Keswick and Derwentwater

We drove to Keswick and went to church. We are very much enjoying the Anglican prayer book used during services. The sermon was very encouraging and the people were friendly.

Our plans to do a boat trip around the lake were a aborted when we realised there was no parking due to a weekend mountain experience event.

So we drove to the prettiest end of the lake and then walked for a few hours along the ridge and then down to the lakes edge and back again. It kept spotting with rain but that sort of added to the softness of the landscape.

It was late afternoon when we finished and headed off to find another stone circle. What we found was amazing.

I took many photos but just could not capture the awesome 360 degree view from the summit where the standing stones were. The human eye is so much more effective at capturing beauty than any camera.

The stones form a complete circle and have been there for Around 4.5 thousand years.The original motivates behind the construction of Castlerigg, its subsequent uses and how these may have changed over time are not known. Current thinking has linked Castlerigg with the Neolithic Langdale axe industry in the nearby Langdale fells: the circle may have been a meeting place where these axes were traded or exchanged. Ritually deposited stone axes have been found all over Britain, suggesting that their uses went far beyond their practical capabilities. Exchange or trading of stone axes may not have been possible without first taking part in a ritual or ceremony.

I don't understand how people see a view like this and believe that it all happened randomly!