#141: A Cumbrian Christmas Cracker

...in which we gather at YHA Borrowdale for a wide-ranging chat about hostelling in the Lake District: the people. the places and the passion. In the company of Aaron Jones, manager at YHA Borrowdale; Christine Thomas, co-owner of Elterwater Hostel; and Elterwater team member Charlie Spiller, we begin by asking what fanned their hostelling flames (family holidays, illicit treks and Amsterdam's red light district respectively). Looking back over the early, then glory, days of the YHA – when the charity operated 300 hostels; when you were expected to arrive "under your own steam";, and when guests mucked-in with chores – we proceed to today, where a professionalised 'home from home' hospitality approach is championed by both the YHA and a thriving independent sector. Immersing ourselves in hostel life, we profile a typical working day at both Borrowdale (buzzy games room, thriving bar) and Elterwater (table service, sticky toffee pudding) before quizzing our guests on their favourite hostels. Delving deeper into the business of running a hostel – a sector in recovery after the strains of Covid – we learn about the highs and lows of hostel operation; about the satisfaction that comes from facilitating new friendships, and about why, in an increasingly divided world, interactions in hostels are as important as ever. For more about Elterwater Hostel (always book direct!), see https://www.elterwaterhostel.co.uk/ and reviews on Google. For more about YHA Borrowdale see the YHA website (always book direct!) For more about other indie hostels, see https://independenthostels.co.uk/

...in which we head south to Pendle Hill to explore the extraordinary lives of two campaigning outdoorsmen, who helped establish National Parks, Youth Hostels, the Ramblers and The Pennine Way – 60 years young this year. In the company of Nick Burton and Bob Sproule from the Pendle Radicals project, we set out from the Lancashire village of Roughlee, where the scene is set for the arrival of the 'two Toms' – a time where workers in the industrial north had to fight to access the hills around them. Striding onto Noggarth Edge, where views open over the former mill towns of Colne, Nelson and Burnley, we learn about the early life of Tom Stephenson, father of the Pennine Way, who was working in a calico works aged 13, and whose life changed forever on Pendle Hill. Jailed as a conscientious objector during World War I, we follow Tom into his campaigning years, when the concept of his 'Long Green Trail' took root. Descending to Pendle Water, we introduce the Reverend Thomas Arthur Leonard OBE, one-time minister of Barrow-in-Furness and Colne, whose commitment to social reform – and suspicion of the boozy Wakes weeks – gifted us the Co-operative Holidays Association, and its successor the Holiday Fellowship (he is commemorated in a plaque on Cat Bells). Arriving at the last-of-its-kind Clarion House, where working class cyclists and walkers still meet for shelter, education and fellowship, we enjoy the cheapest cup of tea in Lancashire, before reflecting on the golden age of access pioneers, and their remarkable legacy. Clarion House can be found here. For more about the Pendle Radicals, see here. More information about the Two Toms Trail can be found here.

...in which we venture west to the Eskdale village of Boot to visit the last remaining water cornmill in the Lake District. Guided by Mill manager Kate Hughes, we explore the old gardens – a scene of watery activity, with Willan Beck tumbling over boulders and leats threading through channels to feed three wheels. Here we learn about the long history of milling in Lakeland, where over 2,000 mills harnessed power in their pre-industrial heydey. Moving indoors, we observe the drying room, where peat briquettes, extracted from Burnmoor, were burned to dry barley – a staple part of the Cumbrian diet for generations. Moving into the machine room – noisy with belts, drives, cogs and wheels – we consider the hard-graft life of the miller; of the Corn Laws that made of him a pariah in the hamlet; of the seasonal nature of milling; and of the mill's women folk, employed in communal baking and washing. Outside again, walking through sun-dappled daffodils, we marvel at old mill wheels (each ground for a century or more) and the different stones used on different grains. Finally, Kate chats about her abiding love of Eskdale; of the views from Harter Fell; of the upper Esk pools; and of the vibrant shades of autumn. For more about Eskdale Mill, including open times, see eskdalemill.co.uk/visit The Mill is on Facebook (facebook.com/p/Eskdale-Mill-100064829043197/), Bluesky (bsky.app/profile/eskdalemill.bsky.social) and Instagram (instagram.com/eskdalemillboot/).

