Kirkby Stephen Circular

 Sunday 21st. April 2024

At last after months of inactivity a reasonable walk on new territory for me.

My breathlessness malady still prevails with little improvement. The last hospital department to take me over was Respiratory. They seem to have run out of ideas; I still have one test in the pipeline for Sleep Apnoea which I'm pretty sure I do not suffer from, and even if the test is positive it can only be a mild version and I have my doubts as to whether it will have anything to do with my problem.

I had no intention of trying to score a time for this walk, I just wanted to enjoy. However, including about twenty minutes for my sandwich break the 5.5 miles took me just over 5.5 hours. and I found I was breathing heavily on the slightest inclines and stopping frequently for rests. I have to say that takes away some of the pleasure but it was still good to be out exploring again and taking in the re-energising ambience of classic dales limestone scenery.

Interest was aroused after only the first hundred yards by raucous noise from a large gathering of rooks sorting out their nesting in trees above the short stretch of main road.

Pleasant walking on farm tracks and then fields lead to crossing of the Settle Carlisle railway. Plovers were in the air trying to protect their nesting from my invasion. and the odd curlew heard but not seen. All was peace and quiet.

At Tommy Road,  my furthest point south, I headed on a good track north east to re-cross the railway again. From there I picked up on Wainwright's A Pennine Journey.

At Croop House I could see Lammerside Castle across the next field with a large party of ramblers approaching. I stopped to have my sandwich and coffee and let them pass through. By the time I was ready for off again another rambling party was advancing. I waited until the last few were coming through the gate from the castle's field. I could see that they had a designated Gate Marshal and I timed things perfectly for me to go through as their last straggler arrived allowing me to avail myself of the services of the Gate Marshal. I had a silly cheeky feeling about that.

From the Internet:

Lammerside Castle, located near Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria, England, is a ruined 14th-century tower house that once formed part of a complex of buildings probably owned by the Warcop family.

Further on I came across Wharton Hall, a 14th Century Tower house and present day working farm. Visit Cumbria has good information about this including a splendid aerial photo which puts my ground level attempt to shame.

https://www.visitcumbria.com/evnp/wharton-hall/

As I ascended a steep little path from the hall I was able to look down on the largest slurry tank I have ever seen. The prefabricated construction must be at least fifty feet in diameter containing perhaps the oft used measure of an "Olympic sized swimming pool" or more? It is serviced by a sophisticated system of pipe-work blowing air causing firstly an inner ring of energetic spouting bubbles alternating with an outer ring. This structure can be seen in context included in the aforementioned photo on Visit Cumbria. I know vaguely that this stuff is used as fertiliser but the sheer scale and cost of installation here is a great mystery - I think a bit of research is in order.

Further paths eventually coinciding with the river Eden as it moves with vigour through Kirkby Stepehen took me back to my car. 

Setting off from parking at Stenkrith Bridge. The trees with the rooks can be seen in the background.

Still flying the flag for old Westmorland

Distant dales hills

A modern quarry. See below for strange dumpings of associated spoil

I passed under here crossing the Settle Carlisle line. A good huff and puff ascending to this point

Moor End Farm. Many now have holiday accommodation

Looking back at the farm with this splendid display of daffs flowering here quite late?

Perfect walking over Christopher Brow Top

I was a bit off route here and had to make a mid-course correction by following the distant wall to the right to take me down to Tommy Road

The track from Tommy Road leading back to re-crossing of the railway

The isolated Furrow Green farm, and zoom below

Lammerside Castle and the first party rambling through as I sat with sandwich and coffee watching them

A large flock of squealing and squawking gulls wheeling and diving. quite impressive

Wharton Hall. Much better photo on Visit Cumbria - see link in text

The monster slurry tank

River Eden on its way into Kirkby Stephen.

Anti- clockwise from the point north of Nateby

Frustration and fenestration

 Easter Monday - 1st April 2024

I am champing (how's that for a classy word?) at the bit to continue my project on the Eden Way but bad weather, especially the cold, which bothers me more than it used to, has intervened. And every time there has been a weather window it has coincided with some appointment or other.

I will return!

Meanwhile, after being encouraged by the use of an after market masking set for the cockpit windows on the Beaufort, I have embarked on what is probably one of  the most windowed planes ever - the Avro Anson. Having all those windows lends itself to some illumination of the more than average detailed cockpit, so I have included an LED in the cockpit and also on the wing taxying light. They are now sealed in forever and I do hope they will work in spite of my rustic soldering skills when all is completed. I did test them at the last opportunity, but we all know about the Christmas tree lights that you put away in working order only to find non-doing when unpacked a year later.

The Anson was a general purpose aircraft but it had its moments in combat - from info that came with the kit:

"N9732 (the aircraft I am modelling) crewed by Pilot Officer Philip Peters, Sergeant D.  Spencer and Leading Aircraftsman Pepper, from No 500  (county of Kent) Squadron RAF Detling, Kent shot down two ME 109s in the English Channel on June 1st 1940."

Note the anglepoise lamp over the chart table.

I mocked up some seat belts that were not included

Here you can see the masking set with some of its contents peeled off and applied. That means the windows can be put on the model. The items will first be sprayed with cockpit green so that is visible as the interior colour, and then over-sprayed when the main painting of the model follows. Applying the masking is like brain surgery but quite therapeutic and satisfying. NB a cotton bud above the unmasked window to give some scale.

These two halves of the rear gun turret are only about 2 cms. in width so you get some idea of how small is each individual piece of masking. They are still attached to part of the sprue which gives attachment for a crocodile clip for handling.