Blogs from Cumbria, England, United Kingdom, Europe - page 41

I didn't know what to expect upon entering the Lake district but I was pleasantly suprised. The rolling hills, the beautiful lakes, and the abundant source of earthy, hiking boot travellers. It was wonderful to spend a few days with Karen from Melbourne and a couple of odd things worth mentioning happened on our hikes. 1. When we were a bit lost we came across a lonesome hiker who we asked, "Did you hike from Grasmere?" (which is the nearest town we were trying to arrive at) He replied, " No, I'm American." We had to laugh later at such an oblivious answer...poor guy. 2. When approaching a goat on our path the creature stopped, looked at us, then lifted up his leg and tried to spray us with his pee....cheeky little thing. 3. Farther along ... read more

Slept in this morning to try and catch up on lost sleep. Looks like it’s been a busy day for the U.S. and England. I can only imagine the many ways the recent news will impact my vacation. I’m determined to not let it personally alter any of my plans or expectations. Only time will tell. Lei and I headed to the Lake District for the afternoon. We spent the majority of our time walking around the banks of Lake Windermere. Although the weather was overcast, the clouds eventually cleared the way for the sun to show itself for most of the day. The towns of Windermere and Bowness lie on the east banks of the lake. I really enjoyed the peacefulness of the entire area. The scenery surrounding the lake was very beautiful with the ... read more

Part VI 31st May - Wednesday Today, after a scrummy breakfast we were off to discover the Lake District. Howard had a quick motorway fix and then it was on to the C roads for the rest of the day. We had decided not to bother with the towns and concentrate on the vistas and see as much as we could in the time we had. Our route took us along Lake Windermere to Ambleside and over Wrynose Pass Wrynose Pass lies on a narrow, minor road that twists and turns from Little Langdale onward to Cockley Beck. Here, after plunging to Wrynose Bottom, the road forks. One arm leads south through Dunnerdale; the other fork connects with Hardknott Pass, where the road heads westward through Eskdale. Wrynose is part of the old Roman road named ... read more

Just back from Lake District! A 3D2N trip, tiring but very rewarding! Stayed at this hostel call Ambleside Backpackers, and our room was filled with two other pairs of couples, Lisa and Brad, Jess and Michael, who were totally helpful and fun loving people! Thanks folks for the great time together! The highlight of the trip was when me and shan decided to challenge The Fairfield Horseshoe circuit on the second day. Its a trek thats near the lake district, relatively straightforward (in good weather) and the views were awesome! The tougher part was actually finding the way up, and the coming down was really terrible for my poor knees...I was totally enjoying my trek up, the view from the top, even before getting to the top, was spendid! The trek had a wonderful view of ... read more

Part VII 1st June - Thursday Goodbye Liz and Lucy and thank you so much for the hospitality. Off across ‘the tops’ or the Pennines to the northeast of England and “home” for Linda today. Howard got a short piece of the M6 motorway to start the day and then we were heading inland to Appleby-in-Westmorland Appleby Fair, held each June in the town of Appleby-in-Westmorland, Cumbria, is probably the best known of the horse fairs attended by Romany families travelling to meet up with old friends and conduct business. Appleby Fair itself, which has existed since 1685 under the protection of a charter granted by James II, survived an attempt at closure by Westmorland Borough Council in 1965. The autumn fair at Brough, also in Cumbria, has a charter date of 1330, and these two, ... read more