Steaming through the Valleys

A long awaited event happens this weekend. Well, I say long awaited, actually, it is 4 months, in the broad expanse of time not very long at all, but 4 months is long enough if, like me, you are a big fan.

This event happens every year. For those of us that live close by, it heralds the end of winter, and the start of the new season. It coincides with longer days, woodland flowers, and Easter.

If you happen to be in the vicinity not only will you be able to see it, but you'll also smell and hear it. For many it will be a joy to behold, for others it brings back memories of a simpler time, when phones were fixed to a socket on the wall and definitely not smart, and Internet was something a Yorkshire fisherman said to his mate upon landing a trout.

Yes folks, Steam is back on the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway. Like a trusty old friend returned from a long winter break, 'blood and custard' coloured carriages will carry folk three miles down the Leven Valley from Haverthwaite to Lakeside, behind a steam engine. The sight of that glorious train ambling along at little more than walking pace, it's steam drifting lazily into the Lakeland air, is one of the joys of this part of Lakeland.

Fairburn tank no 42073 hauls a train of 5 'blood and custard' coloured coaches towards Newby Bridge Halt. This photograph is copyright of the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway.

It joins it's illustrious neighbour up the coast, L'ile Ratty, or to give it a name befitting of Sunday Best, The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway. Those wonderful little 15 inch gauge engines have been chugging sedately into Eskdale for the past month, and the line dates back to the 1870's. It was originally 3ft gauge,  but following closure was converted to 15inch gauge in 1915.

River Irt, the oldest working 15 inch gauge locomotive in the world, on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway

Tomorrow, April 1st 2017, (and this is no April Fools joke by the way) a third iconic steam passenger transport vehicle, one also built by the Furness Railway company and still in full service, also begins a season of operation. The Steam Yacht Gondola, which is reputed to be the oldest steam driven passenger vessel in the world, sails tomorrow, weather permitting, from the pier at Coniston. Another joyous site to behold.

Gondola's story begins in 1849. Having noted how successful the Kendal and Windermere Railway had been at bringing visitors to Windermere, the directors of the Furness Railway decided that the answer to Coniston's transport problems was to build a railway joining the main Barrow to Whitehaven line with Coniston, and at the same time launch a passenger cruise service on Coniston Water. 

The Railway opened in 1859, and steam yacht "Gondola" was launched in November of the same year, entering service for the following summer season. It became an immediate success, so much so that by the turn of the century a second boat was required. "The Lady of the Lake" entered service in 1907. She was sightly longer and carried more than twice the number of passengers than Gondola. She ran until the second world war, when she was taken out of service, never to return. She was scrapped in 1950.

Gondola had been taken out of service in 1936, and the cost of returning her to service in 1945 was considered prohibitive. She was sold and then converted to a houseboat. Little structural work was carried out on her, and by 1960 she had been abandoned and was little more than a derelict hulk, moored at the southern end of the lake. During a violent storm she broke free from her mooring, drifted into a reed bed, and sank. Luckily, the water was not deep, so she did not disappear from view.  

For the next ten years her half submerged remains were a curious landmark to those passing by. 

Salvaging and rebuilding her was no mean feat. Funds had to be raised in order to carry out a feasibility study, and it was found that although the hull and engine were not salvageable, much of the remainder of the vessel was. A second round of fund raising was undertaken in order to have a new hull built, an engine commissioned and the remainder of the boat restored back to it's former glory.

In March 1980, the fully restored "Gondola" was launched by Sheila Howell, granddaughter of Felix Hamill, her first master back in 1859. After final trials she finally entered service for the second time in the summer of 1980. And she's been steaming gracefully ever since.

For more information about the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway, click here

For more information about the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway, click here

For more information about Gondola, click here

A late winter wander around lovely Loweswater

At just a mile long, and half a mile wide, Loweswater is one of Lakeland's smallest lakes. I also happen to think it is one of the loveliest. I well remember the first time I set eyes on it. It was during a family holiday in 1970. It was our first visit, and we were touring the area in the family minibus. Having visited Buttermere and been entranced by it's beauty, we took the road to the coast, where we were staying. Crummock Water passed by the window, resplendent with it's backdrop of mountains, the names of which I had yet to discover, and once the end of the lake was reached I settled back to enjoy the the rest of the journey, thinking that there were no more lakes to see that day.  When Loweswater suddenly appeared to our left, it was a such a delightful surprise that I demanded we stop and have a look around. My plea fell on deaf ears. The rest of the family had decided that we had seen quite enough lakes for one day, so we drove on by, and all I could do was promise myself to return one day to fully investigate it's charms.

