The Visitor's Page - 12 -

Winter 08

I'm delighted to have received pictures from viewers of Loweswatercam, so I have decided to post them here for others to enjoy. If you wish to send me a photo and some information about it, feel free to do so and I'll try to include it on this page. It needn't be just about the Lakes, it can be about anything you've done recently. Click here if you wish to email me your contribution.

I reserve the right to withhold, censor or generally edit any comments as necessary, and I accept no responsibility for photos or comments posted. Keeping photo sizes below 100 Kb would be appreciated. 10x7 jpeg or 7x5 jpeg vertical at 72 dps would be excellent. Don't forget that short explaination too . . . thanks.

( If you follow any of the links on this page, a simple keyboard backspace should get you back here.)

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Hello Roger & Ann,

Just a quick line to wish you both a very Happy Christmas and all the very best for 2009. Thank you both very much for continuing to share with us all your walks on the fells, we much enjoy them and find them helpful in planning our own walks and routes. We sadly lost our elderly 'beardie', Cassie, this last month, but she was 16yrs old and had had a wonderful life so we are just grateful that we had so much time with her to share our walks. We intend to get a beardie puppy in the spring, Howard is taking early retirement in Feb next so that should all fall into place nicely. We don't really want to wait that long but there are no puppies around at the moment, the house is so quiet now!

Have been into George Fishers a couple of times recently, Howard bought a new pair of boots, and we shall be heading back in January for me to get some as well. Obviously it was a day when you weren't working Roger, but will keep an eye open next time. I have to say the staff are so very helpful which is nice these days.

Right, won't ramble on any more, we are heading down to Devon tomorrow evening to spend Christmas with our sons, daughters-in-law and grand-daughters which we are looking forward to immensely. We are back home on New Years day, and will be looking forward to next year. Many thanks again, we do enjoy your website. Have a great Christmas and hopefully some great walking! (We shall hope to do a little walking on Dartmoor when we are down in Devon, which will be nice for a change, but the hills seem so small after the Lakes!!)

Our very best wishes to you both and your two beautiful dogs. Jenny & Howard Shore, Gosforth.

Hi Roger,

Thank you so much for your reply and all the information which was exactly what I had hoped for.

It really is a funny thing that having gone round old familiar tracks with you, Ann, Harry and Bethan so many times on your website, I do feel that I already know you all. Your invitation to do a walk with you is so very kind, and one which I would have jumped at, and readily accepted a few years ago, but now however I'm afraid that the pace at which we walk and climb would bore you to distraction. What used to take us three or four hours, now takes us all day. However it would be lovely to meet you and have a little natter over a beer in the local.

Thanks once again for all your help and may Dorothy and I wish you, Ann and all your family, a very happy Christmas and many, many more long and enjoyable walks in the New Year,

Bill and Dorothy. South Shields.

Hi Roger

Hi Ann and Roger

My wife and I really enjoy your web site, it keeps us in touch with the beautiful Cumbrian landscape which we both love.

I was particularly interested in the excellent images of your latest walk to Haystacks and your use of instep crampons on the frozen paths. As we are both keen walkers and occasionally end up on our rear ends when out in frozen conditions we would appreciate the reassurance these crampons might give. Would you recommend the type you were wearing and if so would you be kind enough to supply details of make etc.?

Many thanks. Look forward to many more of your 'web' walks.

Regards

Chris and Cherry Wade (From the flat lands of South Lincolnshire)

Hello Roger and Ann

The Loweswater Players . . . Oh that brings it all back. We have been there and got those T-shirts.

Five nights of burning the midnight oil moving everything into the village hall, including the stage. Making sure the set was built so we could still get up a ladder mid-week to wind the village hall clock. Risking our lives making a chemical dimmer out of a caustic soda solution in an old drain pipe.

Running the show for three nights with Haxby Players, near York, and then spending 36 hours knocking it all down again. And how flat everything felt for the next few days

It was all great fun 40 years ago. We even went on to work on semi professional productions at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre in York and doing the lighting twice on the three-week runs of the York Mystery Plays - then held out in the open with the grounds of St Mary's Abbey as a backdrop.

I was in charge of 200 1,000 watt spotlights installed by Strand Electric, which were mainly suspended from scaffolding towers 60 ft above the ground. They were sheeted in to keep the weather out and heavy rain caused one lot to sag down without us noticing. Half way through the play they dried out and the canvas sheeting caught fire and we ended up trying to put it out with fire extinguishers until the fire brigade got there.

Another night the flash boxes failed to fire in the mouth of hell. So after the crowd had gone I went down and reset them and then climbed back up to control at the rear of the 3,000 seat grandstand to do a test fire. I thought there was only me in the whole of the Museum Gardens but when I fired the flash boxes there was a loud scream. Two policemen had gone into Hell for a quiet smoke out of the rain and I frightened them to death. They took some convincing it was not done deliberately.

Happy days. Thanks for the memories.

Linda and Brian.

We enjoyed the photos of the play - and yes, the plot was a little tortuous !

I guess you'd got to grips with it by the time you saw it for the fifth time ! I think that what a lot of folk don't realise is how much work goes into these plays; rehearsals with the Chorleywood Players seemed to last for weeks ! Not to mention everything else that went on behind the scenes.

