gear on.

I was concerned as to how my knees/ankles would hold up so this would be a good test. I struggled up Nicky Nook which isnt that high then showed Simon the view down to the reservoir below. Simon had never been to Nicky Nook before where as i have been here about 5 times now. I really struggled down the steep steps to the reservoir/forest. then after that we had a great walk on the paths through grizedale valley with the stream on our left until we did a mile or so road walking back to the village. Simon reckoned it was one of his favourite walks that he had been on. this has made me want to go again soon even with the pain i am having :)

Ingleborough (2)

This was a walk i did on my brother Craig's 29th birthday. The first real walk we had done together. I kinda expected the weather to be like it was (wet,windy and full of mist) so I wasnt disappointed! We had both got some new walking gear the day before and although Craig ended up cursing his wet clothes and he ended up sockless in the car on the way home after he had wrung them out we both had a good time. When we eventually scrambled over the wet rocks in the mist to the top we didnt stay too long as its like walking on a sponge at the top it was so saturated! The mist deffo adds atmosphere and when it clears for a few seconds you get a little windows where you can enjoy the view (briefly). I think Craig enjoyed doing something different like this and it does give him a little bragging rights to say he climbed a 2300 feet mountain in the mist when he gets back to Cambridge :)

Catbells

Me and Gary took a day off work to go to Catbells. it was actually 20th june not July as the camera says. We came here last September and got the boat accross the lake from Keswick and did our walk. we did the same here, and I realised just how unfit i am! :(

It is though a TOUGH walk. though its only 1500 feet high you climb it in a short space of time so its very steep. I was totally breathless with my heart racing and sweat pouring off me! A guy who went past me didnt think i would make it to the top but i proved him wrong! You have to use your hands and feet alot to 'scramble' over some bits as in the picture here.

We also on the way down took a 'shortcut' to save time and only ended up cutting thru dense vegetation with streams that you couldnt see until you stepped or fell into them!

I got completely wet and ended up with a cold for a week afterwards but its still maybe the most beautiful place i have been :)

Darwen Tower

This was a walk me and Gary did on a blazing hot day. it was about 5 miles up and around Darwen Tower and was a perfect day for it. The Tower itself sits on the top of the hill and you get great views from the top. It looks like something out of Flash Gordon and we could see it for most of the walk.

We got a little lost and kind of made our own route up but it was one of those walks that you just wanted to do all day. either that or lay in the sun all day :)

This walk i orginally did in about September 06 with Amy and Henry and was the only one i had turned back on as i was boiling hot and knackered!

Garys 'Yoda' figure also made a suprise appearance. I think he got a tan ;)

The Calf - Cautley Spout waterfall

Me and Gary went to the Howgills for the 1st time to walk the 2000 foot hill called 'The Calf'' The scenery here is stunning with wild horses and the biggest cascading waterfall in England.

But what i remember most is how hard work it was!! you climb a path at the side of the waterfall that ascends nearly 1000 feet and is like climbing a huge staircase except this one has big drops and is exposed in places. I had to stop several times here for breath, my calves were burning, I had blood in my throat and my heart was pounding. Even Gary who is not normally too tired by most walks had to stop several times. Once I had collapsed at the top of the waterfall its then a steadier climb by a lovely stream to the top of the hill.

Once there an old man who was walking on his own tagged along with us, he meant well but began to bore us after half an hour of endless anecdotes!

You get down a steep track on the way back which hurt my ankles and was so steep i couldnt stop running at times! still it was such hard work i lost 3-4 pounds in weight that day! and i got a tan so it aint all bad. deffo want to go there again :)