Chasing Waterfalls in Cumbria
You may recall I visited Killhope a couple of weeks ago. As we knew at the time that we were staying in the area a couple of weeks later, we took the opportunity to grab a couple of geotrail hiking route maps from their leaflet station for the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Some in Durham, some Cumbria. We planned to do three on our stay in the pods, however weather got in the way on one of the days. As a result we only did two, starting with this one. A short 3-4 mile circular route from Garrigill to Ashgill Force, returning on the other side of the valley.
Garrigill, near to Alston, Cumbria
The instructions said to start in Garrigill, though there was no set parking area. We chose near to the village hall to minimise potential disruption to local residences. This was roughly at ///just.data.freshest in what3words. I simply couldn’t not take a photo of the house above that was being restored near to our starting point, the side light combined with the bright red of the phone box made it irresistible.
Old farm house near to Garrigill, Cumbria.
From Garrigill you head up the hills and along the valley. The directions took you past many old farm buildings like the above. As you work your way along the route, being a geotrail there are interesting facts about the local landscapes. There was a notable limestone formation behind this farmhouse for example, however I can’t really talk much to them as the map got a little… wet, when we reached the waterfall and slightly ruined as a result. One thing I can say however is that when passing these farms, I don’t think I’ve ever gone over so many styles in such a short space of time before in my life!
Whilst much of the tops of the hills were sparse, looking down in the valley was giving lots of pops of autumnal hues. I loved this farmhouse surrounding by golden and orange leaves, but I couldn’t decide if I liked the version with or without the sheep better. Hence including both.
Farmhouse near to Ashgill Force, Cumbria
The above was one of the last farmhouses that are passed before reaching the waterfall. It caught my eye initially because of the stonework peaking through the colour to the left of the image, however it also has the added bonus of having sheep in frame. It feels like its been a while since I’ve done an obligatory sheep photo!
Waterfall preceding Ashgill Force, Cumbria
I hadn’t realised before setting off that there was not just one waterfall, but a series that gets larger as you progress along the gorge until you meet the main waterfall. I liked that this one was small enough to get close enough to use some of the autumnal leaves scattered along the rocks as foreground. I feel like I was very much sacrificing on my depth of field to be able to maintain hand holding on my Fuji. My X-T3 has no IBIS, and the 16mm prime has no OIS so it was very much a case of me relying on myself to try and get a sharp enough shot in the low light inside the gorge and under the trees.
Ashgill Force, Cumbria
The above is the main waterfall, with the bridge looming above it catching the light. Here the water levels seem quite high compared to many photos I’ve seen of it. I don’t know if it’s because of the mud and conditions meaning I didn’t trust getting as close to the waterfall as I’d wanted, or the lack of tripod with less light than I was expecting, but I didn’t get a photo that I was really happy with. Frustratingly I’d brought a tripod to the pod with me (hence the astro shot last time) I’d just chosen to not bring it on the hike with us. Maybe it’s because I so rarely ever need a tripod? Maybe I should have known better?
These were the last two images I really liked from the hike. They were taken just before you cross the South Tyne and head back along the other side of the valley. From reaching the road, it was appreciated to get back to Garrgill more quickly, but meant the second half of the hike felt much less photogenic than the first. By this point, the styles were beginning to take their tolls on my legs so I very much lived with that trade off. The above pair of images are the same house, once as we approached it, and once just after crossing the South Tyne as the sun came out and caught the hillside. In the image to the right the house is accompanied in frame by some old stoneworks from a mine near to the bottom of the frame. I’d assume a ventilation shaft or something similar, but I’m happy to be corrected on that as I’d be interested to hear what it is.
There is a further selection of images below in a gallery format from our circular hike from Garrigill to Ashgill Force and back.
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