Keswick

:: view from our bedroom window in the morning

:: the cottage from the outside

This day was a total disaster. We were on our way to the west part of the lakes (towards Devoke Water and Muncaster) when we had a flat tire about 10 km from Coniston (on the road to Broughton in Furness), literally in the middle of nowhere but a few sheep to keep us company.
The rental car agency (Sixt) took a long time to solve the issue, and only 4 hours later did we manage to have our car towed into Workington (which was about an hour and a half from where we were)

I was almost 5 PM when we finally got everything fixed, and in order to make something out of such a dreadful day we decided to visit Keswick on our way down to Coniston.

Keswick is a lovely little town, it can be a bit crowded during the day but at the end of the afternoon it was just peaceful enough for us to enjoy it.

:: filled with delicious little team rooms and coffee shops (but beware, most close at 5 PM)

:: we were still able to grab a pot of tea, some cake and toast here...

And on our drive down we had some of the most amazing views from the road ...

Coniston, Ambleside, Grasmere

When looking for a place to stay in the Lake District I was really confused about which would be the best place to stay. Everyone seemed to agree that Windermere, Bowness and Ambleside (the main villages in the central lakes) were usually too crowded and much too touristy. I saw recommendations for Keswick, but it seemed a bit far north from where we wanted to be. In the end, I chose a cottage in the village of Coniston, which most people suggested was not too busy, but had the necessary amenities (meaning a good pub and a reasonable supermarket) . I used this agency, and was very happy with their service. The cottage - Three Springs - was as cosy as pictured on their website, and provided all we needed for our stay with a 2-year toddler.
We particularly enjoyed the welcome tray, the rustic cottage kitchen, and the nice views from the living room and upstairs main bedroom (from where we could see rabbits in the garden every morning)

Speaking of rabbits, our first stop was the Beatrix Potter Attraction in Bowness. We were waiting for a friend to join us, and thought S. would probably enjoy this while we waited.  We particularly found this notice amusing ...

:: Sara mesmerized by Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle

:: having lunch at Lucy's (Ambleside). Very nice food, highly recommended.

:: Sarah Nelson's famous gingerbread

:: in the Wordsworth garden behind the church at Grasmere

:: Grasmere

:: at Baldry's tearoom (Grasmere). The bottom plaque is particularly true

:: tea and orange drizzle cake

  :: views from Grasmere

:: dinner at the Black Bull Inn in Coniston. Good food, reasonably priced and fantastic beer (according to A.)

The Yorkshire Dales

Before going to the Lake District we spent a day in the Yorkshire Dales, another beautiful national park. It is much less touristy than the lakes, much more isolated and with a very different landscape, but equally impressive we thought. We had just enough time to drive through a few scenic routes and spend some time in the villages of Askrigg and Hawes, but I'm sure we'll come back to explore further soon.

:: at Thornton Lodge

:: the village of Askrigg

:: views from our drive

:: "wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit"

::  having lunch at the Charles Bathurst Inn, in Arkengarthdale

:: hummm, sticky toffee pudding ...

:: at Tann Hill, the highest inn in Britain

:: at Hawes

postcard from the lakes

We are back from a week long vacation in the Lake District. It was as beautiful as we expected it, and much more. I've finished sorting all our vacation photos - as usual, there are way too many - and will post some trip reports very soon. I did grab a copy of Mollie Makes while in the UK, and it was so exciting to see the printed article of my dog softie. Also, the magazine is lovely, full of great crafty projects and tutorials which I'm dying to try out soon...

mollie makes

I'm on this month's issue of Mollie Makes :-)
The project featured is the dog softie below, which I made specially for this issue.
Thanks to everyone who wrote or commented here to let me know they've enjoyed it !