A group of Cumbrian fell-lovers have repaired a landmark Lake District monument after vandals badly damaged it.

Five friends, led by Gordie Oliver, set out for the summit of Skiddaw near Keswick, which had its steel plaque broken off last week.

The discovery went viral online after Nic Page, of Keswick, uploaded a picture on Facebook.

The 47-year-old said: “Upon seeing the damage I was furious and very annoyed anybody could do this.”

Her post was spotted by Gordie, 46, of Bassenthwaite, whose father Des Oliver, 88, was a national park ranger at the time of the cairn’s installation – and was responsible for the logistics of getting it there.

Gordie was just seven when it was erected to mark the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1977, and it’s something that’s come to mean a lot to him.

He feels like he has a family connection to the monument and said repairing it seemed the obvious thing to do.

“Initially I was shocked to see that it was broken,” he said. “When I noticed that the top part was lying not far away, that was a relief.

“After that it wasn’t so much anger but more sadness really.

“I just feel very sorry for people who are willing to walk that far to commit a malicious act.”

For Gordie it was a case of urgency to repair the structure before it suffered any further damage. They spent two hours at the summit being battered by the elements but managed to repair the cairn.

It was also crucial that the plaque, which points visitors in the direction of Lake District peaks and Cumbrian towns, was put back in its original position.

Gordie said: “It took three of us to carry it.

“Fortunately because it was built so toughly originally and it was a good solid steel plate, it’s not really damaged.

“We managed to repair it fully and it’s hopefully going to stand the test of time.”