The impacts of Storm Desmond on the areas around Glenridding & Patterdale have been well documented and so it’s no surprise that a rallying cry for volunteers to join our Fell Care Day was met with a fantastic response.

123 volunteers were joined by 15 volunteer task leaders and 10 Friends of the Lake District staff to take part in a variety of practical conservation tasks on Wednesday 6th July to help heal and restore landscapes ravaged by the winter storms.

Their tireless work over the course of just one day resulted in an impressive list of achievements.

• 2000 non-native invasive balsam plants pulled at Patterdale.
• 75m of draining work completed on Tailings Dam, Greenside.
• 25m of drain clearance at Tailings Dam, Greenside.
• 200sqm of grass seeding completed at Greenside.
• 150 tree guards cleared of bracken to support native tree growth.
• Gough Monument on Helvellyn fully renovated and restored.
• 150 m of the Ullswater Way path at Glencoyne upgraded with 15 tonnes of aggregate.
• 2,500 sqm of invasive Rhododendron cleared at Aira Force.
• 25km of upland paths cleared and maintained at Howtown, Place Fell and Mires Beck.
• 5 tonnes of rock cleared from the beck at Horseman’s Bridge, Hartsop.
• 25m of dry stone wall rebuilt at Cow Bridge, Hartsop
• 821 hours of work completed = 117 days
• More than 300 pieces of cake eaten!

Ruth Kirk, Fell Care Project Officer said,

“We were overwhelmed by the response of people keen to volunteer to help repair and restore landscape damage to this beautiful part of the Lake District. From teenagers to retired people, the collective effort was awe-inspiring and shows just how cherished and important this beautiful county is to so many people. We thank them all from the bottom of our hearts.”

You can view images from the day in our Facebook gallery>

Thanks also go to partner organisations National Trust and Lake District National Park who led tasks on the day.

Our next fell Care Day is at Rusland on Thursday 3rd November. For more information, contact [email protected]