Misty Thirlmere paddle

22^nd September 2012

Had a nice relaxing day with a pal today on Thirlmere, we were up at the crack of dawn and on the water just after 8 o'clock. Getting up early usually guarantees free parking in a layby plus the roads were dead when I set off at 5:30, the added bonus was a mirror lake and a thick mist sitting on the water before the sun got high enough.

Mat was giving his new boat "HMS Hang" it's maiden voyage so excuse the amount of canoe shots :)

Not much to say about the day so I'll just share the pics ..

Boats loaded with munchies and brew kit, ready to go

Looking north up Thirlmere

Away we go

Sun trying it's hardest to burn off the mist

There's a dam down here somewhere

Mat happy in his new toy

The mist got so thick at one point that we could barely make out the shore 30 yards away, but we found a nice beachy area eventually and had the first stop of the day. I cooked up some sausage and bacon sarnies while we sat blethering for a while, the sun managed to get up over Helvellyn by this point and the mist just cleared like somebody flicked a switch.

We enjoyed a nice leisurely paddle down to the dam end of the lake and then cut across to the other side, reaching the point where the busy A591 cuts back down near the lake we crossed back over and checked out the islands. Pushing on to almost the southern tip of the lake we found a beach I'd visited before and crashed out for an hour or so. We scoffed lunch and swapped boats, having a play on the homeward stretch back to the cars.

Lunch spot

Same beach back in 2009, I'm guessing the water was around 6ft higher today.

Thanks for looking