18 Jun A poetic reflection on a 100 mile run around the English Lake District
Last summer I had the wonderful chance to make a film on my home turf in the English Lake District. I’ve only lived here a couple of years so it was a great chance to really throw myself into a project that would help me understand the landscape and connecting valleys a little better. The result was a short 7 minute film called Touching the Water which follows Mhairi Helme’s poetic reflection of a 100 mile run around the English Lake District. It was inspired by the landscape, the people she meets, and her fell running hero, Joss Naylor.
The two days Mhairi chose to complete her challenge happened to be the two hottest days of the year. It was gruelling to watch Mhairi battle on with very little sleep in such heat. A big thank you must also go to Dave MacFarlane of Dm Two media for being on hand to stomp up mountains with his camera. Oh and my husband for driving around the Lake District with me and our 7 month old baby so that I could film and keep breastfeeding!
The film isn’t ‘out there’ yet be we hope it will be very soon. It’s been made with the support of Ascendancy Apparel and it’s been included in several film festivals including Kendal Mountain Film Festival 2021, Peebles Mountain Film Festival 2022. Touching the Water also won Bronze Award for Best Running Film at Sheffield Adventure Film Festival 2022 and Gold Award for Best Sound. Yeah! You also might have caught it at Trail Pursuit, Kendal Mountain Tour and Timber Festival!
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