Lupton Beck

Saturday 30th May 2020 - Lupton Beck - 5 miles.  (Day 67 of Lockdown)

Arnside was heaving with visitors soaking up the warmest sunny day so far this year. Many groups were far out into the bay at Sandside, almost to the other side. I wouldn't venture that far myself for fear of sinking sands. Vehicles of all description were parked the whole length of that road.  In my twenty years living here I have never seen crowds anywhere near so big at Arnside. One couldn't devise a more effective way of promoting a second peak.

I reckoned I would be safer driving to somewhere less populated for my "daily exercise."

Even at the summit of the Hutton Roof road a number of walkers' cars were parked - that was a drive of twelve miles from home.

The start of my walk involved a steep road descent. I knew that would be a gasper on my return. but thankfully there was some breeze. The views across to the Barbon Fells and Crag Hill were accentuated by the  dip over the Lupton Beck valley. As always I longed to be walking higher up on that long skyline ridge, but this was at least attractive country walking.

A long quiet level road section followed running well above the valley bottom and notched along the foot of Farleton Fell with with steep slopes and bright yellow gorse amongst the white limestone outcrops with bright greens in between and cloudless blue sky above. At the end I turned and descended and turned again to follow paths along the line of Lupton Beck parallel but lower than the outward trek. That was all new ground to me and sheer delight.

The final climb back up to the car was eased by a pleasant footpath shortcut avoiding some of the road walking. I was thankful for the air-con in the car on the way home. That had been the best walk for quite a while.

Worth clicking to enlarge

The steep descent at the start.
Barbon Fells and Crag Hill across the Lupton Beck vvalley

Are you looking at me?

Scout Hill

Super walking on sheep cropped fields - no sign of the footpath on the ground

Here were the only people I met - a lone family enjoying the sun and water

The view downstream from that bridge

Pheasant egg in the middle of a field - must have been left by some predator I reckon

Lupton Tower
I Googled hoping for some scandalous family history but was disappointed

Mm!

Apocalyptic?

Heversham and Greenside

Monday 25th May 2020 (Day 62 of Lockdown) - Heversham and Greenside - 3 miles

Over a week ago I set off in the car to do this walk. It is just four miles to park at Heversham. Before I got to Milnthorpe my conscience nagged to such an extent I turned round and came back to walk more locally.

Since then restrictions were eased, and although my instinct tells me that was premature it sufficed to ease that conscience just enough to let me venture that bit further.

I have walked the first part of this route on Wainwright's Way recently with BC and also on a few earlier ascents of Heversham Head, but I was quite excited when I worked out this little circuit where the rest of it was on previously un-walked paths.

I have said before that the view from Heversham Head is one of my top three near home and today I had a diluted version. It is much better after gaining the extra height to the summit of Heversham Head.

The whole of this walk was attractive and it can go on my list of local walks worth repeating.

Heversham Church. The walks goes through the churchyard and up the hill behind

Still on the path to Heversham Head and part of Wainwright's Way

Heversham church and the Leven estuary leading out into Morecambe Bay. The view is much more extensive from the top of Heversham Head

A part zoom to the bay and Arnside Knott. My house is there somewhere below the summit

Out onto the road leading down to Greenside

What a good day.

When I arrived at the lonely oak I found it had been dismasted with huge fallen trunks by its side, but despite that misfortune it was in full healthy fettle

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Jon Allison - www.lakedistrictprints.co.uk

I had an email a few days ago from Jon not having heard from him since he packed in at The Kentdale Rambler outdoor shop in Kendal - he was at Glacier Sports in Preston before that. Jon was a keen climber and well known to my friend Bowland Climber and to Tony Frost who I climbed with for seven years before he died sadly from cancer back in 2003. Jon has set up a photography business based in Kendal and if you go to the link above you will see superb examples of his work.

I wonder where that path goes?

Friday 22nd May 2020 (Day 59 of Lockdown)

Middlebarrow Quarry, north side

Often on my short local walks I find new paths. Then whilst exploring I notice another branching off and I am raring to go and explore yet more avenues forking from my familiar territory, but where will that second one lead me to? I have to reign myself in from following endless branching. I know there is going to be plenty of time ahead to explore such new discoveries and so I reluctantly save that second, and possibly other new paths for another day.

So it was today when I branched off a known path to explore a substantial track climbing through the woods to come out on the rim of the north side of Middlebarrow quarry. That is not marked as a public right of way on the map and there was much pheasant rearing paraphernalia. I was apprehensive about meeting some irascible member of the support brigade for the wildlife killers. Fortunately I saw nobody.

It was interesting to get a new view of the quarry and a close look at the larger crags. I think they may be too friable for climbing, but one never knows - if they could be cleaned up and found viable that could become an attractive setting with some fairly big routes. For some reason photos I took turned out to be dingy and disappointing and I plan to go back when I am sure we have less haze and sharper atmosphere. That resolve was also bolstered because there was another path further on branching off towards a part of the quarry rim away from my main track and it will have to be explored.

