'Ahoy! Ahoy! Swallows! Ahoy!' Have you ever sailed in a boat or built a camp? Have you caught trout and cooked it yourself? The four Swallows, John, Susan, Titty and Roger return to the lake full of such plans and they can't wait to meet up with Nancy and Peggy, the Amazon Pirates. When the Swallow is shipwrecked and the Amazon's fearsome Great-Aunt makes decides to make a visit their summer seems ruined. Then they discover a wonderful hidden valley and things take a turn for the better... BACKSTORY: Discover the real Swallowdale, swot up on seafaring and learn all about the adventurous author.

John, Susan, Titty and Roger return to the lake for another summer camping on their island with their old allies, Nancy and Peggy, otherwise known as the Amazon pirates. But immediately disaster strikes when the Swallows find themselves marooned ashore by the shipwreck of their boat. But if they can't have the island, there's always Swallowdale, the secret valley, hidden from the world and containing an extra secret concealed within it.

The two Blackett sisters are to stay at Beckfoot on the lakeshore with their cook, but when their great aunt hears of the abandonment, she's on the next train.

Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series has stood the test of time. Ransome is not only a great storyteller, writing from first-hand experience, but each story celebrates eternally valuable qualities of practical knowledge, independence, and initiative. The twelve books are for children or grownups-anyone captivated by a world of sailing, adventure, and imagination. The crew's on holiday for their sixth adventure, and they turn their energies to mining for gold, aided by pigeon messengers Homer, Sophocles, and Sappho. The adventurers comb the nearby hills for a fabled lost claim, while being shadowed by a mysterious figure they dub "squashy hat." Undeterred by drought, sudden brushfires, and the continuing presence of Squashy Hat, the young prospectors persevere in their quest-with surprising results. Full of the dangers and dark adventures of old mines and forgotten claims, Pigeon Post has an irresistible appeal to the persistent explorer in all of us.

The Swallows and Amazons are sailing with Nancy and Peggy's Uncle Jim (better known as Captain Flint) when their hired deckhand tells them a tale of his younger days - a tale to set pulses racing and hopes shooting sky high. Soon their boat is on its way to a Caribbean treasure hunt and they find themselves up against shark, storm, earthquake - and the vilest pirate who ever eavesdropped at a porthole.

When their boat is burned and they are cast adrift in the South China Sea, Titty, Roger, Peggy, John, Nancy, Susan, and Captain Flint make their way to land only to find themselves the captives of the redoubtable Missee Lee, one of the last pirates operating off the China coast.

Award winning writer and photographer Jon Sparks has produced an in-depth guide to the Lake District landscapes, which in many places has changed remarkably little since Arthur Ransome's time.