Camping and hiking enthusiasts are rushing back to the countryside after last year's foot-and-mouth crisis, according to clothing group Blacks Leisure.

The retailer bounced back into the black as it cashed in on a pent-up demand for the outdoors.

Sales of waterproofs, camping and hiking gear soared with like-for-like growth, which excludes new stores, of 14.5 per cent in the six months to August 31.

The growth helped the group post pre-tax profits of £3.9 million before one-off costs, compared with losses of £900,000 a year ago.

Chairman David Bernstein said the performance was aided by an excellent summer season coming up against a weaker showing during the outbreak.

The underlying performance was still strong and sales had continued to grow in recent weeks despite fears of cooling consumer demand.

Like-for-like sales in the first eight weeks of the second half were up 8.1 per cent.

Blacks Leisure sold First Sport in May to focus on its Blacks Outdoor and Millets shops. It also has the UK rights for O'Neill surfing and snowboarding clothes.

The group bought 47 Famous Army Stores in February to boost its outdoor presence and has so far converted 25.

The retailer now has 337 stores and plans to open a new O'Neill store in Newcastle after sales at the chain soared 39 per cent in the first half.

Turnover in the six months fell 23 per cent to £130.5 million reflecting the First Sport disposal. It was bought by JD Sports for £53.2 million.

One-off costs from the sale meant on a bottom-line basis the group made pre-tax losses of £6.3 million against profits a year ago of £1.6 million.

Shareholders will receive an unchanged interim dividend of 2.4p per share.