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 In this section you will find all sorts of useful information and advice from boots to poles, from routes to cameras. Use the links on the left to navigate to the different categories. Much of the advice and useful information has been provided by the membership. If you would like to contribute your own pearl of wisdom that you wouldn't mind sharing with the rest of the world then please get in touch. Here are some of the latest items:
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Routes
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Written by Scott Anderson
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Wednesday, 03 March 2010 |
 Scott Anderson of Enlightened Traveller wrote to me recently asking for his url to be placed on the OFC's links page. As I usually do, I asked if he wanted to place something a little more informative on the site which would not only profile his walking-related site but also provide us with an interesting article for the OFC. I've seen majectic railways in France myself and unlike our own scenic lines closed by Beeching, this stunning route is still in use. Read on to find out more about this fantastic part of rural France. |
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Books/Magazines
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Written by Peter Burgess
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Saturday, 21 November 2009 |
 COMPETITION: Since the centenary of Alfred Wainwright's birth in 2007, there has been a massive resurgence in interest in the man himself. With the revival of the Pictorial Guides as a result of being saved by Frances Lincoln Publisher, the recent televising of Wainwright's Walks with Julia Bradbury and the formation of the Society in his name, there has been renewed enthusiasm for anything AW. Along with Hunter Davies biography of Wainwright, this new book also announces itself as the biography of Alfred Wainwright. This review (with competition) focuses on Wainwright, His life from Milltown to Mountain by W.R.Mitchell. |
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FAQs
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Written by Dave Dimmock
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Thursday, 10 September 2009 |
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 When Peter Burgess asked for suggestions for a future OFC survey I thought of the major waters of the Lake District, the limit of twelve for survey purposes would be, I naively believed, of no great obstacle.
This article introduces an OFC online poll with related links to find out more about The English Lake District's other inspiring subject apart from the fells.....
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Other
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Written by Peter Burgess
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Thursday, 09 July 2009 |
 From what I have perceived within the fellwalking fraternity, as well as the pastime of walking there is also another hidden agenda within this seeming conservative group. Whether AW was a member I cannot tell, but I know that others, including myself, partake in this secretive activity whilst out in the fells. This article examines this less well known pastime which to date seems more akin to some taboo rather than the fantastic experience it is. You might wonder whether it's some Masonic rite or hitherto unheard of Mithraic ritual, but to find out if you're a member of this more exclusive fell related club then do read on. |
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Books/Magazines
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Written by Peter Burgess
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Tuesday, 07 July 2009 |
 With the advent of a recent poll examining people's favourite lakes proposed by David Dimmock, I thought it a good prompt to review an excellent book portraying charts of the English Lakes. Remarkably, despite the name, most books on our beloved district encompass the high fells and walking. However, John Wilson Parker has gone some way to correct the balance with this excellent atlas. It really is a worthy addition to the shelf... |
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Books/Magazines
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Written by Peter Burgess
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Monday, 08 June 2009 |
 For my birthday in 2009 I was given a book which, as a geographer, I undoubtedly had an interest for. No doubt my partner thought I had been purchased the ultimate geographical book. Maps are a prerequisite for the fellwalker although AW famously lacked one in his backpack. However, like many fellwalkers, I grew up with an innate interest in maps and like the author of this book used to spend my time scanning my gaze across them no doubt at the expense of some literary classic. I started reading the book Map Addict with great anticipation. Would it prove an interesting read with new insights into the cartographic world or a bland forey into the dusty world of antique maps? There was only one answer and that was to read the book which I did in two sittings.... |
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Other
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Written by Peter Burgess
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Sunday, 08 March 2009 |
 Lakeland’s greatest untapped energy resource – its fast-flowing rivers and streams – could fulfil a major role in providing green power thanks to a proposed shift in Government policy. The British Govenment's Renewable Obligation has breathed new life into the UK hydropower sector. The development of a 315 kWe micro-hydro power plant in Church Beck, Coniston now has the potential to supply 290 homes with virtually no environment detrement. For the first time in about 40 years, a scheme in Coppermines Valley is producing green electricity. Read this article to find out more about hydro power in Lakeland and an audio visual presentation of how the scheme works... |
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Books/Magazines
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Written by Peter Burgess
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Tuesday, 03 February 2009 |
 On one of my trips ‘north’ I had the good fortune to meet one of those people who to me represents the grassroots of the Cumbrian celebratory. Of course, amongst the climbing fraternity, Bill is famous as not only the son of Lakeland pioneer cragsman Jim Birkett, but also as a fine climber and author in his own right. In 2008 this book won best illustration and presentation and was runner-up 'Lakeland Book of the Year'... |
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FAQs
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Written by Peter Dickinson BSc
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Sunday, 01 February 2009 |
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 This article originally appeared in issue 6 of The Lost Sheep in 2007, p38. Peter Dickinson BSc (pictured left) included the article in the 'Ask the Geographer' section of that issue.
Cloud inversions at or near ground level are one of the most striking weather phenomena in the Lakes. Nothing can beat setting off on a cold, dark, damp morning, and when you crest the final incline you are greeted by ‘islands’ poking through the sea of white. Stunning! So how does it form?
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FAQs
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Written by Peter Dickinson BSc
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Sunday, 25 January 2009 |
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 This article originally appeared in issue 5 of The Lost Sheep in 2006, p29. Peter Dickinson BSc included the article in the 'Ask the Geographer' section of that issue.
When asked by Peter Burgess to write about Brocken Spectres I asked, “OK, what is it and how do they form?” In response he replied “Many of us have seen them but nobody really knows how they form!” Great! I began by trying to think of my own theory, (I am usually wrong, but that is where I like to start). I then found myself struggling to remember G.C.S.E. Physics, never my strongest subject, and trying to remember the difference between refraction, reflection and diffraction. Paracetamols and a lot of head scratching later we have come up with two viable theories..... |
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"I love the Lake District. Went for first time 20 months ago. OFC website is the best thing I've found, along with all the members' sites. My kids at school log on every morning as well." Sue Sullivan
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