AN outdoorsy couple who decided to document their walking and travel exploits online - rather than sending dozens of emails to friends and family - are now set for national recognition.

Beth and Steve Pipe started their popular blog nearly five years ago and have won acclaim after it was named number one in the Lake District by national walking and climbing magazine, The Great Outdoors.

The blog, called Cumbrian Rambler - Life and Hiking in Cumbria (and beyond), sees Beth writing the words and husband Steve taking the photographs. They have written about Morecambe Bay, RSPB Leighton Moss, seals at South Walney Nature Reserve and many Lake District walks.

Now it has also impressed organisers of the National UK Blog Awards 2014 who have shortlisted it for the final with the winners announced next year. The awards recognise 'viral' blogs passed from person to person through social media.

Describing themselves as 'escapees' from Hampshire in the south east, Steve, 43, grew up in Kents Bank, but Beth, 47, first visited in 2010.

They decided to make the move full time in 2011 and lived in a camper van for the first three months while they found the right house in Grange-over-Sands.

Beth said: "The blog documents our new life and challenges in one of the most beautiful parts of the UK as well as tracking many of the wonderful hikes and other adventures we get ourselves embroiled in."

Of the award, Beth said: "They started last year but I didn’t enter then as I didn’t think I stood a chance. When I saw the invite again this year I very nearly didn’t enter again but after a few glasses of wine on the night before entries closed thought: “Why the hell not?”.

Beth managed to garner sufficient public votes to get on the shortlist and it now faces scrutiny from an expert panel.

She added: "I started the blog to avoid having to send emails to our families and noticed that somehow we were getting quite a lot of views, so I kept it going and dipped my toes into the world of social media.

"I write the blog for fun – I don’t make any money off it – in fact I recently took Google Ads off and now host an advert for the RSPB free of charge.

"I’ve also tried not to commercialise it so it’s not sponsored. It has changed my life though and has lead to other writing commissions for magazines and websites.

"We’ve written walking guides and have more planned for next year, plus we’ve been approached by a publisher and commissioned to write a book covering the recent, ancient and natural history of 10 sites in Cumbria."

Although centred around Cumbria, the blog follows their travels to wCornwall, Derbyshire, Scotland, Northumberland and Kielder.

To read the blog go to http://cumbrianrambler.blogspot.co.uk/ or to follow Beth on Twitter it's @CumbrianRambler