...in which we visit the far northeast of Cumbria to explore the remarkable history and remains of the Nenthead lead mines. In the company of geologist and Nenthead Mines trustee Pete Jackson, we learn about the earliest mineral prospecting in the area, where 'the old men' sought out lead in becks, waterfalls and, latterly, artificial hushes. Arriving at a centuries-old stone leat – still flowing – we consider the unusual addition of flag coverings, and nature's steady reclamation of spoil heaps. Entering the hill at Carr's Level, we consider the boom years of the London Quaker Lead Company, and the values that gave rise to social housing and an early form of sickness pay. Moving deeper into the mines – and through the evolution of extractive technologies, from hand-picking to dynamite – we proceed to the great depression that made Nenthead a truly European operation, where British, Italian, French and German miners mixed, mined and lived together. We end our journey atop the mind-blowing 300-foot Brewery Shaft, where Pete describes the five-mile subterranean canal – once a tourist attraction – that links Nenthead to Alston. For more about Nethead Mine, and to find out about publ;ic open days, see nentheadmines.com/

...in which we delve into a remarkable oral history archive to paint a long-view picture of the ever-changing farmed landscape of the Westmorland Dales. In the company of local-born John Hastwell and project officer Amanda Walters, we listen to farmers past and present as they discuss the hard-graft reality of farming the Westmorland Dales, the northern Howgills and the Orton Fells.  Looking back to the inter-War years – long before the arrival of phones and electricity in remote valleys – we hear crystal-clear memories (in beautiful accents) of life before mechanisation, when fell ponies and draft horses pulled sleds and trailers; and when 400+ farms in the area kept dairy herds. Proceeding to the arrival of the first Little Grey Fergie, we reflect on the joys and frustrations of hay-making, and the long hours worked by farm children. Turning to the social context of farm lives and loves, we hear about the importance of church; of the mart; and of the dances and seaside trips that bound scattered communities. Reflecting on the priceless value of wildflower meadows and the demise of dairy in Ravenstonedale, we close by asking 'What's next?' for the farms of the Dales, and discover that one model may be a 'back to basics' approach inspired by our farming forebears. The Westmorland Dales' 'Our Common Heritage' oral history project was inspired by Friends of the Lake District, which owns Little Asby Common in the heart of the Westmorland Dales. It was one of many projects delivered through the Westmorland Dales Landscape Partnership, led by Friends of the Lake District and the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority. Full interviews can be accessed at Cumbria Archives in Kendal and the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes.

...in which we are joined by Gavin Capstick, new chief executive of the Lake District National Park Authority, for a wide-ranging chat about the state of the Park and his ambitions for its future. Ascending out of Tebay onto the Howgills, we learn about Gavin's Eden Valley upbringing and his first interactions with the Lake District – playing youth football – before a local government career led him to the Park Authority. Arriving at a stock exclosure fence with emerging woodland, we talk about the balance the Park must try and strike between farming and nature, locals and tourists, conservation and development; and the inherent tension built into National Parks' DNA. Dropping to the Lune – and a fabulous riverside path below the M6 – Gavin defines 'low impact tourism', notes the 40% real-term reduction in government funding over the past decade; outlines the pressure placed on new honeypots by social media influencers, and describes the highs (ice cream) and lows (rain) of being a Wainwright-bagging family. Turning to knottier issues, we discuss 4x4s on green lanes; how private car use in the Park might be reduced, the strange silence of Covid lockdowns... and why Rory Delap is Gavin's Cumbrian hero. The Lake District is on Twitter/X at x.com/lakedistrictnpa

...in which we visit Keswick Museum for a deep dive into the life of one of Romantic Lakeland's most under-appreciated figures: writer, former Poet Laureate and long-term resident of Greta Hall, Robert Southey (1774-1843). In the company of Museum curator Nicola Lawson and trustee Charlotte May, we return to Bristol, 1774 and set the shifting social scene for the birth of a young radical – expelled from Westminster – whose education was beset by bullying. Alongside new wife Edith Fricker and creative soulmate Samuel Taylor Coleridge, we follow Southey north to Keswick and learn about daily life at Greta Hall, where the young poet became sole breadwinner in a busy household of sisters and their home-educated children. With tragedy a constant in the Southeys' life – four of the couples’ eight children died before reaching adulthood – we discuss Edith's enduring mental illness, the fast-growing Keswick of the early 1800s, and the great joy Southey derived from family and domestic life. Reflecting on a (sometimes) controversial and (always) prodigious writing talent (Southey's output far eclipsed that of Wordsworth or Coleridge), we namecheck some of his finest works: from the first published version of Goldilocks and the three bears (The Story of the Three Bears) through his remarkable História do Brasil to the onomatopoeic masterpiece The Cataract of Lodore. Brazing the frosty cold, we conclude our conversation alongside Southey's grave at Crosthwaite Church, where we consider his relationship with Keswick and the great loss felt at the death of a towering talent and an adored family man. You can find out more about Southey and Keswick at Keswick Museum: keswickmuseum.org.uk The Museum is on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter/X.

