• Alston
• Allonby And Aspatria
• Ambleside And Troutbeck
• Appleby In Westmoreland
• Askam In Furness
• Barrow In Furness
• Bassenthwaite
• Borrowdale
• Bowness On Windermere
• Brough
• Buttermere
• Brampton
• Broughton In Furness
• Carlisle
• Cartmel
• Cleator Moor
• Cockermouth
• Coniston
• Dalston
• Dalton In Furness
• Dent
• Grange Over Sands
• Grasmere
• Greenodd
• Grizedale
• Hawkshead
• Kendal
• Keswick
• Kirkby Lonsdale
• Wasdale And Gosforth
• Kirkby Stephen
• Longtown
• Loweswater
• Maryport
• Melmerby
• Milnthorpe
• Nenthead
• Newby Bridge
• Orton
• Penrith
• Pooley Bridge
• Ravenglass And Eskdale
• Sedbergh
• Seascale
• Shap
• Silloth And Solway
• St Bees
• Skiddaw
• Staveley
• Tebay
• The Duddon Valley
• Threlkeld
• Ulverston
• Vale Of Lorton
• Wasdale
• Wetheral
• Whitehaven
• Wigton
• Windermere
• Workington
• Spa Hotels In Windermere The Lake District
• Hotels With Hot Tubs In Windermere
• Hot Tub Hotels In Windermere And The Lake District
• Romantic Breaks In Windermere And The Lake District
• Themed Hotels In Windermere And The Lake District
• Weekend Breaks In Windermere
• Windermere Attractions And Boat Trips
• Boutique Hotels And Accommodation In Windermere And The Lake District
• Windermere In The Rain
• One Way Ticket To Windermere Por Favor
• Horse Riding In The Lake District
• Walks In The Lake District
• Windermere Boutique Hotel Bedrooms
• Holiday Accommodation Wanted In The Lake District

William Wordsworth and Lake District walks

William Wordsworth was impressed by the transient nature of the weather. Also weather-wise was his friend Samuel Taylor Coleridge, when he lived at Greta Hall, Keswick. He confided in his notebook on the 20th October 1802: To many people living in Northern Lakeland, Skidded  is akin to a barometer. The doleful say that if you can see Skidded clearly, it's going to rain; if you can't see the great hill, then it's raining. In fact, a clear-cut summit or even a faint haze are encouraging.

At other times, make sure you have packed your waterproof clothing. In the central areas of Lakeland, some rain occurs in two days out of three. The brightest and driest months are usually May and October. Seathwaite, at the head of Borrowable  is reputed to be 'the wettest place in England', though more rain falls on the adjacent fells than on the celebrated farmstead. Seathwaite's elevation is 423 feet (130m), compared with the well known Sprinkling Tarn, which is not far away but is at an elevation of 2,000 feet (610m).

The Seathwaite Valley is on the lee side of fells that funnel the maritime air. In periods of heavy rain, the becks rise quickly. This is particularly noticeable in Grains Gill , which was deepened by ice as well as water, the snowfield under Great End producing the 'river of ice' that gouged the existing valley deeper. because of the presence of a moraine, It petered out about where the beck would be spanned by Shockley Bridge.

Lakeland is well regarded by those who own hang gliders. The mountains produce an uplift. A sea breeze draws expert 'sharers' to the imposing cliffs of Walla Crag, which are not recommended for anyone lacking in experience. When the wind is in the northwest, Clough Head, at the northern end of the Helvellyn mass, is a good launching place, whereas with a southerly wind the place to launch a hang glider is Blaze Fell, part of the Blencathra massif. Air rising from the slate roofs of Keswick provides uplift and, using thermals, it is not unknown for Lakeland 'sharers' to remain airborne for several hours and reach the Border Country, at Hex ham and Moffat.

Castlerigg stone circle, above Keswick (walk II), is thought to have been raised in Neolithic times, about 4,000 years ago, which means that it existed for a millennium before the celebrated Stonehenge was created. We must guess at Castlerigg's ancient purpose but there is much to commend it. Aubrey Burl, who has studied such circles intently, considers that Castlerigg is 'the most exciting and the most mysterious'. Was it simply a fell top temple, focal point for a local tribe, where people gathered periodically to socialize and trade? Or could it have been an astronomical observatory? Early settlers would be attracted to the alluvial soil between Derwentwater and Bassenthwaite Lake.

Our knowledge of them is based on the discovery of pieces of volcanic tuff from Pike 0' Stickle in Lansdale that, shaped into axe heads, would be a useful implement when clearing the native woodland. Three axes were unearthed at Castlerigg stone circle, which suggests that there was trading here. Four axes were found in the area of Portinscale and stone querns give another hint of early life, being used to grind cereals for bread making.

Hill forts dating from about 500 BC once adorned Castle Crag in Borrowable (walk 19) and Carrack Fell above Misdeal. 'Hill fort' is a convenient title for a feature about which we know little, for stones do not speak. There was a Roman presence in the Keswick district, evidence of the four centuries of Roman occupation being profuse to the north, where Hadrian's Wall had its attendant forts and settlements, and in the Penrith area, which teemed with life in Roman times.

Celtic folk left no written evidence of their lifestyle. We base their presence mainly on a scatter of place names, such as Blencathra (now also known as Saddleback). The nature loving Celts named the Derwent (oak river), and two jolly Celtic names, Glenderamackin and Glenderaterra, refer to wooded valleys. (The name of the county of Cambria is derived from 'land of the Camry', yet another Celtic reference. )

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