Lake District 2007

The photographs are grouped as follows:

• Thirlmere, Dob Gill and Harrop Tarn
• Windermere and Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway
• Troutbeck, Kirkstone Pass, Pasture Beck and Heyeswater
• Coniston Water
• Helvellyn (ascent from Wythburn)

My first full day, and a visit to nearby Thirlmere. A climb along Dob Gill to Harrop Tarn.

Thirlmere 1	Thirlmere 2	Thirlmere 3	Dob Gill 1
Path round Harrop Tarn	Harrop Tarn	Thirlmere, from Dob Gill (Helvellyn on far side)	Dob Gill 2

Being based by the lake I had to get a 24 hour pass for the cruises up, down and across, including the short ride on a steam train from Lakeside.

Windermere 1	Windermere Looking North 1	Windermere Looking South 1	Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway (Lakeside Station) 1
Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway (Haverthwaite Station)	Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway (Lakeside Station) 2	Windermere (from Lakeside)	Windermere Looking North 2

This section includes the first of three "proof I was there" pictures of me, the stunning view through the Kirkstone Pass, and the bleak but daunting Heyeswater.

Near Troutbeck 1	Near Troutbeck 2	Near Troutbeck 3	Near Troutbeck 4
Kirkstone Pass	Pasture Beck (on the way to Heyeswater)	Heyeswater Gill 1	Heyeswater 1
Heyeswater 2	Heyeswater Gill 2	Heyeswater Gill 3	Heyeswater Gill 4
Heyeswater Gill 5	Heyeswater Gill 6	Windermere from Kirkstone Pass 1	Windermere from Kirkstone Pass 2

There has to be at least one rainy day on each trip to the Lake District and this was it. A morning visit to the Laurel & Hardy Museum in Ulverston (where Stan was born) was followed by a visit to a very windswept Coniston Water.

Coniston Water 1

Coniston Water 2

At 950 metres (3,117 ft) high, Helvellyn is the third highest peak in the Lake District (and England), and arguably the most spectacular. On the last full day of my trip I got to climb it.

The problem, which applies to much of the Lake District, is that flat pictures inevitably struggle to convey the majesty of the place. For once, use of the word "breathtaking" is completely justified in describing the views from the top.

Ascent of Helvellyn from Wythburn 1	Ascent of Helvellyn from Wythburn 2	Helvellyn Summit	Helvellyn Summit - Proof I was there!
Ullswater from Helvellyn Summit	Red Tarn from Helvellyn Summit, with Striding Edge on the right	Looking North from Helvellyn Summit, towards Solway Firth and Scotland	Looking South from Helvellyn Summit, towards Windermere, with Morecambe Bay beyond
Zoom North from Helvellyn Summit	Striding Edge, east from Helvellyn Summit	Striding Edge and Ullswater from Helvellyn Summit	Helvellyn Descent to Wythburn

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