Ulpha and Dunnerdale

An Ulpha Circuit with the Duddon Valley Local History Group.

A sunny day in lakeless lakeland tempted a good turnout for the walk through Duddon history on Saturday.  Setting out off the road leading to Ulpha Bridge we walked up the fell-side east of the river to our first destination

the old Quaker Burial Ground known as the Quakers' Sepulcher, my first sight was of the beautifully crafted wall which encloses this peaceful space.

Burials took place here between 1662-1775. We appreciated the walled enclosure with its interior inset slate seats then took care to duck down under the low entrance to leave while mountain bikers waited to let the crowd pass.

After burial ceased here an apple orchard was planted but no trace of them remain, the only trees now are a scattering of firs.  We leave heading for Kiln Bank with views of the valley

the sky full of clouds with slants of sunlight highlighting patches of the field system. The scattering of houses and lone farms

and old slate workings entertain the eye.  We continued down the gentle path and reach the valley bottom

over the stream past 'The Fairy Bridge' in actuality built in the 1960s to show how a bridge was built -

only fairies may cross.   We cross the valley floor over Hall Bridge

Nook steps and Hall Bridge

and start to climb stopping part way up

to have lunch where there were plenty of nice flat slates to sit on

at Commonwoods Slate Quarry.  Our ultimate destination was further up

Ken stops to get his notes out to elucidate us all

to what is left of the Commonwoods slate dressing plateau.

There are many small ruined buildings, I think one would need plenty of shelter from the weather up here although this is a nice seat on a sunny day.

The slate workings building with pointed peak of Caw in the background.

The light playing on the hills with the steep slate quarry in the foreground. Here is someone who has visited the mines beneath.  We however stayed under the ever changing skies

headed downwards past the mossy remains of Grimecrag House.

which dates from the 17th Century. Built in one long range across the hillside it consists of a 3 bay house with 4 bay barn. Alan commented that the name Grimecrag would not have attracted a bride to this location in those day of old.  Today with it view of the Duddon to the coast it might have been more attractively called Sea View.  The old tree trunk in the foreground held a nice surprise

in this year of abundant fungi some had made a home here. Downward we continued by

Crosby Gill and past Grimecrag Bridge

through Hazel Head Farm, the group splintered when a few were tempted in to the Hesk View Walkers Barn with its cake and tea signpost but only with time to look around and think next time we might have time to stop but we had to catch up with our party.

We admired the bank barn on the way past.  Joining the Birker Fell Road and across the fields to the gate by

the charming Ulpha Post Office (opened in 1890). Buy your postcards here and post in

the Victoria Regina post box manufactured by WT Allen.  However it was only ice creams to be licked for us on this day rather than stamps.

A dated (1709 or 1769) gate stoop to gaze at and a visit to the idylic St John's Church

and enjoy its wall decorations.  This is dedicated to one of the Dansons (1793) who gave the church its lynchgate and oak porch (replaced in 1961 with a stone porch).  We give thanks for the day and return to our cars.

Fabulous Fungi

It was forecast that this year's weather pattern, damp with a long hot dry summer, would produce a bumper crop of fungi and how right they were.  I have never seen as many fruiting at the same time and they lined faint paths that run through Angerton Moss, a peatland habitat.

One that is always easy to recognise, Fly Agaric, but these were the biggest I've ever seen they must have measured 8 inches across and looking them up in the fungus guide it says they can grow from 6-20cm so these

must be at their maximum size.

Here is one in decay looking like a mound of couscous,  a small and shiny new one can be seen peeping though under the grass on the left

There were hundreds of these, Collybia cirrhata, which grow out of dead black fungi. They varied in size from little specks to these and also varied in

numbers growing together. Other fungi grew among the grass but I could not identify them

apart from being intrigued by their curious shape, small

and large.

Some looked familiar, this possibly is a species of mycena.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of these crab apples in the water just because they could be like my blog name - a raft of apples (although the title is taken from a poem)

Apples, like the fungi, are having a good year in 2018 although crab apples and the fungi I have photographed are not recommended for eating.   In praise of the crab apple I did once make a rather tasty white wine from them but its tastiness faded with age. Not a wine for laying down in ones imaginary cellar.

Little

A rustic little ladder to help one up and over the wall stile, no balancing on small stones here.

Little people keeping a watch on the water while canal dwellers take their ease elsewhere

A little horse quietly chomping away oblivious to all around it.  I wonder if it has a little rider

which Norman Thelwell always included in his humorous drawings, things rarely went well.

Little and large on the road.

An entry to ABC Wednesday, a journey through the alphabet, this week sojourning at L here 

No Giant Pylons

Image from:   Power without Pylons

To protest against the imposition of giant pylons along the coast of Cumbria from the proposed nuclear power plant at Sellafield (or Moorside as they are calling it now) a New Year's Day Walk protest took place through the beautiful scenery of the Duddon Valley

with walkers coming from Broughton in one direction and Askam in the other.  Here is the crowd coming from Broughton

on a beautiful sunny morning.

The long line stopping at various points to keep everyone together.

Eventually all protestors met up in Kirkby in Furness, at a guess there must have been about 200, not a bad for those who had been revelers the previous night.

and the local MP John Woodcock addressed the crowd (always useful to have a small child hold a banner). As he said the county is hosting nuclear power so the National Grid's social contract with the local inhabitants should involve not destroying the landscape of the place they live. He didn't mention the health aspect of high voltage lines running next to houses.

To join the protest and for more information see the Power Without Pylons site here

Valley View

Here I am looking over the fields of Green Moor in the Woodland Valley from the Conscientious Objectors stone where in 1916 they engraved their initials and names, the view will be exactly the same as they saw a hundred years ago.

Unlike the war memorials little is known about the men who neatly engraved their initials, the date of 1916 is significant because that is when Britain introduced military conscription to the armed forces, and some of those who refused for reasons of conscious or religion (ie consciousness objectors) were given 'work of national importance' such as farming of forestry which is what perhaps this little group were doing.

A hop, skip and jump away    

is the Duddon Valley, a quiet corner of Lakeland. The higher hills have a dusting of snow but here autumn is holding winter at bay although the temperatures are dipping

so there will be no cattle taking their ease and lounging in the sun like this summer view.

An entry to ABC Wednesday, a journey through the alphabet, this week sojourning at V here