…in which we tour south Lakeland to tell the remarkable story of an industry that expanded from one-man bloomeries set deep in the woods to blast furnaces powering the industrial age.

In the company of industrial history enthusiast Mark Hatton we begin our journey at Glen Mary below Tarn Hows, where we are introduced to the three ingredients that allowed Furness monks to first produce iron: expansive woodlands, fast-flowing rivers and rich deposits of local hematite.

Noting clues of iron in the landscape – Red Screes, Red Pike, Red Tarn – we visit an oak-shaded glade that was once a charcoal-burners’ platform, where coppiced timber was piled high then baked to create the ‘rocket fuel’ charcoal required to generate temperatures of 1,000+ degrees centigrade.

Moving upstream, we come upon an ancient bloomery, where hematite from Orgrave (literally ‘ore pit’) was transported, by boat then pony, to ‘bloom’ in the charcoal hearth before being forged into weapons and farming tools to help Cumbria’s medieval farmers eke out a marginal living.

Heading south, we visit the site of a 17th century bloom-smithy in the heart of Coniston, learn about the laws introduced to ban timber extraction as Lakeland’s woods were fed to the furnaces, and the journey of Cumbrian entrepreneurs into Scotland as home-grown forests were denuded.

Ending our trip in Furnace Wood (the clue’s in the name) above Duddon Bridge, we explore a network of ancient holloways and moss-reclaimed cobbled trails, remnants of a thriving woodland industry feeding Britain’s largest surviving blast furnace, where a huge waterwheel powered bellows heating a next-generation hearth to fulfil the insatiable iron needs of the industrial age.

Taking a long view of a lost, and neglected, industry, we seek out a slate wall melted by fire before reflecting on the zenith, then decline, of Cumbria’s iron age, when Barrow alone produced more steel than anywhere else on earth.

• The Duddon Furnace (with parking alongside) is located at Grid Reference SD 197 883, immediately north-west of Duddon Bridge. More details can be found at https://lakedistrict.gov.uk/explore/things-to-do/historical-places/industrial-heritage-sites/

• The first site we visited was in Lane head Coppice beside Tom Gill below Tarn Hows (SD 3221, 9989). It is around a two minute walk uphill from Glen Mary car park (National Trust).

...in which we ramble up remote Liddesdale in the extreme north-east of Cumbria to uncover the remarkable history of a unique independent territory transformed into a bloody borderland.

In the company of author and academic Graham Robb we set out from Kershopefoot along the trackbed of the historic Waverley Line, taking in the landscape of the once-unique enclave between England and Scotland; an uninhabited ‘batable’ grazing land bounded by the rivers Liddel, Esk and Sark that formed a buffer zone between often warring nations.

Stepping into the Scottish Borders, we discuss the popular perception of the ‘reiving’ families who lived around this anomalous territory – the Elliots, Armstrongs and Grahams – and the raids that saw cattle rustled and fortified peel towers set ablaze.

Surveying moorland and scattered woods to rising Tinnis Hill, Graham outlines a parallel history; one of stability, in which a raid was not thuggery, but a coming-of-age ritual/form of trade in an advanced pastoral society with strict Border laws that kept the peace for 1,500 years.

Passing meadows with folds and dips that made ideal hiding places for rogues and raiders, we move into the mid-1500s, when the English and Scots crowns orchestrated a plan to carve up the Debatable Land by making lawlessness legal, preparing the ground for characters like ballad outlaw Kinmont Willie and the sadistic Duke of Buccleuch to conduct reigns of terror.

Closing in on Liddel Water, we learn about the end of the Debatable Land, and the “astonishingly beautiful and accurate map” (below) that recorded the establishment of what Graham argues is “the oldest detectable territorial division in Great Britain”.

Reflecting on the violent excesses that wiped the one-time grazing lands from the map, Graham discusses the long shadow cast by imperial colonialism, the persistent discomfort over cross-border marriage and the independent spirit that lingers in border folk.

We close with our quickfire questions, where Graham recalls a relationship-testing ascent of Swirral Edge, waxes lyrical about the definitive descriptions of Cumbrian rain in Rogue Herries and notes the advice he was given before moving into the borderlands – to “leave the pub by 9.30 at the latest”.

• The Debatable Land: The Lost World Between Scotland and England is published by Picador.

…in which we take a midsummer stroll through Hawkshead to learn about the village's deep history and its tiny school that had a big impact – not just locally, but on the world stage.

Accompanied by Joanne Heather, director of the Hawkshead Grammar School Foundation, we set out from the meadows above the village to explore Hawkshead’s long history – its Norse roots, the chapelry that served Furness Abbey, and the wool trade that put the market town on the map, long before neighbouring Ambleside, Coniston and Windermere.

Visiting the church of St Michael & All Angels, Joanne introduces us to the Sandys family of Graythwaite, and Edwin Sandys, Archbishop of York during the reign of Elizabeth I, who founded the school to train new generations of clergy.

Arriving at the Grammar School, museum assistant manager Hollie Barker talks us through life at the school: the hours of Latin and scripture; the cock fights and sword fights; the strict rules that allowed boys (no girls) to smoke and drink, but never gamble.

In the confines of the school library, we learn about old boy and London vintner Daniel Rawlinson – great grandson of Daniel Hechstetter, the patriarch of Keswick mining – who founded the school's collection of priceless books, which includes a guide to dissecting elephants.

Finally, we turn our attention to the school’s most famous alumnus, William Wordsworth, enrolled into the school after his mother’s death, who excelled at maths and who led a seemingly idyllic school life ’midst the family trauma, with days off spent ice skating, visiting the Duddon sands and eating strawberries and cream.

• Hawkshead Grammar School Museum is open 1 April–31 October, Thursday–Monday 11am–4pm during term time, and daily 11am–4pm during school holidays. 2026 exhibitions are ‘Friends Before Fame’, about Wordsworth’s school friends, and ‘America 250’, highlighting the school’s links with America.

• More information about the museum and library conservation project can be found on Bloomberg Connects and at www.hawksheadgrammar.org.uk. New volunteers are always welcome; contact Joanne at hgsmuseum@gmail.com.

• The museum is hosting a series of evening talks, usually on the last Monday of the month. The talk on Monday 29 June is Mark Hatton (see Countrystrides past) discussing the history of Coniston Copper Mines and its links to the school. For details and tickets go to EventBrite and search for ‘A Talk at the School’, or see www.hawksheadgrammar.org.uk.