Stockghyll, Lake District, Summer
Loads of rain means one thing: waterfalls.
Though certainly not as numerous or epic as in the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District is still home to some lovely waterfalls.
Certainly one of the more accessible, yet grand, waterfalls is Stockghyll Force in Ambleside. We last hiked around here in June 2020, just as the UK’s COVID-19 lockdown was starting to ease off. Ambleside, usually one of the busiest honeypots in all the Lake District, was eerily quiet on that visit.
Things were very much back to normal this time. Lots of people about, sipping pints in pubs, chatting over coffee and cake with friends, and hiking in and around the town.
And all the rain we’ve had in July has meant that Stockghyll Force should be in full flow. Boy did she look good.
All photos taken on my Sony α7ii using my Sony FE 28–70mm f3.5–5.6 OSS zoom lens. RAW files were corrected in Lightroom, developed using RNI Films’ Kodachrome film profiles, and finalised again in Lightroom.
Stockghyll Force, Lake District, Summer by Ian Cylkowski is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
From the car park opposite the Log House, we elected for the back roads towards the waterfall, rather than trekking alongside the main road. It gave us lovely, almost timeless, scenes like this.
Soon enough we exited the town centre, hiked up the road alongside the beck, and head into the woodland surrounding the waterfall. A lovely little weir, bathed in sunlight, made for a nice composition.
Further into the woods, a small beck flows underneath this delightful little bridge.
At the main waterfall itself, I perched myself and the tripod gingerly on a crag above the main drop, seeking a composition looking all the way down the falls to the gorge below.
The upper part of Stockghyll Force, surrounded by jagged, mossy crags and lush verdant vegetation everywhere.
After leaving one side of the trail, we took a lunch break at a new cafe that’s recently opened not 30 m away from the waterfall. Force Cafe. Delicious food and drink, and absolutely stunning views from their open terrace.
Heading back down the other side of the trail, the classic view of Stockghyll Force emerges and I cannot resist.
However, just a little further down the trail, I think the best view of Stockghyll Force can be obtained.