Little Asby Common and
Sunbiggin Tarn
Where is it?
The land covers an area of 464 hectares of upland limestone and registered common land in the parish of Asby, to the east of Orton. It also includes a third of Sunbiggin Tarn.
Our ownership of the land
We bought the land in January 2003 with the help of a small grant from English Nature. We recognised the superb landscape value of the land, in an area that is deserving of a national landscape designation. Through management we hope to enhance the Common for all to enjoy and utilise our knowledge of common land management to feed back into our policy work.
Long term vision for Little Asby Common and Sunbiggin Tarn
We have a vision that through the continuation of grazing hefted flocks at a sustainable level we can benefit the flora of the Common in a way that enhances its conservation value as a mosaic of internationally and nationally important habitats. Through such enhancements the texture and appearance of the land will have its landscape character reinforced and add to the amenity of those who come to enjoy this special area.
History of the area
The name 'Asby' derives from the Old Scandinavian askr and by, meaning the farmstead or village where the ash trees grow. The meaning of several other names on the Common can be found, e.g. Sunbiggin derives from the old English sunne, meaning sun, or the old Scandinavian sunn, meaning sunny or south building, the building on the south or sunny side of the hill. A bield means a shelter or an animal's den. - there are at least 15 names on the Common. The Dowly Tree is adjacent to the road just after the T junction on the way to Little Asby village - Dowly is Westmorland dialect for sad, lonely, melancholy and it appears therefore that this is the lonely tree. Some local people think the tree is associated with a local hangman's site whilst books on the area apparently refer to the site being haunted from a murdered drover.
Originally, Little Asby formed part of a single manor called Asby, later split into three Manors. The village lies immediately adjacent to the common land - this is just beyond the good arable and outfield land and was developed from the so called 'waste' upon which the tenants of the manor could exercise common rights for the grazing of animals, turf, wood and stone.
Little Asby Common has a wealth of archaeological remains of all periods, demonstrating the continued use of this upland area from prehistoric times onwards. The full archaeological survey we commissioned in 2004 lists 194 sites, 90 of these had never been recorded before. There is a significant resource of prehistoric archaeological sites, ranging from lithic findspots that date back to the Mesolithic period, to a small cairnfield and associated field system, which includes a putative Bronze Age round cairn. Scattered across the area are small field systems and stock pounds associated with rectilinear settlements; these typically take advantage of sheltered grassy areas amongst the limestone pavement. It is possible that these reflect a low intensity occupation of the marginal lands, probably during the medieval period, and for the most part were a product of transchumant practice (shielings). However, in some localised areas there is the possibility that there were more permanently established settlement. There are also extensive scattered pastoral structures, such as bields and isolated stock pounds; these stock management features appear to be the product of mainly post medieval upland grazing. The Common has extensive post medieval extractive sites, associated with a group of limekilns and the development of Little Asby. There is also evidence of small scale copper extraction and processing from one site on the south eastern area of the common.
Skeletons have been found of two fighting bulls who had drowned in their battle at the eastern end of Sunbiggin Tarn. Most murders, ghosts and other apparitions seem to have occurred on the fringes of our land. However, there is reference to the murder of a drover "near Sunbiggin Tarn" in 1877 (T.Gibson - Legends and Historical Notes).
Geology, wildlife and ecology
The Common and Tarn are designated for their international nature conservation interest as both a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and also a Special Area of Conservation. The eastern part of the Common is of major international importance for limestone geomorphology/geology. There are large areas of limestone pavement, a nationally rare habitat type with its related specialist plant species. There are significant areas of suppressed heather cover where clay over-lies the alkaline bed rock. We conducted a baseline ecological survey of the Common in 2004
Curlew, lapwing and skylark appear common on the upland fell. Golden plover, lapwing, tufted duck, swan, coot, water rail along with geese, passage osprey, and gulls have been noted on or by the Tarn. Frogs are present in some of the moorland pools. Short-tailed voles are very common and short-eared owls are to be seen in the locality. Potts Beck is part of the River Eden SSSI/SAC and is noted for its population of the native white-clawed crayfish.
What are our plans for managing the land?
There are around ten Commoners with rights to graze sheep or cows on the Common. The communal hefting system is part of the cultural heritage of the Common, and something we are keen to see continue. We will work to achieve a healthy future for the Common and the graziers, trying to establish sustainable but also viable grazing levels, so as to benefit the vegetation and landscape. We have begun recording the archaeology, history and ecology of the Common and trying to ensure it is protected and enhanced. We are working with the Commoners to explore entering the Common into the Environmental Stewardship scheme. We welcome those seeking to enjoy the Common responsibly, monitoring open access and managing any problems which may arise. If we need to use labour, we will try and use local people and encourage traditional skills, e.g. walling. We are also encouraging our volunteers to become involved with practical work on the Common, e.g. repairing bields and sheepfolds. We are increasingly using our land management experience to better inform our policy work, and input into debates about land management. We will especially use the Common as a resource to be used by others to explore the issues facing upland commons and agriculture, and landscape appreciation skills. In the medium term, we will support any proposals for this area to form part of an appropriate national landscape designation, e.g. Orton Fells AONB.
Access
Two minor roads cross the Common : the C3070 from Raisebeck to Little Asby and the C3074 down to Newbiggin-on-Lune. The land is crossed by a section of the Coast to Coast walk and is also dedicated as open access land under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.
There are no direct bus services across the Common, but the following routes go nearby : 561 Kendal to Appleby calls at Orton; 573 Great Asby to Appleby; 571 Kirkby Stephen Brough calls at Soulby and Crosby Garrett; 106 Kendal to Penrith calls at Orton.
