It was an easy answer to give, when my parents asked if i would like to join them for a long weekend away for my Father's birthday in the small village of Braithwaite just a couple of miles west of Keswick. Thursday My Father had chosen the delightful accommodation of Hermiston Guest House on the outskirts of the village. So we made our way up the M6 on the Thursday afternoon, under clear blue skies & glorious winter sunshine. We arrived at the guest house at around 2:45, and were greeted by the friendly owners - Phil & Helen - who showed us to our rooms before getting us together in the lounge for tea & cake. As it was such a lovely evening, I quickly changed into my walking gear and jumped into the car to get a vantage point for sunset, and I'd chosen the tiny summit of Latrigg. At just 1,203 feet in height it was a pretty straight forward ascent - helped even more-so by the car park of Underskiddaw reducing the actual ascent to just 100 meters, and it only t

It's been a while since my last blog...and since I was up in the Lakes. Ex-hurricane Ophelia, and Storm Brian both hit the UK shores during October and brought with them the full force of the autumn storms meaning I was struggling to find a weekend with decent weather. Eventually the day came. I set an early alarm for 5:00 am. The clocks had gone back the weekend before so at this point it was still dark outside & sunset wasn't due for another couple of hours...but I was hoping to be in the Lakes and treading the Fells when the sun rose. I wasn't planning a day on the high fells, it was a circular hike of two of the smaller Wainwrights that were on the list - Black Crag & Holme Fell. Heading around the Southern fells, my route took in sightseeing stops at Tarn Hows, Hodge Close quarry & Yew Tree Tarn. I reached Tarn Hows at just before 7:00 am. The sky was beginning to lighten, the time they call 'blue hour' on the lead up to sunrise. Pay & Display