Countrystride

Countrystride #49: Wainwright on Haystacks - An anniversary retrospective

...in which we commemorate the 30th anniversary of Alfred Wainwright's passing by taking a virtual stroll to Innominate Tarn with archivist Chris Butterfield and long-time AW film-maker Richard Else. As we wander – through the history of the Pictorial Guides and AW's television career – we discuss what makes the Guides so unique; we talk about the emergence of an unlikely cult personality; we hear why the great fell-wanderer was almost certainly on the autistic spectrum; we trace AW's final steps onto his beloved Haystacks; and we pose the question: 'Was AW a genius?'

• Richard's book, Wainwright Revealed, can be bought from all good bookshops.
• Chris's Facebook Group, Alfred Wainwright Books & Memorabilia, can be found at https://en-gb.facebook.com/groups/AlfredWainwright/

Countrystride #48: Hadrian's Wall

...in which we head to the Cumbrian borderlands with long-time Roman authority David Breeze for a virtual stroll along Hadrian's Wall. As we wander west from the village of Gilsland towards airy Craggle Hill, we deep-dive into Emperor Hadrian's era of pragmatic consolidation; we learn how his vision changed as the Wall's construction progressed; we ponder why threats from across the Solway never materialised; and we discover why the Wall was not the end of Empire – but merely the base of a vast infrastructure extending north.

• David's latest book on Hadrian's Wall,Hadrian's Wall. A Study in Archaeological Exploration and Interpretation is available from Archaeopress at 20% discount: https://doi.org/10.32028/9781789691672 – Use voucher code HW20

Countrystride #47: Lakeland pilgrims

...in which we embark on a virtual pilgrimage with John Fleetwood and Stephen Wright, the founders of two Cumbrian pilgrim trails. As we wander, from the great rock cathedrals of Scafell Crag and Napes Needle to the softly-spoken churches around the Northern Fells, we ask what it means to be a pilgrim; we unearth the history of Saint Kentigern – Cumbria's great saint; we consider why long distance walking generates such a deep bond with the landscape; and we ask what spiritual journeys have given to Stephen and John.

• You can find out more about the Kentigern Way, and buy Stephen's guidebook at https://www.sacredspace.org.uk/products
• You can find out more about John's Lakeland Pilgrimage at http://lakelandpilgrimage.blogspot.com
• You can find out more about pilgrimage in Britain and buy the book Britain's Pilgrim Places at https://britishpilgrimage.org/portfolio/a-lakeland-pilgrimage/

Countrystride #46: Cumbria in a campervan

...in which we temporarily swap our walking boots for the passenger seat of an ancient Bongo campervan to take an A–Z trip around the Lake District with Carlisle-based author Richard Harris. As we roam the National Park in search of solitude and mini adventures, we discover a Martindale stained-glass window that holds clues to wartime tragedy; we learn how Nibthwaite – with its Arthur Ransome claim to fame – has rejected the tourist limelight; we discuss how, post-lockdown, camper vans became public enemy No.1; and we hear why Cleator Moor – one-time candidate for Lourdes of the north – is the friendliest place in the county.

• Richard's books, Bongo Nights and Bongo Nights 2 can be bought from www.bongonights.co.uk

Countrystride #45: Review of 2020

...in which we are joined by Lakeland Walker editor John Manning for our annual delve into Countrystrides past, picking our best bits from 2020 as we chat about everything from herdwicks to heroines; from bonfires to booze, from rewilding to rediscovering the joys of local before making New Years resolutions with guests including Sue Allan, James Rebanks, Julia Aglionby, Bill Birkett, Steve Matthews, Bill Lloyd and Penny Bradshaw.

• We would like to thanks Bill Lloyd not only for his banjo playout of the tune 'Through the Glen', but also for hosting us in his Wild Wood Studio.

Countrystride #44: Christmas past - A Wetheral wander

...in which we take a seasonal stroll from Wetheral along the banks of a swollen River Eden with historian and writer Dr Sue Allen. As we walk, through winter woods to St Constantine's Cells in the December gloaming, we talk about Cumbrian Christmases past, about mischief and misrule; about why Cumbria's 'hackin' pre-empted Scotland's haggis; about why Christmas wasn't what it used to be – even in the 18th century; and about John Lawson – the man who captured so many Wetheral memories in the late 1800s – before Sue regales us with dialect song and a seasonal 'merryneet' tune. Happy Christmas to all.

