Beast was captured at the top of Raven’s Crag, looking out over Thirlmere and the surrounding peaks with their winter coats on. This was the scene around the time of the ‘Beast from the East’. Getting up to the viewpoint via a steep trail covered in thick ice was a challenge, getting back to Hexham post-hike was something else entirely. The roads were clear initially, but somewhere between Keswick and Penrith the snow really started to fall. It was so heavy and so quick, the M6, despite the constant flow of traffic, was covered. By Carlisle and the turn onto the A69 eastwards towards Newcastle, lines of vehicles were travelling in convoy at 30mph. It was a constant balancing act - going too fast risked skidding off the road on one of the many sudden corners (there were a number of cars off the side of the road at strange angles, each a reminder of how easy it would be to slip up); going too slow and you’d lack the momentum to make it up the far side of one of the severe dips. It took a long time, and ended with the car having to be abandoned on the outskirts of town, but the end result was a safe arrival home and Beast.
Beast was captured at the top of Raven’s Crag, looking out over Thirlmere and the surrounding peaks with their winter coats on. This was the scene around the time of the ‘Beast from the East’. Getting up to the viewpoint via a steep trail covered in thick ice was a challenge, getting back to Hexham post-hike was something else entirely. The roads were clear initially, but somewhere between Keswick and Penrith the snow really started to fall. It was so heavy and so quick, the M6, despite the constant flow of traffic, was covered. By Carlisle and the turn onto the A69 eastwards towards Newcastle, lines of vehicles were travelling in convoy at 30mph. It was a constant balancing act - going too fast risked skidding off the road on one of the many sudden corners (there were a number of cars off the side of the road at strange angles, each a reminder of how easy it would be to slip up); going too slow and you’d lack the momentum to make it up the far side of one of the severe dips. It took a long time, and ended with the car having to be abandoned on the outskirts of town, but the end result was a safe arrival home and Beast.
Beast was captured at the top of Raven’s Crag, looking out over Thirlmere and the surrounding peaks with their winter coats on. This was the scene around the time of the ‘Beast from the East’. Getting up to the viewpoint via a steep trail covered in thick ice was a challenge, getting back to Hexham post-hike was something else entirely. The roads were clear initially, but somewhere between Keswick and Penrith the snow really started to fall. It was so heavy and so quick, the M6, despite the constant flow of traffic, was covered. By Carlisle and the turn onto the A69 eastwards towards Newcastle, lines of vehicles were travelling in convoy at 30mph. It was a constant balancing act - going too fast risked skidding off the road on one of the many sudden corners (there were a number of cars off the side of the road at strange angles, each a reminder of how easy it would be to slip up); going too slow and you’d lack the momentum to make it up the far side of one of the severe dips. It took a long time, and ended with the car having to be abandoned on the outskirts of town, but the end result was a safe arrival home and Beast.
