This is a photo of me in 2002 on top of Helvellyn in the Lake district.
I first went to the
Lakes on a school excursion in the early 1970's. Apart from the occasional trip to the seaside I had never been outside of a town. One day on this excursion we went to Borrowdale and
climbed Great Gable. I was totally awestruck by the sight of these amazing mountains -
I had never seen the like in my entire life! I fell in love with the place and I have returned here whenever I could.

In the immediate aftermath of this school trip I used to regularly get myself invited to visit my cousins who had just moved to Skipton in North Yorkshire - the bus journey was magical to me as streets and factories gave way to open fields and hills. It was like journeying from one planet to another.
I had no idea that the Yorkshire Dales were on my doorstep! I had learned to love the grandeur of such open spaces.
As I write this I am planning on a camping trip back to the Lakes to continue my exploration of the Ullswater area.l