I think we’re very lucky living in the North East. We have the beautiful Northumberland Coast, we’re a short trip from the borders and the Lake District is only a couple of hours drive west.

This weekend my wife and I had the opportunity to go and spend a childfree night in the Lake District. This was thanks to a voucher for a free nights stay following a horrendous trip last year where the B&B we stayed at was overrun by a drunken mob who, amongst other things, set the fire alarm off at 4am. The owners were very apologetic the morning after and insisted we take the voucher. So, we decided this weekend was as good as any to try a return trip.

 

 

 

First things first – Gingerbread

Our B&B was in Cockermouth which is west of the main Lake District so we thought we’d stop at Grassmere on the way. For those that have never been it’s a lovely little village and is home to the world famous Grassmere Gingerbread.  Seriously, it takes some beating.  But the village has so much more to offer. Loads of tea rooms, quaint little shops and picturesque views. A trip to the chocolate shop saw me fall foul of some clever salesmanship….” Good Afternoon Sir, could we interest you in…… SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!   We spent a good couple of hours here before heading across to Cockermouth, chocolate delights tucked away for later.

 

We know how to party

This was only our second ever visit to Cockermouth which is a fairly decent sized town with a “traditional” high street.  The river Cocker runs through it and sounds quite ferocious when you walk over the bridge.  It’s no wonder the town is a major flood risk. We checked into the B&B and then headed out for our pre-booked a meal at the Castle Bar inn.  The inn was impressive inside and whilst I don’t know the exact history the waitress told me the stone spiral staircase in the centre of the building was part of the original structure from a long time ago.  As a bit of a history buff this kind of stuff really interests me.

The meal was delicious and very reasonably priced. £50 for two courses and a bottle of wine.  The original plan was to then go for a couple of drinks but as I’m sure all parents will appreciate that following a day outside, a couple of drinks and nice food there was only one thing we wanted to do. Sleep! In bed and away by 10:15pm.  Oh yes, there was no stopping us.

The following morning, following a delightful lie in until 8am, (you read right, 8! not 5:30 as is the norm) we enjoyed a delicious home cooked breakfast before bidding our very nice hosts good day.

Walking the walk

Whilst in the Lake District we wanted to get outside and burn off some calories by going for a decent walk somewhere.  We hadn’t brought gear appropriate for serious fell walking but we found a great 4 mile trek which was appropriate for the average jean and Karrimor shoe wearing tourist. The trail we found was the Lanthwaite Wood and Crummock Water walk. This was through the National Trust website and as members of said trust we could take advantage of free parking.

The walk had a bit of everything.  Navigating tree roots as we walked alongside the river and through the woods. Stunning views at the opening of Crummock water. A decent incline onto an open, bracken filled, crag side. A stunning beck and remains of an iron age homestead and finally a return to the woods and a climb to two separate summits offering stunning views over the water.  The whole thing took two and half hours and is something we could easily do again with our five year old daughter. Probably with a picnic. Hopefully I’ve left my Gandalf style walking stick I found safely hidden for our return too.

Last stop – Sunday Lunch

No decent trip to the Lake District can be complete without a trip to one of the more famous destinations – Keswick. Ok, its not a must, but we like the place.  As it happened my brother in law was in the area so we arranged to meet up at the Royal Oak for a late lunch.  Thankfully the place wasn’t too busy and we enjoyed a very nice roast before heading home.

OneDadsView

The weekend didn’t start off brilliantly due to our daughter getting a little upset about us leaving her (damn you parent guilt).  But we try not to do it too often.  We’re also definitely of the opinion that as parents it’s important we do take time out just for us. The 26 hours we spent away did us the world of good.  Doing the walk especially felt like it helped my brain to reset if that makes sense. We were all reunited back at Grandmas and of course she’d been fine. Happy days.