The National Trust is seeking permission to build and install a new ladder up the Bowder Stone in the Lake District.

Located in Borrowdale, the huge boulder has been a tourist attraction for over a century.

The aim of the National Trust is to get enable more non-climbers to reach the top of the stone by creating a metal ladder.

A spokesperson for the charity said: “The 9.3m- [30ft-] long ladder will replace one made on site in the 1980s of local timber.

“For the first time, it will be made of metal, to a design that restores the excitement of a climb and descent, and the slender, airy, profile of the original ladder.”

Chris Brammel a local Cumbrian architectural and sculptural metalworker will make the ladder. It will incorporate feedback from the local climbing community as well as the Lake District National Park Partnership and the local planning authority.

Harvery Wilkinson who is a National Trust curator said: “We’re restoring the excitement of a visit to one of the strangest and once most famous Lake District attractions.

“Once we have planning permission Chris Brammel can start work. We expect the new ladder to be in place next spring so there’s now a rare opportunity to take a photo of the stone without its ladder.”

The Bowder Stone, is a huge rock, roughly six times the height of a person and is estimated to weigh around 1,253 tonnes. It is commonly understood that the rock would have fallen from the crags above after the last ice-age and coming to its rest at its current improbable angle.

The Bowder Stone was bought back in 1910 by the National Trust using money from public subscriptions and since then it has been their responsibility for the care and conservation of the boulder.

A spokesperson for the trust said the Bowder Stone is a good example of how the Lake District landscape has been changed by humans. “In its heyday, the stone would have been seen for miles around, as depicted by artists and photographers of the day,” the spokesperson said. “It is now surrounded by woodland that is a site of special scientific interest.”

Now I can’t see any downsides to this, it makes it safer, allows more people to enjoy the summit and makes memories for future generations.

In fact, if someone created a Go Fund Me page to help with funding I would definitely contribute as it will help bring more people to the wonderful Lake District.

If you are in the region, I would highly recommend you take a detour and visit the stone and make take a photo or two.

As winter takes hold in the Highlands, experts are urging hikers in Scotland to prepare for their trips to the mountains.

A campaign called ThinkWinters aim is simple. To increase the awareness of hazards faced by people exploring the Scottish Highlands this winter. Whether they are hikers, climbers, hillwalkers, mountaineers or anyone heading out to the hills this winter.

The campaign was the a co-operated idea from seven different organisations. Its target audience is aimed both at experienced hikers and those heading for the winter hills for the first time and have less experience.

The campaign is using a combination of social media and traditional methods to spread the messages on safety and making it safer for people to explore the hills this winter.

It all kicked off last weeked at the Scottish Mountain Rescue annual conference at Glenmore Lodge and culminates at the annual launch of the Sportscotland Scottish Avalanche information service this Friday.

Those involved in ThinkWinter are mountain safety including Scottish Mountain Rescue, Mountaineering Scotland, Glenmore Lodge, the Association of Mountaineering Instructors, SAIS, the Mountain Weather Information Service and Police Scotland.

A spokesperson for  Mountaineering Scotland said: “Winter has well and truly arrived in Scotland’s mountains and thousands of enthusiasts will be taking to the hills for mountaineering, ice-climbing and snowsports touring, making the most of a season that for many offers the best mountain experiences of the year.

“But the rollcall of accidents over the years underlines the extra hazards faced during the winter season and the need for those going into the hills to ensure they have the necessary experience and equipment and have made proper preparations.”

Topics covered will include raising awareness of the challenges involved, planning, navigation, being prepared for weather and avalanche hazards, and what to do in an emergency. While some of these seem basic – everything is a little bit more difficult in snow.

Mountain safety adviser with Mountaineering Scotland, Heather Morning said: “Scotland’s winter mountains offer some truly magical experiences, but they be gnarly and challenging.

“If you want to get the best out of your mountain adventures then you have to be sure you are properly prepared and have all the skills required.”

Principal at Glenmore Lodge, the national outdoor training centre, Shaun Roberts said: “Successful adventures this winter will require well informed decision making.

“Front-load your activities with some quality time spent assessing the critical information: mountain weather, avalanche forecasts, underfoot conditions, the nature of the terrain.

“Understand your own motivations for your trip to the mountains and find like-minded people to experience them with, ensuring an open dialogue about your plans, you capabilities and equipment.”

Vice chairman of the Scottish Mountain Rescue, Kev Mitchell said: “We would always encourage people to enjoy the hills in winter. However, it’s absolutely vital that you are prepared.

“Leave earlier to get back earlier because of the lack of light, and adapt your day to the conditions. Make sure your mobile phone is fully charged and kept in a warm place, and not used for navigation.

“Mapping software for phones is great but it eats up batteries, especially in winter conditions.”

One of the coordinators of the Scottish Avalanche Information service, Mark Diggins said: “As the winter season begins we should start to prepare for the normal challenges that we will be faced with in Scotland’s mountains.

