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Helen is staying for a few days and though the August weather wasn't glorious, neither was it raining all the time.

As she lives on a smallholding in SW Australia she is used to seeing all sorts of birds around her home

so when she is here she enjoyed the view out of our lounge window of the busy bird table and the wider garden.

The bird table attracts many small birds, sparrows, blue tits etc., with the goldfinches and woodpeckers being a particular delight.

Occasionally we get larger birds such as crows, pigeon and a marauding sparrow hawk but today's visitor was an unusual one.

It was a female pheasant . . . walking the margins of the garden looking for food.

So much for humour . . . on with the walk.

With the clearing weather we decided to head up the valley to Buttermere.

It was also today's objective for a Dutch couple who were touring Britain on their 'his-and-hers' Honda Goldwings.

Helen took the opportunity for a photo of Crummock Water and Red Pike without the bikes . . . and I did likewise.

- - - o o o - - -

Time to park the car and head off towards Buttermere for a walk by the lake.

This is the rather unusual slate house "Trevine" at the top end of the village.

After all . . . when in Buttermere why not build your house out of Buttermere Slate ?

The Bridge Hotel complete with new balcony railings on the second floor and a busy car park in front.

Bounding the valley on the other side are the peaks of Haystacks and High Crag, with Kirk Fell peeping through Scarth Gap.

It looks like the hotel has invested in solar panels on the roof too.

We're heading down passing the Fish Hotel, our way slightly restricted by the arrival of the Honister Rambler bus.

The Croft House cafe is also investing in a new extension, covering over the outdoor seating area

and providing the customers with more comfortable indoor facilities.

" Walking the plank " one of the National Trust "50 Things to do before you're 11 3/4".

Dougal is just over a year and well on the way down the list

Ann walks across the grass at the end of the lane to check out the view up the lake.

Meanwhile, I'm diverted by the sight of the bridge repairs in the other corner.

There has been progress . . . but presumably the high rainfall of recent weeks has held up proceedings.

The weather up this top end of the valley is not as nice as we left behind in Loweswater.

The view up the lake to Fleetwith Pike is clouded in a fine mist of raindrops.  Perhaps our choice of walk was not in the best location.

The breeze was blowing occasional showers up the valley but fortunately they never really became a problem.

The dot on the water next to Burtness Woods headland (seen in the last photo) turned out to be one of two canoes paddling down the lake.

Alongside them were several open water swimmers who were attempting the full one and a quarter mile Buttermere Swim.

Fine exposed roots on one of the trees on the lake shore,

the roots washed clean by the action of the waves on rougher days.

High water at the Spindle Tree . . . there's new growth low down on the trunk but that second branch from the top looks rather dead.

Presumably the watery environment is not conducive to good growth . . . still, it is an interesting landmark on the lakeside walk.

High Crag again, this time with a more expansive view

including Burtness Combe which hold some classic rock climbing routes amongst the crags.

Out onto flatter ground below Hassness and Dalegarth houses.

The path around the lake used to climb over a rock bluff until a tunnel was cut through at lake level by the Hassness estate owners.

I believed it was also a philanthropic 'job creation' programme, taking advantage of the local skills of out-of-work or part-time Honister Miners.

Whatever its origin, it's a fine little tunnel, if rather damp inside.	Emerging form the other end, greeted by the dogs.

The path continues on alongside the lake, again on a slightly elevated but well-engineered ledge.

It emerges from the woods at the shingle beach below Hassness House.

A wider (merged) panorama of the beach . . . and the wooden bench from which you can admire the view.

Dougal playing sticks, of which there was an ample supply.	This is where the Hassness trans-atlantic phone cable comes ashore !

Well . . . if they did want to phone America

then this local underwater phone cable the length of Buttermere would presumably be the carrier of the message.

No time to walk the whole of the lakeshore path . . .	. . . so we return through the tunnel, back towards the village.

There's now a good path all the way round the lake and on a good day will take two or three hours to walk.

We're heading back for a meal at the Kirkstile tonight so we'll leave the full circuit for another day.

Toppled but not dead . . . the root system washed clean by the waves.	The parting of the ways.