An event to celebrate the anniversary of Keswick’s Crow Park being bestowed to the National Trust will be held this month.
The free event, on May 26 and May 27, features performances of The Swings.
Two aerialists will perform acrobatics to music on a 5m giant swing set.
After each performance, people will be able to try out the giant swings for themselves.
There will be four performances each day, with the first one starting at 11am and the last one at 3.30pm. No booking required.
The first interactive session each day from 11.20am to 12.30pm will include an accessible bucket seat on the swing for those with reduced mobility.
In 1925, Crow Park was given to the National Trust by Sir John and Lady Randles to look after on behalf of the nation.
It was part of an effort to protect public access to lakeshore in the Lake District at a time when that was under threat.
On the edge of Derwentwater, the green space is a popular area for locals and visitors alike.
It has changed dramatically through the years, with the biggest change coming in the mid-1700s when the landowners at the time felled the oak woodlands that covered the land to raise income for the Greewich Hospital for injured soldiers.
The felling of the trees sparked what was possibly England’s first written environmental protest by Thomas Gray in 1769: “Oct 4 – I walked to Crow Park, now a rough pasture, once a glade of ancient oaks, whose large roots still remain on the ground, but nothing has sprung from them. If one single tree had remained this would have been an unparalleled spot. ”
In the 19th century, local vicar, Hardwicke Rawnsley, was inspired by Wordsworth and Ruskin to defend public access to open spaces and ultimately, to co-found the National Trust in 1895.
Thirty years later, Crow Park was entrusted to the charity and in 2018, it was chosen to host the official UNESCO plaque that marks the Lake District’s World Heritage Site status.
Jessie Binns, senior programming and partnerships officer at the National Trust said: “Crow Park is the perfect place for locals and visitors alike to spend a quiet moment in beautiful surroundings without having to venture too far from town.
“With its historical significance and easy access to an iconic Lake District view, we are proud to continue to care for this special place while improving access so that
everyone can enjoy nature, beauty and history here for generations.”
