Davenpete

Make up your mind - the label should be obviously RED (as described and pictured on Discogs), it was obviously orange. I will raise a Paypal dispute (but am leaving to holiday for a week any minute) - though I suspect his snowing tactics have been aimed at timing out the Paypal dispute limitation. Dx

Thanks - sorry wasn't sure where to put it. I was just warning people as it was a plainly fraudulent sale and discogs are being useless about it. Dx

Flogged me an 'original' Earl Connelly that was plainly a second issue and then failed to provide agreement of settling all my costs - then said he would have done but because of complaining to Discogs after three weeks of no response despite additional prompts that he's refunding me nothing. Beware! Dx

There's a scene in The Deuce (the James Franco series about hookers, porn etc in 70s New York) where they visit a guy's bedsit and Charade by The Four Tracks is playing in the background. We were out for dinner with RS and JS when they came up to visit (Pete and him were very close going back to 71 - last week marked 2 years since Pete passed away BTW) - we were in the only Temperance Inn left in Britain - The Cross Keys - in the absolute middle of nowhere round the back of the Howgills between Kirby Stephen and Sedburgh and Pennine Radio was playing in the restaurant just as we were talking about music and what Richard did to the owner (who we were very friendly with) when on came Judy Freeman and Black Rock. Dx

I'm spending a lot (for me) on vinyl atm, but I'm buying what I want/need - the only relevance of current prices is how much I have to find to get what I'm really after - if the prices started to drop it'd suit me coz I'd still be buying and could afford more toys for my playroom. Dx

Bowness Common close to the Solway this afternoon. The pic with the cows is exactly as taken BTW - just a very lucky combination of timing of sunset and cow about 200 yards from home. Dx

This morning from the Battlements of Fort Greyhair, Silloth church steeple on the horizon. Dx

Rannerdale Knotts are fantastic to hike. Dx Lodore Falls in Borrowdale on Sunday after all the rain - didn't take my decent camera - should have done. Dx

My head in a better place today that it has been recently, so went for a decent walk from Caldbeck, up over Brownrigg fell for the most amazing views across the Solway, then back down and into the magical Howk gorge that you'd simply never guess was there if you didn't know. Unfortunately because the Howk's so thick with trees you can't photograph the deepest shafts in the rocks where the river goes. Dx

Thought it was about time I shook myself and got out on another hike - so did my favourite walk round Ennerdale, an easy 8 mile jaunt around what I reckon is the prettiest of the Lakes. Excuses why I've not been out hiking more over the last month or so: A] I ran myself over - no I REALLY did! (actually the exercise did my various lumps and bumps and cranked up back the power of good in loosening it all up) B] Recovering from an excess of fun at Cleethorpes (your own stupid fault Carne when are you gonna grow up?) C] Being admitted to the Cumberland with crippling stomach pains (visiting this hospital is a near death experience in itself - endoscopy on Wednesday, though things seem OK right now which probably means I'm doomed) Er that's it (at least all I'll admit to). Dx

Went for a gentle hobble on the beech (long story - suffice to say I managed to run myself over on Friday - not badly injured given what it could've been, hopefully it won't curtail the activities of this dancing bear at Cleethorpes too much). Lovely patch of Sea Holly - one of my favourite plants - a nice breeze made it very pleasant. Spotted this lovely Golden Plover whilst I wandered the beech too. Dx

One bird (along with the crested tit) I've always wanted to see - fabulous pics. Dx Best Laid Plans Mk2: Hadn't been out for over two weeks (been recovering from a surfeit of fun). Anyway it was chucking it down here so on went the waterproof and off I went - stopped at the shop for a sandwich for tea and realised I'd forgotten my camera - nipped back to get it, checked it turned on and that the card was in - all good - off to Braithwaite for a planned three peaks above the old Coledale mines. I get there and gone is the rain and it's 22ºC - so just shirt sleeves. Off I trot - after a mile or so I decide to do a shot back towards Bassenthwaite and Skiddaw - 'Your SD card is locked' it tells me - strange but no problem, I go to take the SD card out and move the lock slider back to unlock and it's missing altogether so I can't fix it - bollocks! Anyway at this point I think sod it I'm doing the lazy hike without the peaks (though I did venture up to the corrie high above the mine where I'd not been before) - lovely walk anyway, if weighted down by a rather heavy sling for my left arm/neck that I like to protect from overuse. Shots with the phone instead - from now on I'll always carry a spare SD methinks. Dx

