0:00:05 > 0:00:07The British countryside in winter.
0:00:10 > 0:00:13Cold, unforgiving, bleak.
0:00:15 > 0:00:16As temperatures plunge,
0:00:16 > 0:00:22the skies open, the winds rage and the light fades early.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25This winter we've seen extremes of weather -
0:00:25 > 0:00:29mild, wet and freezing cold.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32Conditions that challenge both wildlife
0:00:32 > 0:00:35and people that try to survive here.
0:00:35 > 0:00:40In this series, I'm going to uncover a side to winter that few of us
0:00:40 > 0:00:41get a chance to see.
0:00:41 > 0:00:42I want to shine a light
0:00:42 > 0:00:45on the bleakness of the British countryside in winter
0:00:45 > 0:00:47to reveal its harsh but subtle beauty.
0:00:50 > 0:00:53I'll be exploring five of our most extreme winter landscapes.
0:00:55 > 0:00:59I'll also be including some of my BBC colleagues' experiences
0:00:59 > 0:01:00over the years.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05Together we'll reveal what's really out there
0:01:05 > 0:01:08during this challenging season.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11Today I'm looking at lakes and rivers,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14and where better than the Lake District.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17I'll be meeting an expert on Lake Windermere...
0:01:17 > 0:01:18May I come over?
0:01:18 > 0:01:22..a sheep farmer who actively embraces the cold,
0:01:22 > 0:01:26and a naturalist keen to show us a lakeside winter spectacle.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28- Hey!- Fantastic.- Hooray!
0:01:30 > 0:01:32Welcome to the Great British Winter.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44The British Isles have a magnificent range of landscapes,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47from snow-capped mountains to thick forests.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51And, thanks to our famously wet climate and landscape, vast networks
0:01:51 > 0:01:53of rivers and lakes.
0:01:53 > 0:01:58In the summer, these freshwater bodies sustain a rich variety of life.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02However, in the winter things seem very different.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06At first glance they appear lifeless - deserted.
0:02:06 > 0:02:10But scratch the surface and it's a very different story.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13This is the Lake District.
0:02:13 > 0:02:18The iconic scenery has been shaped by 500 million years of ice ages
0:02:18 > 0:02:23and geological processes, but today it's a landscape defined by the fells and by water.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27Not only is it the largest national park in England
0:02:27 > 0:02:29but it's also the wettest,
0:02:29 > 0:02:33with 30% more rainfall on average so far this winter.
0:02:34 > 0:02:39A huge annual rainfall - of over three metres in parts -
0:02:39 > 0:02:42is channelled off the mountains, forming spectacular rivers
0:02:42 > 0:02:46that feed the 14 major lakes that give this area its name.
0:02:57 > 0:03:02The scenery might be awe-inspiring, but for those who live and visit here,
0:03:02 > 0:03:05the winter conditions can be treacherous,
0:03:05 > 0:03:10which is why it's vital to have accurate, up-to-date weather information.
0:03:11 > 0:03:16This important, often dangerous winter job falls to Jon Bennett.
0:03:16 > 0:03:21His reports of weather conditions on the top of the fells could save your life.
0:03:21 > 0:03:25- Hi there!- Hello.- You all right? - Very well indeed. You?- Good, yeah.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Between December and March, Jon braves the elements
0:03:27 > 0:03:31and climbs 3,000 feet to the top of Helvellyn, one of the highest,
0:03:31 > 0:03:34most popular mountains in the region -
0:03:34 > 0:03:38a job that must be done every day during these challenging months.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43You must burn a fair few calories getting up to the top of Helvellyn.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46It's a good excuse to eat a few chocolate pizzas, I must admit!
0:03:46 > 0:03:50I can't imagine anything more revolting than chocolate pizza!
0:03:50 > 0:03:51How long does it take to get up?
0:03:51 > 0:03:54It varies from an hour and a half to get up to two and a half hours,
0:03:54 > 0:03:57depending on the conditions, how many times you have to stop,
0:03:57 > 0:03:59what the snow's like, whether it's soft.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02That grinds you down, this soft snow, you know, plodding into it.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04But when it's nice, crisp snow, it can be quite quick.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06What do you do when you get to the summit?
0:04:06 > 0:04:08What does your work involve?
0:04:08 > 0:04:12Going up, we actually assess the snow and ice conditions to see what the snow's like - if it's soft,
0:04:12 > 0:04:17if it's hard, if it's stable, or most important, if it's unstable.
0:04:17 > 0:04:22When we get to the summit, we take wind measurements, wind-chill, temperature.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25So rather than being a forecast, which is computer-generated,
0:04:25 > 0:04:27this is something that somebody's physically gone up
0:04:27 > 0:04:30and had a look at it, so people going up the next day
0:04:30 > 0:04:31have a very good idea
0:04:31 > 0:04:33of what conditions they should be able to expect.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35And we put all this information on the website
0:04:35 > 0:04:37when we get back down to the Ranger base.
0:04:44 > 0:04:47We're catering for a lot of different people as well.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51We cater for people who want the snow, so it's important to say what conditions are like for the snow,
0:04:51 > 0:04:55but also it's equally important that some people don't want to go anywhere near the snow.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58They don't have the experience, they don't really want to do that,
0:04:58 > 0:05:02they want to stay underneath the snow level, then they can judge their day accordingly, and plan their day.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06How have you found this weather in particular, this particular winter,
0:05:06 > 0:05:09and how does that compare to winters past for you?
0:05:09 > 0:05:12At the moment it's extremely mild, very unusually mild.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15Normally - what we're walking on here, we'd be either in snow here,
0:05:15 > 0:05:18or certainly looking at snow over there on Catstycam.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22And literally just two weeks ago there was lots of snow here, so this is very unusual.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26I've been doing the job for five years and we've always had snow at this time of year.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29And sure enough, only a week after I visited,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Helvellyn received over two feet of snow at the summit.
0:05:35 > 0:05:40The harsh winter conditions can make Helvellyn a perilous climb -
0:05:40 > 0:05:43but over the centuries that hasn't stopped people being attracted to it.
0:05:43 > 0:05:49In 1805, a 21-year-old aspiring artist set out with his dog
0:05:49 > 0:05:50for the summit.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53He was never seen alive again.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00200 years after he disappeared, David Dimbleby followed his trail.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08It's believed Charles Gough tried to reach the summit of Helvellyn
0:06:08 > 0:06:11by climbing a precarious ridge called Striding Edge.
0:06:16 > 0:06:20The path is narrow and dangerous with drops on either side.
0:06:22 > 0:06:28People still get into trouble up here, and it's here that Gough's trail goes cold.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37Look at this. It's real, natural beauty.
0:06:37 > 0:06:38I can't see anything.
0:06:38 > 0:06:45Yes, you can. The frozen tarn. Snow. This is as natural as we get in England.
0:06:47 > 0:06:49And it's really untamed on a day like today.
0:06:49 > 0:06:54You certainly feel that nature predominates here, not man.
0:06:54 > 0:06:57Absolutely. Nature tolerates us in a place like this.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01It's not a question of being conquered by man or anything.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04Nature lets you in on her terms.
0:07:04 > 0:07:05I hope she lets us out.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08I would say so.
0:07:12 > 0:07:13Hello, little dog.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18Charles Gough wasn't so lucky.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20Three months after he disappeared,
0:07:20 > 0:07:25a shepherd found his body at the edge of a lake called Red Tarn.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28He'd fallen to his death from Striding Edge.
0:07:32 > 0:07:38Gough's belongings - a sketchbook, a pencil, and a Claude glass -
0:07:38 > 0:07:41suggested he'd died in search of the perfect view.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50There was one mystery about Gough's death.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54When his body was found, the bones were scattered all around,
0:07:54 > 0:07:57whitened and with no flesh on them.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01And beside him, keeping guard, was his dog.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03Now, some people said the dog had been there,
0:08:03 > 0:08:05faithful all those weeks,
0:08:05 > 0:08:08just looking after his master's dead body,
0:08:08 > 0:08:12but others pointed out that the dog was suspiciously fat.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35Despite their dangers, and tragic stories like Gough's,
0:08:35 > 0:08:40people continue to be drawn to the Lake District fells, even in winter,
0:08:40 > 0:08:43when unpredictable weather can lead many of them into trouble.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45'And in the Lake District,
0:08:45 > 0:08:49'seven hill-walkers were trapped in driving snow for more than 12 hours.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52'They were finally rescued this morning. Four of them were injured.'