The main track passed through well spaced thin tall silver birch and mixed woodland conveying a cheerful snd friendly ambience. I was looking across the farmland far below and then beyond to a fine view of Arnside Knott from an entirely new perspective. This forbidden track has turned out to be one of the best I have found in my domain and all the better for discovering it for myself.

I eventually came to the end, out of the woods through an easy to open gate and a surprise new view of Arnside Tower a few yards beyond.

I will be back.

CLICK PHOTO TO ENLARGE

That crag goes further down to the quarry floor

A new view of Arnside Knott

Pleasant largely Silver Birch woodland

A new view of Arnside Tower

The red is my newly discovered track but not a right of way.

 I have omitted exact start and finish from my home

A quarry and a wood and a sea battle

Friday 15th May 2020 - Middlebarrow Quarry and Eaves Wood ( Day 52 0f Lockdown)

After twenty years living in Arnside I am still finding new paths and certainly around Arnside Knott there are paths well established and several feet wide obviously well walked that had no existence whatsoever when I first came here.

I set off to explore a less frequently visited area, but still within easy walking distance of home. 

I had only gone a few hundred yards when I found a plaque low down on a garden wall that I must have walked past a hundred times over the years and never seen before.

Location of plaque on Black Dyke road

Afterwards I couldn't resist a Google for 5th September 1782. I am sure the plaque location would have been an open field at the time, but whilst the cows were grazing and the peasants toiling there was a ferocious sea battle afoot off the east coast off Long Island. The American War of Independence was in full swing.

The Action of 5 September 1782 took place during the American War of Independence between two French Navy frigates, Aigle and Gloire, and a lone British 74-gun ship of the line HMS Hector. In a two-day battle, the two frigates severely damaged Hector and only failed to captured her when a British squadron appeared on the horizon. The French withdrew but Hector foundered a few days later after the 

1782 Central Atlantic hurricane.

Thanks to Wikipedia.

After that exerpt on Wiki, if tales of sea battles and derring-do are to your taste you can read on. There is an account detailing the manoeuvres and sequence of the battle and also the aftermath. You could well be reading a chapter from one of O'Brien's Aubrey/Maturin sagas.

 CLICK HERE

After that drama, as I write, I can't avoid anticlimax for the rest of this quiet pastoral and arboreal walk. 

I carried straight on at Middlebarrow Quarry instead of crossing the railway and followed a steep rocky path up the side of the quarry to give me a better than previously seen panoramic view of this now deserted excavation. Nature seems to be making a slow job of re-wilding here.

Unfamiliar northern reaches of Eaves Wood followed with a network of paths I have no recollection of walking before until I arrived at the northern limits of Holgates static caravan empire to make a more familiar descent to Arnside Tower.

 CLICK FIRST PHOTO TO ENLARGE

The new panoramic view of Middlebarrow Quarry

This was the only one of this route marker I saw or have seen before

Arnside Tower

Gardener's World

Friday 15th May 2020

Have watched Gardener's World for years.

 So sad (genuinely) tonight to hear that Nigel has died.

C.

Covid 19 update

I have not conducted the research below myself but from what I know, or have been informed on by the media it seems pretty factual rather than subjective. There are aspects that in fairness are, or were beyond the control of the Government and one has to acknowledge that they are wrestling with a problem of unprecedented scale and there is bound to be some need for "make it up as one goes along." You could also write a companion script to outline what has actually been done and even though present results are disheartening the effort and scale of operations that has taken place is immense. But even if you redacted sections of the text below where it may just be possible to argue there was not fault or negligence by individuals or the Government, or the odd unsubstantiated claim, as a whole this is still a dismal record of none-leadership. 

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December 31st China alerts WHO to new virus.

January 23rd Study reveals a third of China’s patients require intensive care. 

January 24th Boris Johnson misses first Cobra meeting.

January 29th Boris Johnson misses second Cobra meeting.

January 31st The NHS declares first ever ‘Level 4 critical incident’ Meanwhile, the government declines to join European scheme to source PPE.

February 5th Boris Johnson misses third Cobra meeting.

February 12th Boris Johnson misses fourth Cobra meeting. Exeter University published study warning Coronavirus could infect 45 million people in the UK if left unchallenged.

February 13th Boris Johnson misses conference call with European leaders.

February 14th Boris Johnson goes away on holiday. Aides are told keeps Johnson’s briefing notes short or he will not read them.

February 18th Johnson misses fifth Cobra meeting.

February 26th Boris Johnson announces ‘Herd Immunity’ strategy, announcing some people will lose loved ones. Government document is leaked, predicting half a million Brits could die in ‘worse case scenario’ 

February 29th Boris Johnson retreats to his country manor. NHS warns of ‘PPE shortage nightmare’ Stockpiles have dwindled or expired after years of austerity cuts. 

