Take the lead - lambing season arrives in March

It is an important (and tiring) time for our tenant sheep farmers across the Peak District at the moment, with lambs arriving throughout the day and night!

One way we are supporting the farmers and their livestock is by reminding dog walkers to keep their dogs on leads, to try to reduce the disturbance caused by dogs to ewes and their lambs.

Unfortunately every year there are lambs and ewes injured or killed by dogs in the Peak District. On your walks you may notice signs asking dog owners to keep dogs on leads and under control - some have been designed by school children for us.
 

You may spot signs on your walk reminding you to keep your dog on a lead during this important time for farmers and wildlife.

50 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU'RE 11 3/4

This week we launched the 50 Things campaign for 2015 -  a list of 50 fantastic outdoor adventures that the National Trust think all children should experience before their 12th birthday.

The list includes; visit a farm, play pooh sticks, play conkers, build a den and go birdwatching.

In the Peak District you could probably do a lot of the activities in one day at Longshaw (near Sheffield) or Ilam Park and Dovedale (near Ashbourne) and there is a free Adventure Scrapbook available for children to record where and and when they complete the activities.

Our favourite in the Peak District? Probably building a den at Longshaw, climbing a huge hill at Kinder, hunting for fossils at Dovedale and playing pooh sticks at Ilam Park.

You can find out more by visiting:
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/50thingstodo

There are things to do in the autumn and winter too, like playing in the snow and catching a falling leaf.

Free scrapbooks available from Longshaw visitor centre and Ilam Park visitor centre.

Hen Harriers breed successfully in the Peak District

Five hen harrier chicks have fledged on land we look after in the Upper Derwent Valley - the first time these birds of prey have bred successfully in the Peak District for eight years. 

One of the five hen harrier chicks in the Peak District

Working together for birds of prey
The successful hen harrier breeding is the result of a wide partnership of people and organisations working together to secure the future of birds of prey in the area as part of the Peak District Birds of Prey Initiative. 

‘Having hen harriers breed successfully here in the Peak District is wonderful news and would not have been possible without the hard work and commitment of all the people and organisations involved, which has been truly inspiring’ said Jon Stewart, our General Manager for the Peak District.

We’re committed to increasing the number of birds of prey on the land that we care for in the Peak District as part of our High Peak Moors vision. We’re working closely with our tenants and partners, including the grouse shooting community, which has been very supportive of the successful hen harrier breeding.

Discovering the chicks
Our local shooting tenant Geoff Eyre discovered the nest containing five healthy hen harrier chicks in August and alerted the Peak District Birds of Prey Initiative which set up a nest watch team to protect the birds. Two male hen harriers and one female had previously been seen ‘sky dancing’ (an incredible aerobatic mating routine) in late April but were then thought to have left the area.

Jamie Horner - Peak District Bird of Prey Raptor group, Jon Stewart – the National Trust’s General Manager for the Peak District, and Hardyal Dhindsa - Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner for Derbyshire.

Alan Charles, Derbyshire’s Police & Crime Commissioner said he wanted to congratulate the Peak District Birds of Prey Initiative for their positive work, which has been instrumental in bringing about this success story.  PCC Charles has introduced strong measures in his Police and Crime Plan to protect wildlife and specifically persecuted birds of prey and is pleased to continue to support this initiative alongside Derbyshire Constabulary.  Deputy Commissioner Hardyal Dhindsa visited the site to see the security precautions in place and said he felt privileged to witness this rare sighting of the birds. He added: “The most important thing now is that everything possible is done to protect these chicks.”

How you can help us
Sightings of hen harriers in the Peaks can be reported to the hen harrier hotline (0845 4600121) or by emailing henharriers@rspb.org.uk. Reports should include the date and location of a sighting, with a six-figure grid reference where possible.
Satellite-tagging will also be used to track the birds’ progress through the Hen Harrier Recovery Project led by Natural England. The tagging will help us learn more about the movements and behaviour of one of the Peak District’s most iconic birds.

Take a look inside Ecton Copper Mine Engine House

Free open afternoons to showcase conservation work on historic building

The 1788 engine house built above the 400m deep copper mine

Over the past two years, National Trust volunteers have helped to rescue a special building in the Manifold Valley in the Peak District. With funding from an Environmental Stewardship agreement, major rescue works have taken place to rescue the former engine house and powder house of Ecton Copper Mine.

Volunteer Frank excavating around the engine house

Once owned by the Duke of Devonshire of Chatsworth House, the copper mine employed hundreds of local people and supplied copper for the Royal Navy. The engine house was built in 1788 to house a Boulton and Watt steam engine to raise the copper ore. The smaller stone powder house was built on the hillside a safe distance from the shaft, to store the gunpowder. 

After mining finished in 1890, the engine house became a cattle store for the local farmer, housing nine cows and enough hay to feed them over the winter. The stalls and hayloft have been retained, honouring this part of the building's history.

Now cared for by the National Trust, volunteers have helped with archaeological digs around the engine house, leading guided tours, monitoring wildflowers on the surrounding hillside and repairing drystone walls. 

If you would like to take a look inside, come along to our free open afternoons on Thursday 21st August and Saturday 13th September, 1pm to 4pm. 

To find our more call us on 01335 350503
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/white-peak

News from Ilam Park

New additions at Ilam Park

On your next visit to Ilam Park, you may notice some new features in the Italian Garden.

Garden volunteer Bob planting Octavia Hill geraniums in the Regency style urns

Having seen some wonderful photographs of Ilam Park taken 100 years ago (from Derby Library) the Ilam Park gardener and volunteers have been working hard to bring back a prominent feature.

With money gifted to the Gardens Department of the National Trust, 8 Regency style stone urns were purchased, similar to those seen in the old photographs. The urns have been planted with a geranium named “Octavia Hill” which had been grown to commemorate the Centenary of the death of the founder of the National Trust.

So next time you are sitting in the Italian Garden admiring the view towards Thorpe Cloud and Dovedale, take a look at our new stone urns!

Dovedale Discovery

An exciting discovery has been made at Dovedale!

An excavation in Dovedale unearthed a hoard of Late Iron Age and Republican Roman coins, the first time coins of these two origins are thought to have been found buried together in a cave in Britain.

The discovery at Reynard’s Kitchen Cave is significant because not only is it unusual to find Late Iron Age gold coins, but to unearth them actually within a cave setting adds to the mystery surrounding them.

The initial discovery of four coins was made by a member of the public which led the National Trust to carry out a full excavation of the cave.

“In total we found twenty six coins, including three Roman coins which pre-date the invasion of Britain in AD 43,” explains National Trust archaeologist, Rachael Hall.

High Peak Moors Vision & Plan: Update August 2013

The High Peak Moors Vision and Plan sets out what we hope this amazing landscape will be like over the next 50 years. The draft plan received over 400 comments.  

 

We've produced a general response to the comments we've received so that you can see the scope of feedback we've had and how we are proposing to work with it. This is now available via this website http://www.high-peak-moors.co.uk/public-consultation/.  

 

The final plan will be launched this Autumn.