We had to check out of our lovely Keswick accommodation at 10am so there was time for a couple of hours of wandering around Keswick before moving to Buttermere, a lake in a valley to the west of Keswick.
Luke kindly let me drag him around a number of shops in which I bought nothing but we did pick up some fudge, a bottle of Kin toffee vodka and a Lake District book for Sue.
Chicken, chorizo and bacon pastie for breakfast. Goodbye Keswick!A last visit to the cheese counter at Booths for supplies.
The next and last stop is Buttermere. Our house is relatively remote so we need to take everything.
Mark and Sue brought their car so they are taking the bags while the rest of us take the bus. We were hoping for a double decker but ended up with the back seat on a single storey bus.
Epic views down Honister Pass. Pete said it was the best bus ride he’d ever been on.
The bus finished at Buttermere so we walked the last bit until we saw the sign.
Our new home!I picked a bunch of lilac for the table.Our private gate down to Crummock Water.Fleetwith Pike in the distance.
I went for a little walk and found two smashed glasses by the creek so I picked up all the big bits and brought them back.
We came back and took the lawn chairs out. There is a building with a bed and breakfast on the property but I’m yet to see another person.
Once the wind got up we moved to a sheltered spot.
We finished off the evening with pizza, wine and Bananagrams. Sue won two, Mark won one, and I was just happy to play.
Then we were off to bed in our tiny little beds in our tiny little rooms. I’ll post some photos of the inside of the cottage tomorrow. Goodnight!
After realising last night that we were, in fact, not leaving Keswick on the following day, we decided on a plan. We were going to catch the lake ferry to Ashness Bridge and walk back to town via Walla Crag, a walk none of us had done and which seemed reasonably straightforward.
The walk from our apartment to the landing was short and we bought tickets (a steal at £2.70 each) and I took some snaps of the very photogenic row boats.
The boat ride was short but scenic.
We alighted at the first landing and walked the step road climb to Ashness Bridge. I’ve been there twice before, also on overcast days, so if my photos look very familiar that’s why. Or you’ve seen this bridge on the cover of a box of Derwent pencils.
There were a few people around but these girls had decided to have their meal break right in front of the bridge and get in the way of everyone’s photos, which was kind of annoying.
Still, the time of day and light was much better this time. Here’s my very shady photo from 2018.
We were a bit less organised today and Mark, who said he wasn’t in charge, had the route marked out on his phone. We decided to take the path that didn’t look very steep.
Through this harmless-looking, and therefore misleading, gate.
But then it got STEEP!
It’s really hard to capture steepness in a photo, but I had to use my hands on the rocks, the surface was loose gravel and there were blackberry canes, nettles and roses everywhere, which made it all a bit challenging. Mark and Sue leapt to the top like mountain goats while everyone else got caught up behind me. To be honest, if I’d been on my own I probably wouldn’t have done it but, after a couple of uncertain moments, we got up higher where the path levelled out.
Maybe, instead of anaesthetic, in hospitals they could save money and just show people photos of amazing views because it seems to make me immediately forget all the suffering I’ve endured.
Onwards and upwards..Feeling the serenity. We did actually manage to hear a cuckoo today too!From up high we could see the fell we walked yesterday. We saw a bird of prey and our eyes could see more detail than this terrible image shows. We think it might have been a honey buzzard.More dramatic views.Negotiating a rare bit of mud.Me in a group photo. Thanks Mark!An unusual stile design to get to Lady’s Rake above Walla Crag. Stunning views! Lea loves it when I take photos of her unawares.Cotton grass.
The back of Walla Crag is a wide moor space that is very open and covered in heather. My favourite sort of landscape, it sweeps up to some higher fells and I was dying a little inside knowing that it will have wait until next time but I guess it’ll always be there.
After a while admiring the view we headed down again.
Past a field with some fell ponies and down a long hill.
Over a bridge…Past some sheep…Beneath a magnificent oak…Past more sheep…Down a lane lined with flowers…To the stone circle!What a day!Weather this good calls for one thing. Yum.
After a bit of a sit at the stone circle (which I have also photographed before… by now you may be wondering why I’m even bothering to rephotograph all these places.
When we got to the bus stop Mark and Sue decided to walk back the 30 minutes while the rest of us waited for the bus. Which, in the manner of buses everywhere, failed to arrive.
Oh well, Luke messaged Mark and they were at the pub along the way so we joined them at the…
It means ‘two dogs’.
After a drink and toilet stop we walked back to the apartment for a late lunch bite and rest before dinner.
Mark was the taxi for the evening and, as there were six of us, had to take us in two shifts to a pub in the village of Braithwaite. The pub was Mark and Sue’s recommendation.
