A Quirky Springtime Break in the Lake District …
“I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.”
This well-known poem by the Lake District’s most famous son, William Wordsworth (1770-1850), was recently voted Britain’s favourite poem and most English school children learn it by heart. Many of them have no idea of the inspirational countryside that it is set in. The lake mentioned is Ullswater in the heart of the Lake District National park in Cumbria, NWUK. The original mention of these bright yellow trumpeters of spring came in William’s sister Dorothy’s, journal dated Thursday 15th April 1802, which describes their walk alongside Ullswater.
“I never saw daffodils so beautiful. They grew among the mossy stones about and about them. Some rested their heads upon these stones as on a pillow for weariness and the rest tossed and reeled and danced and seemed as if they verily laughed with the wind that blew them over the lake. They looked so gay ever glancing ever changing …”
Now is a lovely time to visit this beautiful part of the world and you’ll find daffodils everywhere you look. I recently took my 13year old son away for the weekend in the heart of the Lake District, to relax and enjoy its tranquillity. But … as you will know, 13 year old boys don’t necessarily WANT relaxation and tranquillity so the choice of WHERE to stay was key to us both having a good time.
The Low Wood Bay Hotel was the perfect place. It’s set on the Lake Windermere and our room had as lovely views across the lake. Alex spent most of his free time in the Leisure Centre pool (most disappointed to find he was too young to pump iron in the gym!) whilst I relaxed in the Jacuzzi, sweated in the sauna and then ventured out in the very fresh air to soak in the Hot Tub with a View – a definite first to be sitting outside in this bubbling heat gazing out over the lake … Another treat for me was a Seaweed Wrap in the Beauty Salon. The massage was so relaxing and my skin felt like silk afterwards. At the informal Café del Largo, Alex indulged in his favourite pizza and we had a culinary treat for dinner in the elegant Windermere restaurant; if you ever go you have to try the Cambridge tart – it’s simply divine! The staff are so helpful & friendly and gave us details of easy (ie child AND Mum-friendly) walks nearby.
We visited Rydal Mount, where Wordsworth lived in his later years. Alex was underwhelmed by the idea but actually enjoyed going round this evocative house and seeing how the poet lived 200 years ago. The daffodils in Dora’s Field are at their very best in March; Wordsworth planted hundreds of them in memory of his beloved daughter who died before him.
A real quirky find was the Armitt Museum in Ambleside. I have passed this so many times and finally decided to visit so we could both discover a bit more about this area. It’s a great example of the small Victorian Museum that used to be found in every town around the country. It has the most eclectic mix of 2000 years of local history from the Romans to Beatrix Potter and Kurt Schwitters. We looked at manuscripts, letters, folk songs, local account books, poor-law records and deeds. Many items relate to Lake District personalities and scholars, including John Ruskin, Harriet Martineau and Charlotte Mason, who set up the nearby teacher-training college, now part of Cumbria University.
We ended our stay at the Low Wood Bay with another swim in the pool and then a stroll over to the Watersports area. Alex was disappointed because it was closed as it was so early in the yea. We will have to go back another time so he can have a go at wakeboarding and I might be tempted out in a dingy! At the end of a jetty we discovered a miniature canon quoting a Thomas Sanderson in 1807:
“A small canon is left here for the purpose of gratifying the visitors with these surprising reverberations of sounds which allow its report in these romantic vales.”
The mist had come down from the fells to drift across Lake Windermere and created a magical aura that stayed with us as we drove away and back to reality …
Zoe Dawes is the Quirky Traveller Editor for Wandering Educators.
For more Quirky Traveller's Tales and information on Tours & Walks in the Lake District and beyond www.thequirkytraveller.com