We had a wonderful but scorching holiday to the Lake District last week. I’ve not been to Cumbria for about 40 years, so it was a great chance to see the most beautiful landscapes in England and sketch them.

We were only up there for a few days so I didn’t have much time but I did produce the following sketches.

View of Skiddaw from our Cottage

This was an initial sketch, used for planning further paintings in the studio. Its missing the enormity of Skiddaw so I don’t think I will be using it

Bassingthwaite evening lights and darks

Derwent Water

I had 30 mins waiting for the ferry to capture the lake and Cats Bells.

Buttermere & Mellbreak

The walk around Buttermere was magical and I had 30 mins to just outline the lake and Mellbreak hill.

My last sketch was using Oils but I just couldn’t get to grip with the subject and the medium to do justice to the scene.

Skiddaw from the cottage garden