Jim Watson was born and bred in the Lake District but moved away at the age of 18 to take up an engineering apprenticeship in the Midlands. After 5 years as a draughtsman he dropped out to begin a long career as a freelance illustrator. His most recent Lake District book, published in 2010, is his Lake District Sketchbook, Click here to see some sample pages.

 

Also in 2010, Jim produced some sketches of views from Broad How, details of which are shown above.

 

In the introduction to his Lake District Sketch book, Jim writes:

“The mountains are high . . .  and the lakes are large in British terms, but on the world stage they’re mere molehills and ponds. It’s the variety and concentration of good things packed into such a small area that makes the Lake District so special. You never have to travel far to be moved by something.”

On the shelves of Broad How, you will find three of Jim’s now out-of-print guides to the Lake District: Lakeland Villages; Lakeland Towns; and Lakeland Panoramas - all full of his clever illustrations and observations.