Caldbeck In The Springtime

Today has been one of those glorious, sunny and warm Spring days when England looks so wonderful, especially so in my exquisite corner of it, Cumbria. Most of the county is a National Park, but some of my much-loved places are not within the well-known Lake District, but on the outskirts of it. One of my favourite villages is Caldbeck, 13 miles form where I live. It is an ancient village that nestles in a verdant hollow in the Fells, the foothills of the mountains of the Lake District.

My cousin Janet and I had a day out in Caldbeck today, along with the terrible two, Pepsi and Max. We parked the car and walked along a narrow pathway beside the river, past cottages and grander houses with gardens full of Spring flowers, and past the 12th Century St Kentigern's Church. On the riverbank behind the church was by St Kentigern's Well, where from the 6th century Christians were baptised.

A stone bridge crosses the river just beyond the church and a short walk on form there is the Priest's Mill. Built by a rector of the nearby church in 1702, it was a working corn grinding mill until 1933. It was restored in 1986 and now houses shops and a wonderful cafe that serves delicious homemade food. The huge waterwheel is still in full working order.

We stopped at the Priest's Mill as we knew they had an outside area where we could eat and take the dogs. Unfortunately a lot of other dog owners had the same idea, it was like a Doggie Central Meeting Point! We had a delicious meal there and the dogs had a lot of canine socialising.

Afterwards we walked back through the lovely village which, as it's a conservation area, has remained unchanged - I'm sure someone coming back here from a hundred or more years ago would recognise most of it.

We went on to just beyond the car park to the village pond and sat on a bench in the sunshine. The pond residents, the mallards, either sunbathed on the grass or were dipping their heads underwater tails in the air, looking for food.

It was so peaceful, there was no noise except for birdsong all around us and the odd splash and quack from the ducks. It was so relaxing and we sat for ages just chatting. All in all a lovely day, sometimes the simple things are the best aren't they?

Mountains, Sheep and ...... Silence

As the good weather continues here I decided to go for a run out in the car today. I didn't want to go far so I decided to go to Warnell Fell (fell is Cumbrian for hill) which is about fourteen miles from my home. I hadn't been there for a long time and it was one of my favourite places.

So my dog Max and I got into the car and drove south and around twenty minutes later we were parked at Warnell. It is set high in the fells, which are really the foothills of the Lake District, close to the picturesque village of Caldbeck. From up there you get a stunning panorama of the surrounding countryside. To the north you can look over to Carlisle and Scotland beyond. West past other fells to the Solway Firth. South and east the Lake District mountains rise up majestically. Today, because of a heat haze the views weren't as clear as usual, but they still captivated me.

What I've always loved most about Warnell Fell is the silence. The day to day world we live in is so polluted by noise be it traffic, music, TV, people, noise all around us. At Warnell it's like being in another world, it is so peaceful, the only sounds are the occasional mournful baaing of the sheep that wander free over the fells, the occasional cricket in the grass or a skylark's song. It is just so wonderful to be away from society's noise for a while!

Max and I walked around the fell, past the long disused quarry, the sheep giving us cursory glances and then continuing to unconcernedly munch the grass. The thistles were in bloom and the heather was just starting to bud - I must go back in two or three weeks when it is in full bloom and covers the fell with a blanket of purples and lilacs. Some parts of the fell can be quite boggy, and reeds grow there, but due to the recent warm and dry spell there was little wet ground. There was a gentle breeze, just enough to keep me from getting too warm in the sunshine.

I've been coming to Warnell since I was about fourteen years old, my mother loved it there and as I walked I thought of her. It hasn't changed at all, it has a beauty coupled with wildness. Nature here goes through it's cycles year in year out and has seen many generations of people pass through. I love the sense of permanence there, the peace and the permanence.