WHERE MAGIC HAPPENS...
Five photos that sum up the glory of Britain’s National Parks – and their life-changing power...
In our November 2017 issue we asked for photos celebrating the joys of walking in Britain’s National Parks – and you didn’t disappoint! Here are the five winners, which have each bagged £200 of Columbia kit for the person behind the lens. It all ties in with Columbia’s pledge to kit out National Park staff across the UK in high-quality gear for the next five years. At the same time, the photos help to explain why our National Parks have such special magnetism for walkers. For more about these extraordinary places, visit www.nationalparks.gov.
uk – and find Columbia’s full range at www.columbiasportswear.co.uk
BIG BEN VORLICH by Paul Robertson, Hereford
Says Paul: “I salute Megabus: its comfy bed carried me overnight from Kent up to Glasgow, then I caught a bus along Loch Lomond and headed into the hills. It was the perfect March day – plenty of snow but plenty of sun too. So I spent two days up there, wandering over Ben Vorlich, Ben Vane, Ben Ime and the Cobbler, with a wild camp on Vorlich. I loved every minute – and it was great for my Mountain Leader training.”
SURPRISE VIEW by John Morgan, Widnes
Says John: “I’ve loved the Lake District for years but I can still find places I’ve never heard of before. Locals call this ‘Surprise View’; it’s above the Lodore Hotel in Borrowdale. One May evening I nipped up with my daughter Hollie and Wilfred, our St Bernard, and we just caught the moment when the sun sank below the Coledale fells on the far side of Derwent Water. Magic. Absolute magic.”
DAWN AT OGWEN by Kevin O’Brian, Gwynedd
Says Kevin: “I took this from the Lloer, a stream running down the side of Pen yr Ole Wen, looking across the Ogwen Valley at Tryfan. It was sunrise one wet morning in February. Suddenly a break in the clouds bathed the land in light; what a way to start the day. I love being up on the hills when everyone else is in bed. If you dream of capturing the perfect photo, that’s the time to be out.”
TOP OF THE WORLD by Graham Macfarlane, Glasgow
Says Graham: “Loch Lomond is such an easy escape from Glasgow. One September evening I went up with my brother Stuart and we climbed Ben A’an, which is an easyish little peak with a full 360° panorama from the top – and a smashing view down Loch Katrine. Locked my keys in my car afterwards which was a bit of a drama, but totally worth it for this picture!”
SNOWDON SUNRISE by Jo Vickers, Derbyshire
Says Jo: “This was the first time I ever climbed a mountain at night. Me and my husband Al set off up the Rhyd-Ddu Path at 2.30am on a night in August, and hit the summit of Snowdon for sunrise at 4.45am. It was amazing to watch the whole world waking up and the sun lighting up the hills. And when we got down, we slept the sleep of the angels.”