Photo Shoot with Berghaus on Helvellyn

Five go Mad on a Mountain (and a Dog)

Photo Shoot with Berghaus 

On Sunday I was asked to go along as the safety person to accompany the Berghaus photo shoot on Helvellyn. 

We met in a very wet and windy Glenridding with the Athletes and local photographer Stuart Holmes from Keswick. 

While we drank tea, ate cake and waited for the strong winds and rain to disappear we managed to catch up with Steve Birkinshaw, Charlie Sharpe, Jo Zakrzewski all world class elite athletes and looking to take part in the Dragons Back Race in 2015. 

Stuart got into the swing of things early on as we left the village making the guys warm up by running up and down the road. 

After this we set off to the hills now covered with a new layer of snow still with strong winds but easing later in the day. 

Only two days before I had been up Helvellyn as part of the safety checks for the Lakes Mountain 42  organised by NAV4 Adventure  in +19C in shorts and T Shirt with Keela my dog. 

24 Hours later the weather had changed abit and was now -2C and 35mph winds.

Our day was forecast for continuing strong winds rain and snow clearing in the afternoon. Charlie is know for wearing shorts and managed to stay like this all day. 

Jo sadly had to leave early her excuse was that Poldark was on at 9 and she need ed time to get ready for all the smouldering from the TV.

We carried on with Stuart and Angela, from Berghaus, directing the runners all over dressing them like a doting mother and looking after Keela

 

We were fortunate with the weather later in the day. 

Notice the wind on Ullswater making a very un-natural looking break point near Outward Bound.

Our day topped safely out on the summit for the obligatory summit selfies and 

We then continued Northwards along the ridge  avoiding the cornice and the areas of small avalanches. capturing the fantastic light at the end of the day

A great day with a safe circuit of one of the iconic fells in the Lake District with a great group of talented world class athletes getting ready to take on further challenges. 

I am able to help out with safety cover for any of your events worldwide do contact me.

Dan Snow The History Man on Helvellyn

   On a very wet windy gusts of 45mph sort of day in Cumbria. A very different day to the 22C we had only the day previous We shared an iconic ridge with Dan Snow  The History Man from BBC TV's The One Show 


   Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team were asked to give some advice on this aspirationl lakeland edge during the filming along with one of the Fell Top weather assessors Jason who was leading Dan on one of his usual routes to the Summit of the third highest mountain in England. 
 This is Mike Blakey the Team Leader of Patterdale, whose dog, Moss, has become a SARDA search dog. Again this is an entirely volunteer run search and rescue service 24 hrs 365 days a year. The SARDA training is very extensive and commiting providing an invaluable addition to Mountain Rescue. Well worth supporting along with Mountain Rescue Basecamp








The rain started early on as we met at Greenside Mine. Have a look at some of Greenside history it makes for interesting reading and helped shaped the Ullswater valley and make it what it is today. Filming started on the way up in the heavy rain. Never an easy thing for all concerned as you can see from the expression  on Keela the dogs' face. We set up a KISU for the film crew and Dan Snow to settle down in at Red Tarn for some lunch. This lasted longer than we thought as we rechecked the howling conditions from the warmth of the shelter.          We sat out the storm chatting and telling stories while the KISU shelter rattled around our heads. This lightweight, relatively inexpensive pieces of outdoor kit should be always packed in your bag. They really are lifesavers and can turnaround a cold and demoralised party very quickly once inside.

 Once the weather started to clear a little ie winds gusting to 20mph Dan and the film crew and Jason moved up onto Striding Edge to film some more.

I was not guiding on this one and wasn't needed as MRT member so Simon, Mike, Francis and I went back to the valley. As I normally work as an IML all over the world especially in the Lake District its normally me that would be leading so I went to watch and take photos as the clouds scudded over the ridge.

         Dan & Jason moving along the edge Red Tarn to their right Nethermost Cove to the left.

 The mist rolls by as they disappear toward the summit of Helvellyn. 

Have a look out on the One Show for Dan and Jason's Adventures and if you would like to stride out on the edge hope you get in contact soon 

Ancient Cumbrian and Viking Byways

On a wet day after sitting plotting and scheming with  Joe Faulkner from Nav4 we decided that our eyes were getting square and Keela dog needed a walk. I brought Joe a Tyvek jacket to try out. They look a bit funky and its not writeable what Lindsey said he looked like in it... I was running in one in a cloudy wet windy night and it worked well.
There are many uses for Tyvek try it out on You Tube or Wikipedia

Watch this space on further tests and uses.

So we set off on a new route for me and went by some ancient byways to stretch our legs. We set off towards Ullswater and ended up at Dacre Church  As early as AD 731, the Venerable Bede, in his Ecclesiastical History, speaks of a monastery at Dacre, written as 'Dacore'. There is no later reference to the monastery, and it is assumed to have been destroyed by the Vikings. A church, however, has been present on the site for over a millennium. Archaeological excavations support the view that the church may be built on the site of the former monastery.

The present church is a Norman design. Several notable archaeological remains are at the site. These include various stone bears - the celebrated 'Dacre Bears', and inside the church two fragments of Viking crosses. Above the tower doorway, there is a plaque stating that the church was partly rebuilt by William Pollock. The south door has a large lock dated 1671 inscribed 'AP', referring to the Countess of Pembroke, Lady Anne Clifford The resting place of Viscount Whitelaw, the former Home Secretary, is in the church grounds.

Joe and Keela looking at the quadrangular walls 

 Dacre Castle was a quadrangular building with four turrets, a pele tower design, and built around the time of Henry VII. The castle was restored as a private dwelling in 1688. By 1816 it was being used as a farmhouse. The castle is presently in an excellent state of restoration. It featured in 2007 in Robbie Coltrane's ITV series, "Incredible Britain", where he travelled from Glasgow to London in a classic 1958 Jaguar XK 150 using only minor roads.

A classic gate post in the grounds of Dalemain House This is the site of the start of the now classic Lakes 50 and half way around the 100 mile route. Come have a look at some history if you are around recceing the course or just in the area.