Special delivery
Building materials giant Lafarge has donated a massive 120 tonnes of gritstone to resurface part of a footpath leading from Clapham to Ingleborough, as part of the new Three Peaks Project. Launched earlier this year by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA), the project aims to involve charities, organisations and individuals in helping to maintain and conserve the network of paths crossing the Ingleborough, Pen-y-gent and Whernside area – which currently has to cope with about 250,000 visitors a year!
The stone was flown by helicopter up to the section between Gaping Gill and Little Ingleborough and has been compacted to form a good walking surface on this popular path. The high number of walkers means the paths need more maintenance more frequently than many others in the National Park – and it can be very costly.
“This is the first donation of materials to the project and we are very grateful to Lafarge for it,” says YDNPA Three Peaks Project Manager Steve Hastie. “The stone is part of the underlying geology of the hill so it’s great to be using something local. We hope that, as the project grows, more and more local firms and communities will make donations, whether its materials, willing volunteers or money and by joining the friends of the Three Peaks.”
The Three Peaks Project aims to create a sustainable source of both practical and financial support that will help protect and enhance the area and the rights of way network. Since its launch, many of the charities that regularly use the Three Peaks for sponsored events have volunteered to donate money towards the upkeep of the area – and the YDNPA has produced merchandise to celebrate walking one, two or all of the peaks, making it a great group walk. The authority has also launched the Friends of the Three Peaks, a group to help support the Authority’s work in the area. By next year the Authority hopes to have an events programme members can take part in, with activities like Area Ranger-guided walks and chances to do practical things like path maintenance.
To find out more, visit the YDNPA website or any National Park Centre.
- This entry was posted on: Wednesday, October 7th, 2009 at 9:39 am
- Filed under: Latest News, News
- Tags: community action, footpaths, Yorkshire Dales National Park
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