Walla Crag in the snow . . . at Sunset

Date & start time: Friday 8th January 2010, 2.40 pm start.

Location of Start : Roadside at Castlerigg Farm, Keswick, Cumbria, Uk ( NY 284 222 )

Places visited : Walla Crag from Castlerigg Farm.

Walk details : 1.75 mls, 500 ft, 1 hr 40 mins.

Highest point : Walla Crag 1231 ft ( 379m )

Walked with : Ann and the dogs, Harry and Bethan.

Weather : Sunshine and blue skies again.

A chance to see iced over lakes combined with a blue sky sunset from Walla Crag above Keswick.

Ann and I climb the short distance from Castlerigg Farm to the summit overlooking Derwent Water

and enjoy panoramic views again.

Today was another blue sky day in the Lakes as we leave Loweswater and Grasmoor and drive over to Keswick.

Parking near Castlerigg Farm is easy today as very few people will have ventured this far up the snow covered road.

The bridge over Brockle Beck needs care . . . it's micro spikes on the boots from the start again today.

The gate to the fells.

Two walkers pass us as we reach open ground . . . Skiddaw is looking lovely across the valley.

Snow covered Blencathra further along.

Making the top of the rise we get our first view of Bleaberry Fell . . .

. . . and across the other way we see again the beauty of the North Western fells.

Warm sunshine but low temperatures up here on the snow.

From the wall we get a full view of the town of Keswick spread out below.

Sunshine over the snow . . . it won't be long to sunset . . . but we're in good time.

We take the first of the gates to cross into the woodland that grows along the Walla Crag edge.

Deep snow in top of the heather.

Living on the edge ? . . . . Remember to include time to stop and enjoy the view.

Down below us the ice covered Derwent Water, its islands standing out as dark areas in a white sea.

Walking the rocky track to the top.	Can you make out Friar's Crag below ?

It's the wooded headland next to Derwent Island.

Tracks on the ice . . . surrounding the rocky island in the middle of the lake.

The tracks are purely natural and are probably the last areas to freeze as the low temperature set in.

Any overnight snow may have fallen when the last sections were not quite frozen and so it melted and refroze as black ice.

Harry watching for Ann.

The two dogs make the summit rock.

Golden Retriever.

Two posers on Walla Crag.

Who's a pretty girl / boy then ?

I turn and find Ann enjoying the view too . . . time for another 360 degree turn I think.

Click here or on the photo for a full, annotated panorama

As we enjoy the moment . . . the sun starts to set and the fells start to change colour.

The view up towards the head of Borrowdale includes Scafell Pike and Great Gable,

the latter appearing taller due to its closer proximity.

Zooming in as we reach the wall soon after we start our way back.

The fells are Great End, Broad Crag, Scafell Pike, Lingmell and Great Gable.

A wider panorama from the other side of the wall.

Late afternoon sun catching the Helvellyn Range.

Calfhow Pike and Great Dodd above St Johns in the Vale.

Clough Head . . . winter beauty.

Blencathra catching the deepening light as we make our way back to the fell gate.

Deep shadows in the valley contrast with the last of the sun striking the Skiddaw summits.

A great end to the afternoon . . . time to get a little shopping done as we've friends arriving tomorrow.

- - - o o o - - -

Technical note: Pictures taken with either Ann's Canon 75 or my Canon G10 digital camera.

Resized in Photoshop, and built up on a Dreamweaver web builder.

This site best viewed with . . . easy parking at the end of the road . . . due to no other cars up here in the snow today !

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Previous walk - 7th January 2010 Keswick in the Snow

A previous time up here - 8th February 2006 Walla Crag and Bleaberry Fell after the rain

Next walk - 9th January 2010 Loweswater and High Nook Round