It was three years before I was able to fulfil that promise, and I think that my opinion of this lovely little lake was truly formed on that day. The weather was perfect, a deep blue sky, complete with little white cotton wool clouds drifting lazily along on a gentle breeze. I clambered up the lush green pastures of  Darling Fell, to the north of the lake, looked down on it's clear blue waters, and decided that this was probably one of the most perfect places in the world. It was so peaceful, so far removed from the hustle and bustle of the world, that it was imbued with a level of tranquillity that was rare even in the Lake District. Yes, that day I fell in love with Loweswater. I've been besotted with her ever since.

Loweswater is less frequently visited than other lakes, mainly, I think, because it is small and a little off the beaten track. Close by are the ever popular lakes of Buttermere and Crummock Water. They are the City and United of the Lakes, surrounded by impressive mountains, with a huge fanbase, and visitors galore. The village of Buttermere, situated between the two, has more car parking spaces than residents. By comparison Loweswater is very much a local league lake, flanked by fells that even Wainwright could not get enthusiastic about, and apparently not worthy of a pay and display with information board. Yet that is one of it's greatest attractions.  There is a round the lake footpath, which because it features virtually no hilly bits at all, is suitable for the very youngest fell walker. Holme Wood, on the lake's southern shore has both red deer and red squirrels. They can be elusive, but the beautiful Holme Force, a wonderful little waterfall set amongst the trees, is easier to find if you know where to look. There is no need to scramble up the hillside to reach it, a nice wide path leads right to it, but as there is no sign it is easy to miss the turning to it.

On previous visits I have enjoyed the charms of this wonderful lake in many ways, and for my latest visit in mid March, I decided to stay on the south side, walking along the shore through Holme Woods, before heading up the fellside to High Nook Tarn, and then following the footpath along the side of Burnbank Fell to the western end of the Lake. The day was completed by re-tracing my steps a quarter of a mile to enter the woods via a small gate leading to a narrow path that eventually meets a wider forest track. A short distance along this track the delightful Holme Force provides a pleasing end to the walk.

What passes for parking at Loweswater. A large lay-by, one of two beside the minor road, and the small car park at Maggies Bridge, at the Crummock Water end of the Lake, are all there is, and I'm told that there is almost always a space or two available.

This is the only hill on the round lake walk. It leads up to Hudson Place, a small farm. It is not very steep or far, but has this wonderful roadside display of daffodils in mid March.

Beyond Hudson Place the track swings left to drop down towards the Lake Shore, with wonderful views down the lake.

Half way along the Lake Shore and this bothy appears. Owned by the National Trust, it is available for hire.

The small beach outside the bothy has wonderful views across the Lake to Darling Fell and Low Fell. It also has full recreational facilities for those long summer evenings, in the form of a swing.

Looking across Loweswater to the unmistakable profile of Grasmoor, which overlooks Crummock Water.

At the other end of the Lake the track leads to Maggies Bridge, where there is a small car park, a signpost, and a lot of mud!

From Maggies Bridge the farm track leads up to High Nook Farm, and beyond, the open fellside. To the right of the path is High Nook Beck, a lovely little stream running down the fellside towards the Lake. It joins the outflow of the Lake just below Maggies Bridge, and becomes the River Cocker, which eventually joins the River Derwent at Cockermouth.

Looking back across the fellside from the path beside the beck. Grasmoor is prominent, and Crummock Water can also be seen.

High Nook Tarn, a lovely little water which drains into High Nook Beck. My walk does not pass by the tarn, but it is in clear view and a narrow footpath, boggy in winter, leads up to it.

The path swings right, crossing High Nook Beck by a narrow bridge, then climbs the flank of Burnbank Fell.

A little further on and despite gaining height, the trees of Holme Wood start to conceal the view.

The highest portion of this path, and also the highest point of the walk, is also the most disappointing. The view is totally hidden by trees, with the flanks of Burnbank fell blocking the view in the other direction. There is about half a mile of this lack of scenery to endure.

The other end of Holme Wood and the trees are left behind. The view appears, and it is worth waiting for.

The head of the lake. This end is closest to the coast, and conventional thinking dictates that the small stream there will flow away from the lake towards the sea, but it doesn't. Loweswater is unique in that the water from the lake flows towards the centre of the Lake District as opposed to away from it. Crummock Water is lower than Loweswater, and the water from Loweswater flows into Crummock.

Backtracking is something I'm not keen on, but on this walk there is far greater reward in going back for a quarter of a mile rather than carrying on along the path that skirts Burnbank Fell. On the way back Holme Beck is crossed for the second time. This is the view looking downstream as it heads down the slope towards the lake. I shall meet it again shortly.

I've turned left into the woods and followed a narrow track down to a junction with a much wider track, then turned left, to follow the wide track down the slope, athletically hurdling this fallen tree on the way, as you do.

