It was a mill waaaaaay back – one of the original bobbin mills in the early 17th Century, then a basket factory then a barn then a house ;-)

As for safeguards… do you trust Tory land owners with vested interests?

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-65348001.html

(if anyone wants a massive barn conversion in the South Lakes it is already on Rightmove….)

In other news… as soon as this house sells I am coming home… to Scotland ;-)

Then the only fear is that “our” glorious leader may try to use his shiny new powers to remove that pesky Scottish Parliament and bring everywhere under his yoke.

I think either a Yamaha Revstar or PRS SE would be top of my list… although I am Gretsch Streamliner curious too! If you want to stick with the Tele style then a Jim Roots could be kinda interesting, the Squire one comes in about the right price :-)

Nice work!

We are looking around that area at the moment, although currently waiting for our house in the Lakes to sell before we get too committed!

Woo hoo – I shall partake, think Tuesday is going to be my first day back at work in a few months (just a couple of light days though next week as I am still smashed up from a car crash to the point that I aint going to be working in this particular field much longer).

Coffee will be required!

We had an ex-motability NV200 as a family car for a good few years. It was great, my wife really misses it but bits had started to fall off and it was costing money. Not as much as the X-Trail that replaced it mind… particularly when a 2 ton ash tree fell on it at the start of the year :-(

I would look for the car version myself rather than crew van – better visibility if nothing else.

I never went, but you may remember my brother Neil.

Neil4 by Rob Sutherland[/url], on Flickr

We are looking to get a caravan this year – the cost of cottages is getting silly with 4 kids so whilst it will be a bigger initial cost we should save in the long run – and I suspect actually get away a lot more for adventures! Looking very second hand so there has been some great info on this thread!

The original idea was a campervan, but with enough berths and seatbelted seats things were looking expensive! The idea of a caravan seems more versatile since we can leave it onsite and go off for the day.

Also – I am feeling too old for too much camping now, and it does rain a lot in the UK….

BT Mesh here – works well!

Thanks for the thoughts – I have just taken a few days to chill and reflect. We (as a family) have been talking and really… there isn’t much for us here any longer – and a change is needed (for a number of sensible reasons as well as a number of emotional ones to be fair) and we are starting to come up with a plan!

Leaving the area we are in isn’t going to be a great wrench as pretty much our entire social circle have left or are about to leave – so we are an island! Most of the rest of our social life is in Scotland, so getting closer is starting to become ever more important, as is finding a nice tranquil place.

First step is a mini fact finding exercise next week with a bit of a road trip – but we seem to be settling on the “sensible” option based around an area bordered by Dumfries – Gatehouse of Fleet and back along the coast, although we are going to take a look up Loch Ken too I think.

We either make a fresh start where we are, or make a fresh start somewhere else which may have the benefit of easing the financial stress at the same time.

I do get what you are saying about not making decisions whilst suffering from depression, but I think a large part of the depression is because of the place we are (as well as the catalogue of losses that we have had in the family over the last few years) so I think looking at where we could make a fresh start does make a good bit of sense… whilst conceding that running away to the west Highlands is probably a bit too dramatic!

Fujifilm X-T3 is doing rather well if you can go down to a crop sensor – to be fair it would probably produce considerably better results than an old Nikon D1h anyway ;-)

Full frame is just expensive, and I say that using a D850 most the time… but in all honesty most the time when I am out I can get by with the Fuji… or even a m4/3 Olympus…. If you don’t get on with the EVH then perhaps one of the higher end Nikon crops may be worth a look – Nikon D7500 is, I think, the new one.

I have found that I have something like this (I think) – prolapsed disc between L2 and L3 if I remember what the physio said right. Exercises from her and yoga are helping, and I am “only” on Co-Codamol for pain at the moment. Damn car crash in November!

I have been warned to sort it now, and properly, otherwise it is liable to get a lot worse… so this is making interesting reading!

The Cure in Glasgow
Tim Minchin (also in Glasgow)

Not been to any in ages!

Just for a bit of balance… 7min 21seconds/km for me!

