Hackney meets Wainwright

Wainwright Society member, Peter Burgess, who is a teacher at the Hackney Free & Parochial School and the founder of the On-line Fellwalking Club, brought a group of 14 year old youngsters to Castlehead Field centre at Lindale in southern Lake District. For most of the young people this was their first visit to area and when they climbed Hampsfell, their first experience of fell walking. Some found this a little challenging but as they live in an environment where walking is not the norm, this is not surprising and as has been said, everyone has to start somewhere.

Peter Burgess felt it would be a good idea to let them know something of the master fell walker Alfred Wainwright and so he invited Wainwright Society Secretary, Peter Linney, to come and talk about AW and his legacy of guide and sketch books.

On the last evening of their five day visit Peter Linney showed a short audio visual sequence and spoke for a short while about AW and the Wainwright Society to the youngsters. Peter mentioned that it was 62 years since first he climbed Hampsfell on a wartime holiday, with his parents, at Grange-over-Sands.

The youngsters were most attentive during the presentation and talk and asked a number of interesting questions. Perhaps one or two may come back to enjoy the experience of the great Lakeland fells.