Reading the Seasons on the Fells

Upland pools are among the quietest places in the Lake District, and that quiet is exactly what makes them so good for wildlife. A tarn sitting at 500 metres, ringed by cotton grass and sheep-cropped turf, holds far more life than most walkers realise. The trick is to slow down, keep your距离 and let the pool come to you. What follows is a rough calendar of what to look for through the year, plus the practical habits that keep both you and the animals safe.

One rule underpins everything else: never disturb breeding animals, spawning fish or nests. If something changes its behaviour because of you — a bird flushes, a frog dives, a fish bolts — you are already too close. Back off, use binoculars, and let the pool settle again.

Spring: Frogs, Toads and Spawning Fish

From late February into April, upland pools come alive. Common frogs are usually first, arriving at shallow, sun-warmed edges to spawn. Look for clumps of jelly rather than the long strings laid by common toads, which tend to prefer deeper, more shaded water and often turn up slightly later. The spawn is easiest to see in the shallows on the northern or eastern side of a pool, where ice clears first and the water warms quickest.

In the larger tarns and in the feeder streams that run into them, you may catch the tail end of a spawning run. Small populations of brown trout move upstream to gravel beds in late autumn and winter, but by spring the fry are dispersing, and you can often see dark little shapes darting in the margins. Arctic char, a relic of the last ice age, survive in a handful of deep, cold Lake District waters; they spawn late in the year, so spring is more about spotting them rising in the shallows as the water warms.

Practical notes for spring:

• Approach pool edges on tussocky ground rather than bare mud — you will crush less spawn and make less noise.
• Keep dogs out of the water entirely between February and June. Amphibian spawn and eggs are easily trampled.
• Binoculars with a close-focus of two metres or less let you watch spawn and tadpoles without kneeling in the water.
• Warm, still afternoons after rain are best; frogs are most active then and birdsong masks your footsteps.

Summer: Dragonflies, Damselflies and Basking Adders

By June the pools are busy. Four-spotted chasers and large red damselflies are the common early arrivals; golden-ringed dragonflies, with their bold black-and-yellow bands, favour the small acidic streams feeding upland tarns. Emergence is the spectacle worth waiting for: larvae climb stems in the early morning, split their skins and pump out their wings over an hour or two. Sit still and you will see it happen within a metre of your boots.

Watch for basking adders on dry, south-facing slopes near the water, especially in the first warm sun after a cool night. They are shy, and a heavy footfall sends them sliding before you see them. Keep to paths in bracken and heather in July and August, and never attempt to handle one — they are protected by law and a bite is a genuine medical emergency in a remote location.

Wild swimming in summer is at its best in the deeper, clearer tarns, but a few habits keep it low-impact:

• Enter and leave at one firm, rocky spot rather than trampling marginal vegetation.
• Avoid swimming through reed beds and lily beds — that is where invertebrates, nesting birds and young fish shelter.
• Keep away from any bird with chicks on the water; a diver or grebe will abandon a nest if pressed.
• Wash kit and boots before moving between pools to avoid carrying disease or invasive fragments.

Autumn: Berries, Fungi and the Feeding Rush

Autumn turns the fells into a larder. Rowan berries ripen red and are stripped quickly by redwings and fieldfares arriving from Scandinavia, while bilberry and crowberry provide cover and food for ring ouzels on higher ground. Rowans beside a tarn outflow are often the single best place to watch autumn migrants, because birds follow the berry crop down the valleys.

Fungi appear around pool edges, where damp turf and birch or alder leaf litter suit them. Fly agaric and various boletes are photogenic, but do not pick anything for the pot unless you are genuinely expert — and remember that picking is restricted on many sites. Red deer begin rutting in October, and the stags' bellowing carries a long way across still water at dawn. Keep downwind and well back; a rutting stag is unpredictable.

Autumn swimming is superb — clear water, fewer people — but the cold is serious. Go in for minutes, not miles, wear a tow float, and get warm layers on before you stop shivering.

Winter: Visiting Birds and the Quiet Pool

Winter belongs to the visitors. Goldeneye, goosander and occasionally whooper swans use the larger, unfrozen tarns. Goosander are skilful divers and often work a pool in a loose line, driving small fish ahead of them. Look for the low, straight flight of a goosander against a grey sky, and listen for the whistling wingbeats of goldeneye.

Snow and hard frost concentrate everything. Birds move to spring-fed corners that stay open, and tracks — otter slides, fox prints, the neat double-dot of roe deer — are easy to read in fresh snow. Otter spraint on a boulder at the outflow is a good sign that a pool is being worked regularly.

Winter practicalities matter more than in any other season:

• Tell someone your route and carry a torch; upland pools sit in shadow by mid-afternoon.
• Stay off frozen tarns. Ice over deep water in the Lakes is rarely uniform or thick enough.
• Binoculars fog easily — keep them inside your jacket until you stop.
• Give any over-wintering bird a wide berth; they are burning fat reserves with little margin.

Good Habits That Make the Difference

Binoculars, patience and quiet feet will show you more than any amount of scrambling. Stay back from the water's edge during the breeding season, avoid chilling nests and redds, and never handle wildlife. If you are swimming, keep to one entry point and out of marginal vegetation. Wash your boots and kit between pools, take all litter home, and leave the place as you found it — an upland pool that stays undisturbed will reward the next walker just as it rewarded you.