Building up to my first 5k of adult life at the end of the month. At the moment my goal is simply to run that distance, time is not a factor! Once I have done it then if I can get it down to 30-35 minutes I will be happy.

On non-flat ground with bits of trail where I can.

I am far too large for this game though!

cp – sent you a message.

ALso, if anyone is interested, I have a Lee 75 filter system that may be going too. I need to use the 100mm system with the Fuji for wide angle stuff so there isn’t much sense in having a duplicate smaller set up.

Comprises a holder, set of ND grads (soft IIRC), a Big Stopper, poleriser and lens hood.

Gear I am disposing of:

Olympus OM-D E-M5 mkII body
Olympus 9-18mm f4 – 5.6 (surprisingly competent, and small/light which helps)
Olympus 12mm f2 (very, very nice)
Olympus 45mm f1.8 (also very, very nice)
Olympus 60mm f2.8 macro (another really nice one)
Olympus 75-300mm f4.8 – 6.7

I am keeping hold of a couple of bits for my wife to use on my older E-M5 mk I

I am in the process of upgrading from an Olympus OM-D E-M5 mkII set up to a Fuji X-T3 as my small, light rig. The Olympus was pretty good all things considered, the Fuji is epic. No problem taking the Fuji on the bike or anywhere else.

I just need to sell the Olympus now to buy new glass!

OP – if you are looking at Fuji and m4/3 systems then I would say an Olympus OM-D E-M10 would be worth a look as more of a direct comparison rather than Panasonic. The Olympus has that same tactile quality to it and is plenty robust enough. I would also look at used kit and see if that allows you to push up the ranges a bit to get stuff like weather sealing or a more robust body design.

If anyone is interested in a used extensive Olympus set up give me a shout. I haven’t really decided what I am selling it for yet, but it has some rather tasty lenses! Selling or trading it is on the list of things to do this year!

21.5 – I am the same height and have a 19.5 Stache which is a bit on the short side and a 21.5 Fuel EX which is spot on.

The Roscoe does look rather nice :-)

Yeah, it is pretty nice over this side from Ulverston – Roundsea is great with the dog, and the scenery is quite nice.

I still miss Scotland though. I moved down about 10 years ago and have never really settled – we were just discussing where we may head back to at some stage (again) today!

Just outside Ulverston – Spark Bridge up in the Crake Valley.

My running plans have been postponed for 24 hours – stomach bug and running would be living dangerously! Starting Yoga tonight is going to be tense enough!!!!

I have a Vivoactive 3 – it is great… although if I could afford it I would probably go for a Fenix. The new Instinct looks pretty good too. The Vivoactive 3 has been great for the last year and a bit though and does prove useful for measuring activity/mapping what I have been up to, although something that tells me where I am would be nice.

Haven’t tried the Forerunners myself.

Fell Foot is about 10 minutes away by car, so I shall have a look at that when the time comes! Thinking I may do one early Feb just to see where I have got to!

My time is not going to be impressive mind :-D

I have this due to injury – I am starting Yoga on Monday to try and help after seeing a physio! I made the same connection as above that most of the exercises she was suggesting looked like yoga, she said they basically were so I asked if a class would help. She said it would be perfect, so here we go :-)

Nice pictures of the Darn Walk and Mine Woods there Matt ;-)

I do miss living in Stirling… trying to engineer a way back! It may take some time though….

I started running a few weeks ago and have just finished Week 8 of the Garmin running program. Yesterday I made it up the first hill feeling like an actual runner, which isn’t bad at 129kg! I died after that mind! I do wish the system would take into account where you are – running 3.4km in the Lake District is a bit harder than a London park!

I am hoping that as the distances increase over the last 4 weeks as I push up to a 5k non-stop (it won’t be fast mind) that it starts having a positive impact on my physique. I haven’t had much time to ride lately, plus have a back injury which is really sore when mountain biking, so took to running in an attempt to get some level of fitness back and help towards rehabilitation of a raft of injuries. I am starting Yoga on Monday too… something else I never thought I would do.

So if you are in the South Lakes and see a fatty attempting to run it could well be me :-D

I was being horribly tempted by a Katana Air earlier today… but the Fender’s look good too. I am another lapsed player, but all my old gear is LOUD and doesn’t mix with a young family (so a revalve of the Boogie isn’t really an option).

