Cheap drinks & glorious beaches - Askam In Furness Rally

We stayed on a Caravan & Motorhome Club rally at Duddon Sports & Social Club in Askam-in-Furness, hosted by the BCC Ribblesdale section of the Caravan & Camping Club, where we found chaep drinks & glorious beaches. The Social Club has an interesting history — it was originally the K Shoes Sports & Social Club, built for employees of the K Shoes factory next door. The factory operated from 1953 until 1996, employing around 600 people. When the factory closed, the club was purchased independently, and now there are plans to redevelop the former factory site into residential housing. Askam itself has a strong industrial past. The village was home to an iron foundry from 1866 until 1932; the buildings were demolished in 1933. The slag from the foundry was tipped onto the beach, eventually forming Askam Pier. The local railway station — still in use today on the Barrow-to-Carlisle line — originally served to transport iron ore out of the village. Modern Askam has a friendly, small-town feel, with a Co-op store, a Post Office, a bakery, a Chinese takeaway, and a fish & chip shop.