
It’s a steepish ascent up The Rake and onto the lower slopes of Sheffield Pike, with vistas of Ullswater and bell heather flowering and fading at our feet. A long flowering season. The headwaters of Mossdale Beck give a sudden transition to a boggy plateau of deer grass, bristly bronze like a punk haircut. There are tarns with wine-coloured cotton grass. A mix of ericas, with crowberry- although I find no berries. Decay blotches bilberry leaves and they colour-up rose and gold, surrounded by seed heads of heather. I love the intricate detail, and the bigger picture- the way swathes of colour sweep across the fell.