Arctic Charr run – Ennerdale

I returned to Ennerdale last week to film the Arctic Charr run. I always get a warm welcome from good friends at the Environment Agency and in the local community.

Incredibly, it’s 3 years since Jackie and I made our film “Arctic Charr: Relics of the Ice Age”. Since then, I’ve upgraded my camera to UHD. I was keen to see what my Sony PXW-FS7 could do with these beautiful fish in crystal clear water.

Arctic Charr survive in a handful of places in the UK – at the bottom of deep, cold lakes where they’ve been trapped since the Ice Age. After the ice receded 10,000 years ago, warming seas imprisoned the lake populations and they evolved independently. Ennerdale’s Arctic Charr are the only English population that still swim upriver to spawn – once it’s cold enough. The first snow on the mountaintops shows the time is near.

Arctic Charr are supremely equipped for the cold. Their northern cousins roam the Arctic circle and fatten up at sea like salmon.

Last week’s Lake District weather was perfect (freezing!) and I was treated to several encounters with these stunning fish. Here are rare 4k images of very rare fish.

Special thanks to Peter, Sam, and Martin from the EA who made me feel part of their team again. Their dedication to the cause is amazing and often goes unsung and unseen.

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Images and words by Andy