The Beacon, Penrith, Cumbria

An unobtrusive wooden way marker points the way from the roadside, through a small wooden gate and up a grassy slope.  Turning the corner, the slope is shaded by trees and the ground becomes sandy, with large pieces of sandstone bouldering the ground.

The orignal forests of Beacon Hill were first planted in the late 18th C.  before  the enclosure of common land act. Before this, Beacon was a dreary barren waste land full of sandholes and quarries. Remnants of this can be noted from the rough hewn pathway with large sandstone boulders in places and the rocky sandstone outcrops which appear in woodland clearings.

After being destroyed by fire, Beacon Hill was replanted in 1927  by the Lowther family.

The Path to Beacon Pike, 937 ft (286 m) is quite steep and very rocky in places, so is unsuitable for buggies and

wheelchairs and substantial walking shoes are recommended.

Rich, well managed woodland, including Rowan and Beech is home to a variety of wildlife.  Keep a look out for the Common Lizard and signs of badgers and foxes.

Once at the Summit, the pathway opens out into a plateau of land with a square sandstone beacon built on the top. The present monument

(replacing earlier structures) was built in 1719 of sandstone taken from hill, it was restored in 1790.

Earlier beacons are recorded here since 1296 and would have been piles of wood and branches followed later by pitch boxes.  There has been a building on this site for more than 500 years.

Beacons were used to warn the locals and surrounding villages of impending Scottish raids and would communicate this message for miles across the North of England with others being lit at Carlisle, Kirkoswald and Orton Scar.

During 1745 uprising, the Beacon featured again when Prince Charles Edward attempted to regain the Crown of the House of Stuart. It is even noted to have been used during the Napoleonic Wars.

Stunning views over the Eden Valley, Pennines and Lake District fells indicate why this site was chosen. The mountains of Scotland can easily be seen across the Solway Firth to the north.

A brass dial donated by the Lions Club of Penrith, indicates the names of the mountains and places which can be seen from this wonderful vantage point.

This walk will take around 40 minutes to complete.

Visit Penrith Town Trails for details of this and other walks in the area.

National Parks celebrate 60 years

This summer National Parks in the UK are celebrating the 60th anniversary of the legislation that created them – the Access to the Countryside Act 1949 – by encouraging people to visit all 14 of them. Read more

British Walks.org

David Cotton is a writer living near Romsey in Hampshire who’s hobby is walking.

A few years ago he finished his 6,266 mile trip around the coastline of mainland of Britain to raise money for the Riding Schools for the Disabled in Britain.

Since the beginning of 1999 David has made over 800 walks throughout the UK, totalling over 14,000 miles and has detailed all of his walks along with many photographs n his website Britishwalks.org.

Walks can be searched by year, OS map and county with some great detailed long walks and National Trails.

The Britishwalks.org website is well worth a visit for the walker who wants to know a little more about where they are going from somebody who has already been.

For Wheelchairs and Buggies

A husband and wife team based in Wiltshire have created two great websites aimed specifically for people who want to get out and about with wheelchairs or prams and buggies.

Marie founded the idea while walking in the Peak District, she became increasingly frustrated with the lack of freely available information on walks suitable for those with access challenges and after some research decided to create www.walkswithbuggies.com and its sister site www.walkswithwheelchairs.com.

These websites are simple to operate, with search facilities to narrow your search by area, distance, gradient and terrain.

Results from the search are displayed in an easy to follow left side navigation box which will further break down the walks into areas, miles and even give a user rating guide.

The site is free to use by registration and you can even add your own walks or ratings.

Visit the sites;

Walks with Wheelchairs.com

Walks with buggies .com