Last week we had another of our days when we
extend our experiences by visiting an area where we do not usually work. This time it was to Whitehaven and Ennerdale
in the west of the county. Chris, the
Trust’s ranger for that area, was running a volunteer day and a guided walk. He took us walking around the Haig Pit area and
the reclaimed land from the coal-mining industry that was centred there until
1988.
 |
| Chris - National Trust Ranger |
 |
| Reclaimed industrial land. |
Natural vegetation is now
colonising the area and you can see from the pictures that it is rich in
species including bee orchids. (Bee
orchids are named for their distinctive bee-like appearance and are predominantly found on sunny, well-drained grasslands
low in nutrients.)
You can find out much
more about this area at:
And you can download a walk
guide here:
We then moved on to Monks
Bridge on Coldfell near Calderbridge.
This is the oldest packhorse bridge in
Cumbria. It was built for the monks of
Calder Abbey , originally Savigniac monks and then later
on Cistercians from the larger Furness Abbey in the south of Cumbria. It would have been an important part of the
route for transporting iron ore from Ennerdale across Friar Gill to be smelted at the smithies on the fells.
Unfortunately a tree had
taken root so near to the bridge that its roots were threatening to cause
damage so we had to cut it down. We
dragged it away from the bridge for burning and took the opportunity to have a
barbecue. Once again, Chris had
organised a great day – two great locations, some essential work carried out
and the weather allowed us a barbecue!
No comments:
Post a Comment