A glimpse of snow on the horizon A tell-tale brilliance crests a fell on the horizon. Snow has fallen overnight. The first snow of the season is always exciting and we stand on Scout Scar escarpment working out where snow has fallen, on Scafell to the west and on HIgh Street to the north. The fells show sculptural in sunlight and shadow, and low cloud hugs some of the tops and The Band shows below Bowfell. The woods below the cliff assume tints of autumn and the pastoral landscape is well-lit. The distant fells have an aura of solitude and mystery. Something ineffable.
Something ineffable, a magic and a sacredness is here. It's all about us. Yesterday, the skies darkened to sunlit indigo and I knew there would be rainbows. Iris, non sine sole. And there, over the town, a rainbow arc against a foil of deep rich blue and within the bow a tree in autumn gold.
On Monday evening a strange pink light lit the eastern sky and Scout Scar's own aurora borealis featured on the evening news. The wonder of such things touches the heart, knowing the science is a bonus.
On Monday evening a strange pink light lit the eastern sky and Scout Scar's own aurora borealis featured on the evening news. The wonder of such things touches the heart, knowing the science is a bonus.
A raven croaks and long-tailed tits move through dead ash trees. Gunfire in the Lyth Valley tells of a pheasant shoot. A sole fieldfare calls unseen. A young woman remarks the sadness of the dramatic decline in bird numbers. She'd like more of the wildlife experience but these days it's harder to hear and find birds. Too many dogs, she says. Too many people says a man re-building a stone wall and proud to maintain tradition, in style and using weathered stone.
On yesterday's Radio 4 Open Country Helen Mark met volunteers from Mountain Rescue teams from Wasdale and Langdale Ambleside. The swelling number of call-outs is challenging, with social media encouraging folk to venture forth. The Mountain Rescue would like to remind walkers to be prepared, to have the right kit, to have experience and to be aware of the day's weather. Someone laments quantities of litter left on the fells.
Today, there's the wonder of first snow and the fells look lonely and mysterious. It's illusory, on such a fine day the fells will attract lots of walkers, but it's an illusion we cling to, loving solitude and peace. So we're all
united in dismay that someone is flying a drone over Scout Scar and the noise is alien and intrusive.
On yesterday's Radio 4 Open Country Helen Mark met volunteers from Mountain Rescue teams from Wasdale and Langdale Ambleside. The swelling number of call-outs is challenging, with social media encouraging folk to venture forth. The Mountain Rescue would like to remind walkers to be prepared, to have the right kit, to have experience and to be aware of the day's weather. Someone laments quantities of litter left on the fells.
Today, there's the wonder of first snow and the fells look lonely and mysterious. It's illusory, on such a fine day the fells will attract lots of walkers, but it's an illusion we cling to, loving solitude and peace. So we're all
united in dismay that someone is flying a drone over Scout Scar and the noise is alien and intrusive.
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