via ferrata, honister named tourism experience of the year 2011...

Established in 2007 by the late Mark Weir, the Via Ferrata is a cliff-edge assault course on the slopes of 2,126ft Fleetwith Pike - unique to England and the Lake District.   Via Ferrata is Latin for "Iron Way." The system was introduced during the First World War as a means to move thousands of untrained soldiers quickly through the Alps. In Honister's case, we use the old Victorian Miner's footpath along the cliff-faces which they used on a daily basis.

Over 22,000 people have been on the Via Ferrata since it was launched. The aim is to give the man (and woman) on the street an opportunity to absorb the high drama of mountaineers without any previous climbing experience, as well as showing the hardships of the original Victorian miners who used the same route to get to and from work.