0:08:52 > 0:08:56'..walkers had to be rescued from the Lake District today after getting stuck.'
0:09:00 > 0:09:03Because of the high number of people who come to the Lake District to climb,
0:09:03 > 0:09:05trained volunteers from Mountain Rescue teams
0:09:05 > 0:09:10are at hand 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15Only last year, I met up with a climber who experienced
0:09:15 > 0:09:17the vital work they do first-hand.
0:09:19 > 0:09:23And one man who was lucky to escape with his life is Al Phizacklea.
0:09:23 > 0:09:25Two years ago, he was at the centre of his own rescue drama
0:09:25 > 0:09:27after a climbing accident.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30Today he is returning to the scene for the first time.
0:09:30 > 0:09:33So, Al, this is the spot, then.
0:09:33 > 0:09:34Yeah, I was climbing up there.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37I was very close to the top, when apparently I fell off,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40and I landed amongst the boulders just here.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43That's not a soft landing. These are solid rocks.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45Absolutely.
0:09:45 > 0:09:47That's an enormous height.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51Probably about 10-11 metres.
0:09:51 > 0:09:54It's far enough to hurt.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58That's an understatement. Al was in a bad way with serious injuries.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02Duddon and Furness Mountain Rescue gave him urgent medical attention
0:10:02 > 0:10:04and organised an airlift.
0:10:04 > 0:10:06Before I had this accident,
0:10:06 > 0:10:09I used to think the Mountain Rescue Team were just there
0:10:09 > 0:10:11for rescuing people who'd got lost in the hills
0:10:11 > 0:10:14or just slipped on easy paths or something like that.
0:10:14 > 0:10:16But when it does happen to you,
0:10:16 > 0:10:19when you have an accident like I had here,
0:10:19 > 0:10:21it just brings it home to you, when you do need them,
0:10:21 > 0:10:23- and by God, you do need them.- Yeah.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26Because they are a fantastic set of people.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28And, you know, I...
0:10:31 > 0:10:33I certainly owe a lot to them.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37On average, the Lake District's rescue teams
0:10:37 > 0:10:39receive around 600 calls a year,
0:10:39 > 0:10:42of which 25 to 30 are fatal.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49And, before the 1930s, if you fell, you were on your own.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53There wasn't any kind of operation here until 1933
0:10:53 > 0:10:55when the Stretcher Committee was formed
0:10:55 > 0:10:59to carry people down the mountain who'd got into trouble.
0:11:00 > 0:11:04And only after the Second World War in 1947
0:11:04 > 0:11:07were more permanent rescue teams established.
0:11:07 > 0:11:10The first, at Lake Coniston, in the 1950s.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14We had a couple of stretchers,
0:11:14 > 0:11:17various splints, rope, of course,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20a big first-aid bag,
0:11:20 > 0:11:21a few storm lanterns,
0:11:21 > 0:11:24and that was about it.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27We didn't even have proper footwear, we went in clogs.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32Norman remembers the dramatic day in 1947
0:11:32 > 0:11:35that saw the start of Coniston's first ever rescue team.
0:11:37 > 0:11:42It come a real bad snow and all the quarry men said, "We'd better go.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45"We don't want to get stuck up here."
0:11:45 > 0:11:47So off they went.
0:11:47 > 0:11:51And Jim said, "Oh, I forgot to knock that motor off."
0:11:51 > 0:11:54And back he went to his motor.
0:11:54 > 0:11:59The other guys waited, waited and waited and he never came.
0:11:59 > 0:12:04Anyway, and they went searching, it was blanket, big snowdrifts.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10And there's a chap just poking into the snowdrift
0:12:10 > 0:12:12and he felt something soft.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15"Oh," he says, "there's sheep in here."
0:12:15 > 0:12:16It wasn't, it was Jim.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19He was in a poor state,
0:12:19 > 0:12:20but he got over it.
0:12:20 > 0:12:25After that, they formed a body of men
0:12:25 > 0:12:28in case something like that happened again.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32Over the last 60 years, many people have owed their lives
0:12:32 > 0:12:35to the invaluable work of Mountain Rescue volunteers,
0:12:35 > 0:12:37especially in winter.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51But though it might be treacherous for humans,
0:12:51 > 0:12:53there is one resident of the fells
0:12:53 > 0:12:56who can survive out here all year round whatever the weather.
0:12:56 > 0:12:58The Herdwick sheep.
0:13:00 > 0:13:01First introduced by the Vikings,
0:13:01 > 0:13:05they've evolved into the hardiest hill sheep in Britain,
0:13:05 > 0:13:08pregnant in the winter so they can lamb in the spring.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10Hi, Jimmy, how are you doing?
0:13:10 > 0:13:12- All right, and you?- Yeah, good, thanks. Can I come on in?
0:13:12 > 0:13:13Yeah, get among it.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16- So these are your Herdwicks? - These are the Herdwicks, yeah.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19- What are you up to there, then? - Just trimming this one's hoof up,
0:13:19 > 0:13:23- cos it's got a bit long and it needs sorting out.- Oh, yeah.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28- Hopefully...- Good-looking feet, off you go. Ha-ha!
0:13:28 > 0:13:29So what is it about Herdwicks
0:13:29 > 0:13:32that make them so ideal for this type of environment?
0:13:32 > 0:13:34Well, it's just the fact
0:13:34 > 0:13:36that they've been here for I don't know how many hundred of years.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38And it's the environment,
0:13:38 > 0:13:40they're just so suitable for the environment.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44You know, they're hardy sheep, they're good mothers.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48You know, they don't take a lot of looking after, they look after themselves.
0:13:48 > 0:13:50They'll... You know, if they find some green grass,
0:13:50 > 0:13:53they'll be in there and be eating it.
0:13:53 > 0:13:54They're just natural thrivers.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56So they manage to find enough
0:13:56 > 0:13:58during the winter months out there for them to eat?
0:13:58 > 0:14:01Yeah, they find enough to eat to be able to keep themselves going
0:14:01 > 0:14:05and also, keep that lamb inside them going, ready for the spring.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08- It's a tough season, isn't it, to be pregnant in?- It's very tough, yeah.
0:14:08 > 0:14:10And this fleece, this is lovely and thick.
0:14:10 > 0:14:13Yeah, the fleeces are quite coarse and, you know,
0:14:13 > 0:14:17they keep the snow and the hail and the rain out.
0:14:17 > 0:14:19What do they eat out there in the middle of winter?
0:14:19 > 0:14:23Merely styans and bracken that you can see.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25- What's styans? I don't know that one.- Stones.- Oh!
0:14:25 > 0:14:27- It's Cumbrian dialect for stone. - Oh, styans!- Styans.
0:14:27 > 0:14:29SHE LAUGHS
0:14:29 > 0:14:31'Of course, they don't literally eat stones,
0:14:31 > 0:14:34'it's Cumbrian dialect meaning they eat whatever they can find.'
0:14:34 > 0:14:38They find what grasses there are up there, you know,
0:14:38 > 0:14:40what's left, basically.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43This winter's been really mild and really wet,
0:14:43 > 0:14:45so I can well imagine how they survive out there.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49But what about when it's thick snow, ice, blizzards, the works?
0:14:49 > 0:14:51If it's really bad, you know,
0:14:51 > 0:14:52like the last two or three winters,
0:14:52 > 0:14:55we would maybe take some hay up for them on the quad bike
0:14:55 > 0:14:57and also we'd put a feed block out
0:14:57 > 0:15:00that they come and nibble and they get energy from that.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03So that sort of keeps them going if they can't find any grass, you know,
0:15:03 > 0:15:05if it's like four foot of snow or something stupid.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15You'd think the mild start to the winter we had earlier
0:15:15 > 0:15:18would be an advantage up here in the fells,
0:15:18 > 0:15:21but for farmers like Jimmy and his Herdwick sheep,
0:15:21 > 0:15:22the reverse is true.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24Because the summer has been so wet
0:15:24 > 0:15:26and there's been so much water around,
0:15:26 > 0:15:29we've had a big problem with the fluke, which is a worm,
0:15:29 > 0:15:33it's like a flatworm which burrows into the sheep's liver.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36It causes, you know, untold damage and eventually it can kill them.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38So that's been a real problem
0:15:38 > 0:15:40with it being so wet all summer and all autumn,
0:15:40 > 0:15:43- and, obviously, the winter's wet as well, so that's not helping.- Yeah.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46So, ordinarily, there'd have been the nice cold temperatures
0:15:46 > 0:15:49- and that just killed them off. - It doesn't kill them all off,
0:15:49 > 0:15:52- but it'll kill, you know, a percentage of them off, yeah.- Yeah.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55- And it lowers the burden of the worm.- Yeah.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57You could do with a bit of a cold snap, really.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00We need a cold snap, that's exactly what we need, yeah.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03-14 or something, that would do the job.