• You can find Sue on Twitter at twitter.com/SueCumbria
• Sue's book, The Cumberland Bard: Robert Anderson of Carlisle 1770-1833, is available at https://www.bookscumbria.com/cgi-bin/trolleyed_public.cgi?action=showprod_6681

Countrystride #43: Shap & The Postman's Path

...in which we journey to Shap, the historic transport hub, to take a wintry walk among the Far Eastern Fells in the footsteps of 1950s postman Jimmy Eland. In the company of born-and-bred Shapite Jean Scott-Smith and author Alan Cleaver, we visit the secluded remains of Shap Abbey, discover the far-from-the-madding crowd loveliness of Swindale, learn about the hard-graft lives of rural postmen, and enjoy Jean's memories of pastoral Wet Sleddale before the dam rose .

• You can read more of Jean's research and memories at https://shaplocalhistorysociety.wordpress.com/contact-us/
• You can buy Alan's books, Get Lost! and The Corpse Roads of Cumbria at Books Cumbria.
• Alan is on Twitter @thelonningsguy

Countrystride #42: Cumbria on film

...in which we go on holiday by mistake with author David Banning to talk about Cumbria and the Lake District on film. In a locked-down virtual wander that takes in Wet Sleddale, Coniston Water, Little Langdale and the rebel planet of Takodana, we consider the tropes of Cumbrian cinema – from 'rural escape' to zombie apocalypse; we learn about the value of Swallows & Amazons and Miss Potter to the tourist economy; we relive the moment enfant terrible Ken Russell fell in love with Lakeland; and we spend too long quoting Withnail and I.

 

• David's book, An A-Z of Cumbria and the Lake District on Film, is available from Hayloft.

Countrystride #41: Harriet Martineau - The roving Laker

...in which we enjoy a Loughrigg circular with Dr Kerri Andrews to celebrate the life of Harriet Martineau, the ‘wild rover’ sociologist who recovered from debilitating illness to become one of Lakeland’s great walkers and one of the most successful guidebook writers of the Victorian age. As we encounter tourist honeypots including The Grot, Rydal Cave and dusk-lit Lily Tarn, we explore the neglected tradition of women writer-walkers, learn about Martineau’s mission to become ‘a Laker’, discover how walking has helped ease physical and mental trauma; and hear about Kerri’s admiration for the ‘homely’ and ‘familiar’ narratives of local hero Dorothy Wordsworth.

• Dr Kerri Andrews is on Twitter @kerriandrewsuk
• Kerri’s book, Wanderers: A History of Women Walking, is available from Reaktion Books.

Countrystride #40: Bill Lloyd - Into the woods

...in which we take a magical autumn wander through the oak woods of Penny Rock with musician, author and outdoorsman Bill Lloyd, to hear about his life extracting timber from Cumbrian woodlands with heavy horse Ginger. As we reach the mirrorred waters of Grasmere we talk about the sunset days of an ancient craft and the bond between man and horse; we discuss Char-fishing with the Windermere Fleet and lonely nights in the Loweswater bothy; and we discover how Beatrix Potter's gelding irons came to reside alongside Bill's fire.

• For more about Bill's writing and music see: www.billlloyd.co.uk

• You can buy Bill's book 'One Horsepower' from www.billlloyd.co.uk/wildwood/wildwood-publications/

 

Countrystride #39: Thirlmere - and the flooding of a valley

…in which we take an autumnal wander along the wooded west shore of Thirlmere, the reservoir that displaced a close-knit pastoral community to fulfil 19th century Manchester’s ever-growing thirst for water.

 

As we walk, we learn from author and one-time vicar of the parish Geoff Darrell about the valley as it once was: the patchwork fields, twin lakes, Wath bridge and diminutive settlement of City.

 

Then, as we reach the lakeshore – walls from a past age slipping under the waves – we hear from former Friends of the Lake District Director Ian Brodie about the grand ambitions, political manoeuvres and clandestine gambles that would flood a valley, divide the nation and lead, in time, to the establishment of national parks and the emergence of conservation movements worldwide.

 

• You can order Geoff’s books, The Valley of Thirlmere - A History of the Houses and people in the old valley and Wythburn Church and the Valley of Thirlmere from Sam Read in Grasmere and Bookends, Keswick. You can also buy direct via adamscross.co.uk/Books.html
• Ian's book, Thirlmere and the Emergence of the Landscape Protection Movement, is also available from Bookends, Keswick.