They don't make 'em like that anymore...

The winter of 1962/3 was the coldest since 1740. In those pre-Dr. Beeching days the railway ran up Teesdale as far as Middleton-in-Teesdale. From there the road to High Force was blocked, and to see the frozen waterfall involved a five mile walk - and back again ! The snow was so high that in places it was possible to walk straight over the tops of walls ! Much of the river was frozen from bank to bank. From just after Christmas until early March, England was under a blanket of snow and ice. What a winter !

What water shortage ?

Besides the delights of the views, this is a great area for budding geologists ! Finding out how the landscape came to be the way it is, is fascinating, although it does in fact give you the capability to "bore for England". So I will resist the temptation to air what knowledge I have - there is plenty of information elsewhere, if you really want to know ! So there !

Up and down...

What a playground this is ! I only hope my legs will last out !

All sorts...

We get a lot of weather in our islands, most of it rolling in from the Atlantic, and rather damp ! The mists swirling around in upland areas do however make for good photo opportunities. Wall to wall sunshine is fine, but life isn't like that, and neither is the weather. Variety, so they say, is the spice of life !

Friends reunited...

A good walk will live in the memory forever ! You can take the same path, or try a new route - there is always a new way to discover, no matter how well you think you know your hills. Later, you can relive your walk with the help of your Ordnance Survey map - and a few photographs, of course. The hills are true friends !