0:16:04 > 0:16:08Extreme cold weather has its benefits,
0:16:08 > 0:16:10but also its downfalls.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12Farming up here in the winter is tough,
0:16:12 > 0:16:14but it's not much easier elsewhere in the country.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16And when the snow hits,
0:16:16 > 0:16:19there's a whole other set of challenges to face,
0:16:19 > 0:16:23as Cotswold farmer Adam Henson knows all too well.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25Snow like we had at the beginning of the year
0:16:25 > 0:16:28and the massive snow dump three years ago in the South of England
0:16:28 > 0:16:30created a lot of extra work for farmers like Adam.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35One of the major problems in this weather for livestock is water.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38Frozen.
0:16:40 > 0:16:41The sheep are OK,
0:16:41 > 0:16:44they can just lick snow and get enough moisture from that,
0:16:44 > 0:16:47but the pigs and the cattle need to drink.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49These conditions are pretty unusual.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51It's about -10 at the moment.
0:16:51 > 0:16:54Colder in Britain than it is in parts of Russia.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56So it just means you just have lots of extra jobs,
0:16:56 > 0:16:59you don't usually have to cart water to things.
0:16:59 > 0:17:00Right.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09'We're coping pretty well, but the snow's been far worse for others.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11'In Scotland, the sheer weight of snowfall
0:17:11 > 0:17:14'has caused barns to collapse, trapping animals,
0:17:14 > 0:17:17'and dairy farmers have had to throw away milk,
0:17:17 > 0:17:20'because the tankers couldn't make it up the frozen farm tracks.'
0:17:29 > 0:17:33I feed these pigs on this concrete pad and the powder,
0:17:33 > 0:17:36so I've just got to clear it off a bit.
0:17:40 > 0:17:41HE CALLS THE PIGS OVER
0:17:49 > 0:17:50Pigs are really hardy.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52They'll live out in these pig arks, you know.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54We've got a wooden hut there and then just arks of tin,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57fill them with straw and they just lie out in it.
0:17:57 > 0:17:59They're absolutely fine, particularly these Iron Age ones,
0:17:59 > 0:18:01they look like a cross between a wild boar.
0:18:01 > 0:18:02They've got such a thick coat.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05Whereas the Gloucester Old Spots are a little bit softer,
0:18:05 > 0:18:08haven't got quite as much hair, and they were all tucked up in their hut.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14'The pigs are as happy as they can be,
0:18:14 > 0:18:16'but there's plenty more animals to check on yet.
0:18:24 > 0:18:26'Next is the sheep.
0:18:26 > 0:18:28'They may be hardy, but it's really extreme weather,
0:18:28 > 0:18:30'and I want to see that they're OK.
0:18:30 > 0:18:34'It's a chance for the dogs to have a bit of a run-around too.'
0:18:39 > 0:18:42So these are our primitive ewes, really.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45This is a little North Ronaldsay there, there's two of them there,
0:18:45 > 0:18:47and a Castlemilk Moorit next to it.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50All of these ewes are heavily in lamb now,
0:18:50 > 0:18:51they'll be lambing in April.
0:18:51 > 0:18:53And you can see the North Ronaldsay,
0:18:53 > 0:18:55she's got icicles and snow on her back.
0:18:55 > 0:18:58It's cos her body warmth is staying under her wool,
0:18:58 > 0:19:00not melting the snow on her back.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03All these ewes will be lambing outside in this field,
0:19:03 > 0:19:06so hopefully by April the snow would have gone.
0:19:08 > 0:19:10'These sheep have a natural instinct to dig for the grass,
0:19:10 > 0:19:12'which they know lies beneath the snow.'
0:19:15 > 0:19:18Under here is my winter barley.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21Marisota is the variety that I'm growing for making beer.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24And, when it's underneath snow like this,
0:19:24 > 0:19:26although the ground is frozen,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28it's actually fairly well insulated.
0:19:28 > 0:19:33It's better off under the snow than being exposed and frosted.
0:19:33 > 0:19:35Because these leaves would break off then.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38It's actually sitting under here reasonably happily.
0:19:41 > 0:19:42'Even in these harsh conditions,
0:19:42 > 0:19:44'growers have to harvest winter veg.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46'Not easy with the ground frozen.
0:19:50 > 0:19:52'Next job is the cattle troughs.
0:19:52 > 0:19:54'I've had a call to say the water supply pipe is frozen
0:19:54 > 0:19:58'and that's something I need to put right straight away.'
0:20:01 > 0:20:03They've managed to dig a hole in the ice.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12What you've got to do is take the blocks of ice out of the water.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15Otherwise, it just freezes up pretty quick.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22I'll get the gas.
0:20:30 > 0:20:31There we go.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41So whether it's Adam's snowy Cotswold fields
0:20:41 > 0:20:42or Jimmy's wetter fells,
0:20:42 > 0:20:46this is one of the most challenging seasons if you work on the land.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52Winter is not just a busy time for farmers,
0:20:52 > 0:20:54here in the Lake District
0:20:54 > 0:20:56visitors can number 15 million a year,
0:20:56 > 0:20:59most of them treading the paths in the summer
0:20:59 > 0:21:01and that can cause some huge problems.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06Popular paths, such as this one,
0:21:06 > 0:21:08leading to the spectacular Aira Force waterfall,
0:21:08 > 0:21:11take a particularly hard battering.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18In winter, it falls to people like John Pring and his team
0:21:18 > 0:21:20to repair some of the summer's damage.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23And it's no small undertaking.
0:21:23 > 0:21:26- How are you doing, John?- I'm fine, how are you?- Good, thank you.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28This is looking terribly industrious for a busy winter's day.
0:21:28 > 0:21:30It is, yes. Would you like to help us?
0:21:30 > 0:21:31SHE CHUCKLES
0:21:31 > 0:21:33I've got a shovel, I might as well, hey.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38So what's involved in repairing paths?
0:21:38 > 0:21:41This particular path, Aira Force, is very, very popular.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44And has become very eroded over the years.
0:21:44 > 0:21:48You can see the old line of the path there as it ran up the bank here.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51- Yeah.- And so, it was too close to the edge,
0:21:51 > 0:21:55too many visitors falling in... off the cliff face,
0:21:55 > 0:21:59so we tried to remove it and move it inland here.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03And do you always use stone as the materials for the paths?
0:22:03 > 0:22:06It can either be gravel or stone,
0:22:06 > 0:22:09depending on what suits the path best.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11This is a countryside location,
0:22:11 > 0:22:13so natural stone is better.
0:22:13 > 0:22:15Yeah, absolutely.
0:22:16 > 0:22:17How do you get the materials here?
0:22:17 > 0:22:19It's not particularly accessible, is it?
0:22:19 > 0:22:21No, with this particular site here,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24you can't get very much in the way of machinery,
0:22:24 > 0:22:26so materials have to come in by helicopter.
0:22:26 > 0:22:31Just for this job, we had 80 bags of gravel and rocks
0:22:31 > 0:22:33delivered by helicopter, which took half a day.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38In winter, this is when we can get the bigger, practical jobs done.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41So this is when we do jobs like this.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43So the hardest work happens during the winter months?
0:22:43 > 0:22:45Yes, indeed, indeed, indeed.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48It's just when it's a bit quieter and a bit easier to get on.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50And have you got a deadline when you have to have it finished,
0:22:50 > 0:22:53everyone starts piling back into the lakes?
