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  • Wild Fell

  • Fighting for Nature on a Lake District Hill Farm
  • By: Lee Schofield
  • Narrated by: Lee Schofield
  • Length: 8 hrs and 56 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (110 ratings)
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Wild Fell cover art

Wild Fell

By: Lee Schofield
Narrated by: Lee Schofield
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

In 2015, England's last and loneliest golden eagle died in an unmarked spot among the remote eastern fells of the Lake District. It was a tragic day for the nation's wildlife, but the fight to restore the landscape had already begun.

Lee Schofield, ecologist and site manager for RSPB Haweswater, is leading efforts to breathe life back into two hill farms and their 30 square kilometres of sprawling upland habitat. The farms sit at the edge of the region's largest reservoir, beneath which lie the remains of a submerged village. The area's history has been a turbulent one for both its people and its wildlife, leaving its habitats in tatters.

In the search for inspiration, Lee sought out England's rarest mountain flower and travelled from the wild fells of Norway to the pristine meadows of the Alps. Informed, too, by the local land, its history and the people who have shaped it, Lee and his team have remeandered a straightened river and are repairing damaged wetlands, meadows and woods. Each year, the landscape is becoming richer, wilder and better able to withstand the shocks of a changing climate.

But in the contested landscape of the Lake District, change is not always welcomed, and success relies on finding a balance between rewilding and respecting cherished farming traditions. This is not only a story of nature in recovery, it is also the story of Lee's personal connection to place and the highs and lows of working for nature amid fierce opposition.

Wild Fell is a call to recognise that the solutions for a richer world lie at our feet; by focusing on flowers, we can rebuild landscapes fit for eagles again. A landscape of flowers is a landscape of hope.

©2022 Lee Schofield (P)2022 Penguin Audio

What listeners say about Wild Fell

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Lushingtons

Great book, nicely narrated. My partner and I both work for the local Rivers Trust so it's great to get the rewilding angle from a botanist / birders angle - we are very much in agreement that farming and nature don't have to be seperate and on the opposite ends of the spectrum. Thanks for a great listen.

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Great read. Really immersive & I learned loads

Couldn't fault this book. Well read. So immersive. I felt I'd been on many guided walks of the fells. I could almost hear the birds and smell the (montane) flowers. Tackles the contentious land use issues openly and fairly and discusses the disparity of views between conservationists and farmers. Very sad outline of all we have lost but wonderful and inspiring account of how they are turning the tide on loss and restoring the fells to their former glory. Highly recommended.

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    2 out of 5 stars

A disappointment.

What makes "Wild Fell" special is the author's acute attention to portraying both sides of the farming vs conservation debate. But that's where the book's virtues end. It's not a bad book, just a decidedly average one, so I am baffled by all the glowing reviews.
The story the author tells is - again, like almost everything about this book - okay, just not excellent. (Books by Katherine Swift, Monty Don, John Lewis-Stempel and especially Benedict Macdonald have spoken to me more and helped me learn so much about nature and how to best support and protect it.) The writing is horrendous and often feels like an attempt at a Year 6 science paper.
Overall, "Wild Fell" was a huge disappointment. I've heard so much about this book and had it recommended several times, but it was a slog.

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More Interesting book on the subject out there.

There are better informed book on the subject out there, author come across as arrogant and bitter when dealing with people he has different opinion with.

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Fantastic book

A great overview of an attempt to bring conservation and farming into harmony. Zoomed in details bring Hawswater to life. Overviews of other projects in the Uk and abroad act as inspiration for author and reader. The author reports a well balanced example of the tensions between modern farming and conservation. Insightful for those of us with no foot in either camp.

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Not all is lost

A book that should be full of anger based on what we have done to our landscape but it isn’t. The author tells a story that is balanced, without blame but most of all optimistic. With people like this doing the things that they are doing we might all still have a chance to witness once again our truly wild fells. A brilliant book

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Uplifting

Such a positive enlightening story of
cooperation, investigation, risk taking and will power. Along with beautiful prose and descriptions of landscape. The author’s enthusiasm really comes across. Highly recommended if you enjoyed James Rebank’s books or Wilding by Isabella Tree.

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Enjoyable and inspiring

A fantastic book which was really brought to life by Lee’s narration. Inspiring and brings hope for a sustainable future. Thank you and good luck for the future

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Excellent!

A slow start, I almost gave up, but perseverance got the better of me; for some years I have been a sleeping member of the RSPB and having spent my formative years in Cumberland and Westmorland plus a career in Agriculture and work in Norway I was interested in comparing his findings, it was certainly worth perseverance, Lee Schofield describes fully the progress and development of this quiet corner of the Lakes the trials and tribulations of trying to bring about change, I greatly enjoyed his descriptions not just of the successes but also how he learned to work with with at times hostile partners, a great read / listen.

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  • R
  • 13-06-23

Unexpectedly excellent!

As a landscape architect I started reading this book almost out of duty and with no expectations, I soon found myself completely drawn in by the surprisingly good prose (considering this is effectively a work diary by an ecologist). I am now listening all over again and relishing the book even more second time around. I’ve just been to walk the fells he describes including Naddle Farm, which brought the whole thing to life. I really hope the book gets a wide audience, the subject matter is so important. Congratulations to everyone connected to this project. Also, it’s beautifully read and a great listen.

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