March 2nd Boris Johnson attends his first Cobra meeting, declining another opportunity to join European PPE scheme. Government’s own scientists say over half a million Brit’s could die if virus left unrestrained. Johnson tells country “We are very, very well prepared.”

March 3rd Scientists urge Government to advise public not to shake hands. Boris Johnson brags about shaking hands of Coronavirus patients. 

March 4th Government stops providing daily updates on virus following a 70% spike in UK cases. They will later U-turn on this amid accusations they are withholding vital information. 

March 5th Boris Johnson tells public to ‘wash their hands and business as usual’ 

March 7th Boris Johnson joins 82,000 people at Six Nations match. 

March 9th After Ireland cancels St Patrick’s day parades, the government says there’s “No Rationale” for cancelling sporting events.

March 10th - 13th Cheltenham takes place, more than a quarter of a million people attend.

March 11th 3,000 Atletico Madrid fans fly to Liverpool.

March 12th Boris Johnson states banning events such as Cheltenham will have little effect. The Imperial College study finds the government’s plan is projected to kill half a million people.

March 13th The FA suspends the Premier League, citing an absence of Government guidance. Britain is invited to join European scheme for joint purchase of ventilators, and refuses. Boris Johnson lifts restrictions of those arriving from Coronavirus hot spots. 

March 14th Government is still allowing mass gatherings, as Stereophonics play to 5,000 people in Cardiff. 

March 16th Boris Johnson asks Britons not to go to pubs, but allows them to stay open. During a conference call, Johnson jokes that push to build new ventilators should be called ‘Operation Last Gasp’ 

March 19th Hospital patients with Coronavirus are returned to care homes in a bid to free up hospital space. What follows is a boom of virus cases in care homes.

March 20th The Government states that PPE shortage crisis is “Completely resolved” Less than two weeks later, the British Medical Association reports an acute shortage in PPE.

March 23rd UK goes into lockdown.

March 26th Boris Johnson is accused of putting ‘Brexit over Breathing’ by not joining EU ventilator scheme. The government then state they had not joined the scheme because they had ‘missed the email’ 

April 1st The Evening Standard publishes that just 0.17% of NHS staff have been tested for the virus.

April 3rd The UK death toll overtakes China.

April 5th 17.5 million Antibody tests, ordered by the government and described by Boris Johnson as a ‘game changer’ are found to be a failure.

April 7th Boris Johnson is moved to intensive care with Coronavirus.

April 16th Flights bring 15,000 people a day into the UK - without virus testing. 

April 17th Health Secretary Matt Hancock says “I would love to be able to wave a magic wand and have PPE fall from the sky.” The UK has now missed four opportunities to join the EU’s PPE scheme.

April 21st The Government fails to reach its target of face masks for the NHS, as it is revealed manufactures offers of help were met with silence. Instead millions of pieces of PPE are being shipped from the UK to Europe.

April 23rd - 24th Government announces testing kits for 10 million key workers. Orders run out within minutes as only 5,000 are made available.

April 25th UK death toll from Coronavirus overtakes that of The Blitz.

April 30th Boris Johnson announces the UK has succeeded in avoiding a tragedy that had engulfed other parts of the world - At this point, The UK has the 3rd highest death toll in the world.

May 1st The Government announces it has reached its target of 100,000 tests - They haven’t conducted the tests, but posted the testing kits.

May 5th The UK death toll becomes the highest in Europe.

May 6th Boris Johnson announces the UK could start to lift lockdown restrictions by next week.

My monthly book club. Book review

Wednesday 13th May 2020 (Day 50 of Lockdown)
I have attended an informal book club group of six locally for many years - we normally meet by turn in our respective houses, but the C. has now prevented this. Rather than discuss a particular book we have all read we have now agreed to share our individual current readings by e mail so I give below my effort for our forthcoming "meeting" next Monday.
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Sometimes I ask myself a question I don’t particularly want to know the answer to. I can’t explain why, except perhaps that disappointment may ensue if the answer is too mundane. So, when you read the rest of this I am not asking for a plethora of answers.

Recently on my blog* I wondered “ why are robins so tame?”

A friend and fellow blogger who has a fair knowledge of nature was unable to enlighten but suggested I might find the answer in The Robin a Biography by Stephen Moss.

When the book arrived it looked immediately appealing with an enticing dust-jacket and then the contents similarly so. That was after I opened it carefully and with respect - physically the book was so attractive it seemed a shame to bend it open and spoil its pristine state.

Stephen describes the robin month by month throughout a year from his own enthusiastic observation. He intersperses with just enough literary, academic and historical anecdote using deceptively simple language. The result provides sheer pleasurable reading - a welcome anodyne but informative experience in these troubled times.

A reviewer on the dust-jacket concludes "It's a story that tells us as much about ourselves as it does about the robin itself."

I no longer felt I needed an answer to my question but eventually Stephen does tackle it, but thankfully (for me) not very successfully.

I shall continue to enjoy not knowing.
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* conradwalks.blogspot.com

The book was published not surprisingly by an off-shoot of Penguin in 2017.