0:22:53 > 0:22:56First half-term in February
0:22:56 > 0:22:59- is when we like to try and get things sorted by.- Right.
0:22:59 > 0:23:01And certainly by Easter, at the very latest.
0:23:02 > 0:23:04'I can't help but be impressed
0:23:04 > 0:23:07'by the commitment of all the volunteers working here,
0:23:07 > 0:23:09'who put in so much time and effort
0:23:09 > 0:23:12'to help preserve the Lake District's outstanding beauty.'
0:23:27 > 0:23:29The landscape here is stunning,
0:23:29 > 0:23:32and it's easy to see why it's inspired so many people.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35Perhaps most famously, at the turn of the last century,
0:23:35 > 0:23:37William Wordsworth, as I found out
0:23:37 > 0:23:40when I came to the Lake District back in 2011.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46"All hail, ye mountains!
0:23:46 > 0:23:48"Hail thou morning light!
0:23:48 > 0:23:51"Better to breathe at large On this clear height
0:23:51 > 0:23:54"Than toil in needless sleep From dream to dream:
0:23:54 > 0:23:58"Pure flow the verse, Pure, vigorous, free and bright,
0:23:58 > 0:24:01"For Duddon, long-loved Duddon, Is my theme."
0:24:01 > 0:24:03It is one of 34 sonnets
0:24:03 > 0:24:06that Wordsworth wrote about the River Duddon.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09And he's well-know for writing about the whole of the Lake District.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12There was something about this valley and this river in particular
0:24:12 > 0:24:15that seemed to have a special place in his heart.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18'He called the Duddon his favourite river.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21'But why did it mean so much to him?'
0:24:21 > 0:24:24The Lake District is clearly such a good-looking landscape
0:24:24 > 0:24:27that it's easy to understand why Wordsworth was so inspired by it,
0:24:27 > 0:24:30but why did he seem so particularly taken with the Duddon Valley?
0:24:30 > 0:24:32It's a place he knew when he was a boy.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34We know that he came fishing here.
0:24:34 > 0:24:35He came back many times in his life.
0:24:35 > 0:24:40And, I think for Wordsworth, it had the natural landscape,
0:24:40 > 0:24:42it had the remoteness, it had settlements, it had history.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45And it has a way of inspiring the imagination.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48'But the Duddon sonnets weren't just some of his most personal works,
0:24:48 > 0:24:51'they would also revitalise his literary career.'
0:24:51 > 0:24:53Up until this point,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55Wordsworth had been treated badly by the critics,
0:24:55 > 0:24:58really quite severely in certain circumstances.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01And he was pleased with the reception from the critics this time.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03He was 50 years old,
0:25:03 > 0:25:06this was the first real universal praise he'd received.
0:25:06 > 0:25:08And it did encouraged him then
0:25:08 > 0:25:11to republish most of his poetry later in the same year.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13"For, backward, Duddon! As I cast my eyes
0:25:13 > 0:25:16"I see what was and is And will abide;
0:25:16 > 0:25:19"Still glides the stream, And shall for ever glide;
0:25:19 > 0:25:23"The form remains, The function never dies."
0:25:27 > 0:25:31'Our rivers in winter have their own unique beauty,
0:25:31 > 0:25:34'but there's a lot more going on in them than first meets the eye.'
0:25:36 > 0:25:39It's during this season in rivers like these
0:25:39 > 0:25:41that salmon begin their lives.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44But, at just a few months old, they're swept out to sea.
0:25:45 > 0:25:47After a few years in the open ocean,
0:25:47 > 0:25:49they are ready to start their epic journey
0:25:49 > 0:25:52back to the rivers where they were born.
0:25:52 > 0:25:54The reason - to breed.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00It's carefully timed so they arrive at the start of winter,
0:26:00 > 0:26:02when the cold, well-oxygenated water
0:26:02 > 0:26:04provides the perfect conditions for incubation.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10They risk life and limb to get here,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13battling uphill against the flow every step of the way.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25And it's only the memory of the river's taste that leads them there.
0:26:30 > 0:26:35They don't eat or rest until they've got to their birthplace,
0:26:35 > 0:26:37if they haven't died trying.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54The ones that make it here adopt their breeding colours - a rich red.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56And males acquire hooked jaws,
0:26:56 > 0:26:59because their battle is now against each other.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08Females turn their tails from swimming
0:27:08 > 0:27:10to the task of digging a nest.
0:27:14 > 0:27:18Males focus on the job they've come here to do - wooing a mate.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24Once they've spawned, the adults' job is over.
0:27:26 > 0:27:27The rivers in winter provide
0:27:27 > 0:27:30not only the perfect temperature for incubation,
0:27:30 > 0:27:33they also flow fast enough to prevent a build-up of silt,
0:27:33 > 0:27:35which would otherwise bury the eggs alive.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39From now on, the cool, fast river will look after the eggs
0:27:39 > 0:27:41until they hatch in April.
0:27:41 > 0:27:44For the adults, it's the end of the road.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47Exhausted from their efforts,
0:27:47 > 0:27:51for most of them, this is the last journey they'll ever make.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10Salmon can be found throughout the UK,
0:28:10 > 0:28:12but a close relative, the Arctic char,
0:28:12 > 0:28:14is one of the rarest fish in Britain,
0:28:14 > 0:28:18found only in cold, deep lakes like this one.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24'It was during the Ice Age, 12,000 years ago,
0:28:24 > 0:28:28'when the ice melted, that some was left trapped between the valleys,
0:28:28 > 0:28:30'and lakes like Windermere were formed.'
0:28:30 > 0:28:33With such a wealth of history contained in the muddy lake bed,
0:28:33 > 0:28:36it's no surprise that researchers have been studying the lakes' health
0:28:36 > 0:28:38since the 1930s.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44'And now, the corer is just about to go.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47'Compressed air fires the coring tube deep into the mud.
0:28:51 > 0:28:52'And up it comes.
0:28:55 > 0:28:58'A tube full of Windermere history.'
0:29:01 > 0:29:03And records have been continued ever since.
0:29:07 > 0:29:10Dr Ian Winfield, from the Centre For Ecology And Hydrology,
0:29:10 > 0:29:13has been studying this lake for the past ten years.
0:29:13 > 0:29:16- Hi, Ian.- Hi.- Nice to meet you.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19- Welcome aboard.- May I come over?- Yes.
0:29:19 > 0:29:21Oh, there we go. As elegantly as I can.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27'Winter is a quiet time on the lake,
0:29:27 > 0:29:30'with cold temperatures and little food forcing fish to become slow
0:29:30 > 0:29:32'and close to hibernation.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35'But one fish, the lakes' longest living resident,
0:29:35 > 0:29:37'doesn't just make it through the winter months,
0:29:37 > 0:29:41'it actually depends on cold temperatures for its survival -
0:29:41 > 0:29:43'the Arctic char.'
0:29:47 > 0:29:49So, Ian, where are the Arctic char now?
0:29:49 > 0:29:52They're out in the main body of Windermere. So they're not at the edges,
0:29:52 > 0:29:54they spend almost all of their life out in the deep water.
0:29:54 > 0:29:58And the way we find out exactly where they are is by using this equipment.
0:29:58 > 0:30:00How does this work? How does this tell you where they are?
0:30:00 > 0:30:01This is an echo sounder,
0:30:01 > 0:30:04so we use sound to see where the fish are, if you like.
0:30:04 > 0:30:08So, the part in the water sends out a stream of sound into the water.
0:30:08 > 0:30:10And that produces echoes of targets.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13We record those echoes, then we can look at them
0:30:13 > 0:30:15very precisely in the laboratory and count which are fish
0:30:15 > 0:30:20and which are things at the bottom of the lake or plants and so on.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23Are you even able to tell which are Arctic char?
0:30:23 > 0:30:24We could tell the size of the fish.
0:30:24 > 0:30:26- The bigger the fish, the stronger the echo.- I see.
0:30:26 > 0:30:29But we can't go directly to species yet,
0:30:29 > 0:30:32so we do do some netting to determine the different species, as well.
0:30:37 > 0:30:38So, what is this telling you?
0:30:38 > 0:30:42This is showing a real-time display of what's underneath the boat,
0:30:42 > 0:30:45so if you look at this picture here, this echo-gram,
0:30:45 > 0:30:49this is a moving display of the water column.
