Crummock-Water Archives - Tony Tomlinson Photography

01/03/202605/05/2026

A Frivolous February.

crummock-water, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, long-exposure, mellbreak-fell, Reflections, snow, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, winter

February 2026 has been a very slow and unproductive month for my photography work and my social media updates.

There are the usual reasons for this, my lack of enthusiasm, time constraints, shocking weather in the Lake District, and family commitments.

The major reason for my lack of photography is very personal, that being my wife, Carole has had major surgery and has needed me to support her through her journey

She isn’t out of the water just yet, but she is on the mend, and hopefully it wont belong until she has her mobility and independence back.

So with this aside, what have I been up too during the month of February, there isn’t much but here it is!

Red Squirrels.

The first weekend of February, a good friend of mine Lorraine introduced me to these adorable creatures at a local location.

I have always wanted to see these creatures in the wild and to photograph them, this visit fully met my wishes. Once the Squirrels became use to us, they were soon scampering about snatching the food that we had laid out for them.

Despite the speed and agility of the squirrels, and me still getting use to my new camera, I managed to get a few reasonable images form this visit, many thanks to Lorraine for her support and guidance.

tony-tomlinson-photography, red-squirrel, wildlife, winter, cumbria, — Red Squirrel feeding

Derwentwater

I had a little bimble (a leisurely walk or journey) around Derwentwater, hoping to meet the forecast mist, sadly this was missing, but a nice wee walk anyway!

The Centenary Stones, created to celebrate the Centenary of the National Trust in 1995.

The Green Curved bench was placed on the headland of Calfclose Bay by the Keswick Lions Club to celebrate the Millennium.

The Derwentwater Launches, these travel in a clockwise and anticlockwise direction visiting the seven landing jetties scattered around the lake.

I had a short chat with Mark Hetherington about our plans for the morning and the conditions, as us photographers do!

Mark is a very good photographer who has an excellent back catalogue of images on his Instagram page (Instagram).

Despite not taking many images, it was good to be out in the fresh air and to be able to have a pleasant walk about without the maddening crowds of later in the day.

blue-hour, cumbria, Derwentwater, jetty, keswick, Landscape, launch, rain, tony-tomlinson-photography — One of the Keswick Launch’s tied up at the jetty

Cumbria, Derwentwater, hawthorn, Landscape, Lone-Tree, tony-tomlinson-photography, UK, winter — A Lone Hawthorn on the shore of Derwentwater

Borrowdale, Cumbria, Derwentwater, lake-district, Landscape, tony-tomlinson-photography, UK, winter — The curved seat at Calf Close Bay

calf-close-bay, Centenary Stones, Derwentwater, long-exposure, winter — The Centenary Stones

Harrington Red Squirrels

A return to the wood to photograph the Red Squirrels, to horn my photo skills and to witness these stunning little creatures again.

We had to wait a while until they made an appearance, but the wait was worth it.

I managed to get some better photographs of the squirrels this time, and cant wait to get back to photo them again.

Cumbria, red-squirrel, tony-tomlinson-photography, Wildlife, winter — Posing

Crummock Water

I had a photograph in my head that I have been trying to capture at Crummock Water for some time, so with the weather gods looking promising I set off to the northern end of the lake.

What a pleasant morning it was, cold, crisp, and clear with a slight dusting of snow on the higher fells. The water was flowing over the weir but not has high as I thought it would be considering the amount of rainfall we have had recently.

crummock-water, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, long-exposure, snow, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, winter — The weir at Crummock Water looking towards Mellbreak, Red Pike and High Stile.

United Utilities want to drastically change Crummock Water by removing the weir and lowering the level of the water by 1.3 meters, I have covered this in a previous news post, this can be found here.

After taking a short walk around the southern and northern shore of Crummock Water, I decided to head to the southern end of the lake, a area that I had not visited for several years.

It is a lovely walk around the southern shore of Crummock Water, I was hoping that the old rowing boat would be there, this has made many photos in the past.

