There are quite a few waterfalls in James Grant's Peak District Through the Lens (our guidebook), some of which are quite challenging to get to. This particular waterfall is called Swallet Falls and although it's almost a roadside location, it's completely hidden and unless you the water as you were walking by, you'd never know it was there. Getting to the actual waterfall is a bit of a mission, you go through a gate and then down a very steep, muddy and slippery slope. It's quite easy to lose your footing which is not something you want to do as there are shards of glass all over the place!
However, once at the bottom you are greeted with an absolutely wonderful sight. The waterfall it's self is full of character and thankfully due to the rain of last week there was enough water for it to be in flow. The area in which you can walk around is only very small and it is extremely muddy, muddy to the point where your tripod easily sinks into the ground. Very little light actually reaches down into this dark and dank area which is a bit of a problem really. In hindsight we should have come in the middle of the day rather than late afternoon, then the sun would have still been high enough to cast some light where we stood. We took a number of shots, some of which turned out better than others. I had actually seen a shot of this place from October/November time and the autumnal colours really transform it! We had no choice in that though, green surrounds it was for us:
That is a wide shot of the entirety of Swallet Falls, it really is a tiny place and totally hidden from the world. It was a bit of a struggle with composition; partly because of the mud and lack of colour, but also because of the fading light and usual race against time. We took a couple of other shots, did a little bit of video (I nearly slipped down the bank with camera in hand, it was a close one!) and took a shot of Grace at the water.
Judging by all the broken glass strung about, it probably has it's share of visitors, but we think it's a fairly nice location for a picnic. A location to remember and revisit that's for sure!
