New Years At The Lake District

After spending several weeks before Christmas, madly shopping and buying last minute presents, it was great to get away for the New Year celebrations. Six of us headed off to the Lake District on the Friday morning.

I had booked into a bed and breakfast in Braithwaite which is just outside Keswick. The b and b was an Edwardian villa, which stood high up in the village with fantastic views of the surrounding mountains. Rhona and Tommy made us very welcome and made a big fuss of our three dogs.

The surrounding countryside is truly beautiful and we walked out of the village the first afternoon up a very steep mountainside, but the views at the top were definitely worth it!.That afternoon we visited another pub in Braithwaite called The Coledale.

This place was "Doggy Heaven" we've never seen so many in one pub at the same time!! We saw in the New Year at the Royal Oak in the village, where I had booked a table for us all. Other friends who were staying at a cottage in a nearby village called Lorton, joined us after the meal, and we had a brilliant evening.

The next morning, after a fantastic breakfast, we drove to Buttermere. We walked the whole way around the lake, through woods and trees seeing lots of wildlife on the way. The lake was still frozen over in parts, and the views looking back across the lake were magnificent.

Sheep graze in many fields, as do Lakeland cattle, but it is possible for the dogs to remain off the lead most of the time. That afternoon we drove to Keswick, which is a lovely little town. There are many independent shops and old fashioned pubs and bistros.

 It is an excellent place to buy walking gear, as there are many outdoor shops, one in particular called George Fisher, which has an amazing amount of choice, and upstairs there is a coffee shop, selling beautiful home-made food- well worth a visit.

Families with young children may wish to visit the Pencil Museum, which houses the world's longest pencil! There is an activity trail, daily competitions, shop and coffee shop on site. Also in Keswick there is a Leisure centre, with pools, water slides and wave machines to keep the kids happy.

In June the town hosts a beer festival, which is held on the first weekend, and features around 250 real ales lagers and ciders. The event has been running since 2007 and attracts around 6000 visitors over two days. For theatre goers, the Theatre by the Lake is a must. It is a beautiful building and commands lovely views over Derwent water

Sunday morning after another challenging three course breakfast, we set off for Derwent water. We parked in the large car park by the Theatre in Keswick, turned left and walked along the edge of the lake. Again, the scenery is gorgeous. Derwent water was still very frozen and in parts, huge chunks of ice had been deposited around the lake shore, caused by the movement of the water. There were very eerie noises too, as the ice cracked and split.

Locals told us that the lake circumference was about 10 miles and easily walkable with flat terrain most of the way around. Another popular spot is the Whinlatter Forest Park. The park is 790 metres above sea level, with stunning views over Scotland and the Lake District, and is England’s only true mountain forest.

There is a mountain bike trail with views over Keswick. Also very popular is the "Go Ape" course-an award winning hire wire forest adventure with rope bridges, tarzan swings and zip slides( not for the faint hearted!)

Sunday evening we visited the Wheatsheaf Inn in Lorton village, and once again had a brilliant evening. The food here is exceptional all home-made and very tasty! The landlord and landlady made us very welcome and we will certainly return!.

The Lakes are a wonderful place to visit, and the locals very warm and friendly. We were told that June is a good time to go, before the school summer holidays, when, we were assured, the weather is always good. Three days wasn't enough really, you could easily spend weeks exploring , walking and experiencing the beautiful scenery, and visiting  old Lakeside Inns. There are endless choices of hotels, B and B's and also campsites.

We will definitely be back!