12-19-2007, 07:39 PM
The Western Lake District is providing an answer to post-Christmas Day melancholy midst the holly by laying on some real treats for those heading to this stunningly beautiful area, both over the festive season and in Spring 2008.
Best for Beauty-Bagging:
Best for View Baggers must definitely be the view of Wastwater, Britain’s deepest lake (249ft), officially voted Britain’s Favourite View a few months ago, thanks to the support of Coronation Street actress Sally Whittaker.
Close to unspoilt and remote Wastwater, located in the Wasdale Valley and which is nearly three miles long and almost half a mile wide, lie a series of breathtaking walks, some exclusively created by the walker’s icon, Alfred Wainwright.
He was also the creator of a series of walks from stations on the Ravenglass and Eskdale steam railway’s route. Passengers can pay a few pounds to purchase a book of these walks and then head off, under their own steam, to explore a world Wainwright adored.
For more details about the railway’s wonderful journeys, itineraries and prices, through some of Britain’s most stunning scenery, visit www.ravenglass-railway.co.uk
Best for Bird-Watching:
If you’re a bit of an ornithologist on the quiet, the Western Lake District ticks all the boxes, or Boxing Days, for you.
If you head to the Coast, you can check out the largest seabird colony on the Western Coast of England. On top of a spectacular 100ft cliff, at St Bees Head, you will encounter the only place in England where black guillemot breed, spotting razorbills, peregrines, kittiwake, fumars and herring gull, at different times of the year.
A 2.8 mile/4.5 km nature trail can be followed along a cliff-top path, though this can be uneven in places and is fairly steep. Those reaching the colony, at this time of year, will be able to see large flocks gathering to feed, whilst at dusk, the birds fly, to form large roosts, to keep warm.
Entrance to this area is free, but the RSPB does welcome donations.
Bird lovers able to wait until April, can head to beautiful Bassenthwaite to view Cumbria’s famous ospreys, frequently to be spotted flying over this breathtaking lake. An open air viewpoint, at Dodd Wood, enables visitors to watch the osprey fishing in the still waters of the lake, swooping to catch their prey and then struggling to break free of the water with their catch in their talons.
For close-up action, visitors can go the Osprey Watch at the Forestry Commission's Whinlatter Forest Park, where live pictures of the ospreys are available by a camera link. This offers rare insights into their lives and is highly popular. For more information, visit www.ospreywatch.co.uk
If you cap this off with a visit to the award-winning, Good Pub Guide 2008’s Hotel Bar of the Year, The Pheasant Inn, in Bassenthwaite, following the birds will give you a great day out.
Best for Beachcombers:
If it’s a brisk walk along a beautiful beach that’s needed to blow away the Christmas cobwebs, the Western Lake District has some great options.
Taking the coastal walk from Whitehaven to St Bees, provides a combination of stunning scenery and brilliant beach jaunts, exploring a coast once frequented by smugglers, pirates and rogues engaged in the rum, spice and slave trades operating in and around Whitehaven once Britain’s second largest port.
Check out the Victorian graffiti scrawled on the rocks inside the caves at Fleswick Bay and keep your eyes trained on the sea for a glimpse of the porpoises, basking sharks, common dolphin and seals frequenting this area.
Alternatively, don your lifejacket and head to Whitehaven, to take a 75-minute Eco Tour with Whitehaven Marine Adventures. If the sea is calm, it will take you right up the coast, recounting the myths, legends and tales that give the Western Lake District a rich history, as well as pointing out the mammals and bird-life that you might encounter.
The boat and crew tie up in Whitehaven harbour and in winter the boat can be chartered, in advance, at a cost of £240 for twelve. Clothing and life-jackets are provided by the crew.
From Easter onwards, the trip can be booked at a cost of £20 for an adult and £10 for a child. More details are available at www.whitehavenmarineadventures.co.uk or from 0784 648 6483.
Best for Bond Girls:
Anyone who’s dreamed of riding through the surf, or along the beach like Caterina Murino in the last Bond movie, can head to Silescroft, on the Solway Coast stretch of the Western Lake District, where their steed awaits, be it Monty, Tomahawk, Angelo, or their various stable mates.
The award-winning Murthwaite Green Trekking Centre has a horse to suit all abilities of rider, from four-years-old upwards, and frequently delights those able to live out their dream of strolling, trotting or galloping across the five-mile expanse of beautiful sand.
