Stanfords Blog

Top 5 ways to explore the Lake District’s islands

Our Book of the Month is 36 Islands: In Search of the Hidden Wonders of the Lake District by Robert Twigger. Here Robert tells us the best ways to explore the Lake District’s islands:

1. Packraft or inflatable canoe

Some lakes are next to convenient roads but not all are. Many Scottish lochs with interesting islands and ruined castles are deep in the wilderness and you have no choice but to walk there. In the Lake District, where I searched out the 36 islands to be found on twelve of the lakes there, quite a few are not that easy to access. Take Devoke Water, far on the western side between Wast Water and Ennerdale- without a very transportable form of boat it would be impossible to reach the tiny island Watness Coy, which is to be found there. This island, called by Wordsworth a ‘bare rock’, is in fact a perfect place for a one person camp. It has a single tree and a gravel beach and can be reached after crossing 200 metres of lake. Providing you are able to carry your boat in. That’s where the inflatable packraft comes in. Made of super-light and super-strong materials and weighing between 1.5 and 2.5 Kg you slip this craft rolled up into your rucksack and walk happily over the worst terrain to get to your objective. With dismountable paddles and a lightweight lifejacket of the kind used by fisherman such remote islands are fairly easy to reach. The joy at approaching an uninhabited island which is rarely visited is a great experience and with a packraft or inflatable canoe you can easily carry enough gear to set up camp and have a wonderfully remote time ‘stealth camping’ ie. trespassing in the nicest possible way…

Extract: Distant Melodies: Music in Search of Home by Edward Dusinberre

Edward Dusinberre, first violinist of the Takács Quartet, writes about playing Benjamin Britten’s last string quartet, a way to bridge distance during the COVID-19 pandemic. This excerpt is adapted from Dusinberre’s Distant Melodies: Music in Search of Home, published by Faber.

Tuning our instruments backstage, we miss the sounds of enthusiastic chatter before our concert in Grusin Music Hall on the University of Colorado’s Boulder campus. Our feet clatter over the wooden floor before we bow to the livestream camera. I imagine our friends listening over loudspeakers in their living rooms and my parents who will watch our performance the next day in Cambridge, in the same part of the world that Benjamin Britten’s String Quartet no. 3, Opus 94 was largely composed. The menthol drop I slip into my mouth underneath my mask adds an extra sting to the hot breath that fogs my glasses. When we start to play, the facial clues that we usually rely on to communicate changes of character are hidden. From the sparkle in violist Richard O’Neill’s eyes I can imagine his smile. Our cellist, András Féjer sometimes raises his eyebrows sceptically against the dubious rhythmic instincts of a first violinist – now they seem manically animated.

Map of the Month: Central London Footways Map

Our Map of the Month for November 2022 is the Central London Footways: the network of quiet and enjoyable streets for walking.

This beautiful printed map is designed to help people plan enjoyable A-to-B walks in central London. The Footways team spent more than three years plotting and testing the walking routes, connecting London’s stations and key destinations with the capital’s most interesting, quiet and enjoyable streets.

Children’s Book of the Month: The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish

Our Children’s Book of the Month for November 2022 is The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish written and illustrated by Chloe Savage.

A moving tale of grit, endurance and self-belief to inspire young explorers and dreamers.

Book of the Month: 36 Islands: In Search of the Hidden Wonders of the Lake District

Our Book of the Month for November 2022 is 36 Islands: In Search of the Hidden Wonders of the Lake District by Robert Twigger

A journey across the Lake District to discover the secrets of its 36 islands.

Antarctic Things

-by Daniella McCahey and Jean de Pomereu, authors of Antarctica: A History in 100 Objects

*Supplies and Homes Building Up at Little America,* by Robert Charles Haun, 1956.
Courtesy of the United States Navy History and Heritage Command, Washington DC, United States.

The Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center in the United States operates a science outreach program. Teachers can, for free, request a box of rocks from Antarctica to use temporarily in their classes. They fill out a form and within weeks, a box of Antarctic specimens arrive. In general, these rocks are not special or valuable. It is filled with different types of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks, along with some fossils and minerals, which are handy in a basic geology lesson. But to be honest, many of these samples are no different than sandstone or granite that they can find in their own yards. What makes these special is that they came from Antarctica. Children can hold a piece of Antarctica in their hands.

What is Travel Fiction? by Janice Pariat

Janice Pariat is the award-winning author of Boats on Land: A collection of Short Stories, Seahorse, and the international best-seller The Nine-Chambered Heart. Her new novel Everything the Light Touches is out with Borough Press, HarperCollins UK. She lives in India. Here she discusses travel fiction:

“What is travel fiction?” a friend asked.

The England Coast Path

By Andrew McCloy, author of Great Walks on the England Coast Path

As an island nation we have a special relationship with the sea – historically, culturally and often very personally – and nowhere on the English mainland are you any more than 70 miles or 113km from the nearest coastline. Being beside the seaside is a richly sensual experience and what better way to enjoy it than a bracing coastal walk!

Map of the Month: Great Britain Slow Ways Journey Planners

Our Map of the Month for October 2022 is the Slow Ways Journey Planners by Urban Good. These maps are based on the grassroots initiative to create walking routes across Great Britain.

The printed maps are big, bold, beautiful and designed to inspire and support people imagine, plan and share journeys.

Slow Ways is an initiative to create a network of walking routes that connect all of Great Britain’s towns and cities as well as thousands of villages and every national park. People can use the routes to walk between neighbouring places or combine routes to travel over longer distances.

Children’s Book of the Month: Incredible India

Our Children’s Book of the Month for October 2022 is Incredible India by Jasbinder Bilan, illustrated by Nina Chakrabarti.

Journey across the diverse regions of India in this beautifully illustrated introduction to the culture and history of this incredible country and its people.

The first work of non-fiction by multi-award-winning author Jasbinder Bilan, brought to life by artist Nina Chakrabarti, is a joyful celebration of India and its people, places and wildlife.

Watch elephants bathing from a houseboat in Kerala, marvel at ancient cave paintings in Bhimbetka, wander through Delhi’s bustling streets, and ride a train through the snow-capped peaks of the Himalaya.