Last weekend was a Bank Holiday and also Hugo’s 2nd Birthday! We had planned to take him to the Lake District for the day on Sunday and bag another lake or two. Sad dog-parents that we are, we have a map of the Lakes on the kitchen wall with photos of Hugo pinned to it ,splashing around in various lakes and tarns. Wil surprised me by booking us into a hotel in Keswick on the Sunday night! So we got to spend 2 days there instead of one. 🙂
On the Sunday we visited a lake that I had never been to before. Bassenthwaite is the most northerly of the lakes in The Lake District and one of the largest at 4 miles long. We did a short circular walk from Scarness Bay and Hugo enjoyed some doggy paddles. We didn’t see many people except for a few canoeists and a dog walker or two. I loved that the shore was abundant with wildflowers and bees.
We stopped in The Skiddaw Hotel in Keswick which had a great location right in the centre of town. Wil had paid for an evening meal too ( the boy did good 🙂 ) and I chose the veggie option of ‘Stilton & Mushroom Tart’ which was really tasty. Afterwards we had a wander round the pubs and bars. Keswick is a very dog-friendly place and we were spoilt for choice for places to go with Hugo.
The next day ( Bank Holiday Monday) we headed to Grasmere village and had a walk on the banks of Grasmere itself. This lake is one of the smallest at 1 mile long and half a mile wide. William Wordsworth described this area as ‘the most loveliest spot that man hath found’. It was indeed lovely. We even found a quirky tea garden called Faerieland.
The almost hidden tea garden on the lake shore also hires out rowing boats with whimsical names such as Romany and Theodosia. There are friendly ducks and quite friendly swans ~ I don’t think they are labrador fans! I enjoyed a hot mulled apple drink and wished I could take a look inside the gipsy wagon. No fairies in sight but still an enchanting place all the same.
sunshine and celandines 