As I headed around the rocky headland where there are three rocks that jut out into the lake, I could not resist stopping to get an image, the light was not the best, but it wasn’t too shabby a shot.

crummock-water, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, Rocks, snow, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, winter — Headland

As I was walking along the lake shore, I noticed three black horses and a whit horse in a field which were being back-light by the mornings sun, the white horse made a really nice composition.

Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, long-exposure, snow, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, White-horse, winter — Silhouetted White Horse

Sadly when I reached the meadows which sit between Crummock Water and Buttermere and where the rowing boat use to live, the area was totally waterlogged, far too much flowing water flowing through the reeds to move around, but I did manage to reach the little bay where the rowing boat is normally located, this was missing, so getting wet legs and feet was not worth the end result lol.

Unfortunately, this sums up my photography exploits for February, but all being well with Carole, I have a week’s photography to look forward too on the Isle of Harris and Lewis in March.

Thank you for finding the time to read this news blog, until the next one, stay healthy and safe.

Tony.

30/09/202505/05/2026

Frustrating Summer Mornings.

Autumn, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, layers, lorton-valley, Mist, sourfoot-fell, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, trees, UK

As summer heads towards Autumn, from my least enjoyable season to my most eagerly awaited season, photography wise, I planned to be out on two consecutive mornings, the first was to get to Crummock Water for an image that I wanted to re-capture in more pleasing conditions, and the second morning would be decided on later on in the day.

So, off to Crummock Water to get this shot in the can, but whilst driving thought he Lorton Valley the conditions were sublime, lovely low-lying mists which were hiding the trees and fells as it swirled around. What do I do, I wanted the shot at Crummock water, but these conditions were special. I had a parrot on each shoulder, should I go, or should I stay, OMG, why does this always happen. Decision made, I’m going to Crummock Water.

The car was parked, and I was loaded up with the camera, a couple of lenses and off I set through Lanthwaite Woods towards the lake, noting as I went how high the river was. This was due to the recent high rainfall that we have had recently, this not registering with me at this point, but it soon would.

Upon arriving at the lakes edge, I looked over at the weir, and was surprised to see how high the water was, I needed to be on the other side of the river, which is navigated by crossing two small bridges across the lake outlet. As I made my way towards the first bridge, two lads were coming towards me, who asked where I was going, on hearing my plans to cross the bridges, the smiled and told me I don’t think you will be making it today. They were right, the water levels made it impossible to reach the bridges.

What a bloody fool I had been, so concentrated on the photo aspect of the morning and not giving any consideration to the recent amount of rainfall we have had ?

Autumn, crummock-water, Cumbria, flood, lake-district, Landscape, Mist, Red-Pike, siunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, UK — View towards Rannerdale and Red Pike

A little frustrated with myself, I took a wander around to see if there were any photos to be had, which would b any better than the existing ones that I have in my catalogue from this location. I ended up taking a couple, but knowing that these would not be any better.

Autumn, crummock-water, Cumbria, flood, lake-district, Landscape, melbreak-fell, Mist, siunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, UK, wier — The Flooded Wier at Crummock Water

Plan B stumbled into my head, lets get back to the valley where the mist was, so off I set retracing my route back to the car. Out of the car park we went heading back towards the village of Lorton where the earlier mists were. Again, I was frustrated to find that the rising sun had burned off nearly all the earlier mists, more frustration, what now.

Plan C quickly materialised in my head, many years ago we had walked along Burbank fell above Loweswater, looking back towards Crummock Water and Buttermere in the far distance. I was quickly computing if this would be a feasible option, but in the confusion, I just set off in hope.

Autumn, back-light, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, lowswater, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, trees, UK — The first hint of autumnal colours appearing

I turned off fangs brow and parked next to the footpath that would lead me to Burnbank Fell. I must admit, it was a pleasant walk, if not a little wet on the feet at times. As I crested the hill to get the view overlooking Loweswater, my mornings frustration continued, the sun was positioned just above the fells and glaring into the lakes surface, producing a ball of blinding light right across the lake. In these conditions it was impossible to get any image of Loweswater and Buttermere.

All that I could do was to pick out small aspects of interest looking north and westwards.

