21 July 2014
Ponteland – Portinscale, Lake District, Cumbria
Accommodation: Dalegarth House
Weather – sunny, sunny, sunny!
Temperature – high of 24 degrees
After another kippers and herring breakfast for David, we
were organised to pick up the car from Newcastle airport. We’ve loved our stay with Ingrid and Stuart –
I’m sure they are going to have a well-earned break from the tourists.
We made our way via the scenic route to the Lake District in
Cumbria. The day produced the best
weather wise and the views were to die for as we passed through the highest
town in the Uk – Alston. They’d have to
be a hardy breed to live here as the rolling mountains are bare and a snow line
can be seen as there is no growth. Tall
striped poles indicate the depth of the snow which is many metres.
The beautiful countryside a little along from Alston. High sparse brown hills give way to patchwork green farms complete with hay bales.
Pooley Bridge at the top of Ullswater (lake) was very busy –
a gorgeous little place but parking was at a premium. We followed the road with Ullswater on the
left to the village of Glenridding to catch the ferry to Howton and back to
Pooley Bridge in a round trip. We had spectacular
views of the surrounding mountains, greens and browns and occasional fir
forests.
Cruising along....over two hours on Ullswater.
Glenridding where we caught the boat.
Ullswater is the body of water where Donald Campbell broke
his world water speed record in Bluebird K7.
He perished at nearby Coniston Lake.
Another notable, William Wordsworth wrote Daffodils inspired by the
diary notes of his sister Dorothy when they stayed in the district.
I wandered lonely as
a cloud
That floats on high
o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I
saw a crowd,
A host, of golden
daffodils;
Beside the lake,
beneath the trees,
Fluttering and
dancing in the breeze.
Only half an hour away was our accommodation for the evening
at our Portinscale B&B. We were met with
a cup of tea, cake and plenty of information on the area. With the advice of our hosts we walked the
mile into Keswick for dinner at the George Hotel. It was at the far end of town and it was a
great way to see the shops. The path to
Keswick is well defined and lined on
either side by grazing sheep, geese and the occasional rabbits.
Does my bum look big in this?
The stroll back after our big dinner of Cumbrian beef was
slower and the light was gradually fading at 9.30pm.
Evening stroll through Keswick looking for the recommended pub.
No comments:
Post a Comment