Rydal Falls & Kirkstone Pass

If you drive south from Ullswater for a little while you come to a turn off that takes you through Kirkstone pass and down a portion of the road which is called 'The Struggle'. It is quite steep along here and windy and deserves it name. But, like many mountain passes it's worth the drive. The above picture is from there as well as the one below. Don't you love the stone walls and the water falls running down? It's so charming here.
The picture below was taken from up on a peak that Debbie and I climbed part of the way up. My ankle is still giving me fits and it doesn't like rocky terrain much, so we decided to be nice to it and only go part way up. The view was spectacular. You are looking over Ambleside and the lake in the distance is the northern tip of Windermere.
On our way back down the peak we used our ears and found our way to some more water falls. These ones are called Rydal Falls and there are upper and lower ones. I didn't take pictures of the lower ones because they were unremarkable, but the upper ones were nice. In case Rydal sounds familiar, if you've followed my blog you will remember that I went to a place called Rydal Mount with Liz in May of this year. This is the same place, only further up the hill from the mount and off into the woods.
More bridges over the falls. We didn't go up on this one. The area around here was a bit dangerous, slippery, and not well looked after and therefore we didn't wander too much.

Here I am beside the top of the falls. We were proud of ourselves for finding this place since the map was essentially worthless in helping us locate it and there were no signs posted. Maybe they don't want people finding it. Who knows. It is a lovely spot and will probably be even lovelier when the leaves change. Anyway, you're now caught up on my travels for the moment.

Lake District

Back to the Lake District! One of the many good things about my flatmate Debbie (and there are many) is that she likes the Lake District as much as me and she has a car, which enables us to go there! So we took advantage of the mild autumn weather to go and make a visit a couple of weekends ago. This is Ullswater. I haven't been to this lake before. It's lovely and there are lots of walks to take around here.
Autumn always has been my favorite season and you can see that the leaves are changing now. We are a bit early for the spectacular autumn colours, but that just means we'll have to come back again later to get those shots. Any reason to come is good enough for me. I love this place!
Here we are on the southern tip of Ullswater. It was a great day and we had loads of fun.
On our way to Aira Force (a water fall) we came across this dead tree trunk lying off of the trail. From a distance it looked like it had some sort of worms eating away at the trunk to leave all of these strange patterns, but on closer inspection we discovered that this is a pence tree. People have pressed 1 pence and 2 pence pieces into the trunk. Seriously. All the way up and down it and all around it. I've never seen anything like it and it was pretty cool, so there you go!
Here we are crossing the stream just below the Aira Force Falls. I love these old stone bridges. They are picturesque.
Here are the falls. They are lovely and I never get tired of water falls no matter how many I go to see. They are all different and there is something powerfully magical about the sound of the water.

Lotherton Hall

Welcome Back Everyone! It's been a while since my last posting. Sorry about that. Since then I have finished the first chapter of my PhD thesis (hallelujah!) and even presented a paper at an academic conference (glad it's over!) and now finally have a few minutes to rest and to catch up. At the end of September I attended a Single Adult Conference (my first one since I've been in England) at Lotherton Hall. Lotherton Hall is located 13 miles north-east of Leeds, so it's close to York. I had to include the above picture (random, I know) because it's a classic picture of what SA activities can be like! (Those Single Adults know what I mean) and therefore I couldn't pass it up. Single Adults range from 31 to 100 and you never know what you're going to find or experience at an activity. This person was worn out and decided to soak in the sun (rare for England!) and I thought it a classic representation of SA activities! :)
Lotherton Hall Estates is an Edwardian country house set in wonderful parkland. It is owned by the York Council, which means it's maintained by taxes and is free to the public. We only had to pay for parking and then we were able to enjoy the grounds. Lotherton Hall boasts a wild bird reserve and we enjoyed walking around looking at them in the morning. The above shot is of the Hall itself. Very nice.
This is one of my favorite shots of the garden and the house in the background. Can you believe those skies? You just don't get cloudless skies in this country and we were so blessed. No rain and no clouds and very warm temperatures. It was a lovely day and we enjoyed ourselves.
Here are more of the gardens. All these huge estates have lovely gardens. I wouldn't want to do the work to maintain one, but I wouldn't mind living with a garden like this. I suppose you could afford a whole team of gardeners if you could afford a house like this.
This is a random moment of posing on a little platform. I kind of blend in with the house, but if you look closely you can see me flexing my muscles! We enjoyed ourselves being silly. That's what sunshine does to you around here since we don't get much of it!


Below you will find a video clip of a sack race that was held. My flatmate Debbie, won this race. She's the blonde one in the black trousers and red striped shirt. Where am I, you ask? I'm behind the camera, but never fear, I did participate in the first race, against the boys, and I came in first of all the women. I wasn't aggressive enough to beat the guy who won! I have been nursing a sprained ankle and one race of jumping was all I could manage, so sorry about that. No video of me! There is also picture of my ankle (left one this time, not the usual right one) after I hurt it. What was I doing? Well, I (classic for me!) stepped off the curb in front of my flat wrong. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. You can all shake your heads in resignation. How many times have I sprained an ankle like that? Five, six, or more? I'm hopeless, I'm afraid, but I have started to pay more attention to where I'm walking since then! The ankle is healing slowing, but it is healing. Things heal slower when you get old like me.

Flamborough Head

Anyone surprised? A lighthouse? Me? Nahhhhh. I don't like lighthouses at all. This particular one is called Flamborough Head lighthouse and it's out on this lovely spot--apparently a very dangerous spot for ships to pass, but it's lovely. Pay close attention to the white cliffs down in the right corner of this picture because we will be going down for a closer look shortly.
But first, you have to see the lighthouse! Lovely, ey? Here's some information about it: a lighthouse was first established at Flamborough by Sir John Clayton in 1669, but was never kindled. The name Flamborough was first thought to be derived from it being the place of the flame, but in the domesday book the word is spelt "Flaneberg", possibly from the Saxon "Flaen" meaning a dart, which the shape of the headland resembles.
Here it is again from down on the beach. The present lighthouse, designed by architect Samuel Wyatt, was built by John Matson of Bridlington in 1806 at a cost of £8,000. It was first lit on 1st December of that year.
Here I am sitting under those lovely white cliffs you saw from the headland. Aren't they great? i really do like the white rock. Debbie and I enjoyed the sun and sat on the beach and put our toes in the sand. It was nice. I like being only 30 minutes from a coast. It's fun to go out to the sea.
Here I am in the sea. I'm afraid that there was a lot of the slimy sea weed floating in the water, so it wasn't all that pleasant standing right there, but I did have to get in the water for a minute or two.
Waves coming in to swirl around my feet! Love those hiking sandles! Seriously, those are some of the best things I ever bought and they make moments like this so nice! I can be in the water and still have my feet protected all at once!
Yuck! Sea weed and other things from the sea.

Bempton Cliffs

Hello again! I'm back after a few weeks of crazy busy-ness. When does life ever slow down? Welcome to Bempton Cliffs. Debbie and I visited here in late August, I believe, though some times the weeks all merge into a big blob and I can no longer distinguish. Bempton Cliffs is a Sea Bird Reserve and visitors go there to take a walks along stunning white cliffs overlooking the North Sea and watch for birds. These next few pictures are of the cliffs.
You can vaguely see some of the white Gannets who nest here flying around in the picture, but they are small. I don't have the right kinds of lenses for taking pictures of birds from this far away. Apparently, more than 200,000 birds (from April to August) nest here and bring food for their young. A lot of bird watchers come here. We found out, too late, that August is NOT the time to visit here because there are loads of little black gnats--you know the kind that get stuck in your arm hair! A bit annoying, but the wind did help a little.

This is one of the most densely inhabited outcroppings! All of those birds down there are Gannets--Adults are large and bright white with black wingtips. They are distinctively shaped with a long neck and long pointed beak, long pointed tail, and long pointed wings.. Their chicks are gray and they grow whiter and whiter as they grow older. Their nesting season is almost over and so the grey chicks, not that you can really see them in these, are large and getting ready to leave the nest.
Here's that same promontory, just further away. I like the rock formations underneath all of the birds. I can't figure out why the birds all nest in this spot when there are miles and miles of cliffs they can choose from. Perhaps they are social creatures. I do have to say that these birds smell horrible! When we were down wind from them the smell was enough to knock you over!
Debbie and I hiked along for about four miles round trip. I can always tell when we hit the four mile marker because my right hip starts to hurt. It was a lovely day and we enjoyed it very much. Along the trail was this wooden 'Puffin' and so of course we had to stop for a picture moment. It was windy, in case you're wondering why my hair is such a mess!

Lyme Park (otherwise knows as Pemberly)

So. . . I had a birthday early in August and I must say that one of my long-time wishes came true; on my birthday even! I have always wanted to go to the house where the BBC filmed the Pemberly scenes in their version of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. And, guess what? Debbie and I went out there to see it in celebration of my birthday! Yahoo! We had lovely weather and everything! (It rained the day before and it rained the day after.) It doesn't get any better than that, really, except I would have enjoyed having some of my friends and family from home around to share it with me. Anyway, here are some of the pictures and I hope they make you want to come to England to visit. (By the way, the candle on my cake is a tea light candle and it wouldn't stay lit, so I actually got to blow out the lighter instead! Good memory, that.)

Do you Pride and Prejudice fans recognize this shot? I bet you do. Isn't it lovely! And look at the perfect weather and lighting for this picture. This one is a keeper and has just vaulted to the top of my favorite photographs from England. This is a view of Lyme Park house from across the lake.
This is the courtyard in the center of the house. All of you movie buffs should recognize those stairs as the ones Darcy races down in his hurry to catch Elizabeth and her aunt and uncle before they leave the grounds. Grrr....that lady in red got in my picture. I'll have to crop her out of it!
Here's a close up of the stairs. Sandra Kimberling, on the left, (wife of the Bishop of the York 1 ward and a good friend of mine) and Debbie Baldock, on the right, (my flatmate) are enjoying the moment up there. We did go in and see the house but weren't allowed to take any pictures in there. I did get to walk down the famous corridor that Darcy walks down while thinking of Elizabeth and we did see the room in which the group sits and listens to Elizabeth sing and play. The rest of the house has the feel of a glorified hunting lodge and has dark paneling all over the walls and is decorated with animal heads and things. I wasn't expecting that in a house like this.
Debbie and I are enjoying a rest after walking over the gardens and grounds. There's nothing like a little swing to give one's feet a rest! The grounds are huge; the gardens lovely. I could really enjoy a place with these kinds of amenities!
Here I am on the other side of the lake. There are lovely wooded walks all around here and we really did spend the entire day here exploring.
This shot should also be familiar to P & P buffs. This is the Italian garden and it's on a level below the rest of the gardens and the house. We were kind of cheeky tourists because to get this picture we had to climb over a little rope with a sign that said 'gardeners only' on it. But, we did stay out of the garden itself, walked carefully along the edge, and were only there for about 1 minute to get a nice picture. I didn't want to regret not getting this picture since it's such a lovely angle.
Here is the Italian garden from up above on the level of the house. Nice, ey?
This is a view of the house and the 'orangery' (their name for a green house--in front on the right of the picture, actually). Aren't the gardens delightful? The green house (or orangery if you are a posh person) was nice and would be perfect to enjoy when the weather is bad--which is the case a lot in this country! It's the perfect place for reading a book while it rains.
This, of course, is the Rose Garden. I am a huge fan of roses and enjoyed meandering through here smelling the different varieties. Have you noticed how some Roses have lost their scent?--probably a consequence of all the genetic engineering they do these days Well, there were some that did smell like roses ought to and those made up for the insipid ones.
I had to have a shot of this walk-way because it's the one Darcy and Elizabeth walk along together after he comes out of the house to join them. I even put my hands behind my back like Elizabeth did just to get the full effect. Too bad Mr. Darcy wasn't around to join me, but one of the grounds people told me she's been working there for seven years and hasn't seen him yet!
And, of course, we had to walk up to the famous pond where Mr. Darcy takes a swim after his long ride. The pond is very slimy and is surrounded by grazing sheep, so it's a good thing Mr. Darcy didn't really dive in. He would have come down with some sort of horrible disease I am sure. It is a nice spot if you don't look at the water too closely and are upwind from the sheep!
Anyway, lovely place, isn't it! It made my birthday really nice and one I won't forget any time soon.

Saxon Place Flat

Hello! It's been quite a blog-break for me. Sorry about that. You see, I suddenly found myself having to move house at the end of June and that meant losing an internet connection for weeks and weeks as we sorted out living arrangements, got moved, hooked up utilities and all of that tedious stuff that comes with moving. Why did I need to move, you ask? Well . . . let's just say that we had a dodgy landlord and it was best to leave before we got stuck with some big problems. So, after living at the Byland House for about 8 months, I am now living in a tiny little flat on Saxon Place. The above picture shows you the outside. We are the door on the right and our windows are the ones in the roof! Yes, folks, in the roof. We live in the loft space--an after thought of building our new landlord (not dodgy) informed us.
When you come in the bottom door, you are confronted with this imposing staircase! It is steep and narrow and turns a sharp corner to the left up at the top. Needless to say, it's a good thing we don't have much in the way of furniture because I tried to get a wardrobe up there and failed. It wouldn't fit around the corner and I had to take it apart into little pieces and reassemble it upstairs afterwards! Thank heavens my parents taught me to be undaunted by difficulties and self-reliant. I was all alone that day and after the furniture people failed to get it up the stairs, they deposited on the footpath outside and drove away in their truck. It was also raining!
Here is the door to our actual flat. Exciting picture, ey? I thought you'd like to be welcomed through the front door like a normal visitor, however.
Here is my portion of a bedroom. Our flat is a two room flat. I have one and my flatmate Debbie Baldock (from Norwich and really great) has the other one. My room is large enough that it doubles as my bedroom and what little living space is left over. We have a table to eat at in the corner there and that's about the extend of the living space! :)
Here is the corner I have converted into a private area. That white bit of cloth hanging from the bookshelf is a curtain I made out of a sheet and I can draw it across to the wardrobe and attach it and then I can have a changing space back there. Pretty cool, I must say. It's awkward having visitors in one's bedroom and this does help me a bit.
This is the kitchen. You can see that we have slanted ceilings and the skylight above my head is one of the ones in the roof of the building. I am tall enough that I can stick my head out of it and survey the street below as well as other people's back gardens and so forth. If I was a nosey neighbour, then I could really get the scoop on some people! The drawback to the kitchen is that I often hit my head when I'm trying to do things in there. Not very nice, but I'll live. At least all of the appliances are brand new and clean and we even have a washing machine/tumble dryer combo! I haven't dried my clothes in a machine for nearly two years!
This is the bathroom. It has the same difficulties as the kitchen with the slanted ceiling. I can only stand in one portion of the shower if I don't want to hit my head. But, the bathtub is lovely and deep and so that makes up for it.
This is a portion of Debbie's room. We have no place to store our food, so the stacks and cupboards you see off to the right hold our food. They are in close proximity to the kitchen, so it works out okay. Debbie has slanted ceilings as well and thus I got the other room since she's shorter than me and doesn't hit her head so easily as I do. I make it a point to stay out of Debbie's space for the most part since I always wack my head in there!

Anyway, this is where I live now. It's small but it's lovely and new and nice. Debbie is tidy and lots of fun, so we're enjoying ourselves very much.