The stunning coastal scenery simply adds to either one hour or 1.5 hour experience, whilst those wishing to appreciate this further can choose to head to the fells to savour the view across Morecambe Bay. source Trav4Media
Best for Beauty-Bagging:
Best for View Baggers must definitely be the view of Wastwater, Britain’s deepest lake (249ft), officially voted Britain’s Favourite View a few months ago, thanks to the support of Coronation Street actress Sally Whittaker.
Close to unspoilt and remote Wastwater, located in the Wasdale Valley and which is nearly three miles long and almost half a mile wide, lie a series of breathtaking walks, some exclusively created by the walker’s icon, Alfred Wainwright.
He was also the creator of a series of walks from stations on the Ravenglass and Eskdale steam railway’s route. Passengers can pay a few pounds to purchase a book of these walks and then head off, under their own steam, to explore a world Wainwright adored.
For more details about the railway’s wonderful journeys, itineraries and prices, through some of Britain’s most stunning scenery, visit www.ravenglass-railway.co.uk
Best for Bird-Watching:
If you’re a bit of an ornithologist on the quiet, the Western Lake District ticks all the boxes, or Boxing Days, for you.
If you head to the Coast, you can check out the largest seabird colony on the Western Coast of England. On top of a spectacular 100ft cliff, at St Bees Head, you will encounter the only place in England where black guillemot breed, spotting razorbills, peregrines, kittiwake, fumars and herring gull, at different times of the year.
A 2.8 mile/4.5 km nature trail can be followed along a cliff-top path, though this can be uneven in places and is fairly steep. Those reaching the colony, at this time of year, will be able to see large flocks gathering to feed, whilst at dusk, the birds fly, to form large roosts, to keep warm.
Entrance to this area is free, but the RSPB does welcome donations.
Bird lovers able to wait until April, can head to beautiful Bassenthwaite to view Cumbria’s famous ospreys, frequently to be spotted flying over this breathtaking lake. An open air viewpoint, at Dodd Wood, enables visitors to watch the osprey fishing in the still waters of the lake, swooping to catch their prey and then struggling to break free of the water with their catch in their talons.
For close-up action, visitors can go the Osprey Watch at the Forestry Commission's Whinlatter Forest Park, where live pictures of the ospreys are available by a camera link. This offers rare insights into their lives and is highly popular. For more information, visit www.ospreywatch.co.uk
If you cap this off with a visit to the award-winning, Good Pub Guide 2008’s Hotel Bar of the Year, The Pheasant Inn, in Bassenthwaite, following the birds will give you a great day out.
Best for Beachcombers:
If it’s a brisk walk along a beautiful beach that’s needed to blow away the Christmas cobwebs, the Western Lake District has some great options.
Taking the coastal walk from Whitehaven to St Bees, provides a combination of stunning scenery and brilliant beach jaunts, exploring a coast once frequented by smugglers, pirates and rogues engaged in the rum, spice and slave trades operating in and around Whitehaven once Britain’s second largest port.
Check out the Victorian graffiti scrawled on the rocks inside the caves at Fleswick Bay and keep your eyes trained on the sea for a glimpse of the porpoises, basking sharks, common dolphin and seals frequenting this area.
Alternatively, don your lifejacket and head to Whitehaven, to take a 75-minute Eco Tour with Whitehaven Marine Adventures. If the sea is calm, it will take you right up the coast, recounting the myths, legends and tales that give the Western Lake District a rich history, as well as pointing out the mammals and bird-life that you might encounter.
The boat and crew tie up in Whitehaven harbour and in winter the boat can be chartered, in advance, at a cost of £240 for twelve. Clothing and life-jackets are provided by the crew.
From Easter onwards, the trip can be booked at a cost of £20 for an adult and £10 for a child. More details are available at www.whitehavenmarineadventures.co.uk or from 0784 648 6483.
Best for Bond Girls:
Anyone who’s dreamed of riding through the surf, or along the beach like Caterina Murino in the last Bond movie, can head to Silescroft, on the Solway Coast stretch of the Western Lake District, where their steed awaits, be it Monty, Tomahawk, Angelo, or their various stable mates.
The award-winning Murthwaite Green Trekking Centre has a horse to suit all abilities of rider, from four-years-old upwards, and frequently delights those able to live out their dream of strolling, trotting or galloping across the five-mile expanse of beautiful sand.
The stunning coastal scenery simply adds to either one hour or 1.5 hour experience, whilst those wishing to appreciate this further can choose to head to the fells to savour the view across Morecambe Bay. source Trav4Media