Angle tarn – 14th September
Richard writes:
A fair day – set off 7.30am – up steeply by Angle Tarn Beck – past goats and attractive gorge to the tarn – delightful swim – Paul has reminded me of the radio program about ‘home’ that I heard as I came to this morning – too early for philosophical ruminations but now that my brains have bucked up we wonder what ‘home’ amounts to – a state of mind and maybe some ‘memory triggers’ in the environment sparking off memories of when we felt ‘at home’ – but this could all be quite paradoxical – for why should I have felt so at home in Styhead tarn immersed in exceedingly cold water while a filthy day draped its rain clouds over us – and yet I did feel strangely protected and at home – what a conundrum the whole area turns out to be – because at the same time I recall feeling alienated in circumstances where I should have felt all the nuances of home – and homesickness which I have always felt to be a great sign post to where our hearts would feel resolved has pointed to some pretty strange situations.
We are meant to be 'swimming home' and I feel less certain now than when we started what it all amounts to – on our way back at the pub we see motorbike riders – they seem like the ‘Flying Dutchmen’ of the road – is ‘home’ for them ‘moving on’ ‘passing through’? – no idea – a pint and packet of crisps puts these thoughts to rest and we discuss motorbike pillion seats instead.
