Organisers of Keswick Mountain Festival (KMF) have revealed a packed programme of outdoor pursuits for visitors that will take place alongside this year’s festival, which will run from 16-19 May. Delivered by a range of approved activity providers from Cumbria, options include guided walks, an array of watersports, open water swimming, and navigation skills for people of all ages and experience.
Between Friday 17 and Sunday 19 May, qualified guides from Cockermouth-based company The Lake District Walker will be running various beginners and advanced courses designed to help people to brush up on their walking navigation skills. A number of walks around the area’s famous peaks, including Skiddaw and Scafell Pike, will also be on offer from the guided walk specialist. Meanwhile, watersports enthusiasts will be spoilt for choice thanks to Derwentwater’s own Platty+, offering canoeing, kayaking and stand up paddle boarding (SUP) tours on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 May. Experts from the family-run water sports centre will lead the tours, which include exploring the bays and islands of the northern half of the lake with its varied plants and wildlife, and seeing the Borrowdale valley from a new perspective, with a backdrop of the Scafell range.
Meanwhile, Nav4 Adventure’s mountain running experts will be overseeing half-day intensive adult-only introductory running navigation courses on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 May, while Swim on the Wild Side will offer two-hour introduction courses to open water swimming on the Saturday. Finally, adventure junkies can join Lakeland Mountain Guides to complete one of two Via Ferrata experiences on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 May. These adrenaline-fuelled guided tours of Derwentwater will see participants kitted up with a helmet and harness to make their way around the course, clipping safety wires and loops as they go.
Nicola Meadley, KMF Festival director, comments: “We are pleased to be able to recommend this great line-up of official activity providers at this year’s Keswick Mountain Festival. There’s a great variety of outdoor activities to choose from, all delivered by qualified experts. With all of these providers being based in Cumbria, this is a great example of how the festival will help boost the local economy again this year.”
Launched in 2007, Keswick Mountain Festival has grown into one of the UK’s best-loved outdoor festivals, attracting thousands of people to Cumbria every year. KMF delivers a unique mix of sporting events, outdoor adventures, high profile speakers, live music, taster activities, exhibitor stands and camping for all of the family. Once again, the heart of Keswick Mountain Festival will be the Festival Village on Crow Park, where the Subaru Stage will have the backdrop of Derwentwater and the Lakeland fells that surround it, providing a stunning setting for live music. The 2019 Keswick Mountain Festival will run from Thursday 16 May until Sunday 19 May.
For further information, prices and to book onto outdoor activities at Keswick Mountain Festival visit www.keswickmountainfestival.co.uk/outdoor-activities. In addition, festival weekend tickets are still available (with or without camping) which give visitors access to two nights of live music, a Festival Village taster activities wristband and the option for booking a pitch on the KMF campsite. Weekend tickets are available at www.keswickmountainfestival.co.uk/event-category/weekend-live-music.
To find out more about this year’s festival, visit www.keswickmountainfestival.co.uk
