RUSLAND VALLEY AND FELLS Landscape Character Assessment February 2015 CONTENTS Landscape Character Summary 3 Introduction 6 Context 6 Objectives 6 The Scheme Area 7 Evolution of the Landscape 11 Physical Influences 12 Human Influences 16 Biodiversity 24 Landscape Change 31 Landscape Character 35 Overview 35 Method 35 The Landscape Character Areas 37 Areas of Distinctive Character 49 – Lower Windermere 44 55 – Coniston Water 50 56 – Grizedale and Satterthwaite 56 58 – Dale Park 61 63 – Rusland and Crake Valley 67 64 – Haverthwaite and Levens Estuary 72 65 – Backbarrow and Bigland 77 Consulting the Community 82 References 86 Table of Figures and Photographs 86 Reference Documents 88 Acknowledgements 89 Cover image: Rolling hills of the Rusland Valley. © C Barr. 2 LANDSCAPE CHARACTER SUMMARY Figure 1: View from Rusland Heights. © T. Morris. Known historically as part of the High Furness Fells, The Rusland Valley and Fells scheme area is bounded by Windermere to the east, Coniston Water to the west, the transitional landscapes leading to Morecambe Bay to the south and the watershed of the low fells before the dramatic backdrop of the high Central Lakes fells to the north. This is a landscape of low but rugged fells, generally 200-300m high, dissected by a number of lowland valleys including the Rusland Valley. The north-south orientated ridges slope generally southwards from the high central fells towards the rivers Levens, Rusland Pool and Crake. From the open pasture ridgetops there are dramatic long distance views north to the central fells and south to Morecambe Bay. Much of the fell land is densely wooded with semi-natural woodland and coniferous plantations and the area is one of the most densely wooded in England. On the lower fells and in the valleys there is a patchwork of pasture and woodland and a more intimate character as the network of twisting minor roads wind their way through the valley linking Figure 2: Ickenthwaite in the Snow. © T. Morris small settlements and farms. A mix of stone walls and hedges reinforce the sense of enclosure. 3 It is a living landscape, shaped by the interaction of people with their environment. The extensive woodland of the area played a key role in its industrial history. It was working woodland, coppiced over many centuries, which provided jobs and fuelled a large part of the economy of the area. This in turn has created a wealth of historic features that tell the tales of past working lives in the Figure 3: Sniggers extracting timber. © T. Saunders. woods. Many of the recorded archaeological sites are connected to industries which utilised the natural resources of the area – wood, charcoal and water power, used to smelt iron, manufacture bobbins and gunpowder woodland, in particular, holds a wide range of archaeological features which reflect the history of human activities. Figure 4: Stony Hazel Forge. © C. Barr. The scheme area is rich in wildlife with habitats including upland oak woodland, upland and lowland hay meadows and upland flushes, fens and swamps. Species associated with these habitats include many under threat including high brown fritillary, small pearl-bordered fritillary, white letter hairstreak and Duke of Burgundy butterflies; netted carpet moth, dormouse, red squirrel, spotted flycatcher, wood warbler, hawfinch, bullfinch, tree pipit and soprano pipistrelle, noctule and brown long-eared bats. Many of these priority species have a close relationship with the manmade, wooded landscapes. The centuries-old tradition of coppicing creates sunny rides and glades where primroses and violets flourish. These are the foodplants for some of our rarest butterfly species. Ground disturbance through timber extraction promotes the cultivation of Touch me not Balsam, the foodplant for the netted carpet moth, and the low level branches of shrubs and coppice stands create an ideal environment for dormice. Figure 5: High Brown Fritillary. © R Goodison. 4 The landscape has historical and cultural significance and inspired figures such as John Ruskin, whose house and garden is in the west of the area at Brantwood, Beatrix Potter, who lived nearby, and Arthur Ransome, who wrote Swallows and Amazons and whose grave lies in Rusland Churchyard. That inspiration arose from the interaction between people and place, and the resultant landscape and societal structure. The community that developed in that landscape was strongly rooted in its use of the natural resources of the area and the skills and knowledge derived from that way of life. Working with wood, stone and water shaped both the landscape and the people who lived within it. Those skills and the culture surrounding them are as much a part of the heritage as the landscape and artefacts that they created. Figure 6: Restored gate stoop. © T. Morris. 