Always nice to see the pour over the line.Cheese sauce with garlic mushrooms on garlic bread – I’m including this photo to remind me to make this at home.Pork belly, or ‘belly pork’ according to the waiter.
Unfortunately our lovely dinner was ruined by Luke and I sharing the news that we don’t separate coloured and white items in our laundry and I’m not sure the conversation really recovered.
Tomorrow we check out at 10 and have three hours to fill before we can check in at our Buttermere accommodation. The next place we are staying is much more remote than any of the previous so we need to pick up supplies, with cheese and wine at the top of the list!
Today was the day! My guided walk for everyone up Sale Fell then back to the lake station cafe for the afternoon tea I booked months ago. I’d been keeping my fingers crossed for good weather but it was sprinkling just a little when I woke up.
There was one thing to do first: the presenting of the gifts!
Relish, satay spice mix and Vegemite.
If you have family overseas you’ll know that any visitor from home will be asked to bring food items when they come to visit. Luke’s uncle Mark had requested a few of his favourites.
Next we headed to the bus stop and finally managed to be first on and grab the seats up the top and right at the front.
Woohoo!
The slight mist of morning rain had stopped and the day was clearing a bit and warming up.
We set off uphill.
And up.
And up.
If I didn’t explain fully yesterday, Mark is Luke’s youngest uncle (Luke’s mother is the eldest of nine siblings) and only three years older than me. Mark moved to the UK in his twenties, met Sue and settled in Essex.
Mark and Sue come to the Lake District every October with a group of friends for walking holidays. They are both very fit, Mark just completed a 100km walk around the Isle of Wight (in one go, not over a week like I’d do it) and Sue runs marathons. The rest of us were a bit concerned that our pace would be a bit painful for them but they magnanimously slowed down.
Well, mostly.
The walk was a long way to the top but worth it.
Sale Fell is a nice gentle hill with an undulating crown. Good walking for inexperienced walkers and families. Great views and no sharp edges!
Right at the very top are views to Scotland and, extremely faintly if you really squinted, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
Here’s Mark’s photo of ‘Luke and Lea looking like they’re loving life on the lakeside links’. (Say it ten times fast!)
We met a nice older man at the top who told us he’d heard cuckoos on the way up, which we completely forgot to listen for on the way down.
The ubiquitous lambs.
The walk down was lovely.
We decided to stop at the Pheasant Inn for a drink since we were too early for our cafe booking.
It was lovely sitting in the sun and the garden had a lot more flowers out since I’d last visited. All the azaleas and rhododendrons are in full bloom at the moment. Mum, you would have loved it.
But forget about a mere drink, afternoon tea was on the horizon!
The tables I booked were in the train cafe.
Apart from being stiflingly hot, it was delightful.
We weren’t sure how the waiters would fit food onto the tiny tables, but through sleight of hand, and possibly some actual magic, they did it with ease.
What first??
The food selection included tiny Yorkshire puddings and roast beef, delicious sandwiches, cheesecake, profiteroles, salmon and avocado mousse, deep fried Camembert and more! Lea had, rather unwisely, claimed at the pub that she would be capable of eating everything put in front of her at the tea.
Don’t underestimate the way a dozen small things can be extremely filling!
Thanks for taking this photo, Sue!
We caught the bus back and are currently collapsed on the couch, digesting!
For those who have asked me if Bonnie is missing us, here’s today’s upload from her host family.
We were up and out at the crack of 11am, ready to hit the rail trail.
Most definitely our easiest day’s walk for the trip but no less beautiful for that.
Well, not all of it was beautiful. Some of it was more striking than beautiful.We took many photos!I mean, a lot of photos.I’m not kidding, ALL the photos.We saw a very cute retro ice cream van.So much sunshine!
I did this walk about six weeks ago and it has changed quite dramatically.
NowThenAnyone know what these are?Some almost tropical sections with mossy walls and ferns.We made it to Threlkeld a little early.Enough time to take some more photos.Luke thought he could take a better photo of bluebells than me! Tell him he’s dreaming.Threlkeld sits in the shadow of mighty Belcathra.I refuse to apologise for all my photos of gates but I am aware I’m overdoing it slightly. Still… how good are gates??More delightful outdoor craft.Back to The Horse and Farrier. A long, hot walk means a nice, cold cider!
I had skipped breakfast so I could have a two course lunch. I know you probably aren’t interested in what we ate but the photos turned out so nicely I’m posting them.
