Mid vacation we took the bus to Ambleside.
Lots of geese preening and begging on the shores of Lake Windemere.
We took the ferry to Bowness hoping to see Blackwell House, an elegant Arts and Crafts home. But walking to this house seemed a little to dicey to us so we caught the ferry back to Ambleside and hiked to Rydal Mount.
Rydal Mount is about 2.5 miles walk from Ambleside. These 2 pictures are near the end.
Rydal Mount was William Wordsworth home for the last 37 years of his life from 1813 - 1850. Below the house is this church, Rydal Church, sometimes called "St Mary's Church". Wordsworth bought this site with the intention of building a home for his daughter Dora and her her husband Edward Quillinan. But Dora died of tuberculosis in 1847 before the the house was built.
Rydal Mount gardens were landscaped by the poet and his family. The are considered to be an outstanding example of Romantic style gardens.
John taking pictures in front of the living room bay windows. Interestingly, the Wordsworth's rented this property but today it is owned by direct descendents of the poets (they bought it in 1969) and remains a family home. It is open to the public from March - October.
One of the signs around the house has this Wordsworth quote:
View from the garden.
After we toured the home we took the "Coffin Stone" or "Resting Stone" hike across the mountain to Grasmere and village with another Wordsworth home, Dove Cottage.
This 3 1/2 mile walk was the route pall bearers had to carry coffins to St Oswalds Church in Grasmere for burial before St. Mary's Church was consecrated. Today this is a bridle path but there is no way I'd ride a horse on this path.
This is the summer house where Wordsworth liked to write and revise poems. The next picture is the view of Rydal Water from the summer house.
One of the "corpse stones" along the way used for supporting the coffin while the bearers rested.
Lots of geese preening and begging on the shores of Lake Windemere.
We took the ferry to Bowness hoping to see Blackwell House, an elegant Arts and Crafts home. But walking to this house seemed a little to dicey to us so we caught the ferry back to Ambleside and hiked to Rydal Mount.
Rydal Mount is about 2.5 miles walk from Ambleside. These 2 pictures are near the end.
Rydal Mount was William Wordsworth home for the last 37 years of his life from 1813 - 1850. Below the house is this church, Rydal Church, sometimes called "St Mary's Church". Wordsworth bought this site with the intention of building a home for his daughter Dora and her her husband Edward Quillinan. But Dora died of tuberculosis in 1847 before the the house was built.
Rydal Mount gardens were landscaped by the poet and his family. The are considered to be an outstanding example of Romantic style gardens.
John taking pictures in front of the living room bay windows. Interestingly, the Wordsworth's rented this property but today it is owned by direct descendents of the poets (they bought it in 1969) and remains a family home. It is open to the public from March - October.
One of the signs around the house has this Wordsworth quote:"I often ask myself what will become of Rydal Mount after our day. Will the old walls and steps remain in front of the house and about the grounds, or will they be swept away with all the beautiful mosses and ferns and wild geraniums and other flowers?
View from the garden.
After we toured the home we took the "Coffin Stone" or "Resting Stone" hike across the mountain to Grasmere and village with another Wordsworth home, Dove Cottage.
This 3 1/2 mile walk was the route pall bearers had to carry coffins to St Oswalds Church in Grasmere for burial before St. Mary's Church was consecrated. Today this is a bridle path but there is no way I'd ride a horse on this path.
This is the summer house where Wordsworth liked to write and revise poems. The next picture is the view of Rydal Water from the summer house.
One of the "corpse stones" along the way used for supporting the coffin while the bearers rested.
The "coffin path" ends at Dove Cottage in Grasmere, Wordsworth's home prior to Rydal. Two of his children died while they lived in this home. We did not have time to tour this house so this is all we saw of Dove Cottage.
But we had just enough time to buy some gingerbread at Sara Nelson's Gingerbread Shop in Grasmere. This shop is beside St Oswalds and is where they cook this traditional gingerbread from the same secret 150 year old recipe. Part sticky cake, part crumbly cookie and a lot of cinnamon. Apparently this was a hit in the 1850's and is still today.
We ate our gingerbread on a bench behind St Oswalds (where theWordsworth family is buried) and barely had time to make it on to the last ferry to the other side of the lake. But still somewhat challenging to get back to Hawkshead because the busses stop running surprisingly early, like around 4 PM.
Mostly this was a please hike through farms (and by now we were used to walking through farmland). 
That is a pheasant.
Our last day in Hawkshead we left our luggage with Paul and Lynn at the Red Lion and took a hike to Tarn Hows about 2 miles. Early on we our path led us through a herd of cattle that did not seem happy about us being there. Maybe I was just uneasy about the steers and bull.
This is Rose Castlle close to Tarn Hows lakes. This is the last farm Beatrix Potter bought in 1930 and she donated all 14 to the National Trust on her death.
Tarn Hows
We ate our gingerbread on a bench behind St Oswalds (where theWordsworth family is buried) and barely had time to make it on to the last ferry to the other side of the lake. But still somewhat challenging to get back to Hawkshead because the busses stop running surprisingly early, like around 4 PM.
Mostly this was a please hike through farms (and by now we were used to walking through farmland). This is a picture of Herdwicke sheep whic are Cumbria's oldest and hardiest breed.
That is a pheasant.
Our last day in Hawkshead we left our luggage with Paul and Lynn at the Red Lion and took a hike to Tarn Hows about 2 miles. Early on we our path led us through a herd of cattle that did not seem happy about us being there. Maybe I was just uneasy about the steers and bull.
This is Rose Castlle close to Tarn Hows lakes. This is the last farm Beatrix Potter bought in 1930 and she donated all 14 to the National Trust on her death.
Tarn Hows
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