Borrowdale
Welcome to High Borrowdale
Purchased in 2002, High Borrowdale is 44ha (108 acres) of farmland, situated in the Borrowbeck valley south of Shap summit. The valley was once described by Wainwright as ‘The most beautiful valley in Westmorland outside the Lake District’. Since 2016, following a successful campaign by Friends of the Lake District, it has been included within the Lake District National Park.
Our aim as owners is to enhance the landscape and habitats for people, nature and climate, trial new things and share our management practices with others, and use our experience to inform our campaigning on land-use policy.
Look out for: beautiful hay meadows, restored walls and traditional buildings, views and tranquillity.
Getting Here
There is no vehicular access to High Borrowdale and it is not accessible by public transport. A bridleway runs through the valley with access points from the west (A6) and east (A685) – accessible on foot, bike or horse. High Borrowdale is covered by OS Explorer OL 7 map.
High Borrowdale is eight miles out of Kendal and around 7.5 miles from Shap. From Kendal, take the A6 out towards Shap for about eight miles until you reach a lay-by on your left at Hucks Brow/the bottom of Shap summit. Walk back up the roadside verge towards Kendal for around 300 metres. Take the first left down a gated track, which is where the walk in the leaflet begins. Follow the track down the valley and after a mile or so, after crossing the bridge, you enter High Borrowdale. Look out for our NFC/QR code signs if you want more information via your phone.
History
We have researched the history back to 1180 when it was granted to the monks of Byland Abbey by William de Lancaster. Until the 1700s Borrowdale was part of the Manor of Tebay, owned by the Wharton family and with a series of tenants. Annual rents were around £1. (Equivalent to £120 today!) Records show that sheep and cow farming were the main source of income for tenants with some production of oats, barley and potatoes. Candles were made from mutton and bacon fat with the pith of a rush for wick.
‘Borrowdale’ means the dale of the fort, which may reflect the presence of the Roman garrison and fort at nearby Low Borrowbridge.
For nearly 300 years from the mid-17th century various descendants of the Holme family owned or lived at High Borrowdale. Then in 1925 the property was left to Walter Milner, a tea planter from South India. He had a series of tenants until in 1951, he sold the farm to the predecessors of Friends of the Lake District, the Downham family. Since 1951 there have been no tenants living on the property but the land has been used for farming and grazing.
Holme Family
Milner
Downham Family
Wharton Family
Friends of the Lake District
The farmhouse at High Borrowdale circa 1950
Why did Friends of the Lake District buy High Borrowdale?
This was our first land purchase for many years because:
• The walls and buildings were derelict and the land was heavily grazed giving significant potential for landscape and access enhancement.
• We could protect the land from threats – wind turbines on the ridge above, a new tourism venture on the adjacent land. We were also building the evidence base for the extension of the Lake District National Park (achieved in 2016).
• We could put our policies into practice on our own land, see if they worked, and learn from that experience to make our policies stronger, giving a firmer campaigning footing with direct experience of public grant schemes, tree planting, etc.
• We wanted to try some new land management techniques and demonstrate good practice.
Explore and Discover
Walk Length: 3.5 miles approx.
Ascent: 314m Time Required: 2 hours approx.
Postcode: LA8 9LG | Grid Reference: NY 56992 02915
� This postcode is for the farm at High Borrow Bridge. Please be wary if following Sat Nav; use the Grid Reference and refer to the ‘Getting Here’ information, above.
1 Follow the High Borrowdale track down to the Borrow Beck and keep going alongside the beck until you cross the bridge into High Borrowdale.
2 Look across to the High Borrowdale land. You can see the dry stone walls rebuilt, some using stone which was airlifted in by helicopter!
3 Look across to the site of the flood research work, trialling which materials work best to help eroded slopes recover and revegetate.
4 Turn right over the bridge, through the woodland and into the first hay meadow we restored in 2005. The best time to the meadow flowering is mid-June to midJuly, but this varies every year. You can see the restored traditional field barn; home to a barn owl and other birds, and used a store for our woodland equipment.
Legend
Suggested Walk Route
NFC & QR Locations
Public Rights of Way
High Borrowdale Boundary Road
Open Access Land
5 Continue along the track into our second meadow, restored in 2013 using the seed from our original meadow. On the left you can also see the new 420m hedge which we planted with volunteers in 2022, creating new habitat and connectivity. On the right, you can see the riverside woodland we have planted to help stabilise the soil, slow the flow of water and create new habitats.
6 Continue into the final field with farm buildings on your left. We have restored the old cow shed and stabilised the remains of the farmhouse and bank barn. If you peer into the house you can see the old hearthstone and staircase that remain.
7 Take the diagonal path that runs up the fell behind the buildings and enjoy the views back to the traditional farmstead. Note the sycamores – traditionally providing shelter, and the newer trees planted as successors. Follow the path upwards which can become rather indistinct as you get higher, but head for the cairn up on the left on top of Whinash.
8 From the cairn on the top, head west toward the main track downhill on the Breast High Road. At the Beck you will come to some large stepping stones which can be used to cross. An alternative – if open, is to follow a path along to Hucks Bridge.
DENNISON HILL
Our Top Achievements
• Restored two traditional farm buildings, stabilised the derelict farmhouse and rebuilt 5km of dry stone wall.
