Walking in a Winter Wonderland (in Troutbeck)

Now my Twitter friend Stewy (@stewyphoto) has a bit of a blind spot when it comes to the Troutbeck Valley. We very nearly tempted him over this way last weekend, but he allowed himself to be seduced by the charms of Blencathra and stayed near home.  His pictures from the weekend were gorgeous – this is on twitpic  and is quite simply the best Winter photograph I have ever seen.

Icy Stream - Blencathra

You can see more of Stewy’s award-winning photography over on his own website

Anyway – back to Troutbeck, even if that shot is truly an impossible act to follow!

I got to have a birthday treat in the shape of permission from the boss to go walking up the Garburn Pass with Steve, who was staying with us over the weekend.

I’ll get my own feeble attempt at a waterfall picture (just where the path from Limefitt Park meets the Garburn Road) out of the way first

So we headed up the Garburn Road, treading through that sort of thick and crunchy snow that just makes you laugh at the very thought of being alive and able to hear it and feel it under your boots.

Snow on the Garburn Road

The views of the valley cloaked in snow in the sunshine were jaw-droppingly beautiful. The valley looked as though it had been transported from Switzerland. I have never seen it look better.

Looking West towards Troutbeck in the snow

Troutbeck Valley looking towards the Kirkstone Pass

We romped up the Garburn Road, passing some intrepid mountain bikers at the top

Mountain biker in the snow

This guy didn’t even have snow tyres on his bike! I have no idea how he managed to ride all the way up from Kentmere. We also saw this little chap having the time of his young life in the snow at the top.

Puppy in the snow - The Yoke, Troutbeck

When we got to the top by the Yoke we had a panoramic view of the Kentmere Valley

The Kentmere Valley from the Garburn pass

We headed South and upwards to the top of Sallows from where we could see Windermere laid out before us and Morecambe Bay glistening in the distance. The air was sparkling as the ice crystals caught the sunlight, and it was only the biting wind that forced us on our way again (but not before we’d stopped long enough to  eat a Cadbury’s creme egg  as a reward for making it to the top)

Sallows

Off the Garburn Road we were often knee deep, and on occasion waist deep in snow. The silence was ethereal, broken only by the noise of our boots and our breathing, and the occasional passing 747 leaving con trails in the sky. The grins on our faces got wider and wider as we walked. I was a bit sad that we hadn’t brought Suki up with us but I wasn’t sure how she’s have coped in the deep snow. Probably better than me as it turned out.

I suppose it was inevitable that one of us would come a cropper at some stage and, true to form, it was me.  Putting my right boot down on some ice my balance went without warning and I went straight down the fellside. Fortunately I was able to keep feet first and stopped myself before too long, but I think I might be buying some crampons before my next snow walk.  The track left by my backside as I slipped down the fellside is a bit wider than I like to imagine it should be.

Slide path

The sun was getting lower in the Winter sky as we made our way downhill again, and we were treated to one of those tangerine sunsets that the snowy weather seems to bring with it.

Sunset over Windermere

Back home then for a quick shower and a birthday dinner at The Mortal Man.  Whitebait followed by Lamb Henry and then a huge plate of Cheese, washed down with Timmy Taylors and a nice bottle (OK two bottles) of St Emilion.

Another twitter friend, @cragchris who runs the Craglands shop in Grasmere and has her own lovely blog , was kind enough to send me a scanned image of the pub sign as it was in the early 60s as a present, as she knows I am a big fan of the place.

The Mortal Man

A short stumble down the hill to Limefitt got us back into the lodge and then we finished the evening off with coffee, brandy and chocolates whilst Tom played his guitar to us.

Can you imagine a better way of spending a day anywhere in the world? I can’t