Christmas in the Lake District
We spent Christmas in the Lake District this year, enjoying a cold, bright few days in the mountains. Crisp winter mornings, clear light, and quiet fells made it a refreshing and reflective way to close out the year. We based ourselves in the town of Keswick, and the accommodation had really easy access to the lake shore. Sunrise on Christmas Eve was most spectacular with a bright red sky shining gloriously above Derwent Water, the water levels in the lake were still quite high engulfing the gate. We enjoyed a walk around Borrowdale and up Castle Crag in the afternoon of Christmas Eve before joining in with the carols in the square in the evening.
Sunrise on Christmas day was cold and windy, the low cloud blocked the sun where we were located near to Tewet Tarn but there was good light over the western fells so out came the telephoto lens for some longer distance shots. Sunset on Christmas day was the complete opposite, the light was spectacular with unique cloud layers over the Newlands Valley producing a shaft of incredibly bright light along the lake surface. Difficult to capture with a camera but hopefully the silhouetted figures on the pier give a sense of how the scene played out in real life.
On the journey home, we detoured via Ambleside so that we could enjoy a frosty walk along the banks of the River Brathay between Skelwith Bridge and Elterwater. The temperatures were in minus figures and the beautiful frost on the banks of the river lasted around 2 hours after sunrise giving me opportunity to capture a few shots in the bright winter light before it thawed completely.
My favourite shots from the trip can be viewed in the gallery below >
