The date was November 19th 2000. From Keld (Swaledale) my girlfriend, Ann, and I followed a wonderful high level track overlooking the Swale Gorge to descend to valley level at the foot of Swinner Gill. It had been 4 years since I had last ascended this wonderful rocky ravine and a return was long overdue.

quote from my diary:

"The waterfall at the bottom was gorgeous, not high but with generously thick steps, the clamber past this was the beginning of many. Lovely, lovely limestone with fast flowing water. We had wellies on and could get right into the flow. Falls then flatter spells, more falls ending with a fantastic narrow gorge. It took 1 1/2 hours to reach the fork at the top of the gill. Left, the dry gill led us to Swinner Gill Kirk. A new place, previously unseen and unknown. What a treasure. And what a bad time to run out of run of film! The fall was powerful and the cave underneath very enticing. With a tiny useless torch I went in perhaps 20 yards, and looked back at the rushing water over black rocks and the edge of the waterfall beyond........"

In the months that followed this walk I developed a number of sketchbook sized images, many of them based on the structure of the lowermost waterfall (all the "Relics" for instance). At the same time I was exploring the human figure on a larger scale, and, time being what it is, these Swinner Gill images have yet to be developed further. But I like them for what they are, sometimes small is indeed beautiful.