“Getting good information helps any mountain enthusiast decide where to go and what to do. Avalanche reports and other useful information can be obtained from the Scottish Avalanche Information Service, and the Met Office, and MWIS websites.”

While this is campaign is being run to make Scotland and specifically Scottish Highlands safeter to explore, the advice can be used wherever you are planning on winter hiking this year.

Don’t forget to purchase essential winter clothing, while the weather might seem ok or good when you set off it can quickly change. Make sure you are prepared.

If you are heading for example to the Lake District – you can get a daily update on current snow conditions before you set off, allowing you to either change your route or pack different equipment.

There are many ways to be prepared and to make it a much safer experience for both you and the mountain rescue teams.

If you are heading to Snowdonia over the coming months, then mountain rescues are warning hikers and climbers of a potentially hazardous boulder.

A large stone block on the slopes of Tryan was spotted by mountain rescuers during a recent incident on the east face of the mountain.

Member of the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation was called out on Saturday to help with two hikers who were stuck near the bottom of North Gully. The pair had been aiming for the safer route into Little Gully but missed the path and had to be brought to safety by rescue team members

It was during this time that the team members noticed a large boulder just below the junction of the two gullies, which they estimated to weigh about four tons.

The large stone block is perched on rocks and solid above Heather Terrace and North Gully. It is thought a heavy rain storm may have eroded some of the soil.

Both the National Trust, which owns the mountain and the Snowdonia National Park Authority have been altered by the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation.

North Gully and Little Gully combine into a scramble route that can be used to ascent and descent the East Face of the mountain and emerges close to the summit of the North Ridge.

With bad weather forecast they are worried about the large rock sliding down the mountain any further and hurting someone. There is no immediate threat to life – it’s just a warning to be careful and observation if you are in the area.

It follows a similar sized boulder which earlier this year rolled down the opposite side of the mountain. That rock left marks on the footpath on the Western Gully during its 75m fall down the hill.

I don’t want to stop you heading to the area, in fact while I haven’t visited for a few years I have quite a few great memories from the area – its a lovely place to hike and explore.

I just want you to do it safely.

A man scrambling in the Lake District had to be airlifted to hospital after falling.

He was on Cam Crag in Langstrath on Saturday and in a party of four when the incident happened.

The man slipped and fell between 3m and 4m injuring his lower leg when tacking a ridge on the Crag, south of Stonethwaite.

Of the party then climbed to the top of the Cam Crag to get a phone signal while the rest of the party used a group shelter to protest the injured man from the elements. The day was cold, wet and windy so the shelter came in very handy.

There was no indication that the man had done anything wrong, or had the wrong gear – it was just an accident.


Keswick Mountain Rescue Team was called out about 1.10pm after the alarm was raised.

A spokesperson for the team said: “The first Keswick MRT members arrived at the scene and due to the location and nature of the injury requested a helicopter evacuation.

“The casualty was then packaged and flown to the Cumberland Infirmary.”

The 3¾-hour rescue involved 17 volunteers from the Keswick team, along with the crew of the Coastguard helicopter.

I do love my job, but if I had to give up my current job I think this might be one I would swap it with.

The first of December marks the start of meteorological winter but more importantly means the strat one of the most unusual but in my opinion the coolest seasonal jobs in the whole of the UK.

The job runs until April and between then and now one of the Lakes Districts National Parks specialist felltop assessors will make the daily climb to the summit of Helvellyn to asses snow and ground conditions and produce a daily report for outdoor enthusiasts.

Helvellyn is the third highest mountain in England.

The services which are run by the national park authority is there to provide vital safety information for everyone heading to the lake district over the winter months. The three members are Graham Uney, Zac Poulton and Jon Bennett, their reports are published on the Weatherline site and on twitter. The service predates the internet and started over 31 years ago as a telephone service.

Mr Uney said: “This is now my fifth year as a felltop assessor and each season I have to pinch myself as I really do believe I’ve got one of the best jobs in the world.

“Although Helvellyn isn’t the highest peak in the Lake District its east-facing position means that it’s often in better winter condition than our higher fells.

“It’s also the busiest, most popular mountain in the Lakes during the winter months, so it’s important that we give detailed ground conditions reports from here throughout the season to keep walkers, climbers and skiers better informed. Our service will make sure that people can get an extremely accurate ground conditions report of what to expect on our highest fells, backed up with the latest Met Office weather forecast.”

It’s not just ground conditions that the three guys will be producing, they will be giving regular hints and tips, guides on keeping safe on the mountains, essential winter backpack items as well as some of the views of the mountains over the coming months.

We have covered a few times on here, but recently hikers have been getting rescued from avoidable situations by not following the advice given by professionals.

A member of Wasdale Mountain Rescue, Richard Warren advises that traditional navigation using map and compass is essential in winter conditions. Richard is also the chairman of the Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue Association so he sees a lot of walkers who go out ill-prepared.

While he doesn’t say to avoid using GPS technology, he says it’s best not to rely solely on mobile phone technology to navigate the Lake District.