• Re-created 6ha of upland hay meadow, trialling two different techniques to help pollinators and wildlife.
• Planted 16,000 trees to help enhance the landscape, store carbon and slow the flow.
• Dedicated 44ha of land as permanent open access.
• Ran a research project testing three different types of material for restoring eroded slopes.
• Planted 420m of new hedge.
• Worked with volunteers, amounting to thousands of hours of time to do jobs.
• Engaged with the public via events and activities, including a resident Poet in the Meadow. We have published a virtual tour and information available for download on our website or on site.
• Tested out various techniques, e.g. hay meadow restoration, natural regeneration of trees versus planting, restoration of eroded landscapes.
• Successfully campaigned for the area to be included in the Lake District National Park.
Want to learn more about our land and the species you can find there? Look out for our other guides! www.friendsofthelakedistrict.org.uk/property-guides
Restoring Upland Hay Meadows
Over 97% of wildflower meadows have been lost since the 1930s when agricultural practices changed, with meadows being cut earlier before the seeds had time to drop for future years. This led to a dramatic loss in one of our richest habitats – hay meadows can have over 150 different species of flower and grass, and contain upto 40 species of insects, mammals and birds per square metre. The plants also have long roots and can lock up carbon and hold water to help slow surface water.
We used two different hay meadow restoration techniques at High Borrowdale. The first in 2005 involved heavily grazing and multiple harrowing of the restoration field, spreading seed collected from nearby meadows. Using a contractor, the cost of restoring 4ha was £20,000, work taking upto three weeks. Very little was known about hay meadow restoration and this was very much a trial to see what happened. It grew brilliantly!
By 2013, techniques had developed, especially using green hay. This time we lightly harrowed the 2ha field, took a cut off our own adjacent meadow, spread the cut up green hay on the field and rolled it in. This restoration cost £500 and it was all done in a day!
In 2021/22, nearly 20 years after we began, we added some plug plants of species we were short of such as wood cranesbill, pignut, great burnet, meadow vetchling, and greater knapweed. This should add further diversity and pollinator opportunities.
Tree Planting
Over 16,000 native trees (oak, rowan, holly, alder, willow, hazel, hawthorn, etc.) have been planted in the allotment (fellside) along the riverbanks since 2004. This was to:-
• Help stabilise the soils and river bank
• Enhance the landscape
• Provide new habitats for wildlife
• Help slow the flow of water
• Provide wildlife corridors with the woodland further down the valley
We expected the trees to grow well, but in reality, despite thousands of days of volunteer time, we have struggled. This is an extreme environment where issues such as poor soils, high rainfall, high winds, deer and voles have come together to cause low growth rates and high loss rates. This is all part of the learning experience to feed into our work.
Wall Restoration
Dry stone walls are a classic feature of the Lake District and an important habitat for wildlife, provide shelter for stock and can help slow the flow of water. The walls at High Borrowdale were in a poor state in 2002, with many derelict. We spent 18 months with walling contractors rebuilding nearly every wall, totalling several kilometres. We even hired a helicopter to fly stone from one place to another to provide stone to rebuild a wall! Since then our volunteers have helped us rebuild other walls and fix any gaps. Dry stone walling is an essential skills and you can volunteer with us if you wish to learn.
Hedge Planting
In 2022 we double-fenced a length of 420m and added a new hedge to the property, providing more habitat, connectivity for wildlife between habitats and help slow the flow of any surface water. Our volunteers planted 2,500 native hedge plants such as blackthorn, hawthorn, hazel, rowan and some trees to go in the hedge as well. This was helped by funding from the Lake District National Park’s Farming in Protected Landscapes Scheme.
Flood Resilience Research
High Borrowdale has had a lot of flooding and landslips caused by its unstable steep slopes, heavy rain and the Borrowbeck which can rise very quickly. A landslip in 2015 damaged the field barn and the hay meadow. This led us to undertake research with the University of Cumbria looking into the use of geotextiles in flood and landslip management. We looked at the performance of sisal compared to commonly used jute and coir. Which product to use really depends on the circumstances –coir is best used for slopes in need of three+ years’ work or sites needing quick regrowth; jute is best for slopes under three years and sisal, where water retention is of primary concern in small quantities.
Explore High Borrowdale virtually! Visit:
https://app.lapentor.com/sphere/high-borrowdale
About Friends of the Lake District
Established in 1934, Friends of the Lake District is a membership-based charity committed to looking after the landscapes of the Lake District and Cumbria.
Scan here to become a member today. Join us and over 6,000 people who are passionate about this magnificent place.
Friends of the Lake District’s land is open to the public and for all to enjoy! We own land from Threlkeld in the north, to Kendal in the south, and from Eskdale in the West, to Asby near Orton in the east. This is a mix of farmland, common land and woodlands.
Boot
Keswick
GILLSIDE & TONGUE
Oxenholme
Orton
For more information on our land, how to join us and help to maintain these beautiful Cumbrian landscapes or volunteering opportunities please get in touch, or sign up to our email newsletter.
Friends of the Lake District, Murley Moss, Oxenholme Road, Kendal, LA9 7SS
Tel: 01539 720788 | Email: info@fld.org.uk
Website: www.friendsofthelakedistrict.org.uk
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Registered Charity Number: 1100759