Hawkshead and Brantwood

 Yesterday was another busy day and by the time we got back I was ready to relax and read my book, hence no blogging.

Steve suggested we drive out to Hawkshead for a coffee stop and I am always up for coffee and cake so off we popped.

We stumbled across the Vegetarian Cafe which was beautiful and so me. I love a Cath Kidston vibe and this ticked all the boxes. It was just a pity that the staff were rather indifferent and pretty much ignored their customers. Steve tried to have a joke about the music which happened to be White Christmas but his words fell on deaf ears and smacked of sheer ignorance. It was a real shame but as I sat people watching it was obvious that it wasn't just us that received the cold shoulder.

The village itself didn't have much to offer however we had a stroll around the church yard which was so peaceful and had boards showing all the nature that had established itself there.

This was a wild flower called fox and cub which I've neither seen or heard of before.

Next stop was a privately owned property called Brantwood which had been the home of John Ruskin who was famous for being perhaps the first person to show concern about the environment. He laid the foundations for many of the things that are still relevant today including free education for all, free access to museums and libraries, the protection and conservation of ancient buildings, access to open spaces, the National Trust, and the welfare state. Quite a legacy.

The house felt so comfortable and the staff were charming. There was lots to see and learn and the garden was spectacular. The admission charge was £14.00 each however that is an annual fee and we can return as many times as we like. There is also a terrace restaurant serving very nice food. It was busy when we arrived and they were having technical difficulties with the ordering system but I'm sure usually they're very efficient.

You can even arrive from the other side of lake Coniston by boat.

When we got back I decided to paint a scene I photographed from the gardens as a souvenir of our visit.

I struggle with landscapes but I was quite pleased with this and might even frame it when we get home.

Ulverston Canal Walk and Coniston Quick Stop

 We decided to take it easy today and had a gentle morning before heading back to Ulverston for a coffee and then had a two and a half mile walk down the canal and back.

This is the shortest, the widest and the deepest canal in world but unfortunately is no longer navigable.

It's a beautiful place to take a nice easy stroll down with lots of wildlife including dragon flies, moorhens, swans, and herons to mention just a few. The water is full of yellow and white waterlilies and we were spellbound watching baby moorhens walking across the flat, circular leaves instead of swimming. 

At the end there was another surprise in store as the canal ends and the beach begins.

This is where we stumbled upon the river Crake estuary as it flows down to the sea. It was so lovely and we sat on a bench watching gulls and oyster catchers scurrying across the sand searching for food. It was amazing. And this only feet away from the canal which was behind us. Totally unique.

As you have probably noticed, the clouds were gathering for what the weather forecast said was going to be thundery showers so we made a hasty retreat, did some grocery shopping and headed back to the cottage for a nice relaxing hour or two.

Steve checked the forecast and we grabbed an hour around six in the evening to go out for a drive to have a very brief look at Lake Coniston where Donald Campbell broke the water speed record and also lost his life.

The views were breathtaking. We only stayed a short while as the breeze was chilly and more rain was threatening. No doubt we'll be back later on in the week. 

This holiday is turning out to be an absolute joy and I can't wait to find out what other gems we'll discover.

Ulverston and the Bobbin Mill Museum

 We woke early and went for a 3 mile walk exploring the surrounding countryside. We followed the tarmac road up the hill at the back of our cottage. The weather was cloudy and quite muggy which we didn't expect so early in the day.

We had decided to drive into Ulverston for a look around the shops. We stopped at Gillian's vegetarian cafe for a well earned coffee. I had a piece of coffee cake and Steve had banana and date cake.

I was thrilled to find Style craft Life double knit wool in the market hall and bought a couple of balls of grey to finish off my current project. I couldn't resist the fuchsia shade for me and a few balls of navy to make Steve another jumper. That should keep me busy for the next 6 months or so. 

We came back to the cottage to drop off all of our purchases and then out again and this time it was to the Stott Park Bobbin Mill Museum at Windermere.

This is an English Heritage site with nice grounds to walk round. We killed a bit of time whilst we waited for the tour to begin by eating ice-cream. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and we learnt lots of information about bobbins and how they were made. The lady gave us several demonstrations as we moved through the building. It was a very long and dangerous occupation. The majority of the employees started as children and stayed long after what we would consider normal retirement age. The mill closed in 1971 having manufactured bobbins for a hundred years or more. It was a fascinating subject.

Once back at the cottage Steve went out for a bike ride whilst I had a pamper session. 

Tea was salmon, new potatoes, broccoli and salad then a quick walk down by the river where we saw a beautiful Kingfisher. Unfortunately it didn't hang around for a photo shoot. The cows did though.

We've had a lovely day. It's been so relaxing and different. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings. We always pack so much in to our days and I'm sure we will create lots of wonderful memories to take home with us.

A holiday in the Lake District

A map of Ulverston

Living in Barnard Castle has spoilt us and for the last 3 years we haven't been on holiday. Obviously COVID got in the way too but it was mainly due to the fact that we have everything we could possibly need right on our doorstep.

If we want a coffee we can pop up the road and we have countryside all around us. It's a beautiful place and we are so grateful for having such a wonderful opportunity to live here.

Anyway recently we decided that perhaps we actually needed to get away for a week to recharge the batteries and to have time together away from the jobs and house where there are always things to do.

Flowers my friend gave me brought from home

To cut a long story short we decided to visit the Lake District which is only an hour's car journey away from us. We settled on a village near Ulverston and we are very excited to explore this gorgeous place.

Busy but not really.

Crikey it is so hot here in Barnard Castle. I've had 2 days off work but the weather has meant that we just couldn't be bothered to go anywhere. It's funny really as even though we feel that, we still managed to go out for coffee and had a stroll round the castle in town. I even bought a bottle of cherry brandy in the gift shop which was half price, maybe a few days past it's self by date but hey who cares?

We did a little bit of gardening and I am so happy to show you my cyan printing masterpiece. This was so easy to do using a Love to Print kit which had the special chemicals and full instructions as to what to do. 

I picked interesting leaves, flowers and grasses out of the garden and hey presto. I love the detail it produced and will definitely be giving this another go, very soon.

I've also started painting again. This is very much an on off relationship but for the moment I'm in the zone and doing a lot of abstract pieces involving pretty colours and mark making. It's very relaxing which is exactly what I need after the stress of my job.

I hope to show you lots more of what I'm getting up to in the next few weeks. We're on holiday soon so I'm looking forward to showing you some of the beautiful scenery in the Lake District. Bye for now x