0:30:49 > 0:30:51And the thick green line is the bottom of the lake.
0:30:51 > 0:30:55- And then these marks above it, these are individual fish.- Ah, OK.
0:30:55 > 0:30:56So at the moment,
0:30:56 > 0:31:01we're at the depth of about 46 metres down to the bottom.
0:31:01 > 0:31:04Here, it's quite a soft, muddy bottom, and so we can actually
0:31:04 > 0:31:07see individual fish lying just above the bottom of the lake.
0:31:07 > 0:31:09And they're likely to be the char?
0:31:09 > 0:31:12- These are likely to be individual char, yeah.- Fantastic!
0:31:14 > 0:31:17Why are the char sitting at the bottom of the lake?
0:31:17 > 0:31:20Well, the char spend almost all their life out in the open
0:31:20 > 0:31:22water of the lake, and to some extent, they will move up
0:31:22 > 0:31:25and down, depending on where the zooplankton is
0:31:25 > 0:31:26and the time of the day.
0:31:26 > 0:31:29As far as the char are concerned, it doesn't matter greatly to them
0:31:29 > 0:31:32about what kind of depth they are, cos at this time of year,
0:31:32 > 0:31:34the temperature is the same all around.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36- Ah, OK.- During the summertime, it may get too warm for them,
0:31:36 > 0:31:38right up near the surface.
0:31:38 > 0:31:40So this temperature at the bottom of the lake stays consistent
0:31:40 > 0:31:41throughout the year?
0:31:41 > 0:31:44Pretty much consistent, yeah. I can show you here.
0:31:44 > 0:31:47- These are measurements from last year.- Right.
0:31:47 > 0:31:49So, this is 2012, going through the year.
0:31:49 > 0:31:53So, this is January, February time. This is the temperature here.
0:31:53 > 0:31:54And this time last year,
0:31:54 > 0:31:56the temperature was about five or six degrees.
0:31:56 > 0:31:58And it's something similar to that at the moment.
0:31:58 > 0:32:00The blue line's the top of the lake,
0:32:00 > 0:32:02and the red line is the very deepest point of the lake.
0:32:02 > 0:32:06And the difference is quite substantial. The temperature's quite high there.
0:32:06 > 0:32:08As we go through the summer, we can see the surface warms up
0:32:08 > 0:32:11- to something like 20 degrees, in a good summer.- Yup.
0:32:11 > 0:32:14But at the same time, at depth, the water stays really quite cool
0:32:14 > 0:32:16and gets to about six or seven degrees.
0:32:16 > 0:32:18- This would be too warm for Arctic char.- Right.
0:32:18 > 0:32:20This is absolutely fine for them,
0:32:20 > 0:32:23so they spend a lot of time moving up between the different parts.
0:32:23 > 0:32:25And as they lay their eggs in the shallows,
0:32:25 > 0:32:28if they were to do it the wrong time of year, this would be far too hot?
0:32:28 > 0:32:29Exactly, yeah.
0:32:29 > 0:32:31And in fact, once you get above five degrees or so,
0:32:31 > 0:32:33it's getting warm for an Arctic char egg.
0:32:33 > 0:32:34Wow, so 18 is just way too high?
0:32:34 > 0:32:37Yeah, the eggs would just die in a matter of minutes
0:32:37 > 0:32:39if they were into this kind of area.
0:32:43 > 0:32:45'By monitoring the population of Arctic char through
0:32:45 > 0:32:49'hydroacoustics and netting, as well as documenting the lake's
0:32:49 > 0:32:53'oxygen levels, temperature, and plankton, the last ten years of
0:32:53 > 0:32:54'research has begun to build up a picture
0:32:54 > 0:32:56'of the conditions in Windermere.'
0:32:57 > 0:33:00- So, how are the winters changing here?- Well, they're changing.
0:33:00 > 0:33:04They're becoming much more variable, as they are in many parts of the UK.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07You can see this winter is relatively mild.
0:33:07 > 0:33:10And we're really at the limits of what the Arctic char eggs can
0:33:10 > 0:33:11stand in terms of temperature.
0:33:11 > 0:33:13So if it gets much warmer,
0:33:13 > 0:33:15the char will really have a problem in reproducing.
0:33:15 > 0:33:18So we could potentially see them disappearing altogether from the lake,
0:33:18 > 0:33:21- if temperatures warm up that much? - If temperatures continue to carry on,
0:33:21 > 0:33:24I think the eggs are at the most vulnerable stage.
0:33:24 > 0:33:28'Since Ian's research began in the 1990s, it's estimated that
0:33:28 > 0:33:32'Arctic char populations have declined by 60%.
0:33:37 > 0:33:41'To lose the Arctic char from the Lake District would mean losing
0:33:41 > 0:33:43'part of our country's natural history for ever.
0:33:45 > 0:33:48'Even if our British winter feels pretty chilly to us right now,
0:33:48 > 0:33:52'there have been much colder ones on record.
0:33:52 > 0:33:54'And as well as scientific research,
0:33:54 > 0:33:56'there's anecdotal evidence to prove it.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01'The last time that Windermere froze was back in 1962,
0:34:01 > 0:34:04'a winter known as the "big freeze" that turned lakes here
0:34:04 > 0:34:07'and across Britain into adventure playgrounds.'
0:34:09 > 0:34:12'At Ruislip, the water skiers manage to adapt themselves
0:34:12 > 0:34:13'to the new conditions.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16'With a car instead of a motor boat to do the towing,
0:34:16 > 0:34:17'a new sport was born.
0:34:17 > 0:34:18'A pointless one, but new.'
0:34:23 > 0:34:25'It is also perfect weather for another,
0:34:25 > 0:34:28'more Orthodox winter sport, ice yachting.'
0:34:53 > 0:34:56'On the East Coast of Britain, freezing winters were once
0:34:56 > 0:34:59'so commonplace that a particular type of skating in the Fens became
0:34:59 > 0:35:03'a regular British tradition that dates back 250 years.
0:35:09 > 0:35:13'Three years ago, Katie Knapman visited the Fens to witness this
0:35:13 > 0:35:15'age-old sport first-hand.'
0:35:16 > 0:35:17It's speedy...
0:35:19 > 0:35:21..it's slick...
0:35:22 > 0:35:24..and, although you may not think it,
0:35:24 > 0:35:28it's a sport in which Britain once reigned supreme.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33'It's speed skating, but maybe not as you know it.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36'This is the original version, Fen skating.
0:35:36 > 0:35:41'And it's been happening all over East Anglia for hundreds of years.
0:35:41 > 0:35:44'Championship races were regularly held on the Fens,
0:35:44 > 0:35:48'but milder winters mean they rarely happen these days.
0:35:48 > 0:35:53'The big freeze of 1962-63 was one of the best winters for Fen skating
0:35:53 > 0:35:54'since the War.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58'And this year looks like being the first time the championships
0:35:58 > 0:36:01'have been held for 13 years.
0:36:01 > 0:36:04'Today is practice day for some, but not for others.
0:36:04 > 0:36:06'Still, the odd tumble doesn't put people off.'
0:36:06 > 0:36:11I actually learnt to skate on Bury Fen, some 45, 50 years ago.
0:36:11 > 0:36:13And I've been coming every time there's been any ice since.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16I've now got my two children here, and they're skating around,
0:36:16 > 0:36:18bringing the sledge.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21Yeah, it's a cold day out! But nice.
0:36:22 > 0:36:25'Fen skating has a rich tradition.
0:36:25 > 0:36:29'To find out more about it, I'm off to the nearby Norris Museum to
0:36:29 > 0:36:31'meet a man who knows more than most.'
0:36:32 > 0:36:35So, Bob, this is one of the skates that the original Fen skaters
0:36:35 > 0:36:37would have used?
0:36:37 > 0:36:40Certainly, this goes right back to Victorian times,
0:36:40 > 0:36:43the 19th century, you know, using skates like this back then,
0:36:43 > 0:36:45with the wooden body, what they call the footstock,
0:36:45 > 0:36:49there's the metal blade with the curved prow on the front cos
0:36:49 > 0:36:53we're not skating on smooth, indoor ice like the skating rinks.