Lifeline was really special in taking a stand - Pete was really pissed off with the moron lowest common denominator oldies and stodgy third rate unknowns at the time and, sure I was over-egging its potential, I practically had to drag him kicking and screaming to the first one. Once there he couldn't get his head round why nowhere else was doing it really properly like that - and wanted to know where all these PROPER soulies had popped up from????? Sadly as Pete's health was already failing then and business pressures came into play we didn't make it to many - but loved them when we did. Dx

Cheers - I obviously have a torch on my phone (have a head torch in my bag though I'm not doing hikes to justify carrying significant kit at the mo) - I'm tending to stick to places where I can come straight down if weather gets bad or it starts getting dark. I travel light so only a water bottle, fully charged phone and a jacket unless it's really warm and a short walk. The injury risk is the problem of course as I'm alone (again hence not anywhere really 'serious') - trouble is I don't think people know what three blasts on a whistle means any more (they certainly don't know that a car travelling up hill in the mountains has priority). Dx

Went up to Greendale Tarn above Wastwater tonight - lovely conditions, but it was a fair way straight up to get there. I had planned to come back over the top of Middle Fell but for various reasons I didn't arrive at the tarn til 8.00pm so thought better of it as it would've been getting too close to darkness for safety by the time I was coming down. Dx

Having limbered up yesterday with St John's and High Rigg it was a proper jobby today - Harrop Tarn above Thirlmere, then (the other) Blea Tarn, over Standing Crags, up to Ullscarf and then what turned out to be a very long way back down via Green Coomb and Wythburn Head . At about 8.5 miles and peaking at 726m (just shy of 2400 feet) by far the toughest day out I've done to-date though the views were simply amazing (my prime reason for going up there). Thoroughly shagged out now. Dx

Left late so did an easyish walk of 5 miles or so that I've done before - from Thirlmere to St John's in the Vale Church and then back up over High Rigg. Was a pretty dull day so I've gone arty on a couple of the shots. Dx

Sunset tonight from from downstairs on the patio. Looks like the meadow is about due for the farmer to cut it. Dx PS There's no over sharpening or the like on the foliage, it's just the beautiful tracery effect of the sun catching the edges of the leaves.

Here's one from another field - Grass Teds. Dx

I intended to do the Langdale valleys today, but the weather looked bloody awful in the direction on the way so I plumbed for doing the upper circuit at Loweswater again - of course the sun broke out and it was a glorious half an hour into my walk. Was dead chuffed to see a Slow Worm up on the fell - never seen one in Cumbria before (picture came out crap - this camera doesn't seem to like closeups). Dx

Having been intrigued by Stonethwaite/the Langstrath Valley on Friday I went back there tonight: A typically Carne move to visit a spot within a couple of miles of the wetttest place in Britain on a rainy evening. It's an easy circular walk totalling about 3 1/2 miles from Stonethwaite up to Black Moss Pot and back. The extremely dull weather meant the shots are somewhat 'atmospheric'. Dx

I remember Geordie Martin with his spud gun...

After being a bit duff yesterday post-jab 2 I thought I'd take it easy and just walk up to Scale Force above Crummock Water. Turned out that Buttermere was insanely busy (they really ought to ban motorhomes from these tiny hill roads - particularly with 90% being rented by inexperienced motorhome drivers they were causing absolute chaos trying to get past each other) - it was like Blackpool on a Bank Holiday Really enjoyed the walk up to Scale Force - despite the hundreds of cars (on top of the ample parking at Buttermere they'd converted three whole fields into car parks too - all full) everyone had headed for the lake so it was fairly quiet at the waterfall. The weather was just nice - not too hot - so I thought 'right I wonder if you can see Loweswater from the head of the Scale Beck valley?' and off I went - you can't - then I thought 'how nice the view must be from the Knott on the other side' - so I did that (just looked it up, surprise, surprise it's Scale Knott) - though now 2/3 up Melbreak I resisted the temptation and made my way back. Dx PS Included the road/parking purely out of interest - really impressed with this cheapish Sony 'bridge' camera (50x optical Zeiss zoom) - my car is the red one taken at a distance of at least 2 1/2 miles from the top of Scale Knott - no extra sharpening or cropping.