Ooh its been a barren start to 2026. The weather, well, what can I say....its been little short of bloomin awful. Wind, rain and grey followed by even more wind, rain and grey...with some wind and rain thrown in for a good measure. Miserable doesn't even come close to my general mood at present. Poor Mrs Dove must be well and truly sick of me and to be fair, I can't blame her. Luckily, there has been a cease fire between Mr Rain and Mrs Wind and at long last (6 weeks but I've not been counting..honest) we finally had some weather to get excited about, to be frank anything not involving wind and rain would have been acceptable at this point. I'd ear marked Saturday for my alotted time out with the camera and sort international clearance from my lovely wife...with was swiftly granted (she just wanted me out of the house by hook or by crook). The weather was looking glorious and also a little gift of snow to, well I think thats the very least the weather gods could do in the circumstances.

Scafell and Burnmoor Tarn Winter Light - A Composition Ive wanted to return to with snow on the fells.

illgill snow scafell As the week progressed it was looking like Saturday was going to be wall to wall blue skies, which isn't preferable but would be more than acceptable given what we had been served up before. More interestingly, however, was how Friday afternoon was shaping up. The weather front which had brought in the snow was clearing out and from about 3pm on Friday the conditions looked really interesting...we are talking cloudage and mood, certainly more photogenic that blue skies. So I decided to commit to Friday afternoon to get out. I started making a plan on potential locations. While the weather looked great there was the caveat that it was still going to be pretty windy. So I made the decision to not go onto the higher fells. Other considerations being I didn't want to travel too far and would also avoid the high passes due to icy conditions. In the end I decided on Illgill Head, which I really do have a soft spot for and it ticked the boxes. With that all decided, I scraped the thick layer of dust of my camera, removed the moths from my clothing and packed my gear in readiness with the aim of setting off after work on Friday lunch time. I could hardly wait. The buzz was back....bring it on. 

Frozen Moods - A frozen over tarn and beautiful snow dusted grasses catching the afternoon light 

illgill snow 55 blog 1 Its relatively pleasant drive over to Wasdale via the coast, a little longer but all very easy and you don't have to negotiate any fell and narrow roads. So it was sunnies on, Radio 2 (other stations are available) and off we went. I Parked up at the large parking area for Irton Pike, which is my preferred start point for the walk. While getting ready I had a chat with a lovely lady and her dog who had been up on Irton Pike and said it was extremely windy.....hmmmmm. Anyway I decided to have a wander up to the Pike and see how that land lay. Well she wasn't wrong, blimey it was windy and it also looked like there wasn't an abundance of snow on Illgill Head or the head of Wasdale. I could have changed location but after careful consideration, I decided to go with plan A for various reasons but in the main I couldn't be bothered to walk back down and get to another place. Plus I do love Illgill and had my heart set on it. So off I trotted with the hope in my heart and wind in my cheeks (both sets). Its a good 4 mile hike so it was time to get my head down and get to the summit for around 3pm....roughly an hour before golden hour. 

Between a Rock and a Precarious Place - The stunning Wasdale Head and Wastwater from the Screes.

illgill snow wide The snow started to increase as I made my way to the summit as did the wind. I arrived just after 3pm and the views where absolutely mind blowing....quite literally. It was bitterly cold and the wind was very strong, almost gale force, and I knew this was going to be a really challenging shoot. After putting all my layers on in the wind in rather comedic fashion (glad no one sore me flapping about) I set about finding some compositions. After spending around half an hour at the Wasdale side, I ventured over to the Eskdale side of the fell, to get some much needed respite from the wind and also re visit a shot I took a few years ago. The afternoon winter light was perfect and it was just a matter of time waiting for the low cloud to clear from the summit of Scafell....which looked stunning in its winter jacket. After a bit an explore and playing around with some frozen tarns I ventured back to the Wasdale side of the fell...for golden hour. There was now a lot of cloud to the west building and the light was getting snuffed out, however it was meant to clear out for sunset, so I was pretty confident we'd get the light.  

The Wasdale Wall - The remains of an old wall just off the summit of Illgill Head.

illgill snow 55 blog 3 The shot I had in mind for Golden hour was one I'd taken earlier in the year. A shot of Wastwater and Wasdale Head. The only problem with this is its right on the edge of the fellside....dangerously close...we are talking a very big drop off. One strong gust and I could say good by to camera and tripod and potentially photographer...as they would tumble down the screes in to Wastwater. The light was starting to break the clouds and was leaving teasing splashes of light on the fells but not enough to make the image and translate on camera...I need that light to break fully. After what felt like an hour stood in a wind tunnel and doing the 'photographer jig' to keep warm, the light came and boy oh boy it was beautiful. The light was like somebody had painted the fells in marmalade, a gorgeously rich orange hue washed across the peaks and my foreground rocks... result. It was worth the wait, a feeling and excitement I'd not experienced in many months. A feast for the senses indeed but my major worry was whether the images would be sharp enough due to excessive wind. After the light shifted further up the fell top I moved locations and took a few more images before the light finally departed.

The final Hooorah - The final embers of light hitting the Wasdale Fells.

illgill snow wide lite

Wow, I felt like I'd gone 10 rounds with Frank Bruno. My hands and feet where numb, I was weather beaten and even my water bladder had frozen due to the cold. It was time to get moving and get the blood flowing again and generate some heat. So off I marched down the fell side back to the car. I really don't mind making the long walk back when you have had a successful shoot as I'm usually on a complete high with the adrenaline pumping through my body and my mind a whirling mess of thoughts. I really felt alive again, 6 weeks doesn't seem much in the grand scheme but to me it really did feel like a life time. Hopefully it won't be as long until the next outing and with the nights now getting longer, its starting to get to that time when I can be a lot more productive with my photography. I'll tell you this though, its times out like this that really reminds me why I enjoy this so much and why it is so important to my general well being. Needless to say Mrs Dove has definitely got a happier Mr Dove this weekend. I even bought her some flowers for valentines day (which I don't really agree with, you shouldn't have to be reminded and have a set day to tell someone you love them......anyway thats for another time). The power of photography hey? 

Tim