After only recently returning home from a few months travelling (mainly around India), it had been the best part of a year since I had visited the Lake District, so on a day off from work I decided to do just that.
I am very keen to find and explore places that are closer to my home in Carlisle though, rather than the obvious, touristy places deep in the heart of the Lake District. This is firstly so that I can find more places which are quicker and easier for me to get to, giving me more options and opportunities to get outdoors with my camera when I don't necessarily have a full day free. And secondly, we've all seen countless photos of the very popular places deep within the Lake District, so by exploring more of the less visited areas on the Northern edge of the Lake District I am able to explore and photograph more unique and lesser known scenes.
So after doing some research I decided to hike up Binsey Fell. Just a short drive from my home, (I can get there easily within 30 minutes), it is a small fell at just 450 metres and so is a pretty simple and easy hike.
This does not take anything away from it though, Binsey is in fact the Northernmost Wrainwright walk and they do say that you get the best views on the smaller hills, as you're looking out onto the bigger hills - and this definitely proved to be the case here.
Binsey offers fantastic panoramic views including the Solway firth, Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite Lake, I actually could not believe just how good the views were.
It was an incredibly windy day so I was almost blown away at the summit in more ways than one. Unfortunately battling the wind did make it rather difficult to take great photos, however, my goal was just to go out and enjoy a hike just for the sheer love of the outdoors. Too often in the past I would put a lot of pressure on myself to get fantastic photos every time I go out and sometimes this can take away from the actual experience, ending the day frustrated that your photos aren't as good as you would like rather than just appreciating being out in nature.
This is one thing I've decided to change from now on, to appreciate the moment more and to not put too much pressure on myself as a photographer.
It certainly paid off too as although this was just a short and relatively easy hike, it turned out to be one of the most memorable days I have had in the Lake District.
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