Autumn, Cottage, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, UK — A Lakeland farmers cottage

So, like earlier, I grabbed a couple of snaps and began to retrace my steps back to the car.

There was potential of some decent shots from Burnbank Fell, but later in the day or early evening when the sun would be in the opposite direction.

So, what was the plan to be for the second morning, I was hoping for similar misty conditions, and I was heading for Lorton Valley.

The next morning, the mists were again present in Lorton Valley, I was soon out of the car and tearing across fields looking for interesting woodland shots disappearing in the swirling mists.

Autumn, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, lorton-valley, Mist, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, Tree, UK — Mystified

Then drive further along the valley to find a field with an old tractor, and several trailers in it, I stopped off to see if I could make anything of this situation. I spiders web coated in morning due which had been spun within a rusted steel frame. I got a shot of the Scale Hill Hotel on a hill intermingled with wisps of mist.

Autumn, lorton-valley, spiders-web, tony-tomlinson-photography — Steel and Silk

Autumn, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, lorton-valley, Mist, scale-hill-hotel, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, trees, UK — Scale Hill Hotel

At this point the mist where I was began to disperse, probably due to the rising sun, so I decided to take a leisurely drive up to Buttermere to see if there was any mist around the lake, as I was passing Crummock Water, the rising sun was hitting the peaks of Mellbreak Fell, there being a few remaining wisps of mist circulating above the lake, so I stopped and grabbed a half decent image of the scene.

Autumn, crummock-water, Cumbria, lake-district, Landscape, mellbreak-fell, Mist, sunrise, tony-tomlinson-photography, UK — Mellbreak Fell

Once I arrived at Buttermere the conditions were rather harsh, no mist and an increasing breeze creating a disturbed waters surface, there was nothing more to do other than head home for some well-deserved breakfast.

I hope you enjoyed this short news article, until next time, stay safe?

29/07/202405/05/2026

Crummock Water, Changing for Ever

Tony-Tomlinson-Photography.co.uk, Crummock-Water, Weir,

During a recent photo session at Crummock Water I did a little research for the news feed on my web site, what I found was a bit of an eye-opener, so if you are not aware, here is a brief outline of the planned changes which Untied Utilities want to happen with these being completed by the end of 2028.

United Utilities have, for many years, extracted water from Crummock Water for the West Cumbria area.
As part of Untied Utilities legal obligation to operating a reservoir, they are required to conduct regular weekly inspections, as well as a 10-year inspection undertaken by an independent Qualified Civil Engineer (QCE). In the previous inspection by the QCE at Crummock Water, repairs and upgrade work was identified which needed to be carried out by 2028 to comply with the Reservoir Safety Act 1975.

The work would require replacement of the weir, improved overflow system and replacement of the wave wall. If Crummock Water was retained, significant construction and disruption would be required. This would also introduce large expanses of new concrete and assets that would have a significant impact both visually, and to the environment.

The need for additional works is reviewed every 10 years in-line with current legislation, so there is no guarantee that if the weir was kept, the site may still require significant additional investment in 10 years’ time.

In a nutshell, to keep Crummock Water as it is today, it is going to cost Untied Utilities to maintained the weir and ensure it is safe.

So, to save United Utilities a few pounds, they are suggesting that as the current weir does not provide any flood attenuation benefit to help manage flood risk downstream, removal of the weir would be the most cost-effective method for them.

Removal of the weir will lower the outlet level within Crummock by approximately 1.35 meters, with the new outlet from Crummock Water consisting of two naturalised river channels, each approximately five meters wide.

The two new outlet channels, combined with a natural ‘rougher’ surface act as a throttle, holding back water during a storm event and slow the flow of water passing forward from the lake in comparison with the existing forty-meter-wide smooth outlet weir.

Park Beck work will remove this concrete channel and return the natural curves of the watercourse. This would reduce the rate at which the water enters into Crummock Water, with multiple channels that would create several points of entry during high flows and remove the pathway for flood water to bypass Crummock Water and flow straight into the River Cocker.

