Photography locations around Castlerigg and Tewet Tarn

In this location guide, I going to show you some of the very best Photography Locations around Castlerigg and Tewet Tarn. All of these locations can be visited on one of my 1-2-1 or small group bespoke workshops. Why not check out the Workshops page for more details. 

Image: Mist above Castlerigg Stone Circle Prints Available

CASTLERIGG STONE CIRCLE -  (OS grid reference NY 291-236)

HOW TO GET THERE
From Keswick, leave on the A5271 (Penrith Road) and take the left-hand turn onto the A591 for Penrith.  Take the immediate left hand turn up Eleven Trees following signs for Castlerigg Stone Circle. Car parking (free) is in a lay-by opposite the gate into the circle.

WHAT TO PHOTOGRAPH
The stone circle can be quite awkward to photograph as it’s set up on a mound and is very wide. You can get the whole of the circle in but this is only really successful if there is some other element of interest like mist in St John’s in the Vale behind it, snowy conditions or dramatic skies as in the image shown. Alternately, you can get in close and capture just a few of the stones along with the long shadows that they cast 

Sunrise and sunset are by far the best times to get good images but you will not be alone here whatever the time of day. You will need to jostle for position amongst all the other photographers and tripods that litter the place some armed with step ladders to get a more elevated view.

Available options are to shoot towards Skiddaw and Blencathra to the north, Great Dodd, St John's in the Vale and Helvellyn to the south-east, High Rigg and High Seat to the south and the Derwent Fells to the west

Image: Winter at Castlerigg Stone Circle Prints Available

Oh, and by the way, don’t do what I did and try to meet up with someone there for a quiet photography course at 6 am on the summer solstice or you’ll regret it! Hundreds of druids, pagans, diviners, tents and camper vans if that’s what you want, but no chance of parking within a mile of the place or getting anywhere near the circle itself.

Available options are to shoot towards Skiddaw and Blencathra to the north, Great Dodd, St John's in the Vale and Helvellyn to the south-east, High Rigg and High Seat to the south and the Derwent Fells to the west

Oh, and by the way, don’t do what I did and try to meet up with someone there for a quiet photography course at 6 am on the summer solstice or you’ll regret it! Hundreds of druids, pagans, diviners, tents and camper vans if that’s what you want, but no chance of parking within a mile of the place or getting anywhere near the circle itself.

Image: Blencathra and Skiddaw from Tewet Tarn Prints Available

TEWET TARN - (OS grid reference NY 304-235)

HOW TO GET THERE
Return to your car and, with the stone circle on your right, travel down the hill passing the entrance to Keswick Climbing Wall on your left until you reach the T-junction at the end of the road. Turn right here and after about 200 yards turn first right again signposted St John’s in the Vale. At the top of the hill, you will see a footpath sign on the right. There is a small pull-in opposite it on the left where you can leave your car. The footpath leads through a gate up across the fields to the tarn. This is still a relatively unknown spot which requires a small walk of about 15 minutes which is slightly uphill.

Image: Cumbrian Fell Pony at Tewet Tarn Prints Available

WHAT TO PHOTOGRAPH
If you go on a still morning the views can be quite breathtaking. You can get fabulous shots of Blencathra, Lonscale Fell and Skiddaw which are perfectly reflected in the water. These shots really are to die for, particularly following a fresh fall of snow. There is a fence and some reeds on the north side of the tarn which make a good lead-in line especially for portrait shots on a frosty morning. This is also another perfect place to take two or three exposures, supported by a tripod, to stitch together into a panorama as you can see in the image above.

Sometimes there are groups of fell ponies by the tarn which are quite tame and don’t mind posing for a photograph. It helps if you carry an apple in your pocket to tempt them to the right spot.

If you wish, you can carry on uphill away from the tarn skirting Low Rigg towards St John’s in the Vale to get a little more height from where you can look down on the tarn for a slightly more aerial shot. You could then carry on even further along this footpath if you wished to bring you to the very pretty old church of St John’s in the Vale which has nestled below High Rigg since 1845.

© Martin Lawrence Photography 2018