Late Summer

 

Good morning! Okay, so I realise that autumn is only two weeks away now, but I'm not quite ready for pumpkins and crunching leaves just yet. Instead, I'm clinging on to what is left of our summer. And what a fantastic summer it has been, this year. 

Over the last few weeks we've been relishing the sunny days. A visit to the sunflower field, pony trecking on the fellside and swimming in the lakes. I never take for granted the beautiful area which I get to call home.

As we move towards autumn the weather has become much more changeable. We've had plenty of rain, but it has still been pleasantly warm. Yesterday, I cut the grass and began tidying the garden in preparation for the colder months. When I did this last year, it made a huge difference when spring arrived, as I had much less work to do in order to get it looking nice for the summer. I've also bought some bulbs - tulips and alliums - which I will plant some time during the next few days.

This time of year often takes on a rhythm of its own. Mid August is when the shortening daylight hours become more noticeable. Then it's shopping for new shoes, ironing uniforms, and getting bags ready in anticipation of the new school year. Blackberries have been gathered, beetroot is pickled, and our weeks become structured and routine, once more.

So far, work is going well for me. I'm enjoying my new role, and I'm sure that I'll find my feet more as time progresses. And although Lily was a little anxious about returning to school, she has realised it is much the same as last year, only in different classrooms :)

I apologise for being absent from this space and for not being able to leave comments on your blog posts, either. My laptop decided it was all a bit too much, so I had to order a new one. Two weeks after the promised delivery date, I was still waiting, and with no indication of another date, I gave up and cancelled my order. The store has yet to refund me, but in the meantime, I've reset my ancient laptop again - fingers crossed. It is working for the time being, but you never know. 

Back soon.

J. X

Sunny May Days

 

Ahhhhh! The beautiful month of May. And it's been especially lovely this year. May has always been one of my favourite months, with the promise of summer being just around the corner. But this year, it's as though summer has arrived earlier than usual, and I've been enjoying every moment. 

It has felt energising and restorative being able to spend so much time outdoors. We've already  enjoyed more meals in the garden than during the whole of last year, and there might also have been a glass of wine or two for me :) 

I finally got around to repotting the blueberry bush and filling the new strawberry planters. And a small tray of marigold plants have added some much needed colour to the borders. 

In the daytime, the sun has felt delightfully warm on my skin, but the nights have been comfortably cool, lacking that intense heat that can often cause restless nights. But the ground is looking parched, the streams are dry and the lakes are low. As I write, I can hear the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance, which will hopefully bring with it some much needed rain.

Since I last posted, I'm feeling much more at ease. I've been reassured regarding some of my working hours, and I think my new role will work much better for me. It should mean that I will spend more time focused in one area, rather than constantly changing. It will also, hopefully, be a longer term position. 

Another difference, since I last posted, is that Lily turned 12. I have so many feelings about this, that I'm not quite sure where to begin. I turned my back for a moment and it's as though she's all grown up. Of course, I know that's not really the case. Not quite yet, anyway. 

She chose to celebrate her special day quietly, with a picnic at the lake. Several of Lily's birthdays have been spent here, as it's one of her favourite places. First, we went for a walk at Aira Force, where the lack of any recent rainfall was more than evident. Then we spent the rest of the morning beside the lake, although for one of us there was quite a lot of time spent in it :) 

After drying off, we took the longer route home, stopping off at the dairy farm for ice-cream. 

I chose liquorice...

It's so lovely there, and the ice-cream is absolutely delicious. We enjoyed our ice-creams, then Lily had a great time playing on the slide. Maybe she's not quite so grown up after all. 

J. X

Filling My Cup

It isn't very often that school holidays and decent weather coincide, but we've been incredibly lucky this week. It hasn't rained in what feels like forever, in fact, there's hardly been a cloud in the sky all week. I've been watering the raised bed most evenings, which is unheard of in April. 

As you can probably imagine, I've been busy making the most of the glorious sunshine. There have been some quiet grumblings from the not-so-small person, but even she realises that when the weather is good, we need to get out and enjoy it while it lasts. 

We started our week with a walk from Honister Slate Mine. The morning air felt fresh, and there was a bit of a breeze, but this made it the perfect weather for walking in. Our route took us past Dubs Hut mountain bothy, which of course I had to have a nosy in :) and also afforded us a stunning view over Buttermere and Crummock Water, finishing on the summit of Haystacks. The walk wasn't too strenuous, and after a brief stop at the summit cairn, we dropped back down by Innominate Tarn to enjoy our lunch. 

The following morning we set off a little later, to take a picnic down by the lake. Just as I'd expected, it was rather busy there with holidaymakers all enjoying the sunshine. Especially the area around the pier, where the lake cruises depart. But when you walk a little further along the shore to the car ferry, for just a couple of pounds, pedestrians can cross to the other side of the lake where it is much quieter. We also stopped off at the Claife Viewing Station to enjoy the view. The last time we were there it had been a little bit overcast, so it was lovely to capture the sun shining through the coloured glass. 

Monday morning got off to a more gentle start. And besides a short walk in the woods, we stayed at home. The woodland floor is carpeted with Wild Garlic just now and we gathered just a small amount, mixed it with a little salt and butter, and used it to make our very own garlic bread. Never having made this before, I can confirm that it was absolutely delicious. 

Another day, another picnic. But first we walked to the viewpoint of Castle Head in Keswick. And what a fantastic start to the day. We sat on the bench here and just soaked up the view... 

