My Short Break in the Lake District

Nick Everything Else travel 6 Comments

I recently took a short break in the English Lake District. It was the first time I’d been there in over 20 years (and the previous time was for work so I didn’t see much of the area). So I thought I’d share my impressions here.

I stayed at Waterhead, just south of the town of Ambleside, at the north end of Lake Windermere. I’ve embedded a map below (courtesy of Booking.com) showing the area and available accommodation.
Booking.com

I booked a room at the Waterhead Hotel (pictured below), which is located just a few yards from the lake.

I thought the hotel was excellent. My room was large and comfortable and furnished with all mod cons, including a large flat-screen TV and CD/DVD player. I had a view of the lake, admittedly across a car park!

On my first day the weather was so-so. I began by driving to Hill Top (pictured), the farmhouse where children’s author Beatrix Potter lived and in which she wrote some of her best-loved books. It’s quite small and admission is by timed ticket. I only had to wait about 20 minutes, though, which gave me a chance to look round the garden and take a few photos.

You get a real sense of what the house must have been like when Potter lived there. As well as her furniture and ornaments, there are several writing desks with copies of letters to and from her publishers and a page of her Peter Rabbit story with hand-drawn illustrations. There is a little shop, where I bought a jar of National Trust jam, but no restaurant. There wouldn’t be anywhere to put one, although there is a pub next door if you need refreshment.

After that I drove on to Wray Castle (pictured below), where I spent most of the rest of the day. Wray Castle has only been opened to the public by the National Trust for a few years. It is not as old as it first appears, having been built in the Gothic revival style by a Victorian couple as their retirement home. It has had a varied history since then, including a twenty-year stint as a Merchant Navy training school.

I went to a free 20-minute talk about the history of the house and then immediately joined a tour of the gardens. The latter took about an hour, and included information about the latest discoveries the Trust have made there, including what they believe are the remains of a Victorian pineapple house. It was interesting and informative, and the guide shared photos from the archives as we went round.

The latter included a picture of Beatrix Potter and her family at Wray Castle. They stayed there for three months one summer when Beatrix was 16. The visit gave Beatrix her first taste of the Lake District, which later of course became her home and an area she loved. With the proceeds from her book sales she bought large amounts of farmland around the lakes, which she ultimately donated to the National Trust.

The next day was sunnier, and I decided to take a lake cruise to the other end of Windermere. I bought a ‘Freedom of the Lake’ ticket, which got me 24 hours’ unlimited travel on any launch or steamer cruise on Windermere. I combined this with a return ticket on the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway. The total cost of this on the Windermere Lake Cruises website was £23.80, which struck me as very good value. There are also timetables and cruise routes here, which I must admit took a bit of getting my head around.

Apart from the first leg of the journey (from Ambleside to Bowness), I travelled on the MV Teal, one of the two lake steamers built in the 1930s. These are large, spacious vessels which can transport up to 533 people, so there was plenty of room on board (it’s also fully wheelchair-accessible). You could either go on the top deck to get the fresh air and the best views, the main saloon below that (with a coffee/gift shop) or downstairs in the bar, which served alcoholic drinks. As it was still quite nippy, I spent most of the time in the main saloon.

At Lakeside, which is at the other end of Windermere, I took my return trip on the vintage steam railway to Haverthwaite. The route is only about four miles but it’s very scenic (see photo).

On my return to Lakeside I paid a visit to the Lakes Aquarium, where among other things I got to admire the piranha fish below. Both the train and the aquarium are easily accessible from Lakeside and would be good choices for trips with children or grandchildren.

Finally I travelled back on the steamer from Lakeside to Ambleside, enjoying the views and the commentary. I had a pot of tea and a piece of Kendal mint cake on the boat – although the latter turned out to be a mistake as (in my opinion anyway) it was just a slab of mint-flavoured sugar.

On the morning of my final day I took the opportunity to walk the half-mile into Ambleside itself. I particularly wanted to see The Bridge House, yet another National Trust property. (As a side comment, if you want to get value for money from your National Trust membership, the Lake District is definitely the place to come.)

The Bridge House is a tiny 17th century building above a river. It was originally built as an apple store, but over its long life it has served many purposes, including a tea room, a weaving shop, and home to a family of eight. The later is particularly hard to imagine – they must have been packed in like sardines! In any event it’s a charming property, and many thanks to the nice National Trust lady who took the time to chat to me about it (and the area generally).

After that, there was just time for a coffee and some gift shopping, then it was back in the car for the long drive home down the M6. The least said about that, the better!

So that was my short break holiday in the Lake District. I enjoyed it very much and hope to return before too long. As ever, if you have any comments or questions, please do post them below.