Best boot forward for Coniston walking festival

Television presenter Nick Crane is packing his trusty back pack and making a personal pilgrimage back to Coniston for the autumn walking festival. Nick, a writer and broadcaster, used to work in the town in the late 1970s and is the star name heading the Coniston Walking Festival which takes place over September 26-28.

As well as being the well-known face of BBC programmes Coast, Map Man and Great British Journeys, Nick will be giving a talk about his new BBC 2 series and an accompanying book, and festival goers will have the chance of joining him on a peak-bagging exploration of the area’s famous peaks such as Coniston Old Man.

Nick said: “My first job when I graduated was working as an assistant warden at Holly Howe Youth Hostel in Coniston. To go back all these years later as part of Coniston Walking Festival is a very personal trip for me because that’s where many things started.”

“Although now I live in central London, part of my soul is in Britain’s wildest places and the Lake District represents this vast mountain garden and perfect landscape. The scale of it is ideal for all ages and all groups and I am really looking forward to coming back to Coniston.”

The three-day spectacular features walks ranging from easy, moderate hard and strenuous, talks, family activities like a cruise and guided walk to Tarn Hows, outdoor art, mountain skills training and music.

A full programme of activities and tickets can be booked online at Conistonwalkingfestival.org.

The event has been sponsored by Bridgedale; the market leader in the manufacture of technical outdoor socks, and Coniston business, The Coppermines and Lakes Cottages.

The event has been funded by Cumbria Tourism and Cumbria County Council in partnership with the Lake District National Park Authority.