Having discovered that a town called Cockermouth (yes I kid you not) is hosting their annual agricultural show so we just have to be there. We find the park and ride and together with a full load on the bus head for the The Fitz where it will be held.
What a great day with the focus on the animals we saw judging of the cattle and sheep, show jumping, craft tent displays, chicken, rosters and other poultry, dog show, shearing demo and sheep dog trials. It was great seeing the sheep dog round up the sheep and put them in the holding pen. I did mutter the words 'baa-ram-u' a few times to help him along, (see Babe). We stayed longer than we thought as we were enjoying ourselves so much mixing with the locals. This was their 163rd show so they sure know what they are doing. Cliff filled me in on things about the animals and I judged the cattle competition correctly 3 out of 4 attempts with the 4th one coming in second. I was very proud of myself.
We drive to Alston for coffee then onto Hadrians Wall built by the Romans in AD128 and named after the emperior who ordered it built. It runs for 73 miles which was a major feat even for the Romans and provided a physical boundary to mark the population for citizenship and therefore taxpayers. The Romans where any but stupid. We only walked a short section of the wall near the town of Greenhead. We stopped on the way back in the town to have lunch at the pub.
The weather is kind to us during the day with rain coming during the night. It's humid and once the sun comes out it get very warm. The Brits are loving it and you see a lot of red burnt faces sitting outside of cafes.
Our first attempt to visit the Lakes was the wettest day we had had for months. The drive is filled with green hills, still water lakes and sheep grazing. everywhere you look its a picture postcard and you know that the photos will not do it justice. After a failed attempt of getting a car park in Windermere we walked around Ambleside but it was very crowded and puts me out of sorts. Cliff was very patient with me as usual and we decided to do it again on another day. The town is lovely though and like Windermere has beautiful stone buildings with an abundant of flowers out the front of most shops and B&Bs.
Drove down to the Lakes to visit the Beatrix Potter house. We timed it well to get a car space and walked through her garden to the house which was the first one she brought. They set it up as if she had just come home with her jacket on the chair and a real fire going in the lounge. It was lovely walking through and around her furniture asking questions of the guides. Beatrix was an amazing woman who was strong on conservation as well as having a great imagination. Her brother was also a painter and the house was full of his work. We had plenty of time to walk around and take in the atmosphere. The area is so beautiful I can understand why she chose it for inspiration. Next door was a cafe overlooking green hills. We had a coffee and tea cake and imagined a world back in 1913 when Beatrix was preparing for her wedding to William Heelis. Driving into Hill Top we strolled around the town that Beatrix would have walked with shops filled with merchandise of her character in her stories.
After we drove to Brantwood Hall the home of John Ruskin who was one of the most important figures in nineteenth century. He was a famous writer, artist and social reformer. The house is very grand with beautiful gardens to walk in covering 250 acres. We arrived back at our cottage tired but excited about all that we saw, it was such a busy day.
We visited other towns in the area such as Dufton where Cliff had stayed when he walked the Pennine Way. The town boosts a fountain which is now decorated with flowers where water would have flowed. It was made by the Quakers lead mining company who made improvements to the town by way of houses for workers and installing piped water. In every town we have visited we have found some presence of the Quakers who started a lot of the industry across England and where very wealthy. We have been impressed with their attitude towards their workers and there campaigns to stop the slave trade.
Keswick was another town we enjoyed with its large marina, lake and markets.
I don't have any photos to add for Lakes District and after as my memory card for my camera has an error and I can't access any photos on it. I might have lost all my photos but will try to talk to someone to see if it can be unlocked. No happy jan. I do have other cards and will be able to take more photos in the future but I might have lost all those taken on the faulty card.
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