He said: “If you’re planning a trip to the mountains this winter we urge you to plan your day. When there is snow on the tops an ice axe and crampons are essential pieces of kit and know your limitations. If you’re unused to navigating in the dark, it can be extremely disorienting.

“Sometimes, the bravest decision is to turn around and go back. Those peaks will still be there another day. “

It is not just the weather service that the felltop association offers. They also offer s one-day specialist winter skills courses to help prepare those attempting some of the higher summits as well as sharing their knowledge of winter hiking.

The courses which are geared towards adults who want to learn more about how to deal with the extreme weather conditions that the British winters can throw up.

The courses teach essential winter mountaineering skills like how to use crampons and ice axes correctly as well as advice and guidance on essential kit for winter trekking. You can accompany one of the felltop assessors on his duties. It’s a real hands-on type of course.

Trekking in the snow is so much different to hiking at any other time of the year, the course teaches you key navigation skills to help climbers identify safe routes as well as identify landmarks in the snow.

On this year’s inaugural event, the three men were joined by two members of the public, who learnt firsthand to hike safely during the winter months once the snow starts to fall.

For this year’s inaugural assessors’ ascent, the three men were joined by two members of the public who learned first-hand how to winterise their approach to walking once there are snow and ice on the fells.

Darryl Ramage and friend Lynne Morrison were the winners of a national park competition, selected from more than 1,000 entries to accompany the felltop assessors on their season launch and take part in a private winter skills course.

Mr Ramage, from Dumbarton in Scotland, said: “We’re frequent walkers in the hills and mountains of Scotland have been all over Europe on expeditions. From Germany to Poland to Slovenia to Italy but we’ve never been lucky enough to climb in the Lake District so we are realising a lifetime ambition today.

“We’ve been following Weatherline for the last couple of weeks and were celebrating the first fall of snow on the fells, it’s a fantastic resource to make sure you get an accurate idea of the weather and conditions on the fell tops.

“Although we are both quite experienced climbers we are by no means experts so we are absolutely delighted to be learning from the best today.

“We’ve picked up a lot of safety information and numerous hints and tips. It’s been great. We can’t wait to get back to the Lake District soon to put our new skills to good use.”

The Lake District Weatherline is partly funded by sponsors Columbia and Petzl and George Fisher.

Mountain Hardwear sponsors the clothing, while Petzl provides the mountain equipment.

So if you are thinking of heading to the Lakes this winter, we would highly recommend you do, if you think its beautiful in the summer – wait till you have seen it in the winter. It’s like a different place, even familiar routes change.

Just make sure you check the weather forecast and pack accordingly.

We have covered recently a few stories recently about people being under-equipped or not have the knowledge to be safely out in the hills, but this one is just a case of getting lost in poor conditions.

This can happen to the most experienced of hikers when the weather changes quickly.

Rescuers were dispatched to help two walkers who had got lost on the side of one of Yorkshire’s three peaks.

The Cave Rescue Organisation received a call from police after a woman called to report herself lost in the poor weather on Pen-y-Ghent Side on the north-west slopes on Sunday. The

Rescuers went to the aid of two walkers who got lost on the flanks of one of Yorkshire’s Three Peaks. It is the smallest of the three peaks at 964m (2,277ft).

The team was called out around 11:40 am.

The woman had set out to climb Pen-y-Ghent with another friend but due to bad visibility became ‘misplaced’ according to a spokesperson.

“Despite a poor signal, the police control staff were able to get a location for the caller before losing the call,” the spokesperson said.

“A small team was dispatched to locate the walker, and as they approached the reported position, they came across her, with a companion, making their way towards Hull Pot.

“They were none the worse for their experience, and were escorted back to their car at Horton in Ribblesdale.”

There are things which can be done to reduce the need to call for help, knowing the route, having a backup route, taking the right gear, knowing that it gets dark pretty early this time of the year.

It was only last week we share a warning about not ditching vital gear to save weight, but if you need to call out the Mountain rescue then its pretty straightforward.

Call 999 – ask for the Police and then Ask for Mountain Rescue.

Things to help make it easier for them to find you:

• knowing your exact location – obviously, if you are lost you won’t know your exact location, but if your calling due to someone being ill or injured then this info can be very useful
• The route you were planning on taking, while they can use your phone signal to try and locate you this just puts you in a
• Before call making note of important information like:
  • Number of people in your party,
  • if an accident details of the injured party, name, gender, age, nature of injuries
• Once you have made the call – DO NOT change your location unless instructed by Mountain rescue – they will be using your phone’s location data as a point to aim for.
  
  

Remember if you dial 999 and your phone can’t connect to your network but another network is available it will try and connect.

I always carry one of these with me – it might be old, but the battery life is just amazing.

Remember there is no shame in calling in for help, while I personally have never had to do it if I was in danger I wouldn’t think twice about making the call.

After all, that’s why these great men and women volunteer to help people in distress – if they weren’t there I probably wouldn’t explore as many new places as I do.

Now if people go under-equipped or without basics like a map and compass I can see it must get frustrating for them, but if you are ever in doubt just make the call.