Tag Archives: The Lakes

Forever Changing – Broad Majestic Duddon

Posted on April 25, 2013 by

A walk along the shifting sands of the Duddon estuary . . . Continue reading →

Posted in Walking, Hiking, Mountains, History, Environment, Geology, Archaeology, Industrial archaeology, Beer, William Wordsworth, Second World War | Tagged , , , , | 13 Comments

London 4: William Morris and a Wander Through Walthamstow

Posted on April 6, 2013 by

A WIND to slice ears off whips across the entrance to Walthamstow Central tube station. The temperature is below zero degrees Centigrade and snow settles behind chimney stacks on bleak roofs. This is London at Easter. There are no bunnies … Continue reading →

Posted in Beer, History, Life, Pigeons, Politics, Ranting, Walking, William Morris, Writing | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

A Blackpowder Blast From the Past

Posted on February 26, 2013 by

IUSED to blow up huge chunks of Cumbrian hillside for a living. I stopped doing it not through any regard for conservation or the environment, but because I’d noticed that none of my more senior colleagues ever reached retirement age … Continue reading →

Posted in Walking, Ranting, Hiking, Mountains, History, Environment, Geology, Slate quarries, Quarrying, Industrial archaeology, Railway goods wagons, Explosives | Tagged , , , | 25 Comments

Lakeland-by-the-Sea: A Walk With a Border Collie

Posted on December 10, 2012 by

WORDSWORTH penned 34 sonnets either celebrating or related to the River Duddon – according to the contents pages of my Wordsworth’s Poetical Works Volume V. I had intended to include a few verses here to introduce this piece, but having … Continue reading →

Posted in Walking, Climbing, Hiking, Running, Mountains, History, Environment, Industrial archaeology, William Wordsworth | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

Causey Pike – A Country For Old Men?

Posted on December 3, 2012 by

NEAR the summit of Causey Pike, where the heathery track gives way to steep rock, an elderly man sits on a boulder. He’s wearing a wide-brimmed hat and his white hair wisps about his ears. I get the impression he’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Writing, Walking, Climbing, Hiking, Life, Mountains, Environment, Ghosts | Tagged , , , | 32 Comments

It’s Time to Migrate

Posted on November 14, 2012 by

I HEAR wild noises and glance into the sky as a skein of geese passes over the garden. So I light a fire in front of the shed and prepare to move my sheep to winter pastures . . .

Posted in Life, Mountains, History, Beetroot, Great North Road, Vikings | Tagged , , | 15 Comments

South of the Border, Down Cheviot Way

Posted on October 23, 2012 by

A walk along the boggy border between Scotland and England . . . Continue reading →

Posted in Walking, Climbing, Hiking, Mountains, History, Environment, Ghosts, Railways, Railway goods wagons, Death | Tagged , , , | 30 Comments

Lucero – Where Old Hatreds Linger

Posted on October 4, 2012 by

LUCERO is a prominent pyramid of baked rock that looks ten times more a mountain than nearly everything twice, three times and four times its size. The approaches from the south are long and incredibly steep. From the north, though, … Continue reading →

Posted in Climbing, Hiking, History, Life, Mountains, Politics, Ranting, Spanish Civil War, Walking | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Giving a Fig About Walking up Gorges

Posted on September 25, 2012 by

Walking on water . . . just for a change Continue reading →

Posted in Climbing, Environment, Hiking, Levadas, Mountains, Railway goods wagons, Railways, Walking | Tagged , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Beinn Dearg – A Teenage Dream

Posted on August 10, 2012 by

I LIKE Beinn Dearg. It’s a mountain with character way out in the backcountry. And I like the sound it makes when people pronounce its name correctly. It’s like the call of a bird or the noise of a rock … Continue reading →

Posted in Climbing, Cycling, Drove roads, Environment, Hiking, History, Mountains, Walking | Tagged , , , , , , | 14 Comments

Walking the Old Corpse Road – Mardale to Shap

Posted on June 5, 2012 by

THE last person to leave Mardale feet first for Shap was John Holme, in June 1736. Poor old John was as dead as they come. Whether he was strapped to a packhorse or nailed in a coffin and carried on … Continue reading →

Posted in Archaeology, Camping, Corpse roads, Death, Environment, Ghosts, Hiking, History, Mountains, Walking | Tagged , , | 34 Comments

A Final Voyage

Posted on May 11, 2012 by

YOU can see Scafell Pike – the highest mountain in England – from the forecourt garden of the terraced house in which I spent my early childhood. From the back garden of the bungalow the family moved to when I … Continue reading →

Posted in Camping, Chockhead, Climbing, Death, Hiking, HMS Theseus, Korean War, Life, Mountains, Sanquhar, Walking | Tagged , , , | 45 Comments