A Visit to the Lake District in June, Day 4 and 5

On Tuesday we had arranged to meet my brother and his wife at Lowther Castle for coffee as they were on their way up to Scotland for a few days.  It was good to catch up with them briefly and then we visited nearby Askham Hall Gardens which are excellent and well worth a visit.  From here we went to Kendal to visit another exhibition, this time of excellent landscape paintings by Julian Cooper.  An enjoyable day if somewhat pottery.

Wednesday it was get up and go again as we made a return visit to Arnside and the Knott for some butterfly photography.  We had picked today as it was the best forecast and butterfly photography needs sun and in this we were lucky.  Butterflies are easier to photograph when they are cold, but they are often impossible to find then as they tend to be tucked away somewhere sheltered.  The down side when the sun comes out is that they can be seen easily but if it is too warm they become too active to get close too.  A nature photographer is never happy - it is either too wet or too sunny, too windy or too hot!!!  That said, I had a fantastic few hours up here with plenty of butterflies: small heath, wall, speckled wood and best of all large numbers of small pearl bordered fritillary in pristine condition.  I had hoped for dark green and high brown fritillaries as well as grayling, but I was too early for these so I shall return in July.  as well as the butterflies I revelled in the close up detail of fallen juniper and yew trees, gnarled and weathered to a lustrous silver grey and I was fascinated by a wild strawberry growing in a hollow of a sawn off tree trunk.  While I chased butterflies, heather was able to enjoy herself drawing and what a place for it.  Arnside knott is  a steep little hill giving a feeling of being perched high above the village and the estuary of the River Kent with a view of the Lake District Hills beyond - perfect.

To view large, please click on an image