5 INTRODUCTION Context The Rusland Valley and Fells Heritage Partnership was set up in 2010 with a vision to restore and protect the unique landscape of the Rusland Valley and Fells. This has been a working landscape for centuries, and still is, with a rich history of human influence shaping the landscape to produce its distinctive character. This scheme is about engaging people with landscape in ways which result in positive outcomes for both. Heritage Lottery funding was identified at an early stage of the scheme’s development as being vital to its success and in October 2013 the Partnership was awarded a grant to enable its further development under the Heritage Lottery Fund’s Landscape Partnership Scheme. An essential part of this process is to develop and record a thorough understanding of the natural and cultural landscape of the scheme area as part of the required Landscape Conservation Action Plan. This Landscape Character Assessment (LCA) of the scheme area was commissioned by the Partnership in July 2014. Much of the detailed technical assessment work has already been carried out previously and this project builds on that work for the Rusland Valley and Fells scheme area. It is intended that this local scale LCA successfully relates to existing assessments carried out at the national and local scale, but also stands alone as a report which helps engage the public as well as land owners and land managers in the understanding and positive management of the Rusland Valley and Fells scheme area. Objectives The objectives of the Landscape Character Assessment are: to draw on existing studies to provide a technical assessment of the Rusland Valley and Fells area which enhances our knowledge and understanding of the landscape; why it looks like it does, how it functions, what are the forces for change affecting it and how do we best manage the landscape to conserve and enhance those features which make it different from other areas and give it its unique ‘sense of place’. to tell the story of the Rusland landscape which will help people understand and develop their relationship with the area in which they live, work or visit and develop, and hopefully enhance, their own personal ‘sense of place’. 6 Scheme Area Figure 7: Location of the scheme area within Cumbria showing relationship to National Park, County and District boundaries. 7 Figure 8: Boundary of the Scheme Area. 8 The boundary of the scheme area is shown in Figures 7 and 8. It lies entirely within the administrative areas of Cumbria County Council, South Lakeland District Council and is also part of the Lake District National Park. Both the County Council and the District Council have their own policies covering environment and planning. Within the National Park however, those planning functions which would normally be the remit of a District Council are carried out by the National Park Authority. This means that the responsibility for development management, that is both strategic planning and the determination of planning applications, lies with the Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA). The LDNPA also has the responsibility for managing public rights of way within the National Park. This would normally be a County Council function, but is carried out on an agency basis. The LDNPA is also able to bring additional resources to the management of the area in promoting initiatives and partnerships, access to specialist advice, an enhanced access and recreation function and potentially greater access to a variety of government grants for land management with environmental outputs. Figure 9: The High Furness Fells with high Central Lakes fells to the north. © C Barr. The scheme area is a series of ridges running north-south with valleys between them containing the rivers Rusland Pool and Crake and their tributaries. The area is bounded by Windermere to the east, Coniston Water to the west, the transitional landscapes leading to the Levens and Crake estuaries where they enter Morecambe Bay to the south and the watershed of the low fells before the dramatic backdrop of the high Central Lakes fells to the north. The east and west boundaries are easily defined by the two lakes, but the north and south boundaries should be regarded as a’ soft’ edge, more a zone than a line. 9 Figure 10: Looking towards Oxen Park with Morecambe Bay in the distance. © T. Morris The rugged low fells of the area have panoramic views from high points and are typically between 200-300m high in the north of the area and reduce in height further south. The highest point is Top o’ Selside on Bethecar Moor at 333m. The fells are often deeply incised with becks that are tributaries to the two main rivers, or that run directly into Coniston Water and Windermere. The fells create a sense of enclosure to the river valleys whose strong pattern of field boundary stone walls and hedges and improved pasture fields create a managed appearance which contrasts sharply with the rugged and much-wooded fellsides.