Leaving Shadows Behind

The last day of our backpacking trip round the South of Haweswater; this is the three of us and Bailey the Golden Retriever (who owns Simon), looking over Rough Crag and Kidsty Pike as the sun rose behind us.

Backblip 1 - Day 1 of the Trip

Backblip 2 - Day 2 of the Trip

The evening before was rounded off nicely with chilli and rice, a couple of cans of Black Sheep Ale (they do it in cans now :o) ) and a wee dram of Single Malt.

A beautiful starlit night, bright enough to not really need headtorches as the moon had no cloud to cover it, but this also meant it was very cold and did mean an early turn in. The wonder of the stars when you have no light pollution and no cloud is something everyone should see for themselves as it's impossible to describe it without sounding like you're exaggerating.

Another great nights sleep - handy hint - earplugs and eyemask are a lightweight sleep system that no backpacker should be without. The wind picked up overnight and can be disconcerting if you're not used to it; but I only knew it was happening when the tent buffeted a bit and I took out my earplugs, otherwise I'd have been blissfully unaware.

Woke up sometime after 6am. Getting out of bed at home is quite a trial when you're warm and it's cold out of bed. In a tent when it's minus degrees, it's a whole different prospect! The key is to either sleep fully clothed or to make sure your clothes are laid out and easily accessible. Scrabbling around trying to find your down jacket under a pile of rucksack and other stuff is no fun!

It really was cold out. The tents were covered in frost and the sun had not yet risen, but as soon as it appeared it warmed up almost immediately. A couple of hours of trekking back down to the car park at Mardale and home to air out the kit!

So an excellent weekend spent in excellent company!