Just watching with interest ;-)

My son is 7 – but on acoustic (he want’s an electric mind). I got a Stagg for £40 just before they finished for Christmas which is much better than the even cheaper one he had previously. He is on a 1/2 size though, and I would seriously suggest looking for something of that diminutive size rather than a 3/4. The latter will just make life harder and potentially put them off.

I guess the electric version is probably this:

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/-_junior_s_electric_guitar/?gclid=Cj0KCQiApbzhBRDKARIsAIvZue8dr9tWsn7LRxazehmMHRDZUNTU8gvDwzAThEODYqjz1IgR_cckIQgaAoYtEALw_wcB

Perhaps there should be some awesome reward goodies for people who have been subscribing the longest….

I am not really being serious btw, I get the whole point of the incentives to sign up!

Get a really, really nice practice amp – Yamaha THR10 or something if you want low volume, or if you want to go up a little then a Blackstar HT5. It will make a real, tangible, difference to how the guitar sounds and how much you want to play it :-)

Muck Boots again – I use them for work, bought from a local agricultural merchant (good place to shop for such things, pop in and see what the local farmers are using and you won’t go far wrong!)

The advised against the mud soles when I bought mine btw – apparently they are rubbish on rock and the standard soles are better (and work well in the mud too). Huntin’ and shootin’ retailers are probably worth a look too, but probably a bit more expensive since those folks have more cash than Lakes hill farmers ;-)

Above the Great Glen is my marker…

But I guess since I am living south of the wall at the moment… draw a line between Lancaster and Scarborough – south of that is the Midlands.  Everything seems to become more “English” south of that imaginary line, and more “Northern” above it until you hit “The Wall” of course….

If we had thought of it sooner I think we would have gone that route rather than buying a Mountain Buggy!

Sorry – I got distracted by life!

Thanks for the info – would be interested in any offers of second hand ones btw – but can’t find contact details ;-)  I am in South Cumbria if that helps.

Cheers – was looking at the Halfords one but thought, like most things Halfords, it would probably be a false economy!

They are nice… but probably a bit on the spendy side!!!

Generally for wildlife you are looking at shorter lenses and cropping – but you are really looking at BIG, fast zooms and primes… which are by and large terrifyingly expensive (which is why I have never really ventured into that side of photography as yet!).

That said, I recently bought a Nikon 200-500 f5.6 zoom which is absolutely fantastic and will let me have a go at it all!  They aren’t cheap… but compared to the other quality options they are an absolute bargain at <£1,000.  There are a few offering from Sigma/Tamaron etc at that kind of money, but that big Nikon lens is a storming bargain.  Do a search for examples from the big Nikon on t’interwebs – there are some stunning photographs out there taken with it.

So… my suggestion would be to go and take a look at some second hand Nikon bodies with decent resolutions (to give as much latitude for cropping as possible).  The D7xxx series are probably about where you want to be looking, then keep an eye peeled for 200-500 bargain, or just accept the cost ;-)

Absolutely… but I am trying to lose weight at the moment, so cakes are probably not a great thing :-D

Bears on the other hand would be a huge benefit!!!!

Mine is on low too… as much to drive the damp out!

I may have to clean, service and relight the Aga soon… I am trying to leave it as long as possible to avert the environmental catastrophe that it is.

Although it will be nice not having to cook on a twin plug in hob and microwave!  Although it has been nice watching the oil not go down!

M4/3 cameras are much maligned… I think they are fantastic little tools myself!

Some suggestions for lenses… depending on budget:

Olympus 12mm f2.0 (£549ish) – my favourite lens on the OM-D
Panasonic 14mm f2.5 Pancake (£299ish)
Olympus 45mm f1.8 (£209ish) – absolutely stunning portrait lens for the money
Olympus 60mm f2.8 Macro (£360ish)

I have a couple of zooms I use too, an ultra wide, standard and tele.  The only one that gets much use is the Olympus 100-300, but that is just for reach.  I tend to use the primes on this one.