0:36:53 > 0:36:56It's outdoor ice with humps and bumps and twigs
0:36:56 > 0:36:57and things frozen into the ice.
0:36:57 > 0:37:01So the prow means you can ride nice and smoothly over the humps
0:37:01 > 0:37:02and bumps in the ice.
0:37:02 > 0:37:04So you've got to have this on an outdoor skate.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08- How did the competitive Fen skating come about?- I think it's natural.
0:37:08 > 0:37:10The Fen people, like everybody else, I suppose,
0:37:10 > 0:37:12have always been naturally competitive, anyway.
0:37:12 > 0:37:14We know that skates with metal blades,
0:37:14 > 0:37:15like the one you've got there,
0:37:15 > 0:37:18were in the Fens as far back as the 1660s.
0:37:18 > 0:37:23And the first skating race we've got a record of took place in 1763.
0:37:23 > 0:37:25So, almost 250 years ago.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27So, it's a very old tradition in this part of the world.
0:37:27 > 0:37:29So, who were the superstars of the sport?
0:37:29 > 0:37:31They were well-known Fen skating champions,
0:37:31 > 0:37:33all of whom had nicknames.
0:37:33 > 0:37:34- So Turkey Smart.- Turkey Smart?
0:37:34 > 0:37:37- He was the big skatesman one always hears of.- A great name!
0:37:37 > 0:37:40So, he more or less invented the modern style of speed skating,
0:37:40 > 0:37:42where skaters...
0:37:42 > 0:37:45- They bend over forwards, don't they? - Yeah.- A skater going forward.
0:37:45 > 0:37:47- A bit of that, isn't it?- Exactly! You've got it! That's right.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50- You haven't seen me on the ice! - Very, very convincing imitation.
0:37:50 > 0:37:52Now, Turkey Smart invented that.
0:37:52 > 0:37:54They thought he looked like a gobbling Norfolk turkey, with
0:37:54 > 0:37:58the head stuck out forward, clucking away, and the arms going like wings.
0:37:58 > 0:38:00- So they called him Turkey Smart.- Very good!
0:38:00 > 0:38:03But when he won all the races, and became the Fen skating champion,
0:38:03 > 0:38:05they copied his style, and that's still being used nowadays.
0:38:05 > 0:38:08- He was indeed smart.- Oh, yes. - Bit like the wind.
0:38:08 > 0:38:11Smart by name, smart by nature. That's right.
0:38:11 > 0:38:15'With a good dose of British eccentricity and imagination,
0:38:15 > 0:38:17'there's no end to the enjoyment
0:38:17 > 0:38:19'that our frozen countryside can provide.'
0:38:26 > 0:38:30But it's not just intrepid skaters who have to contend with the ice.
0:38:30 > 0:38:34In the winter, ducks can often be seen making their way frozen lakes
0:38:34 > 0:38:37and ponds, often with a lot more grace than us!
0:38:37 > 0:38:40Chris Packham explains exactly how they do it.
0:38:44 > 0:38:47You know, one question I frequently get asked about birds is how
0:38:47 > 0:38:52do species like these ducks manage to stand on the ice without their feet
0:38:52 > 0:38:57melting it and them falling through, or freezing and sticking to it?
0:38:57 > 0:38:59Well, if you can take a couple of minutes of geekism,
0:38:59 > 0:39:01I can explain why.
0:39:01 > 0:39:04Now, first things first, their feet are very different than ours.
0:39:04 > 0:39:05They're not fleshy.
0:39:05 > 0:39:07They're mainly made up of bone, of tendon,
0:39:07 > 0:39:10and they're covered with scales, which are dead tissue.
0:39:10 > 0:39:13They've also got very few nerves in those feet,
0:39:13 > 0:39:16so they don't actually feel the cold as much as we would.
0:39:16 > 0:39:19But they do stand on it, and they do sleep on it,
0:39:19 > 0:39:20standing in one place for a long time.
0:39:20 > 0:39:23And they've managed this, the whole process,
0:39:23 > 0:39:28by having a biological counter-current flow heat exchanger.
0:39:28 > 0:39:34It relies on a remarkable network of blood vessels called rete mirabile.
0:39:35 > 0:39:40Basically, they cool the warm blood coming from the heart,
0:39:40 > 0:39:42down through the arteries,
0:39:42 > 0:39:46by exchanging heat with the cold blood, which is coming back up.
0:39:46 > 0:39:48Now, this means that the cold blood is pre-warmed,
0:39:48 > 0:39:51so it doesn't shock their system and their metabolism,
0:39:51 > 0:39:55and the warm blood going down to the feet is pre-cooled to pretty
0:39:55 > 0:39:59much ambient temperature, which is just above freezing.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01Therefore, their feet don't melt the ice
0:40:01 > 0:40:04and they don't have the embarrassment of falling through them.
0:40:04 > 0:40:05And one last thing.
0:40:05 > 0:40:08How is it that they don't stick to the ice
0:40:08 > 0:40:10when they're standing there for a long time?
0:40:10 > 0:40:12Or why is it that birds, when they're landing on metal
0:40:12 > 0:40:14perches in the winter, don't stick to those, either?
0:40:14 > 0:40:17They have dry feet. Their feet don't sweat.
0:40:17 > 0:40:20And with no moisture, there's nothing there to freeze,
0:40:20 > 0:40:24and therefore, there's nothing there to stick. So there you go.
0:40:24 > 0:40:27That's how they do it. It works for them and...
0:40:30 > 0:40:31..not me!
0:40:37 > 0:40:40It's not just the fish and fowl who make the most of the rivers
0:40:40 > 0:40:42and lakes at this time of year, either.
0:40:42 > 0:40:46There are also millions of insects that thrive here during the winter.
0:40:49 > 0:40:52'While terrestrial insects die off or hibernate over winter,
0:40:52 > 0:40:57'this is the time of year that aquatic invertebrates thrive.
0:40:57 > 0:41:00'Entomologist Dr Ian Wallace has been studying the Lake District's
0:41:00 > 0:41:03'smaller beasts for 40 years.
0:41:03 > 0:41:06'He's going to show me what's going on in the rivers today.'
0:41:08 > 0:41:11Right, Ian. Let's do a bit of field work! It's been too long for me!
0:41:11 > 0:41:12Right, OK.
0:41:12 > 0:41:15Kick sampling, which is making use of the fact that the water
0:41:15 > 0:41:18current will carry anything which you dislodge into the net.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22- So if I stand the net there, then you kick.- I'm doing my kicking.
0:41:22 > 0:41:23It's so strange, isn't it?
0:41:23 > 0:41:25Especially on a day like today, in the middle of winter,
0:41:25 > 0:41:28it's hard to imagine that there is so much life.
0:41:28 > 0:41:30- Oh, yes.- With the vertebrates, particularly, you think,
0:41:30 > 0:41:33"Oh, there can't be anything." There's a lot, isn't there?
0:41:33 > 0:41:36- Yes, there is.- Right, shall we have a little look at what's in there?
0:41:36 > 0:41:39- Look at that!- Oh, juicy!
0:41:39 > 0:41:42You've done fairly well, Ellie, for somebody who's...
0:41:42 > 0:41:44- The fact is, you've done very well. - Well, thank you very much.
0:41:44 > 0:41:47Right, Ellie. Let's see what you found.
0:41:54 > 0:41:59Most of the creatures here are doing well, because winter is the time
0:41:59 > 0:42:02when there are dead leaves, which have fallen from the trees,
0:42:02 > 0:42:03into the streams.
0:42:03 > 0:42:06And dead leaves are a major food source.
0:42:06 > 0:42:09For example, these leaves here, if you look at that one,
0:42:09 > 0:42:10it's been turned into...
0:42:10 > 0:42:13- Oh, wow!- ..A lace curtain!- Oh, yeah!
0:42:13 > 0:42:16And that's things such as the freshwater shrimps,
0:42:16 > 0:42:19- but also, caddisflies have eaten the leaves completely.- Goodness!
0:42:19 > 0:42:22Yeah, they have. What else have we got in here?
0:42:23 > 0:42:26We've got this caddis larva.
0:42:26 > 0:42:28Now, that's one of the species which is responsible for turning
0:42:28 > 0:42:30the leaves into skeletons.
