It's been 4 months since my last blog post. Thats not because I haven't had anything to post. To the contrary, since the COVID restrictions surrounding overnight stays eased in mid-April, I've been out most weekends, exploring new locations, wild camping, and generally making up for the adventures lost last year. Since my first wild camp of the year on Yewbarrow, I've explored both old haunts & new locations. From the familiar territory of the Lake District, to the epic grandeur of Glencoe in Scotland. From the northern Yorkshire Dales, to the sandy beaches & rugged cliffs of Anglesey. Taking gentle strolls around my local country parks, to grade 1 scrambling on Striding Edge & the Nantlle Ridge. I've also recently treated myself to my first drone - the DJI Mini 2 - and from the results so far, and with a bit of practise, this should help me create some epic videos of my adventures. Hopefully, I'll starting blogging more regularly again - as I'...

  As restrictions began to ease, 12th April marked the return of 'self-contained' accommodation & outdoor dining in England, and, I thought, you can't get much more self contained than in a tent. So, on a glorious Friday afternoon I set off up to Cumbria. This would be the farthest I've travelled in over six months! Yewbarrow from the lakeshore Astonishingly it had been almost 18 months since my last visit to the Wasdale valley in the Western Lake District, when I camped out on Middle Fell before scaling Scafell Pike the following day. The sense of anticipation and excitement as I drove up the A595 western coast road kept building, even more so when the first sign for Nether Wasdale appeared! Turning off the main A-road, the narrow, winding country lanes, and tall hedges obscured the view for a good few miles until the road headed over a rise, and all of a sudden, the vista down the Wasdale valley opened up. Following the road for a mile or so along the lakeshore, I...

  Just a couple of miles up the river from Moses Gate is Seven Acres Country Park. Located between the districts of Tonge and Breightmet, this is a surprisingly rural escape not far from Bolton's urban sprawl. Seven Acres has been in existence for at least 300 years, with it appearing on maps dating back to 1764. Previously it was farmland, and also industrial land, with a few ruined ponds at the southern end of the park from it's mill-era heritage. The incorporation of these lands, means Seven Acres is now closer to 79 acres! Bradshaw Brook runs the length of Seven Acres. The car park is located at the northern end of the park, off Thicketford Road just near the bridge, and at the opposite end of the park is the Lancashire Wildlife Trust building on the A579 Bury Road. The river-side path through the park is a continuation of the Kingfisher Trail. The park contains woodland, large open grassland, and of course wetland areas, which are home to a vast variety of wildlife which a...