It is not long before this beautiful little waterfall appears on the left. Before getting to it there is little indication of it's existence. It is the aforementioned Holme Beck, cascading down through the woodland. The falls are called Holme Force.

The lower pool of Holme Force. It is not big, but it is beautiful, and a real treat to enjoy towards the end of the walk.

Getting to Holme Force from the main track through the woods is not easy. The track it is on, although wide, runs higher up in the woodland, and not used regularly. To add to the navigation problems, there is no sign to the falls. These two trees are all that mark the start of the path from the main track through the forest.

A fine view to end the day. The car is about 250 yards away, and the sun has come out. It is been a super walk, in weather that was better than forecast.

Things to do in the Lake District when you are bored and 14

"Now pay attention, class. It's been a long journey and we only have three days, so we have to get a move on."
It's the back end of the 1960's. A time of free love and dropping out, only at the tender age of 14 we were all a bit too young for either, so while the rest of the world moved and grooved, we went on a three day long geography field trip to the Lake District.  And we are in a field, which is fitting. Oh, and did I mention the rain? No. Well, just for good measure, it's raining.

So just to paint the picture, that's 32 bored 14 year olds, in a field, in the rain. We wouldn't have minded if it had been in school time, but this was the back end of the Easter holidays. For dear Miss Robinson, the task of keeping us in order was like herding cats. But she was a determined soul and no doubt her 30 years of teaching experience were what eventually won her the day.

She was not helped by three days of Lakeland sunshine (aka drizzle) and hostel accommodation that was basic with a capital base. However, with a huge helping of Joyce Grenfell style enthusiasm and the promise of the last afternoon off, she managed to persuade us that carrying out a range of tasks such as measuring the pebbles in a stream and counting the number of species of plant in a square yard of sheep field, were not only worthwhile, but also fun.

And so we came to that last afternoon, our well earned afternoon off, and we ended up on a boat, cruising sedately up Windermere, unable to see out of the windows because they had steamed up. Had we been able to look out we would not have seen the shore. The mist was too thick. Little wonder that when we finally returned home we vowed collectively to never return. We'd been sold a dream that had turned into a nightmare. We were told our Lake District field trip would be an adventure we would remember with affection for ever. That it would inspire us to have respect for the natural world and all it's wonders. And yes, it would be the most fun we'd ever had in our lives. When we arrived we were excited. Looking forward to enjoying the freedom of this vast adventure playground. And then all we did was count pebbles in a stream, and have a ride on a boat in the rain.

The thing is that sometime between 1960 something and now, someone invented organised adventure. I'm sure it must have existed before the 1960's. I seem to remember Enid Blyton sending her famous five on one. But other than in story books we were not really told of it's existence. We were meant to discover it for ourselves. So as a child we swung over streams on ropes slung over the branches of a tree, or skidded downhill on a home made buggy, or raced our bikes up a home made ramp to see who could jump the furthest, and land without falling off. All great fun, all totally unsupervised, and it never cost us a penny. So if we had been given the opportunity to swing through the trees in the rain on that last afternoon, or to scale a massive polystyrene wall with steps in, or enjoy the thrill of a zip wire, then we'd have jumped at the chance. But we weren't able to do any of those things because, to the best of our knowledge, nowhere existed where we could. Unlike today.

In my travels around the Lake District, I am impressed by the amount of organised outdoor adventure opportunities available. From tree top adventures, to climbing walls, kayaking to mountain biking, today's 14 year olds have so much to keep them from being bored. And judging by a visit to Grizedale Forest last year, it seems that there is no shortage of teenagers taking full advantage. All of which kind of makes me wish I was 14 again. Actually, there are lots of reasons why being 14 again would be good, but the outdoor adventure opportunities is really high on the list, so we'll leave it at that.

Photo courtesy of GoApe

So with half term upon us, and the Easter Holidays just around the corner, here is a list of some of the adventure possibilities for today's youngsters. (actually, they are not confined to the young, one other change from life in the 1960s is that parents and grandparents can join in!)

Go Ape, swing through the trees, or race through the forest on a segway. There are Go Ape courses at Grizedale and Whinlatter Both have mountain biking opportunities as well. 

If you fancy a spot of indoor climbing, Keswick Climbing Wall is just the spot. A big indoor climbing wall, complete with a cafe for a snack afterwards. Click the same link and you'll find that the there is more than just a climbing wall available. They also do outdoor adventure. You have to book in advance, so check it out.

If you taking to the water is your thing, then check out Platty + , who have water sports on Derwentwater pretty much covered. Or if you are in the South Lakes area, try Windermere Canoe Kayak for your watery adventure.