UK driving holiday, Part 2: Lake District and Mansfield

After our two nights camping in Wales on our 9-day driving holiday in early August, we stayed a night in Mansfield with Dotti and her housemate Beth, and then set off for the Lake District. The Lakes are a famous area in north west England that we had heard a lot about and always intended to see, so we were very glad we managed to squeeze it in right at the last minute!

The Lake District is where Beatrix Potter lived, and where many of her Peter Rabbit tales were set. There were a few Beatrix Potter-related attractions in the area. It is also where the poet William Wordsworth spent 60 of his 80 years. (Click here to read his famous poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud", which was inspired by the sight of millions of daffodils at one of the many lakes for which the area is named.)

From the moment we arrived in the Lake District, it was easy to see what inspired them - the area is completely and utterly adorable!!! Quintessential England: hills covered in bright green grass and purple heather, little rock walls meandering across the fields, beautiful old stone houses, and of course, lakes everywhere! I think we actually decided it was the most stunningly picturesque part of England we had seen - which is really saying something!

We ended up staying in a B&B because we couldn't be bothered to go through the effort and pain associated with camping. :P So the first afternoon, we spent ages driving around talking to B&B owners and calling some from a book we had, until we finally found a nice little place in the town of Windermere. Then we headed off on a long walk and came across a gorgeous lake (of course) and had a bit of a photo shoot. :) The first photo below is actually of a watersports clubhouse (kayak hire etc)!!



During our two days in the Lake District, we again had a nice relaxing time just walking around, checking out the shops, and driving around taking photos of incredible views. I remember being disappointed I was unable to capture the most breathtaking scenery as it wasn't safe to pull over at many of the best vantage points, so perhaps it will give you some idea of why the Lake District is such a famous holiday destination if I tell you the following photos are just random snaps that barely do it justice...!!!



On our way back to Mansfield after two days in the Lake District, we came across signs to Castlerigg Stone Circle and decided to follow them. This was a circle of large stones in the middle of a grassy plateau surrounded by moutains, and it is estimated that it was built thousands of years ago - see the information on the sign below. There were a few other people there, but no staff or other tourism-related facilities except an ice cream van!

There were no restrictions regarding climbing on the stones either, which felt quite strange after having seen Stonehenge months earlier - which is also a stone circle, but is fenced off, patrolled by a guard, costs money to get close to, and probably isn't allowed to be touched! Castlerigg Stone Circle also looked somewhat less impressive than Stonehenge though. :) Here are some photos...



Our last night of the trip was spent at Dotti and Beth's house. The next day was Sunday, so we went to their meeting and then had lunch with some friends. Some of you might recognise a few of the people in the photo below (five Aussies and two Kiwis!)... L-R: Mark, Tanya, Beth, Dotti, Lechelle, Charlton, me, Ben.


And that was our last holiday in the UK. :) Yay, I'm finally up to date!!! :D