As we were lucky to have gorgeous sunny weather for the second day of the Lakes adventures, we decided to go on a hike. I researched for weeks where to go as my first choice was Cat Bells, the famous hill, but I read so many reviews about how crowded it was and not always pleasant. Therefore, we decided to hike up Walla Crag. It was the perfect way to see lake Derwentwater from above too.
We drove to Keswick on the way, stopped by High Street and grabbed five delicious traditional pasties that we could eat once we get up that hill Walla Crag. We drove to Great Wood, an NT owned parking lot and started our hike from there.
The following are beautiful surroundings we enjoyed for several hours.
The first part was a pleasant pretty flat walk with Derwentwater on the side.
Footpaths everywhere. I still can't get over the fact that these stone walls have been here for centuries.
Our first stop was Ashness Bridge. This a very famous spot in the Lake District--one of the most frequently photographed places.
It's a traditional stone-built bridge.
You can get a nice view of Borrowdale from this viewpoint. It's actually a drivable road.
From the bridge, our walk turned upward.
It was not very difficult, just a good effort.
The views of the lake were magnificent.
Mark was doing great!
And that's where we took a long break for lunch.
Our pasties were still warm, wrapped in foil. And they tasted as heavenly as we felt being in such a beautiful place.
Mark is still smiling.
This picture taken by an oldish Dutch couple who spoke excellent English (like most Dutch do).
And the three musketeers.
On the way down we did not get lost:) Well, maybe just a little bit. We weren't clear on which path to take a couple of times but obviously we figured it out.
We saw how steep the path was on the way back and were glad we didn't take that way up the hill. It was intense but I have no pictures to show you here.
And that was our big hike of the day.
In the late afternoon, we drove to Ullswater Lake area. We didn't plan to take a boat like many tourists do over there (but we should have). Instead we visited Aira Force, a waterfall that is supposed to be very beautiful. It was free, as it was National Trust, so we thought we'd give it a try.
Although the walk was beautiful, it was quite busy and not really quaint.
The views were beautiful but nothing out of this world.
See? That's cute:) Stone bridge and all the greenery.
Alex just wanted to sit by the creek and play.
And Mark was attempting to pluck some coins out of the tree stump. As usual. Our kids find these things fascinating:)
Two full days in the Lakes have been fantastic! Definitely a trip we recommend. So many beautiful places in this country though--it's so hard to pick our favorites.
Lyana.
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