Hello Tom. I am very happy to forward your message to Tim, who I am sure will be moved by your contemplative walk up to the tower. All best wishes.

I was unaware till Friday of the commendable work you’ve done restoring the tower, erecting the separate memorials to 3 of the battles and conserving the woodland. (At least there is now a nice view northwards to Windermere , Helvellyn & Co. after Arwen downed all the trees on that side of the hill).

We had a family caravan for 50+ years at Chapman House Farm, from where I did many walks in the surrounding fells (and still do) but now live in the area (Cartmel); also for several years I was Secretary of a WW2 RN Veterans’ Association – still technically am, except the Veterans have crossed the bar leaving 4 or 5 of the “next generation” to keep the name alive.

There is a connection: it was the Captain Class Frigates Association – the 78 ships in the class were state of the art American-built convoy escorts named after RN captains who served during the Napoleonic War period. – Hence the relevance of my walk: several ships of the class were sunk or badly damaged and over 800 crewmen lost their lives in the process, including my namesake Uncle.

If you would like to reply to this, please do so.

Hello Lindsey. It is a lovely tower, and its recent restoration is a heartwarming story. I’m sorry that your family connection is such a sad one. I hope you get to visit sometime soon

How wonderful to hear about this local landmark being saved and restored by Mr Timmerman. We hope to visit it one day as our great grandad and his twin daughters were involved in the tragic lightning strike that you mentioned.

Good afternoon Gordon. Yes, I know this lovely illustration – I wonder if the flag really was that big? Thanks for taking the time to contact me.

Many thanks for the update.

Just had a call back from Woodland Trust.

It is deer fencing.

Site Manager has clarified that the gates are specifically for pedestrian access and does not know why there are nuts and bolts through the hasps.

So I assume they can be removed to get access and probably best screwed back on again once through.

(In case they remain a fixture, I’ll be taking a small adjustable spanner as they may become stiff or corroded and maybe give them some WD40 now and again.)

Hello John. I haven’t visited since September last year so I haven’t seen the fencing. I hope it is deer fencing and not vandal-proof fencing after all the wonderful work the owners of the site have carried out. I will let you know if I can find any further information,