Just a country road

But no . . . hidden in this picture are a few things. The wall on the right is one side of a sheepfold, one of Andy Goldsworthy's sheepfolds, no less. He visited here with his arch and built it astride the wall facing the road. Why here?

The road you can see runs off the moorland and into a tiny hamlet called Scout Green, which was only ever three farms and is now not very many more houses. The only reason anyone would come here apparently, is to view and photograph trains on the West Coast Main Line, as here southbound trains can be captured accelerating downhill from Shap Fell.

It's a pretty little backwater, so why focus on a sheepfold here? Well, the road you can see, down which now only a few vehicles a day pass and those almost all local, was once the main north south route from Scotland. Hard to believe that, before the A6 and well before the M6 (a glimpse of a lorry on the M6 can just be seen in the distance), this was once the only way through.

So yes, you've guessed, it was a drove road. As well as the cattle being driven down from Scotland, there would be lots more brought in from the open moorland and channelled down to this very point, so they could be driven further south. Hence the large sheepfold positioned just at the point of gathering. Many other vehicles, packhorses etc. would have passed this very spot.

Goldsworthy records that, as he was building his arch, the people in the houses were obviously curious and they made him and his team cups of tea. We came here today and met one of the tea makers! He remembers distinctly the whole episode and was very interested, as he knew quite a lot about drove roads and the local history himself. He told us how the arch was built and how they had to try three times before it stood up. 'Then they took it down and went away with it . . .!' he said.

Several adventures today, in the space of an hour or so at the end of the afternoon. We found a sheepfold that looks like a Goldsworthy, but isn't as it is made of brick and has a radio transmitter inside! Spooky! Then we were looking for three large stones upon which Goldsworthy had placed his arch. We found them eventually and found ourselves on a tiny open road that runs between the two carriageways of the M6, and those who travel on the M6 north of Tebay will know where we were. Very strange situation. Then we found Scout Green and then we found the back way into Tebay Services and the huge Farm Shop that is there. Needless to say, we shopped. Family coming tomorrow.

Best seen large to sense the cattle coming towards you.