0:42:30 > 0:42:32This is very easy to miss, isn't it?
0:42:32 > 0:42:35'For this particular insect, leaves are not just food,
0:42:35 > 0:42:37'they're also cleverly used for protection.'
0:42:37 > 0:42:40It's made its case out of pieces of dead leaf
0:42:40 > 0:42:43and sticks and some small stones.
0:42:43 > 0:42:44And it's camouflaged,
0:42:44 > 0:42:49so that it's protected from fish or birds looking for it.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52That's fantastic, isn't it? So it'll be growing through the winter?
0:42:52 > 0:42:54Through the winter, yes. It's almost fully grown, that, now.
0:42:54 > 0:42:56It's such a perfect shape.
0:42:56 > 0:42:58How do they make something so uniform like that?
0:42:58 > 0:43:02They cut tiny little pieces of leaf, which they then join together.
0:43:02 > 0:43:06They make silk, and they use that to glue the pieces together.
0:43:06 > 0:43:08- Do they vary much?- They do, yes.
0:43:09 > 0:43:12Different species make different cases.
0:43:12 > 0:43:18- Now, that one there has concentrated on using sand rings.- My word!
0:43:18 > 0:43:21- Sticking each grain of sand on.- Each grain, yes.- That's so intricate!
0:43:21 > 0:43:23And it'll have chosen the grain.
0:43:23 > 0:43:26It'll have very carefully gone around and measured the piece of grain.
0:43:26 > 0:43:29"Yes, that's the right size for me," and then stuck it on.
0:43:29 > 0:43:33- Isn't that extraordinary? - I know.- It's completely marvellous.
0:43:33 > 0:43:37'And while the leaf detritus allows plant-eating insects to feed,
0:43:37 > 0:43:40'these in turn provide food for carnivorous insects who have
0:43:40 > 0:43:42'also made this river their home.'
0:43:44 > 0:43:47- Ooh, look!- What have we got?- Oh, that's nice!- Well, that's enormous!
0:43:47 > 0:43:49- What's that?- It is. By God, yes!
0:43:49 > 0:43:52That's the nymph of the golden-ringed dragon fly.
0:43:54 > 0:43:58It's called a sit-and-wait predator because it just sits and waits until
0:43:58 > 0:44:01something, and it could be a caddisfly larva,
0:44:01 > 0:44:02comes within its grasp.
0:44:02 > 0:44:07So the leaf fall begins what is a very active ecosystem
0:44:07 > 0:44:08throughout winter?
0:44:08 > 0:44:13Yes, it does. Yes. Yes. It's all fuelled by this leaf fall.
0:44:13 > 0:44:17And, of course, without them, the leaves would clog up all
0:44:17 > 0:44:19the streams, the lakes would be just full of dead leaves.
0:44:19 > 0:44:21Yeah.
0:44:23 > 0:44:26A lot of these insects thrive in the winter
0:44:26 > 0:44:27but not all of them survive.
0:44:27 > 0:44:31They themselves are a great source of winter food for other animals.
0:44:32 > 0:44:34Like the dipper.
0:44:34 > 0:44:36Thanks to aquatic insects,
0:44:36 > 0:44:40there's enough food for these birds to stay in Britain all year round.
0:44:50 > 0:44:53And for birds that live in colder climes,
0:44:53 > 0:44:56our winters are literally a life-saver.
0:44:56 > 0:44:58In countries like Iceland,
0:44:58 > 0:45:01sub zero temperatures cause the lakes to freeze over,
0:45:01 > 0:45:05and with them the food supply to birds like the whooper swan.
0:45:08 > 0:45:11With their offspring as young as three months old they make
0:45:11 > 0:45:17an epic 800-mile journey to the UK, the longest overseas flight made
0:45:17 > 0:45:21by any swan, to reach our warmer climes and the food that they offer.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39In 2001, Bill Oddie was lucky enough to witness
0:45:39 > 0:45:43the arrival of a group of winter visitors as they ended
0:45:43 > 0:45:46their epic migration to Martin Mere in Lancashire.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49These are whooper swans
0:45:49 > 0:45:54and they've literally just flown in from Iceland.
0:45:54 > 0:45:56They do it in a non-stop flight.
0:45:56 > 0:45:59800 kilometres day and night if necessary.
0:45:59 > 0:46:04Flying at speeds of getting on for 100k per hour.
0:46:04 > 0:46:06Why do they come here?
0:46:06 > 0:46:08Well...
0:46:08 > 0:46:10hard to believe, actually.
0:46:10 > 0:46:12It's flipping cold now, I'm telling you.
0:46:12 > 0:46:15There's an east wind blowing and I'm freezing, but these birds,
0:46:15 > 0:46:18they think this is the tropics, basically.
0:46:18 > 0:46:23Right now in Iceland when they breed it would be ice,
0:46:23 > 0:46:25it would be snow, but more to the point, the ground would be
0:46:25 > 0:46:29frozen solid and they simply wouldn't be able to get any food.
0:46:29 > 0:46:34But down here, oh, bask in the Lancashire sunshine
0:46:34 > 0:46:36and nibble away.
0:46:36 > 0:46:40Mind you, as if this isn't enough for them,
0:46:40 > 0:46:44the Wildfowl And Wetlands Trust
0:46:44 > 0:46:48have a sort of supplementary diet programme going.
0:46:50 > 0:46:52There they go.
0:46:52 > 0:46:55Well, at least we know they won't go hungry
0:46:55 > 0:46:58and can stock up on food before they have to make their epic
0:46:58 > 0:47:01return journey back to their breeding ground next spring.
0:47:05 > 0:47:07These swans were one of many animals to catch
0:47:07 > 0:47:11the attention of an eminent 18th century naturalist.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16Hugh Alexander MacPherson, a Victorian clergyman
0:47:16 > 0:47:20who spent two decades researching and recording the animals that
0:47:20 > 0:47:24lived in the Lake District year round, even in the worst of weathers.
0:47:26 > 0:47:30In his time, MacPherson recorded 421 types of vertebrates
0:47:30 > 0:47:32and 262 different birds.
0:47:34 > 0:47:38Most of the species he documented can still be found here today.
0:47:46 > 0:47:50But some, like the stoat, are now very rare.
0:47:50 > 0:47:55Usually reddish brown in colour, in winter something remarkable happens.
0:47:55 > 0:47:56The drop in temperature
0:47:56 > 0:48:00and daylight hours triggers a dramatic change in hormones
0:48:00 > 0:48:04turning them almost entirely white to camouflage against the snow.
0:48:09 > 0:48:12'One man who has carried on in MacPherson's footsteps,
0:48:12 > 0:48:14'naturalist Stephen Hewitt,
0:48:14 > 0:48:17'has been following one of the Lake's more elusive creatures.'
0:48:17 > 0:48:19This is a beautiful spot, Stephen,
0:48:19 > 0:48:21but what have you brought me down here for?
0:48:21 > 0:48:26Well, this stretch of the lake at this time of year in particular,
0:48:26 > 0:48:28is a really important place for otters.
0:48:28 > 0:48:30It's only during January/February time
0:48:30 > 0:48:33that they're using this stretch of shoreline.
0:48:33 > 0:48:36'And the reason is that this is the time of year
0:48:36 > 0:48:38'a fish called the schelly spawns in these shallows,
0:48:38 > 0:48:41'providing a tasty feast for the local otters.'
0:48:41 > 0:48:44What we need to do is look for the droppings of the otters,
0:48:44 > 0:48:47and hopefully we might even see the remains of the prey that has
0:48:47 > 0:48:49attracted them to this area at this time of year.
0:48:49 > 0:48:52So we need to have a little search on this shoreline.
0:48:52 > 0:48:53Yeah, let's walk along here.
0:48:53 > 0:48:56- We're looking on rocks for droppings and other signs.- OK.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00Ah, so here's our first sign.
0:49:00 > 0:49:01We've got a spraint right here.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06I don't want to tread on it.
0:49:07 > 0:49:10- It's pretty fresh, isn't it?- There's one here and another one here.
0:49:10 > 0:49:11The way to tell an otter spraint,
0:49:11 > 0:49:14usually they're full of fish scales and bones and look quite spiky.
0:49:14 > 0:49:16They're fairly distinctive to look at,
0:49:16 > 0:49:18but the sure-fire test is to have a sniff.
