Saturday, 1st March, 2025 – Collected my new computer. It cost £600. When I got it home I found that I couldn’t connect it to the modem or to the printer.

Wednesday, 5th March – Took the car to the showroom for a service and an M.o.T. test. It was convenient to be able to get both jobs done in a single journey and to collect the car the same day. Usually I am told that they are waiting for parts, which can take weeks. I was unable to scan the M.O.T. certificate.

The man from Robinsons called again and found that he could get the video recording machine to work properly if I kept the old equipment disconnected all the time.

Thursday, 2nd March – Succeeded in scanning the M.o.T. certificate and sending it to the insurance company using the old computer. Then I couldn’t understand why I was unable to do this before.

Bought a connector from K.T.D. that is supposed to enable my new computer to work, but it wasn’t any help at all.

Friday, 7th March – A man from Robinsons took the new B.R.D. recorder away because I can’t use it to watch B.R.D.s.

Found my Garmin G.P.S. unit and the operating instructions for it. I was able to obtain a reading for my home that was about right, but when I took the unit some distance away the reading didn’t change.

Saturday, 8th March – Tried out the G.P.S. unit on the way to Booths and the reading did change, so I sent an email to Derek Cockell to say that I would be able to make changes to the maps as he had asked me to.

Set off for Bowes in perfect weather to start on the field work for Pennine Way Companion, but just before I got there, I discovered that I had left behind the relevant papers, so I had to go back for them. As I was about to set off again, Derek phoned to say that there was no need for me to make changes to the maps. Between Bowes and Sleightholme, I took a photograph of some beautiful trees. I tried to take more photographs but couldn’t get the camera to work.

Sunday, 9th March – Parked in the nearest car park to Sycamore Gap, which I wanted to visit. I couldn’t get the ticket machine to work, and somebody explained that this was because it was out of order, so I set off. Before I had gone far, I discovered that I had forgotten my sticks, so I went back to the car park, where somebody remembered what had happened and showed me how to use the ticket machine, which was now working. I was unable to open the gates in that area, and I found it very difficult walking alongside Hadrian’s Wall to Sycamore Gap. Among the other places I went to was the hanging wood called the Firs near Alston.

Monday, 10th March – Paid the car insurance by telephone. The premium was reduced from £1150 to £829 because I was able to use the M.O.T. certificates to prove that I only did about 1600 miles last year, when they thought that I did about 6000 miles.

Telephoned Robinsons and was told that even they can’t get my B.R.D. recorder to work, which means that it is not always my fault when things go wrong. The machine only lasted for two weeks.

Thursday, 13th March – At a time when I was expecting Chris to call at any moment, I suddenly realised that the work on my selections that I thought I couldn’t do because I don’t have the use of a B.R.D. recorder, I can do using my old computer, which is still working. Copied my favourite scenes from 1984 to 2014 onto a 64-gigabyte memory card for Chris in the hope that he can copy them onto another card where people can watch them for an hour or more without doing anything at the end of each sequence.

Friday, 14th March – Dreamed that I went to the Moon. Usually, I can only remember that I have been dreaming and can’t remember what I was dreaming about.

Saw a poster in Booths asking people to suggest improvements to Kendal Museum, and I thought of offering them my Scafell Pike panorama. When I got home, I dialled 1471 and found that Chris had tried to phone me while I was out. I met him at the Wainwright exhibition in Ambleside and gave him the 64-gigabyte memory card. Among the exhibits was the most beautiful cupboard I have ever seen and the photograph that Chris took when I was with him in Serpentine Woods. Talked to a lady from the Daily Telegraph. I could answer her questions, but didn’t think to tell her about my website. I was able to pay for the car park and couldn’t understand why I couldn’t do this the last time I was here.

Saturday, 15th March – Took my last two copies of the Scafell Pike panorama to the Kendal Museum and asked if they wanted them.

Sunday, 16th March – Went to the Pennine Way Accommodation Guide in the internet, and under ‘Leave a comment’ I wrote that their website will be mentioned in my introduction to the next reprint of Pennine Way Companion.

Monday, 17th March – Took my new computer to K.T.D., where they enabled me to use it to receive emails. Took my camera to Wilkinsons, where they got it to work, and took a photograph of an alder on my way home.

Tuesday, 18th March – Went on an eight-mile walk with the Kendal Ramblers from Burton-in-Kendal to Farleton Knott via the beautiful bridleway called Slape Lane. We returned to Burton along the canal. All day I enjoyed continuous sunshine in unfamiliar places.

Thursday, 20th March – Succeeded in connecting the new computer to the printer, but I couldn’t get it to print anything, so I telephoned K.T.D. and they asked me to do things that were so

complicated that after fifty minutes I was completely exhausted and had to put the phone down.

Saturday, 22nd March – Kendal Museum phoned to say that they wanted the two Scafell Pike panoramas. Discovered that I have three copies, so I still have one to keep.

Sunday, 23rd March – Walked the whole of the route linking places featured in my article on Kendal in the Nineteenth Century for the first time. It took four hours.

Monday, 24th March – Got all the questions right in the geography round of ‘Eggheads’. Bought a small rucksack at Nevisport in Finkle Street because it has a connection between the two shoulder straps that my old one lacks. It cost £63. A man called to install my new B.R.D. recorder. Because I have been without one for a few weeks, a lot of scenes that I would have liked to keep have been lost.

Tuesday, 25th March – The day after I received my new equipment I watched a programme that included songs worth selecting for the first time since 2021. The selections came to ten minutes. Had an eye test at Vision Express. Took some photographs of the Lake District from Castle Hill. When I enlarged one of them I could see the pillar on Thornthwaite Crag.

Thursday, 27th March – Tried to phone the barber’s shop that I have been using for over twenty years, but I couldn’t get through. Then I looked it up in the internet and found that it had closed down permanently.

Friday, 28th March – Took a photograph of Yard 127, Highgate.

Saturday, 29th March – Finished copying my selections from 2011 to 2025 onto B.R.D.s just in time to give them to Helen. Went on a Wainwright Society walk from Staveley to Brunt Knott, where a lady from the National Park took my photograph. I wasn’t able to give Helen her discs, so I stayed on for the talk, which was about the Coast to Coast Walk, and gave them to her there. My hope is that when she is very old, she will pass them on to a younger person and so on until they are out of copyright, but of course I shan’t be around to see this. I could hear some of what was said in the talk, but not all of it. I am glad I went to it because several people came up and spoke to me when I was in the village hall. While I was waiting for the talk to begin, I went for a walk on my own along the River Kent.

Monday, 31st March – Chris phoned in the evening to say that he was in Kendal, and we went for a walk on Scout Scar.