What does this all mean to the current weir and extract point for Crummock Water, firstly all existing concrete structures plus pumping station are to be removed, the level of the lake is to be reduced by 1.35 meters and returning the area its natural habitat.

Image produced by United Utilities of how the proposed changes will look at the western end of Crummock Water.

Image produced by United Utilities of how the proposed changes will look at Park Beck entry into Crummock Water

How do Untied Utilities propose to manage the large volume of water that is to be extracted from the lake, after all it is a substantial size, it is 2.5 miles long, 0.6 miles wide, and has an area of 2.5 square kilometers, that will be sizable volume of water that needs to be released, water from Crummock water flows into the River Cocker, which then runs in to the River Derwent at Cockermouth, onwards into the see at Workington?

United Utilities have produced a series of images which demonstrate how the reduced lake levels may impact on Crummock Water as a whole.

Once the works start, entry to the Lanthwaite Car Park, Lanthwaite Woods and access to the lakes circular footpath will be prohibited.

Currently there is access around the full shoreline of Crummock Water, it remains to be seen if United Utilities are committing to keep access available to the public as there is a distinct lack of bridges and pathways in the above images?

There will be substantial upheaval and disruption during construction works with enabling works and construction works lasting a planned 3 years.

Further information about the proposed changes at Crummock water can be found at:
https://www.unitedutilities.com/Crummock/
https://www.unitedutilities.com/globalassets/documents/pdf/crummock-panels-september-2023.pdf
https://www.unitedutilities.com/globalassets/documents/pdf/crummock-bed-level.pdf

07/07/202405/05/2026

Crummock Water – A summers sunrise

tony-tomlinson-photograohy.co.uk, Crummock-Water, summer sunrise,

Having spent the last 6 weekends on short holidays, visiting family, or attending concerts, it was time to drag my backside out of my bed and get out with the camera again.

The weather forecast was a bit hitty or missy, but what the heck, the alarm was set for the ridiculously early time of 3.15am, even though I was only going to Crummock Water, which is about 30 minutes travel time from where I live.

The car was parked, and I was of towards the lake, well before sunrise, with the hope of some misty conditions, has I had driven through some thick pockets of mist on my journey here.

I arrived at the lake side and took some time to take in the view and conditions, we had mist was floating along the waters surface, with me hoping for some colour to be cast into the sky as the sun rose over the hills to the east.

tony-tomlinson-photography.co.uk, Crummock-Water, Sunrise, Mist, — Red Pike Panoramic

A took a couple of images during the Blue Hour, mainly to check composition and framing, it was not long before we had some hint of pink in the shy to the west, everything was looking good.

The waters surface suddenly became a lot calmer, which produced a mirror like surface, things were going from good to great.

I snapped away over a period of 40 minutes as the conditions were ever-changing, switching between 4 x 3 format and panoramic format.

Tony-Tomlinson-Photography.co.uk, Crummock-Water, Sunrise, Summer, — Crummock Water Sunrise

After a hour or so, I decided to move further round the shoreline to get a different perspective on things.

We had some lovely light, mist and reflections on display, I was as happy as a kid in a candy store.

Once the sun was up and above the hills, I tried my hand at a bit of woodland photography as there were some interesting shaped trees along the shoreline, admittingly, I do struggle with woodland photography, I find it so hard to pick out interesting aspects of the confusion.

This got my brain cells working, try and find some interesting foreground to complement the gorgeous scenes along the lake, so off I set trying to pick out items that I thought would add a interesting element to the photo.

Tony-Tomlinson-Photography.co.uk, Crummock-Water, Summer- Valley, Mountains — The valley formed by the Rannerdale Knotts and Red Pike

I also threw on the telephoto lens to pick out detail of the scenes in front of me, I was in full flow now, and was so pleased that i had found the desire to get up and out with the camera, hopefully the flame has been re-ignited.

During the three hours that I was at Crummock water, I only saw two other people who were walking their dog. What a really enjoyable morning I had, and a couple of decent photos to boot.

Thank you for taking the time to read this news update, and until next time, take care and stay safe.