...in which we unwrap a selection box of our favourite clips from the year past in the company of Cumbria Wildlife Trust's Jamie Normington and Low Sizergh Barn co-owner Alison Park. Featuring clips from, among others, James Robinson, Eileen Jones, Mark Hatton, Phoebe Smith, April Windle, Mark Cropper, Angus Winchester and Peter Todhunter, we sift through 19 episodes and 20 hours of recordings from as far flung as Newlands, Windermere, Seathwaite, Orton and Great Moss. In our annual extended fire-side chat – in which we pick our Cumbrian Book of the Year and Walk of the year – we cover buses, bars and burial cairns; we discuss rainforests, regeneration and gathering the Rough Fell; we visit Barrow, Borrowdale and the Back o' Skiddaw; we reflect on the increasingly precarious business of hill farming; we consider Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s acquisition of 3,000 acres of Skiddaw Forest, and we close by remembering King of the Fells, Joss Naylor. Alison can be found at Low Sizergh Barn.

...in which we congregate at the Armitt, Ambleside for a night of readings, historic press reports, dialect poems and music that celebrate a distinctly Cumbrian Christmas. In the company of Alan Cleaver, Lesley Park, Sue Allan and – on harp and guitar – the Cumbrian Duo, we take a nostalgic trip down memory lane (and beyond) as we learn about seasonal customs from the historic counties of Westmorland and Cumberland: of the 'Waits' who performed dance tunes in isolated valleys; of the 'Merryneets', where dalesfolk would gather for nights of feasting and frivolity; and of the carol-singers of Wasdale, fighting a losing battle against the winter snows. Turning to dialect, Sue regales us with a miscellany of snow terms from the old tongue and champions works of the tragically underrated Cumbrian Bard, Robert Anderson of Carlisle, while Lesley reads one of the all-time classic Lakeland Christmas poems: 'Down t'Lonning'. As we move around the county – from the Ambleside postman's path via Buttermere (and its many pies) to a west coast nativity scene – we're accompanied by winter-time tunes from Ed Haslam and Jean Altshuler, including 'Cold and Raw' and the infamous 'Bleckell Murry Neet'. Alan's book, A Lake District Christmas, is available from Inspired by Lakeland. Sue's book on The Cumberland Bard is available from Books Cumbria. The latest CD from the Cumbrian Duo is sold through Willowhayne Music at naxosdirect.co.uk/search/bleckell Some of their music can be heard at youtube.com/watch?v=xB9CcJLIxKA and youtube.com/watch?v=jbNzqBBTCHk This podcast was recorded at one of our Countrystride Live events. To be first in line for tickets, sign up to our newsletter at countrystride.co.uk/

...in which Dave takes a midwinter stroll with author Polly Atkin to discuss The Company of Owls, Polly's new book about her tawny owl neighbours in Grasmere. Climbing from Town End onto White Moss Common, we consider the recent history of the surrounding landscape – from grazed pasture through makeshift 'hutment' settlement to the rich woodland of today that is home to deer, badger, fox and numerous birds. Arriving at a mossy oak, we learn about Polly's passion for owls, and the personal connection she formed with three new-born owlets. The little-known habits of owls are discussed – the long walks they take to explore territory; the on-and-off cohabitation arrangements of mate-for-life parents; and the pragmatic preservation of energy in death. Arriving at a nature-reclaimed pool, our conversation skips from owls to the Romantic poets, night-time walking, mythology and bluebells. Finally, arriving at Grasmere's Wishing Gate, we turn to Polly's award-winning Some of Us Just Fall, and talk about why the nature-healing narrative is a fallacy; and why the owls in this enchanted patch of woodland embody hope, sadness, anxiety, joy – but, most of all, continuity. The Company of Owls is available to buy (signed) from samreadbooks.co.uk/product/polly-atkin-the-company-of-owls-signed-/13814 and (not signed) eandtbooks.com/books/the-company-of-owls/ Polly is on Twitter/X at x.com/pollyrowena Polly's Linktree: https://t.co/ehfHhLe116