I had pea and broccoli soup. It was lovely. Lea and Pete shared a coronation chicken baguette and a sausage roll.Fancy sausage roll, which Luke also had with bruschetta.I won’t post all the desserts, but this was mine and it was amazing. We sat in the beer garden in the sun for 20 minutes waiting for the bus.
A lovely walk in the sunshine! I feel pretty lucky to have done the walk twice and gotten perfect weather both times.
On the way home I took a photo of the front of our apartment. It wouldn’t take much to turn it into a pretty excellent haunted house.
This evening Mark and Sue are arriving and we are looking forward to seeing them!
A much more gentle goal for today’s walk; a low level walk from Ambleside to Grasmere via Rydal Water. I’d never done this walk before so I was keen to do it.
We headed out of town a little after 10am. The first part was road walking but we soon stepped off the main road and onto one of Cumbria’s many corpse roads, where bodies were transported from town to town.
Lots of cute herdwick sheep.Checking whether it’s true or not.
We took many photos of the landscape and livestock as we wandered along. The weather was cloudy but warm.
Over a stile and into the grounds of Rydal Hall, a manor house with some lovely garden features.
‘Grot House’ must have been named before people realised ‘grotto’ was more suitable.To get to the house we walked along this lovely path then under a bridge.The inside of the house was simple but lovely, with window seats for viewing the waterfall.
We had a little walk around their gardens and took a photo of the front of the main house.
We thought about pretending we were staying here but you lot would never believe it.
On our way out we saw the most magnificent carpet of wild garlic I have ever seen! Look at it!
It was very hard to photograph well but we gave it our best shot.
On to the 400 year old church just down the road.
The interior of the church was lovely in its simplicity.
There was a bowl and little slips of paper up the front on the little table. Visitors were invited to write a prayer or message to god and put it in the bowl. Luke pulled a couple out and had a look.
Did he fall asleep in church? Is this a threat?
Past the church and down to Rydal village, which is a very small collection of houses and a pub. It is very cute though!
Clematis is out everywhere at the moment. So pretty!
The next section of the wall was on the other side of the main road, over a bridge and then along the banks of Rydal Water.
The forest was a luminous green, with all the new leaves and fresh ferns.Thousands of bluebells along the path.Bluebells are irritatingly difficult to photograph effectively but so magical in person. This is a very famous boat shed that has has been photographed millions of times… I haven’t done it justice, but sometimes it looks like this:(Not my photo, obviously)
The walk along the water was lovely and we got to see some people doing something unexpected…
… getting in the water. Upon closer inspection we could see the kids had gum boots and there were a couple of adults with wetsuits. The water temperature today was 11 degrees.
Ducklings!
Then it was across country to the next body of water, Grasmere.
Another photo that completely fails to capture the millions of bluebells in front of us.
I won’t lie, much like this post, the route was longer than I expected. Maybe my mile to kilometre conversion was off but the walk did feel longer than I’d anticipated.
We stopped for a toilet break at the cafe next to the cottage where Wordsworth lived. This is a photo of his cottage, not the cafe.
Here’s a poem I liked from the visitors centre.
Next stop: lunch! Even though I walked everyone further than they’d probably have liked, food is so much more enjoyable when you’re tired (or at least, that’s what I keep telling them).
I managed to take a photo that looks like I’m stalking them.
No behaviour worthy of blackmail. Yet.
Lea and I shared a coronation chicken sandwich and then I ate half of Luke’s bowl of chips.
Almost as delicious but half as brightly coloured as my last curried chicken sandwich.
The people next to us had a dog that was a BORDOODLE! Border collie x poodle.
Here’s the dog I patted for about half an hour.
A mix I had not heard of until this year and one of my workmates got one. This one kept leaning on my leg and I found myself patting it without realising what I was doing. I am definitely missing Bonnie but I am 100% certain she is not missing us, going by the photos I am getting from the people she is staying with.
Daycare photo from a few days ago for reference.Luke is dubious.
Next we wandered around Grasmere and looked at all the cute buildings.
After doing a couple of circuits of town we decided on afternoon tea at the hotel above. Apart from Lea being served a pot of tea that contained a single teabag and getting a grumpy look from the waitress when I asked for more, the food as lovely and served in a very comfortable room with a view of the plebs walking past.
The only significant thing we did in Grasmere was buy some ‘famous’ Grasmere gingerbread.
This required queuing, which I am ideologically opposed to, but we eventually got into the tiny room and Lea bought a packet.
Last was a top-deck bus ride back to Ambleside!
This might be my longest post yet but I couldn’t bear not to share all these magnificent views. To finish, for those of you who know my dog, here’s a last photo of her at daycare with her adopted older brother, Chester.
Here Comes The Planet 