Rough Fell sheep in the heather Low cloud capped the fells and windscreen wipers cleared the rain. The ground was puddled, the track over Smardale Fell waterlogged. We squelched up the low fell-side where white flowers of Grass of Parnassus were beaded with raindrops. Later in the morning the sun shrugged off cloud and a distant light roved toward us and flood-lit the heather fell.
Sunlight illuminated the heather to reveal a palette of rippling colour from dark chocolate through purples with hints of green. Sunlit bands of gold appear where heather gives way to tall seeding grasses. Sombre heather shows a wealth of rich colour when you look closely, an intricacy of flowers fresh and fading. Wispy flowers of ling on red stems, pale pink cross-leaved heath with soft-green leaves, magenta bell heather, bells fading to rose- gold and holed where insects have bored through petals to reach nectar.
Rough Fell sheep bar the track, and yield at our approach. We sit on cushions of heather to drink and swallows skim the limestone wall and fly around us in a magical interlude. Walls snake over Smardale Fell to the horizon, topstones illuminated, the face of the wall in shadow.
Cloudscapes are constantly changing and toward mid-day blue skies appear, with white cumulous. There's a great sweep of heather as far as the horizon, and solitude. Smardale Gill is hidden as we look toward Crosby Garrett Fell.
Cloudscapes are constantly changing and toward mid-day blue skies appear, with white cumulous. There's a great sweep of heather as far as the horizon, and solitude. Smardale Gill is hidden as we look toward Crosby Garrett Fell.
White flowers of Grass of Parnassus show in a scatter in saturated grasses low on the waterlogged fell side. Parnassia Palustris, Grass of Parnassus. Bog star is its familiar name. A hoverfly seeks nectar. When pollinated, the pink ovary swells to form a seed head surrounded by false nectarines. This morning the seed-heads are bejewelled with rain drops. Grass of Parnassus grows here in upland flushes, on the lower slopes of the fell. It’s frequent here but rare outside Cumbria and the North. An American couple doing the Coast to Coast walk ask what I’m looking at and they’re taken with Grass of Parnassus ‘ its feet in the wet.’ Bog star, a great name. There’s the occasional pale birds eye primrose and devil’s-bit scabious.
Our walk continues fell side toward Smardale Gill Viaduct and there’s much to admire along the way, so -----more to come.
Our walk continues fell side toward Smardale Gill Viaduct and there’s much to admire along the way, so -----more to come.
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