Well done you multi-tasking - scenery maker AND stage manager !
Best wishes
Geraldine

Hi Ann and Roger

Desejo para vocês e toda família, que o Natal seja brilhante de alegrias e iluminado de amor.
FELIZ NATAL PROSPERO 2009

Again thank you for your site, I love to see snow in the montains.

Translation
I wish for you and all family, that the Christmas is shiny of joys and illuminated of love.
MERRY CHRISTMAS! HAPPY 2009!

Again thank you for your site, I love to see snow in the montains.

Olá! Rosi,

Muitos agradecimentos para seus desejos do Natal e para suas fotografias. Parece que o Natal está sendo comemorado em maneiras similares toda em torno do mundo. Nós amamos as pombas e o Santa' trenó de s.

Nós desejamos-lhe um ano novo feliz e esperamo-los que nós temos o suficiente bom tempo aqui para lhe trazer demasiado retratos interessantes de neve para o próximo ano.

Elogios

Roger e Ann, Loweswatercam

Hi Roger and Ann,

First, I would like to say how much my wife and I enjoy you web-site which we look into every day, and have been doing so for the past two to three years .

In our time we had three Goldens, Ben, Scot and Hamish ( Hamish completed all the Wainwrights) and your site revives so many lovely memories. We are both now 78 and have no dogs which are a great miss but we had to be realistic. However, we still manage to get a bit of hill walking in and in February we will be returning for the 23rd consecutive yearly visit to the Scafell Hotel where we, weather permitting, will hope to get a couple of decent climbs in.

Now, I would be grateful if you could give me an idea where I could get a set of the instep crampons you used on Haystacks this week. They could make a good Christmas present for our eldest son. I will look forward to hearing from you and also viewing your next foray on the mountains that both my wife and I love so dearly.

Bill Harcus, South Shields.

As for the instep crampons . . .

they are Grivel Spiders, a very simple but effective addition to winter fellwalking. With the very cold conditions the recent snow had frozen solid and we used them most of the way round Haystacks on Saturday and yes, they fit any boot, shoe or trainer as they merely strap on round your footwear.

The approximate price is £20 a pair. An example can be found at http://www.buachaille.com/p2721-5-42/Crampons/Grivel-Spider.html but I bought them in George Fishers a few years back. There were for sale on Amazon's web and Ebay too I noticed. The review mentions one breaking on first use but I've not found any problem despite occasional use over three or so years.

Fishers (where I work) do not have any at present as they are now stocking an alternative which looks very practical too. They are called Kahtoola Micro Spikes.
http://www.georgefisheronline.co.uk/acatalog/info_KAH_MICRO.1.html

or www.georgefisheronline.co.uk and search for crampons.

Certainly a lot better than ending up on one's rear end . . . or worse . . . Rmh

Hi Roger

My path to your website was through Google and then Needle Sports.

I am glad I found it because it offers great personal insight and the fact that it is a personal walking log makes it so current and informative. Very useful for us city slickers who are largely clueless when venturing into the wilderness ;-)

I contacted yourself and Andrew Leaney, who I believe is a pal of yours, and you have both been very selfless and generous in your giving of advice. I will make a point of signing your guest book!

Thanks for all the great advice, and for the tip on the spikes.

(Grivel Spiders - the name alone inspires!).

Best regards, Ravi.

Hi Ann and Roger

My wife and I really enjoy your web site, it keeps us in touch with the beautiful Cumbrian landscape which we both love.

I was particularly interested in the excellent images of your latest walk to Haystacks and your use of instep crampons on the frozen paths. As we are both keen walkers and occasionally end up on our rear ends when out in frozen conditions we would appreciate the reassurance these crampons might give. Would you recommend the type you were wearing and if so would you be kind enough to supply details of make etc.?

Many thanks. Look forward to many more of your 'web' walks.

Regards Chris and Cherry Wade

(From the flat lands of South Lincolnshire)

Once again,many thanks your site, visited most days.

It has become almost an obsession,and has provided many a lifting experience during another torrid year.

Regards to you both, I may actually get to meet you next May when I'll be spending my fiftieth birday hopefully sat on top of The Rannerdale Knotts.

Best wishes Paul Burnett.

Hi, Roger and Ann
I've just spent all day wrapping Christmas presents and decided to take time out to catch up on the Hiley's comings and goings - not to mention Harry and Bethan - and to my surprise Mary and I feature as the introductory image to your visitors' page. We feel suitably honoured.
I was very impressed by your on the spot reporting of the horrendous weather and flooding around Crummock water a few weeks back and pleased you were spared the need to start building an ark.
Ann, I'm sorry to say that it did take me a couple of minutes to see the 'Queen's Head'; Mary saw it straight away and won't let me forget it!
After our stay at Rose Cottage (we fully intend to do it again) we had a cold week in Glaisdale, N.Yorks where we seemed to attract rainbows see pics) and a week at half term in East Dean near Beachy Head.
Unfortunately, soon after our return home Rosie (our Goldie) was found to have an inoperable, malignant growth on the inside of her mouth and, like another of your visitors, we too said goodbye to a much loved member of the family two weeks ago.
I will be visiting The Lakes at the start of June 2009 when I have a long weekend booked at the rather nice Wastwater YH with some walking colleagues.
Keep up the good work Roger, the video clips and 'double takes' are a nice touch.
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and, despite the current economic forebodings, all the best for 2009.
Richard and Mary Blossom