Drive & Stroll, with Ron Freethy: Beacon Fell

THIS week I was delighted to be the speaker at the Conference Dinner hosted by Lancashire County Council and the Countryside Commission, held at Clayton-le-Moors.

This was a national event to launch a Charter of Co-operation for around 50 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England and Wales.

We in Lancashire have two on our doorstep - the Arnside and Silverdale area and the Forest of Bowland, which includes Pendle.

These areas are indeed beautiful but they are also small when compared to National Parks and therefore vulnerable.

What a pleasure it was to find that a field trip had been organised and I was able to watch delegates who did not know Lancashire enjoy our scenery.

We were lucky and the sun shone, even though it was cool and the breeze on top of the "trig point" of Beacon Fell was icy. It was, however, early February so "Lankie" did everybody proud. The Visitors' Centre at Beacon Fell is one of the best of its type I have seen and the rangers are both friendly and knowledgeable.

The features of the Fell which caused me some worry at the beginning, but which I am now very happy about, are the wood sculptures which are the work of Lancashire craftsman Thompson Dagnall.

The delegates saw the artist at work and saw his large scale representations of a heron, a snake and a bat.

Also hard at work was the landscape team and what pleases me is how the planners manage a balance between car parks, footpaths and repair of the erosion which is inevitable when visitors come to get a breath of fresh air.

If you want a drive and a stroll then Beacon Fell is ideal. All this expertise, effort and excellence costs money and this was one of the thorny problems which the conference has had to come to terms with. The delegates to the conference all knew of the work done by the Countryside Commission but perhaps most folk do not.

Many feel that the Commission is a remote government body based in Cheltenham which lobbies to stop people doing things in the countryside.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The Countryside Commission funds surveys of areas of our diminishing natural assets and focuses attention upon the conflicting needs of visitors as well as those who earn their living in the countryside and also help to feed us all.

It also ensures that the wildlife of Britain gets a fair crack of the whip.

A famous communications company has coined the phrase "It's good to talk".

The conference this week has allowed this to happen and Lancashire County Council had the foresight to fund and host this event.

It has certainly put Lancashire in the forefront of the minds of those in England and Wales who love to walk and talk in and around beautiful scenery.

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