Celebrating Cumbria's rail scene, illustrated with a selection of photographs from different periods in their history.

Gordon Edgar explores the industrial and minor railways of Cumberland and Westmorland.

From the very beginning, the geography of Cumbria conspired to prevent the spread of railways. The majority of lines were built to transport freight, but many developed passenger services. Sadly the railway age was not to last, local demand was simply not enough to keep many of the lines in operation and the services were doomed. Happily, some lines have been preserved by enthusiastic societies and reopened sections of track flourish. This well written and excellently researched book brings to life the history of Cumbria's railways. With photographs and specially drawn maps.

A close-up look at Cumbria’s steam railways.

This work displays a large number of previously unseen railway photographs from the remote county of Cumbria that show life on lines that are still in use and later what has now disappeared from the railway scene. This volume contains an opportunity to see a new collection of pictures of these lost railway lines in action with many nostalgic views of railways destroyed by shortsighted planning. That many of these lost lines are now being restored surely says much about their closure. The plans for restoration now include the Waverley line, the Appleby to Kirkby Stephen 'North Eastern' line and the Penrith to Keswick line.

This fascinating selection of photographs traces some of the many ways in which Border Counties Railway has changed and developed over the last century.

The latest volume in this series that focuses on recent developments on Britain's rail network in Cumbria. This photographic collection looks at the rails of the north before and after the pandemic in all their scenic glory.

The decline of Cumbria's railway network began long before Dr. Beeching and during the 50s and 60s it was feared that it would disappear all together. By the 1990s however, it was clear that an amazing recovery was underway, with the reopening of many stations and the restoration of many freight services. Today, there is an upgraded West Coast main line and much improved high speed passenger services. Once upon a time however, there was a far bigger network which operated at a much more relaxed - and refined - pace. Featuring around 52 superb period photographs, this volume recalls the sights of that bygone era, including the long-lost Solway Viaduct, the Settle and Carlisle route, and the many rural stations that were once the lifeblood of Cumbrian communities.

Nearly 10 years after its first publication, Aurum are re-issuing this classic running book which has defined a genre. It includes an introduction from bestselling author Robert Macfarlane and an epilogue from Richard Askwith. The concept of fell-running is simple: it’s a sport that involves running over mountains – sometimes one, sometimes many. It’s also immensely demanding. While running uphill is a stamina-sapping slog, running pell-mell down the other side requires the agility – and even recklessness – of a mountain goat. And there’s the weather to contend with. It may make the sports pages only rarely, but in areas like the Lake District and Snowdonia fell-running is the basis of a whole culture – indeed, race organisers sometimes have to turn competitors away so that fragile mountain uplands are not irrevocably damaged by too many thundering feet. Fixtures like the annual Ben Nevis and Snowdon races attract runners from all over Britain, and beyond. Others, such as the Wasdale and Ennerdale fell runs in the Lakeland valleys – gruelling marathons of more than 20 miles – remain truly local events for which the whole community turns out, with many of the runners back on the same fells the next day tending sheep. Now, Richard Askwith explores the world of fell-running in the only legitimate way: by donning his Ron Hill vest and studded shoes to spend a season running as many of the great fell races as he can, from Borrowdale to Ben Nevis: an arduous schedule that tests the very limits of one’s stamina and courage. Over the months he also meets the greats of fell-running – like the remarkable Joss Naylor, who to celebrate his fiftieth birthday ran all 214 major Lakeland fells in a single week; Billy Bland, the combative Borrowdale man whose astounding records still stand for many of the top races; and Bill Teasdale, a hero of the sport’s earlier, professional days, whom he tracks down to his tiny cottage in the northern Lakes. And ultimately Askwith’s obsession drives him to attempt the ultimate challenge: the Bob Graham Round – a non-stop circuit of 42 of the Lake District’s highest peaks to be completed within 24 hours. This is a portrait of one of the few sports to have remained utterly true to its roots – in which the point is not fame or fortune but to run the ancient, wild landscape, and to be a hero, if at all, within one’s own valley. Feet in the Clouds is a chronicle of a masochistic but admirable sporting obsession, an insight into one of the oldest extreme sports, and a lyrical tribute to Britain’s mountains and the men and women who live among them.