Spoilt For Choice

The toss of a coin decided my weekend; dutifully north to Newark to buy spares for my campervan, temptingly south to Complete Outdoors in Hemel Hempstead where I could check out their excellent selection of Paramo gear, or simply east to Thetford Forest for walks with Holly, my Border Terrier who will be 11 tomorrow. Hemel won both flips, at which point I wished I had said "Best of three" because I wanted Thetford Forest to win.

Arriving in Hemel, I couldn't resist the silky charms of a Paramo Adventure Light Smock and easily convinced myself that the Brasher Supalite II GTX boots had to be mine because my older version of Brasher Supalite GTX's need resoling - I'm going to send them to LSR for repair. With campervan and debit card groaning I made it back home with my treasures and daydreamed of backpacking whilst I did some tentwork (tentwork as in housework).

Last year's Shangri-La 1 and this year's Terra Nova Laser Competition have been aired.

My waterproof Montane Litespeed Jacket and Featherlite Trousers have been washed and reproofed. It's not something I've done before so I'm keen to feel the results.

Now I need to flip the coin again to decide which tent and waterproofs to take on my next outing.

Missing the Walking and Blogging

Work and jobs around the house and garden have claimed most of my time of late. So there's been little time left for walking other than to and from work, and with my dog mornings and evenings. Somehow I have to find the time for the gym and bike rides. Falling behind in those respects, I find myself, at the same time looking forward to and worrying about my forthcoming challenging summer holiday.

Situation normal for the working man I guess. However, things will be different next year. This time then I will have retired and expect to have more time for proper walks.

In the meantime though, my plans are for a long weekend away next month, a week in the Lake District in July, and then two weeks on (Wainwright's) Coast to Coast in August - with Number 1 Son, Bryn, joining me for the second week.

A bike ride today - definitely. After I: post this blog, breakfast, take Holly for a walk, cut the grass; tend to the potatoes, onions, garlic, swede, carrots, salad leaves and sew some corriander; harvest some mint and rhubarb (make sauce with the former and crumble with the latter), some housework, watch the box (a Nigel Kennedy recording again - his truly excellent and captivating concert with The Polish Chamber Orchestra) and a bit of C2C day dreaming and planning.

Just as well I stayed at home for the Bank Holiday.

Jeepers Peepers

My blog is a platform for wittering about walking and subjects related to it but today I divert your attention to another matter; an update on my peepers - eyes.

I mentioned them in November last year following an operation to have a cataract removed from my right eye. That was a great success and a revelation. It was like having a curtain drawn to give a clear view from that eye. However, my vision was still impaired by a cataract forming in the left eye. So my name was placed on a waiting list for an operation to resolve that issue.

The operation was successfully carried out on Wednesday. Vision through that eye is still slightly blurred but the indications are that when it settles down it will be as good as the other one.

It's all good news, as it seems likely that I won't have to wear spectacles full-time from now on; just when reading - or consulting a map.

Gyp tackles LEJOG

I do love to follow Land's End to John o'Groats Walk blogs.

Here's another brave adventurer who plans to set off on 14th April with his dog Gyp. Good luck to you both ...

Lake District - Friday 25th later

A walk up to the top of Black Combe and back marked the end of my walking week this morning. I parked at a small layby (space for three cars) on the A595 next to Whicham Church.

I'm keen to head south now to join family for a while before returning home by Monday.

Lake District - Friday 25th

Black Combe at 11:11 hours. In the clouds.

Lake District - Thursday 25th

The underlying reason for being here this week is to work my legs as part of preparations for a tough walk in the summer, and indeed, that is what I am doing. And yet, if truth be told, I realised today that I wasn't entirely at peace with the way I have been going about it. Everything became chrystal clear on my second pint of Jennings Cumberland Ale this evening.

I'd kitted myself out over the winter with a lightweight backpack to sustain me on a trek but it wasn't going to be fully deployed on this outing. I'm a day walker this week who returns to his home on wheels with all mod cons nearby; not the sturdy, independent nomad. No, he's a few more walks away yet. But his mind is a bit lighter now. A lighter rest of me will only result from more physical means and that is what your not-so-independent-occasional-commuting-coastal-day-walker was about today.

The walk was 7 miles/11km with 650ft/200 metres ascent. I know that because it says so in a pamphlet that I purchased "Walks - The Western Lakes".

The route starts at Boot and passes two small tarns; Blea Tarn and Siney Tarn. Boot is near Dalegarth Station at the head of the narrow-gauge Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway line so I could have made the journey to and from the start area by train. I drove though - no complaints but I've had enough of trains this week. Although I always stop, stare, listen and admire those choo choos whenever they pass by. Someone (not the same one) always waves a greeting from those trains. At least I think it's a greeting 'cos I always wave back.

Lake District - Wednesday 24th night.

Today's earlier blogs were a bit of an experiment - using the camera. Outdoor conditions weren't what you might call condusive to such activities, however, apart from the evening picture disappearing into the ether it seemed to work.

I had half planned to camp wild tonight but with the odd thing going wrong I decided not to.

Next month I'll be trying out Memory Map so hope to be able to show (and measure) routes. In the meantime here's a brief description of today's:

From Ravenglass (Map OL6) generally NE by footpath (FP) to and then along a short section of A595. Then generally NE on FP over Muncaster Fell (playing silly beggars off route practising navigation) to pub east of Eskdale Green.

Disheartened to find pub shown on map (King George IV) closed and up for sale, so no hot soup and pint.

Continued SE (hungrily) along the road (up Birker Fell) heading for Devoke Water but wasn't enjoying that because of other water falling out of the sky and turned back down to Forge House. From there, generally SW on bridleway (BW) to Muncaster Tarn and the BW (Fell Road) and back to Ravenglass.

PS. Thanks for your comments Alan, Martin. My comments box giving me a hard time so hope you can make do with route description above!

Lake District - Wednesday 24th evening

A good day's walking over, around and near Muncaster Fell.

Lake District - Wednesday 24th afternoon

Eskdale Trail. My take on Zulu: "The sentry reports logs Sir. Tharsands of them, to the south!"