I usually head north for my regular ramble by the Ribble (click link for 11 new Dales photos) but in a week when I’ve been pushed for time I headed for a short walk in the opposite direction. The sun sparkled across the river as I walked beside it from the waterfall at Kings Mill in Settle to the bypass. The Ribble is wide and shallow here but the ‘high tide’ marks are clearly visible well into the fields showing just how swollen the river can get at times.
I left the Ribble Way, saving the walk to Rathmell for another day, and turned up by the former Runley Watermill, continuing on up Lodge Road. Then it was back along Brockhole Lane to Settle. ‘Brock’ is the old name for a badger which is a bit of a coincidence as I’d just seen a dead badger near the Ribble. It had a dead bird on its back. How they met their fates I don’t know. It’s not pleasant coming across death on your walk – I apologise if the photo upsets some people. I’m not being sensationalist – similar scenes appear all over the countryside and you have to get used to them, even on public footpaths.
There have been some great variations in light this week. The top photo in this post was taken yesterday evening from Winskill, looking towards Ingleborough across Ribblesdale. It’s a bit grainy and the light is fading but I liked the shades of colour as late sunlight was filtered through thin mist. Penyghent also caught my eye again on another clear evening…
With all this talk of death I thought I should be a little more cheerful and include a couple of new-life shots… all together now, aawww…