...before walking down towards the lake and enjoying the calm of the morning looking down towards Borrowdale.  

Of course, the morning involved some messing about on rocks. And yes, after several warnings to take her trainers off, she did slip in, and so she had to walk back to the car with one rather wet foot.

Enjoying some delicious strawberries in Hope Park.

The next day we walked the Coffin Route from Grasmere to Rydal, then back again along the lake shore. After the previous day's incident, I made sure to carry Lily's water shoes with me, but of course she chose not to go in the water this time :)

As a last hurrah to the week, we finished off by bagging 3 more Wainwrights - The Nab, Rest Dodd, and The Knott - taking our total to 124. This photograph was taken on our ascent of The Knott, looking over Brothers Water towards the Eastern Fells. It was such a fantastic day to be out on the fells. Even more special was that we caught sight of the Martindale red deer on the flanks of The Nab. 

Then we'd almost made it back to the car when I spotted a lamb stuck on a waterlogged rock at the side of  Hayeswater Gill. It must have fallen down and the sides were so steep that it was unable to get back up. There was no way I could have reached it from the field side, without falling in or injuring myself, so I made my way carefully across the beck, over some large rocks, and with it firmly under my arm, carefully pushed it upwards towards the ewe, hoping it would then be able to continue up the field by itself. Unfortunately, it must have been too weak, so tucking it under my arm again, I pulled us both up the field, by holding on tightly to clumps of grass, and managed to get it to the path at the top. It didn't appear to be injured in any way, I think it was probably just exhausted and wet, so I left it in the sunshine to dry off, and managed to locate the grateful farmer in the village to let him know where it was so that he could check on it. 

Back soon.

J. X

From Summer into Autumn

 

And just like that, we stumbled into autumn. The last day of summer was quite beautiful here, and I spent some time in the garden doing a little bit of tidying. One of my surprise sunflowers had opened up and, although a little late, it was lovely to see. The second sunflower is waiting patiently for it's moment to shine, but I think this week's forecast sunshine might just provide the encouragement it needs. 

The pumpkins are turning more and more orange with each passing day. 🎃

My lovely acer, which still needs repotting. A job for next weekend, I think. 

In the evening we watched the last of the summer sun set above the Lakeland fells. It was a beautiful way to end our summer, even if it had been a rather disappointing one this year. Let's hope autumn more than makes up for it. 

The following day we set off from Borrowdale, and walked up High Spy and Maiden Moor. Two more Wainwrights ticked off, but more importantly, a wonderful day up on the fells. It was a steep ascent, but the views towards Keswick were stunning, and by setting off from Grange we managed to avoid the crowds on Catbells. Also, my foot held up well, which was a huge relief. Autumn colours were already starting to show, but I am looking forward to a far more glorious display as we head through October.

This week, just as life was ticking along quite nicely, I was thrown a curve ball, and have spent much of my time driving up and down the motorway, visiting a family member who is in hospital. In between times, I've been attempting to juggle work and family life, including keeping the routine as steady as possible for Lily. I feel exhausted. It would have been very easy for me to miss my weekly swim session, but instead I made the effort, and I'm so glad I did. It felt good to do something for myself, even if only for a short while. And it's going to be much of the same for this coming week, at least. So, in between times, I need to remind myself to seek out those small moments that make me happy.

Speaking of which. Look what I found on my way to work yesterday :)

J. X

A Week in The Lakes

Last week, the weather was nice and sunny, so we enjoyed a lovely week in and around The Lakes. 

Our first visit was to Buttermere, more specifically, Rannerdale Knotts. In order to avoid the crowds, and the heat, we went late afternoon. This turned out to be a good plan, as we didn't have any issues with parking and we only passed a handful of people up on the fell. I imagine it would have been a different story had we been there earlier in the day. It was a lovely walk, and the views over Buttermere were spectacular. The one thing that I hadn't planned for, however, was just how hungry we would be afterwards. We are far more used to walking in a morning, taking lunch with us. So on this occasion, and as a special treat, we enjoyed dinner at the hotel in the village. It was a really lovely evening, and another Wainwright ticked off. 

The following day we went to Ullswater. This was actually where we were meant to go on the previous evening, until I had a last minute change of mind :) Again, it was another late afternoon visit, but this meant that I could get on with some jobs during the day. Lily had great fun in the kayak, while I tried my best to relax and rest my foot, which unfortunately, is still causing me a great deal of discomfort. 

Midweek, I had an appointment at the hospital (about my foot), then met up with a friend, who I haven't seen in a while. We enjoyed a walk by the river, a drink and a good natter. We didn't exactly put the world to rights, but we gave it our best shot. 

The next day, we were back at the lake, and this time we were much better prepared. We went out in the kayak, and we also swam for a while, before cooking sausages on the camping stove. Delicious!

Towards the end of the week, and with another fine day forecast, I thought it would be nice to fit in another walk. This time we went from the village of Mungrisdale, taking in Bowscale Fell and Bannerdale Crags. It was a steep climb up through the bracken, and it was tricky to negotiate the path in some parts, but once we'd reached the other side, it was fairly straightforward. The heather is in flower now, which is always lovely to see. It was a great day for walking, but very chilly on the summits, and even on this summer's day, we were very glad of our down jackets. Back in the valley, we quickly became much warmer, but we were able to cool off in the beck, before making our way back to the car. 

J. X