Blencathra from 's-in-the-Vale. Lake District National Park, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom, Europe.
Blencathra, also known as Saddleback, is one of the most northerly mountains in the English Lake District. It has six separate fell tops, of which the highest is the 868-metre (2,848 ft) Hallsfell Top. For many years, Ordnance Survey listed Blencathra under the alternative name of Saddleback, which was coined in reference to the shape of the mountain when seen from the east. The guidebook author Alfred Wainwright popularised the use of the older Cumbric name, which is now used almost exclusively. Ordnance Survey currently marks the summit as "Saddleback or Blencathra". It is likely that the name Blencathra is derived from the Cumbric elements blain (a bare hill top) and "cadeir", later cathrach, (a chair), potentially indicating a Gaelic influence. This would give a meaning of "the bare hill top shaped like a chair", which perfectly describes the topography of the hill. St John's in the Vale is a glacial valley in the Lake District National Park, Cumbria, England. Within the vale are a number of farms and small settlements, in addition to several disused quarry and mining works. St Johns Beck meanders northward along the floor of the vale, and is the primary route of outflow from Thirlmere reservoir to the south. Alongside the beck runs the B5322, St Johns in the Vale Road. The vale is in the heart of the northern Lake District and is surrounded by many of the most striking of the Lakeland fells. It runs from south to north, set between the rocky flanks of Clough Head to the east and the neighbours High Rigg and Low Rigg to the west. The southern end of the vale is a narrow pass between High Rigg and Great Dodd, just to the north of the small settlement of Legburthwaite. At its northern end the vale widens to meet the broad east-to-west valley of the River Greta near Threlkeld. The view north from the vale is dominated by the mountains Blencathra and Skiddaw.
Size: 5000px × 3509px
Location: Blencathra from 's-in-the-Vale. Lake District National Park, Cumbria, England, United Kingdom
Photo credit: © Stan Pritchard / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: blencathra, blue, fell, john, saddleback, sky, snow, st., vale, winter
