blue sky – Page 2 – travellingzombie.com

Clearing Out the Cobwebs At Malham Cove

An hour and a half’s drive from Manchester led us to Malham, a small village with a huge rock cove and beautiful views.

Stocking up on Kendal Mint Cake and Snickers, we set off on the 8km round trip from the village to Malham Cove, stopping at Janet’s Foss and Gordale Scar on the way. Blessed with beautiful weather and just the right amount of breeze, it was a beautiful walk with a mix of fields, forest and cliffs to satisfy my adventurous nature.

Janet’s Foss is a small waterfall, which pours into a lush green forest-like setting. Legend has it that a small fairy lives in the cave beyond the waterfall – I thought that Janet wasn’t a very fairy-like name but who am I to judge!? The forest on the way to the Foss was dense and created a mysterious atmosphere, with our conversations echoing around us.

A short trip up the trail led to Gordale Scar – a rocky, waterfall area which was mostly dried up, except for small rock pools and a light waterfall.

Two very brave guys were climbing the rock cliffs – one sensible guy with a rope and one less sensible guy who had a rope that wasn’t hooked up to anything! Very impressive to watch but not something I am brave enough to do! Still we spent some time amongst the lower cliff face, climbing through rock pools and scrambling up the cliff side to a small waterfall at the top.

Doubling back along the path, we followed the trail up to the top of Malham Cove. Here the broken rock stood tall, making crevices and stepping stone pathways reminiscent of an otherworldly terrain.

I’d started the day grumpy and frustrated with a lack of travel recently, however the fresh air and sense of movement really changed how I felt and by the time I was heading back down the cliff, my sense of adventure had returned.

Hoodoos at Bryce Canyon

A Day at Bryce Canyon

Sitting on the little shuttle bus, we trundled in the heat around Bryce Canyon, jumping on and off the bus from stop to stop to make sure we saw as much as possible on our brief day trip.

The key sites at Bryce Canyon are Bryce Point, Inspiration Point, Sunset Point and Sunrise Point – all with great vistas over the natural cliffs and drops throughout the park.

Looking out over the view, we took our time soaking in the natural beauty of the area. Although it was a very dry and dusty place, there was wildlife all around and we spent ages watching the birds flying in and out of the holes in the rock face.

We didn’t get chance to do a hike or take in a Ranger programme, although both are on offer throughout the park. In particular, if we were there a little longer, I’m sure a hike through the tall, spiky hoodoos at the bottom of the amphitheater would have been incredible and created some great photographs!

Emerald Lake

Avoiding visitors to Emerald Lake in Canada

It’s in all of the travel pictures – stunning, calm, serene emerald waters, but what is Emerald Lake really like?

On our road trip around parts of Canada, we took some time to visit Emerald Lake as a stop off en route towards our next location.

The first thing that struck us about this place was the different approach it had taken towards visitors to the lake. Many of the other places we had stopped at were full of cars, visitors and camping vans, parked up as close as possible to the edge of the water. Whilst this is great for getting a viewing spot, it’s not so great for trying to find a calm, quiet place to absorb the beauty of the view. Some of the places we visited were busier than their town centres!

Emerald Lake differed in this respect, as cars were not allowed over the small wooden bridge towards the accommodation. Instead, a car park and shuttle bus was provided to support people too and from the cabins. This resulted in the lake being a little less crowded – not that it wasn’t busy (it certainly was), but it wasn’t anywhere near as bad as some of the places we visited (Lake Louise we’re looking at you!).

The trip over the little bridge was also quite exciting, it made the lake feel a little more hidden and cut off from the rest of the world.

We were staying in one of the cabins alongside the lake and they were beautiful! Looking out of the window, past the balcony (yes we had a little balcony!), the colours of the lake were so vivid, even from a distance. The rooms were basic but fairly spacious and included a little log fire which would be lovely in colder weather. They were beautifully designed to blend in with the blue skies and green waters.

The main lodge was a great place to hang out in the evenings – a mixture of pool, beer, TV and music made sure that we were all well entertained (one night a little girl jumped on the piano and she was incredible!).

The path around the lake is the jewel in the crown when visiting Emerald Lake. We only did the lake circuit (you can head up to the basin for more stunning views) but it was one of the most memorable walks of our trip. The lake trail is around 5km and is a fairly easy walk in most places – although there are some muddy, forest parts which would be challenging for someone with accessibility needs.

The start of the path takes you out on to a gravel path and as soon as you get past the first couple of yards, most of the visitors to Emerald Lake fade away. We only saw one or two other people for the rest of the walk – this was brilliant as the escape from the crowds left us feeling much more immersed in nature.

The first half of the walk keeps you close to the shoreline on a gravel path and gives a close-up view of the path the glacier follows as it melts down to the lake. Whilst making our way around the lake, a fire helicopter made numerous visits, filling up the water bucket on the way to a nearby forest fire.

The wooden bridge at the far end of the lake marked the start of the return journey. The path ran through a forest area for most of the walk home, giving very different views. This was my favourite part of the walk as it was fairly dense and almost had a jungle-like feel to it.

Staying on the lake is an excellent idea if you want to grab some photos that don’t include 20 other visitors. Once everyone goes home, you get a much more natural experience of the environment.

Evenings by the lake were beautiful, particularly once most day visitors had gone home. We were lucky enough to find a pier without anyone around and sat looking out on to the lake in silence, admiring the colours and stillness in the early evening.

Somewhere To Belong

Belongs somewhere doesn’t always mean a particular place

The past couple of months haven’t really seen much travel for me and Wandering Beeb. We have been moving house and as anyone who has been through that experience knows, it takes up lots of time and almost all of your money! After lots of sorting and box carrying, we decided we needed some time out and a bit of time away from the house-moving world.

We jumped in the car and took off to Formby beach and squirrel park . We chose Formby because it’s fairly easy for us to get to, has a beautifully clean beach and has a lovely forest area nearby.

After lots of busy weekends, it was so nice to stroll through the forest area. We’d picked a beautiful day (that one sunny day that the U.K. gets each year!) and the sun was streaming down through the trees. We were keeping our eyes pealed for squirrels but we didn’t spot a single one, despite the forest’s name! We did spot millions of magpies though, so that might have provided an explanation as to where all of the squirrels had gone.

Looking up at the tree line, we were struck by how much they resembled the trees in Zion National Park. This led us on to a lengthy discussion about Zion and what we’d enjoyed there – making us reflect on our experiences. Although it wasn’t quite the same (no waterfall to walk underneath and certainly not as hot!), it had a similar calming effect on the both of us.

We’d arrived in Formby stressed out and worked up, but looking at the trees and taking time to appreciate our surroundings instantly made us feel far more relaxed.

As we strolled along the beach, the sun bouncing off the sea and the calm sound of the waves made us take a breathe and slow down for a second amongst the hustle and bustle of daily life. Jumping over the pools of water and slushing through the wet sand, our shoes became drenched and our socks were soggy, but our smiles were much wider than when we first got out of the car.

Before this trip, I was getting ready to write a post for last week’s photo challenge on my place in the world. I probably would have picked Yosemite as my place in the world – however, our visit to Formby made me realise, it’s not a specific place where I feel at home. Instead, it’s being somewhere in nature: tall trees, water, sunshine and good people are what I need to feel at home, the actual location doesn’t matter.