Lake District Mountain Landforms

by wilson Peter

Written with fell walkers and other countryside enthusiasts in mind this thoroughly engaging and absorbing book shows that there is much more to the Lake District than simply 'stanes and watter'. Have you ever wondered why Scafell is different from Skiddaw, or why the east side of Helvellyn is different from the west side, or why Ullswater is different from Windermere, or why the summit of Helm Crag is, well, a bit craggy? If so, this book will provide some answers, together with a deeper understanding of how the fell country acquired its special characteristics. The physical landscape of the Lake District acts like a giant magnet, attracting several million visitors every year to the fell country. From John Constable to Alfred Wainwright, via William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter, the Lake District has inspired visitors and residents alike. Although often romanticised in words and pictures as static and enduring, the mountains of the Lake District are dynamic elements of nature undergoing constant change. Media interest in climate change, storms, floods and landslides has done much to increase the public's perception of a 'dynamic' rather than a 'static' physical landscape. For those who think they know all there is to know about the mountains of the Lake District this book provides details of a different facet that is accessible to all who take the time 'to stand and stare'

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book should really be entitled 'An Introduction to Geomorphology with selected examples from the Lake District': it is not a complete description of landforms in the Lake District. It has good points: it explains the processes clearly and systematically, and it gives local examples of where the corresponding landforms can be seen. The illustrations (colour photographs and line figures) are numerous and, mostly, good - some are excellent. In some photos, however, one has to know what one is looking at in order to recognise the subject - such as those of kames and kame terraces.
There are also problems: the greatest is the lack of location maps. Although the author is scrupulous in listing local examples of each phenomenon described, the reader has to have a very good knowledge of local place names to be able to locate them. I read the book with a set of OS 1:25k maps to hand, and even then had to resort to online searches to find the location of some named examples. At least one quoted place name, Tenterhow Farm near Glenridding, is not shown on even the 1:25k maps. Readers who are not very familiar with the Lake District will struggle to locate the examples. At the very least, national grid references should have been given for each place, better still would be location maps in each chapter. Indeed, an overall location map would be useful, as a reminder for what to look out for as one travels about the area - for example, 'look out for the esker when driving through St John's in the Vale'.
The book needs a better copy editor. Some of the prose is a bit cumbersome; a few passages could have been omitted without loss, and there are a few typos: 'Rydale' for Rydal on p. 60, 'Calbeck' for Caldbeck on p. 183, for example. I found that I was mentally editing the book as I read, which is not a good sign.
Finally, the author's explanation of some of the features is a bit truncated, if not actually misleading: my understanding is that eskers (p. 81) are principally subglacial deposits, rather than englacial or supraglacial ones. A full treatment of river terraces (pp. 140-141) would explain that some are depositional features, rather than erosional ones (as here stated), and would discuss the role of uplift of the land, as well as fluvial incision.

Overall, I enjoyed the book and learnt a certain amount about Lake District landforms - even though (as a geologist) I am fairly well versed in most of the subject matter. I did find myself looking at the scenery afresh, which I think is a main aim of the book.