Native to Cumbria, the Rough Fell breed is one of three you will find on the common. They are one of the largest and hardiest, able to be outside in all weathers owing to their thick wool. The tups (males) have majestic horns and black and white marked faces. The sheep feed on upland grasses and heathers found on native moorland and are mainly bred for meat. The other two are the famous Swaledale or more ‘pretty’, grey Herdwick.
The flock of sheep know exactly where they are allowed to graze on the fell without going into another farmer’s ‘patch’. The mothers take the daughters up the fell and show them where they can graze through generational ‘flock memory’. There are no fences and they can roam wherever they want but they stay within their heft. The sheep belong on their heft. In the south of the country a heft is called a lear.
Look west and you will see an old sheep pen. This sheep pen will be brought back to working use by a lottery funded heritage project Our Common Cause: Our Uplands Common. Sheep pens such as this are used to sort farmers’ flocks after they have brought them down from the common during gathers which happen up to five/six times a year. Farmers work together to sort and mark sheep ready for shearing or ‘tupping’ (breeding season). Sheep on uplands commons are out all year, even during lambing season.