0:49:20 > 0:49:24No, that one doesn't really smell at all. That's a better one.
0:49:24 > 0:49:26That's fresher. There's no doubt about it to my mind.
0:49:26 > 0:49:29I'll take a second opinion from you, Ellie.
0:49:29 > 0:49:31No, that one's not smelly at all.
0:49:31 > 0:49:34'Yep, undeniably otter.'
0:49:34 > 0:49:36And we've got some fish scales here.
0:49:36 > 0:49:39Yes. These are interesting.
0:49:39 > 0:49:44These scales are actually the scales of the schelly.
0:49:44 > 0:49:46In fact, you can see these scales are in the spraint.
0:49:46 > 0:49:49- Yeah, quite clearly.- So the otters have been eating these,
0:49:49 > 0:49:51but these haven't been through an otter's body,
0:49:51 > 0:49:53so this is where an otter has brought a fish ashore,
0:49:53 > 0:49:55landed it, and eaten it on shore,
0:49:55 > 0:49:59and all that's left of that meal is this patch of scales.
0:49:59 > 0:50:01So it's just for this short window in winter that we get this
0:50:01 > 0:50:03flurry of otter activity?
0:50:03 > 0:50:05Yes, it's only when the fish come in to spawn that the
0:50:05 > 0:50:08otters can get them, but they really do focus in on them
0:50:08 > 0:50:11and you can get huge numbers of spraints, lots of signs of otter.
0:50:15 > 0:50:19Most freshwater otters are nocturnal and extremely skittish,
0:50:19 > 0:50:22so very difficult to see, but I want to catch at least
0:50:22 > 0:50:27a glimpse of this winter spectacle, so I've got hold of one of these.
0:50:27 > 0:50:29An infrared camera trap.
0:50:33 > 0:50:36Having seen all that evidence of otter activity
0:50:36 > 0:50:39I think this spot gives us a good chance of catching them
0:50:39 > 0:50:42on camera when they come here for their night-time feast.
0:50:51 > 0:50:54The otters are pretty lucky here.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57Every winter the schelly come and spawn in the shallows
0:50:57 > 0:50:59and give them a good source of food,
0:50:59 > 0:51:02but elsewhere in the world like Yellowstone National Park,
0:51:02 > 0:51:06the season can be much harsher.
0:51:06 > 0:51:10In 2009, the BBC were there to film a family of otters struggling to
0:51:10 > 0:51:12survive the bitter winter.
0:51:23 > 0:51:27Now that the rivers are not only frozen but covered in deep snow,
0:51:27 > 0:51:30they are struggling to find open water to fish in.
0:51:42 > 0:51:47They can't fish here. The fast-flowing water is too dangerous.
0:51:47 > 0:51:50Somehow they need to find a way past the falls.
0:52:18 > 0:52:20With the falls safely behind them,
0:52:20 > 0:52:23the otters are forced to keep moving on.
0:52:27 > 0:52:30Open water has become a rare thing in Yellowstone.
0:52:43 > 0:52:47The otter family has arrived at Yellowstone Lake.
0:52:47 > 0:52:51Here they can fish in the holes kept open by the underwater geysers.
0:53:00 > 0:53:03But every time they catch something...
0:53:04 > 0:53:07..this coyote has been watching and waiting.
0:53:29 > 0:53:33The otter dives under the ice to hide its fish from the coyote.
0:53:39 > 0:53:43The coyote can't see the otter because of the thick cover of snow.
0:53:47 > 0:53:49But he can hear him.
0:53:57 > 0:54:01The otter emerges without the fish.
0:54:01 > 0:54:05He's stashed it somewhere under the snow, but where?
0:54:28 > 0:54:31A huge Yellowstone cutthroat trout.
0:54:35 > 0:54:40With the help of the otters, a wily coyote can catch fish, too.
0:54:48 > 0:54:52A beautiful winter's morning in the Lake District, and I can't wait
0:54:52 > 0:54:55to see if we've caught any of our British otters on our camera trap.
0:55:15 > 0:55:18- This is the exciting bit, Steve. - Yes.- Find out what we've got.
0:55:18 > 0:55:21- Anything at all. - Oh, don't, I can't bear it.
0:55:21 > 0:55:23Right.
0:55:25 > 0:55:27It's daytime.
0:55:27 > 0:55:29Waving grass in the wind.
0:55:29 > 0:55:32- That's a whole minute of grass waving.- That was good.
0:55:32 > 0:55:34- Disappointing, disappointing. - Any more?
0:55:34 > 0:55:36- Fingers cross.- Ah hah!
0:55:36 > 0:55:38- So...- Something anyway. - Magpie.- Magpie.
0:55:42 > 0:55:45- A heron.- It's a heron, right there.
0:55:46 > 0:55:50- Oh, buzzard.- Oh, wow!- Lovely.
0:55:50 > 0:55:52That's fantastic.
0:55:53 > 0:55:55Do you see many buzzards down here?
0:55:55 > 0:55:58- Never caught a buzzard on camera before.- Wow, a first for you.
0:55:58 > 0:56:00Yes, really good.
0:56:01 > 0:56:07- Oh, some eyes, some eyes.- It is an otter.- Hey!- Fantastic.- Hooray!
0:56:07 > 0:56:10Look at that. Fantastic.
0:56:10 > 0:56:11Oh, that's brilliant.
0:56:11 > 0:56:15Grooming's really important to regulate their heat?
0:56:15 > 0:56:18Yes, they have to keep their fur very clean. This is brilliant.
0:56:18 > 0:56:20Oh, is that schelly there?
0:56:20 > 0:56:22There's a fish just there. Is that...
0:56:22 > 0:56:25- It's enormous!- It is. - What a catch.- Fantastic.
0:56:25 > 0:56:27Gosh, that's a really big fish.
0:56:27 > 0:56:29This is what I struggled to get previously,
0:56:29 > 0:56:34is to actually see the fish clearly, what they're eating.
0:56:34 > 0:56:36Look at the size of it. So, clearly, enough for two
0:56:36 > 0:56:38- and they're happy enough to be feeding together.- Yeah.
0:56:38 > 0:56:43- Ah, a cheeky fox.- Yep.- Wow.
0:56:45 > 0:56:47THEY GASP
0:56:47 > 0:56:49That's an otter chasing the fox.
0:56:49 > 0:56:51It seemed to pounce on it, there.
0:56:51 > 0:56:53The otter was obviously still in the vicinity
0:56:53 > 0:56:57possibly with food of its own and it's chased the fox away.
0:56:57 > 0:56:59It's driven it off, defending its own food resource.
0:56:59 > 0:57:00Without having seen that,
0:57:00 > 0:57:03I would have struggled to know which would have come out better.
0:57:03 > 0:57:06- A fox is bigger.- Yeah. - That's just brilliant.
0:57:06 > 0:57:08What great footage.
0:57:08 > 0:57:11It's not just otters benefitting from the schelly spawning.
0:57:11 > 0:57:14It seems to be herons, foxes, we've had a buzzard.
0:57:14 > 0:57:18Yeah, there's a lot of things. It's a food bonanza.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21- It seems to be this bonus material in the winter.- Yeah.
0:57:21 > 0:57:25There's lots of things clearly finding an extra food resource here.
0:57:25 > 0:57:27Just following in behind the otters.
0:57:27 > 0:57:29That was fantastic, wasn't it?
0:57:29 > 0:57:31- That was brilliant. Thank you very much.- No, not at all.
0:57:31 > 0:57:33Thank you for showing us where we needed to come.
0:57:33 > 0:57:36- So much life in the winter. - That's fantastic.
0:57:36 > 0:57:38You've got some stuff there I've not seen before.
0:57:38 > 0:57:41To see them actually eating the fish was brilliant. Really good.
0:57:41 > 0:57:42Yeah, fascinating stuff.
0:57:47 > 0:57:52Winter on Britain's rivers and lakes is a time of contrasting fortunes.
0:57:52 > 0:57:56For humans and animals, the season can be harsh, forcing them to adapt
0:57:56 > 0:57:59their behaviour and even their appearance.
0:57:59 > 0:58:03But for others, like these otters, winter can offer times of plenty.
0:58:39 > 0:58:43Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd.