The Loveliest View In The World

I haven't posted anything for about 10 days (I have been working on a calendar of British Birds for 2020) and so I thought I would come back with something special and I hope you will agree with me that this picture fits the bill.

You may think I am over stating things by describing this as the loveliest view in the world but those are not my words but the words of the leading art critic of the Victorian Era; John Ruskin (he was also an artist, social thinker and philanthropist). He described this view of the River Lune as seen from the churchyard of St Mary's Church in Kirkby Lonsdale in Cumbria as being"the loveliest view in England, and therefore the World".

A painting of this view by JMW Turner described "priceless possession" was sold at auction in 2012 for £217,250

Well beauty is in the eye of the beholder so you may disagree with that statement  but I am sure you will agree that it is pretty spectacular indeed. It is certainly a great view of the English countryside. This picture was taken after a few days of heavy rain, local roads were flooded and lots of water was coming off the hills raising the level of the river which was flowing extremely fast rushing towards Devil's Bridge about a mile down river.

In some ways this view reminds me a bit of the view of the Wye Valley from Symonds Yat Rock which I think could compete for the title of loveliest view... but then I would say there are other views that could compete and I am sure you will have your own candidates, why not leave a comment with your suggestions.

Love Is In The Air

If you have followed my blog at all you will know that recently I have been on a fantastic roadtrip around much of Europe with my son and we had the most amazing time. I also took a huge number of photos some of which I have enjoyed sharing with you and many more that I will post in future. In recent days however I have mixed things up by posting pictures from a photo shoot on Skomer and others from a night shoot in the Lake District.

I didn't post anything last night because I was actually out again, spending another night up in the Lake District. I visited Aira Force, a spot I had never been to before and somewhere I will definitely return top. Given the prolonged dry spell the cascades and waterfall were somewhat depleted and I am told that after a good rainfall they are really impressive so while I will eventually get round to sharing some of the pictures I took I will also be back for what hopefully will be even more stunning images.

After my visit I headed off to Keswick for a spot of tea and driving along the A66 past Troutbeck I spotted this stunning view so I pulled over in a couple of spots to shoot what I think are iconic images of the West Lakeland Fells.

After eating my tea and having a wander along the shore of Derwent Water and up to Friars Crag I stopped off at another of my favourite spots, the stone circle at Castlerigg. I had expected it to be quiet there however with the Blood Moon and full Lunar eclipse the place was actually heaving with local families out to see this phenomenon. Unfortunately it was far too cloudy to get even the slightest glimpse of the moon however, the night delivered another spectacle in the form of a thunderstorm over towards Mungrisdale and this provided a fantastic light show lighting up the clouds with colourful flashes for at least an hour.  There wasn't a drop of rain up at the circle so it was lovely to seat against one of the stones and take in the show. At one point a cloud passed above and as I always like to photograph hearts in nature I wasn't going to miss this shot.

Solitary Tree

This shot of a solitary tree was taken in June 2016 on a walk with my daughter around the Roaches and Lud's Church in the Peak District. It was a great day out and the scenery was spectacular.

Green and Pleasant...

Today I have a view of White Coppice in Lancashire. It is quite an isolated spot but great for a walk with fantastic views out to the coast and from a little higher up the hill it is possible to see across to North Wales.

A gentle river flows through the valley where kingfishers fly. 

In the bottom left hand corner of this shot there are the ruins of an old mill which is a nice spot to sit and enjoy the sound of the water flowing downhill while reflecting on what a beautiful world we have.

Al Fresco

When you need to clear your head a little Al fresco dining in the beautiful English countryside can help.