When Storm Desmond tore through the Lake District in December 2015, it brought flooding and misery in its wake. The so-called extratropical cyclone swamped villages including Patterdale and Glenridding, pounding homes and businesses with raging water and winds of up to 80mph.
The devastation helped inspire a unique conservation project that has seen a mile-long stretch of river “re-wiggled” by the National Trust to help reduce the damage from future floods and return the landscape to how nature intended.
The river, known as Goldrill Beck, had been heavily modified over many centuries through straightening and the building of embankments – making it more akin to a canal. That meant the water gushed through it at speed.
