Big projects moving forward.

Once again I had The National Trust Regional volunteers joining me at the weekend. This is a group I work with twice a year and it was good to see them back again.  We worked in Cockshot Wood, the little wood behind the Trust shop at the lake shore.  We did some preparatory work on making accessible a section of the loop of footpath that goes around the wood.  This is an ongoing project aimed at making the whole of the path in the wood as accessible as possible for everyone.  Once it is completed, we will have opened up another stretch of path and woodland for wheelchair users, pram pushers and others with mobility difficulties to enjoy. This project is part of the National Trust’s campaign to get people “outdoors and closer to nature”.

Next week is a Fell Care Week when lots of volunteers from Friends of the Lake District and the National Park will be joining me and other National Trust staff to carry on the project.

During the week we had the Trust’s National Archaeological Panel visiting Force Crag Mine.  This is another ongoing project that I’ve mentioned before.  It has three parts to it.  First is to deal with the water that is discharging from the old mine.  So we now have some large diggers at work in the middle of a Scheduled Ancient Monument digging it up for the installation of settlement tanks.  It might look a bit shocking at first but all necessary consents have been granted after extensive relevant consultations including with archaeologists.  If you want to make an omelette, you have to break eggs!  In the long-term this will be beneficial for the site.

Our second concern is the interpretation and presentation of the site.  This was the last working mine of its type in the Lake District and is the only one surviving with all its machinery in situ.   We want to be able to tell its story using ways that complement the site. Thirdly, we need to develop a plan for its future preservation. So those were the three topics for discussion with the panel.  It will be interesting to read their conclusions.

As a backdrop to all these activities, we are moving quickly into Autumn.  The bracken and trees are changing colour day by day, the days are shortening, it is cooler and there are fewer people around.  I love the valley all year round of course but autumn colour on a cold, sunny day is spectacular.

Daisy here,

I’ve been mountain biking – well, running alongside Roy.  No photographs – I’m too fast.