SteveTanham – writing, mysticism, photography, poetry, friends

Tag: Cumbria

In August, a wonderful peacefulness descends on the estate around Levens Hall – the ancestral home of the Baggot family. The Levens Estate is a few miles south-west of the Cumbrian town of Kendal. The recently upgraded cafe – with its large, open courtyard – makes for an ideal destination by car or, as with me and the Collie, on foot. Many people walk … Read More August comes to the Levens Estate

October 18, 2022 + #Humour, #Silent Eye, #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, Consciousness, English Lake District, Lake District, Photographic techniques, Photography, Travel and people

Cartmel, anarchy and the perfect morning…

by Steve Tanham

The Cumbrian village of Cartmel is most famous for its racecourse, but it is difficult to find any part of it that is not also beautiful or at least interesting. There are also examples here of innovative responses to hard times… Something we all need to take note of. Cartmel lies two miles northwest of Grange-over-Sands, on the northern edge of Morecambe Bay, just … Read More Cartmel, anarchy and the perfect morning…

October 16, 2022 + #Silent Eye, #Silenti, Lake District, Mindfulness, Photographic techniques, Photography, Places and Prose

Bardsea Sunset

by Steve Tanham

Just about my favourite shot of October so far. Bardsea is a vast beach a few miles along the coast road from Ulverston. It looks south over Morecambe Bay and is a favourite walk for dog owners. Frisbees can be thrown ‘for miles’! When we returned to the car, the sun was setting and I could see its reflection in one of the pools. … Read More Bardsea Sunset

September 11, 2022 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Consciousness, English Lake District, landscapes, Photographic techniques, Photography

Back lane to the river

by Steve Tanham

It is said by local historians that if Kendal had not fallen prey to the soulless developments of the 1960s, the town would now rival York in the historical interest offered by its venerable streets – and its living links with long-disappeared ways of life… There are numerous alleys that lead from the town centre to the River Kent. It’s fascinating to walk these … Read More Back lane to the river

August 28, 2022 + #Silenti, Consciousness, English Lake District, Lake District, landscapes, Photography, Places and Prose

Fading summer wine

by Steve Tanham

One of the most poignant moments of the year is the last week of August. There comes that first sense of ‘chill’, plus the heavy dew on the morning grass. We find the best way to deal with this is a bottle of white wine, taken just as the warmth of the afternoon has begun to ebb. We spend the time it takes to … Read More Fading summer wine

January 20, 2022 + #Collie dogs, #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Photographic techniques, Photography, Silent Eye School

The hill with two stations

by Steve Tanham

Our small village, Sedgwick, near Kendal, has a landscape shaped in the classic terminal topography of ancient glaciers. This area of gentle, rounded hills is typical of the final stages of the glacier’s course. The English Lake District, where we live, has them in abundance. ‘Basket of Eggs’ is another term you may remember from those geography text books at school. They are also … Read More The hill with two stations

December 21, 2021 + #Silenti, Consciousness, English Lake District, landscapes, Photographic techniques, Photography

Seven Christmas Postcards

by Steve Tanham

This will be my penultimate post of 2021. After Thursday’s blog, I will be taking a break till the new year. Every December, I try to capture a set of images that would make good Christmas cards. I used to have a colour ‘photograph’ printer and would send some of these to family members. But the device was old and had begun behaving erratically. … Read More Seven Christmas Postcards

October 19, 2021 + #Collie dogs, #Silenti, Consciousness, English Lake District, guided mystical walks, Lake District, landscapes, Mystery Schools, Photographic techniques, Photography, Travel and Photography

Arnside and Autumn Pastels

by Steve Tanham

At first glance, it has something of the ziggurat about it. In reality it’s the final bit of Arnside’s Victorian pier, taken from a short distance back in order to include part of the famous viaduct – nearly 1600 ft – that links Arnside with Grange-over-Sands. Arnside has the kind of beaches that you’d rather photograph than paddle from. The sands around here share … Read More Arnside and Autumn Pastels

October 10, 2021 + #Silenti, Biology and mysticism, Consciousness, Lake District, nature, Photographic techniques, Photography, Seasons, Four Seasons, Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter,

Web over Cumbria

by Steve Tanham

It was late Friday afternoon – two days ago. I set off with Tess for our usual evening walk; now getting earlier each day to capture that last bit of, hopefully, sunlight. Over the stone wall, something shimmered in the golden light. Something silver. It took me back several hours. I hadn’t paid it much attention at the time. Two tradesmen loading their tools … Read More Web over Cumbria

April 15, 2020 + #Silenti, English Lake District, landscapes, mystery, nature

Circles around Sedgwick (2 – recovered) – a canal of our own

by Steve Tanham

Continued from Part One… (Note: republished from my Mac laptop as the latest version of WP on the iPhone 11 Pro has crashed itself, repeatedly, and appears to have taken the original post with it… I’ve had to recreate this from a (mercifully) still open window that allowed a cut and past of the whole thing… Apologies to those whose links arrived at nothing!) We … Read More Circles around Sedgwick (2 – recovered) – a canal of our own

February 9, 2020 + #Collie dogs, #PhotoZen, #ShortWrytz, Photography, Places and Prose, Spirituality

#Shortwritz: liquid sunset

by Steve Tanham

Sometimes you just get lucky. This is the mouth of the estuary at Arnside, Cumbria, where two of the abundant local rivers flow out into Morecambe Bay. During the previous half hour, and further upstream, I had taken several shots on the tiny beach where we sometimes walk Tess, our Collie dog–and finish the day with the excellent local fish and chips.. With the … Read More #Shortwritz: liquid sunset

December 11, 2018 + #Silenti, Ancient Landscapes, Ancient Sacred Sites, myths and spirituality, Spirituality, Travel and people, Winter Solstice weekend

Hands of the Future

by Steve Tanham

It was cold, very cold on that Friday… just five days ago. Across the road, people were trickling out of the railway station and along the busy main road through Penrith. Three hours from now it would fill with commuters both leaving and arriving in the Cumbrian town on the main west-coast line to Glasgow. But not yet… “Full Circle: Finding the Way Home’ … Read More Hands of the Future