Countrystride #76: Wild Fell – Restoring Haweswater, with Lee Schofield

...in which we explore the lonely eastern valley of Haweswater, where one of the Lake District's largest landscape-scale restoration projects is being managed by author and ecologist Lee Schofield. Celebrating the publication of Lee's new book Wild Fell, we set out from sunshine-bathed Naddle Farm to visit a range of projects – from tree nurseries to reborn tarns – that showcase the RSPB and United Utilities' vision of marrying light-touch farming with ecological recovery. As we wander, we recall the declining years of England's last golden eagle, we seek the ghosts of beasts that once roamed the fells, we consider why fighting for change in a heritage landscape can be a lonely – sometimes bruising – business, and we learn why Lee sees hope taking root across the Lakes.

• Lee's book Wild Fell is available in bookshops and online.
• More about Wild Haweswater can be found here