On the home stretch

The weather settled down last night so I was up early to see what the lake would offer me this morning. She didn't disappoint. I could have spent hours taking photos as the light changed. 

But I had an appointment with a train to London. Before leaving, I took some photos of the light from the skylights in the hotel. 

The trip was a little convoluted due to maintenance work. I had a bus trip from Windermere to Oxenholme. Another from Oxenholme to Lancaster. Then finally the train to London. It was express for more than half the journey and very comfortable. The scenery was a mix of what I've seen so far. I took this photo on the bus.

The train was operated by Virgin. Nice to see Virgin still have a sense of humour over here. I think Virgin Australia have lost that, which is a shame because I feel it gave them a point of difference to the competition.

My final hotel is in Earls Court. Very handy location. The room is tiny, but very funky and cosy. Will do nicely for the end of my trip. 

Perfect

This morning when I woke up it was wet, grey, blustery and cold ... perfect! The kind of day that I could finally sit inside and potter around without any guilt of not being out doing something. Having said that, I still found it really difficult to just sit and be in the moment. But by the end of the day I definitely began to feel a sense of calmness that I know I needed. Even when the weather improved and my itchy feet forced me outside, I managed to stroll instead of the usual gallop.

This morning I took the opportunity to take some pictures of this lovely hotel. Once I started, small details began popping up in front of me everywhere I looked. I only stopped because it began to get busy with people and I didn't want to become conspicuous or a nuisance. 

Tomorrow I take the final train trip back down to London for a few days before starting the trek home. 

Not a lot to report

The weather was looking a bit grey when I got up and it started to rain around 10:00. Luckily I only had one thing I really wanted to achieve today. Not that I couldn't do lots more, but I want to make sure I keep time to wind down - the last 4 1/2 weeks have been non-stop. ​

On the last leg of the train journey from York I noticed scenery that was a little different to what I had seen elsewhere. But the train was so packed that I couldn't get a good enough vantage point for photos. To fill in the missing part of my photo journal I wanted to retrace the steps. I won't be able to do that on the trip back to London because I will travel that part by bus.

So I caught the bus to Windermere. There is a bus stop right outside the hotel but busses aren't all that regular so I had to plan my journey. I walked around Windermere a little. As with the other towns around here, so many of the buildings are faced with slate.

Then I took a return train ride to Oxenholme. In order to get back in time for the bus back to the hotel I had to travel there and straight back. 

Elsewhere I've travelled in England the fields are all neatly (or not so neatly) outlined with hedges and the occasional dry rock wall. But around here grey (slate?) walls are everywhere and hedges are rare.

As the train came into Windermere two airforce planes came in low over the lake.  Along with the fly pasts the other day I'm surprise how visible and active the airforce is in this really touristy area. 

I caught the bus back to the hotel. By this time it was only 2:00 and the sun was actually shining. I was feeling guilty for not finding something else to do. Doing nothing while on holiday is a skill I'm yet to master. But I don't want to get home and feel that I still need a break. So, a quiet afternoon it is.  

The forecast for tomorrow is rain all day. That would be a recipe for guilt-free slothfulness. Fingers crossed. 

(Not) ambling around Ambleside

After a delicious breakfast overlooking the lake I hit the road. I had two soft targets for today: visit Ambleside and retrace the train trip between Windermere and Oxenholme for photographs. 

I walked to Bowness-on-Windermere as that's where the cruises leave. Ambleside is at the top of the lake whereas Bowness is midway down. I wasn't sure what to expect in Ambleside but I knew the landscape in the north was more mountainous. 

In Bowness, these boats were tied up near the piers for the cruises. 

The cruise takes about 25 min each way. 

Ambleside is a mile inland from the lake. On the way I spotted these sheep under the cover of the bushes. Not sure what they were taking cover from as it wasn't raining at the time.

Ambleside is pretty. Lots of buildings made from slate and some great views of the surrounding hills and mountains. 

This two room building over a stream was curious. 

I passed a small gallery with some lovely local paintings and prints. They had a series of prints which were a good size for my place so I bought a couple. 

Other than that I did anything BUT amble around Ambleside. I had it in my mind to get to part two of my day and I knew that was kind of dependent on catching the 1:05 boat back. So I kept up a rapid pace. In hindsight it might have been nicer to wander. 

Anyway, I made the boat in time. On the way back it started to spot with rain that became constant by the time we docked. Faced with the prospect of getting a little wet my resolution to continue on disappeared completely. After checking timetables I found a bus was due in a few minutes that would take me past the hotel. Bargain.  

So, even though it's only 3:00 I'm staying here in front of the fire in the bar. I've had some warming soup. Time to relax.

Further north (norf)

Today it was time to leave York and head to my final destination before returning to London then home. It had rained quite a lot overnight and was still drizzling in the morning. It would have been an inside kind of day anyway. 

I got to the station early and my train was in time. 

The first train was to Manchester. Then a change to Oxenholme Lake District. Finally a change to Windermere. The first train was relatively empty. The second was busier. The last train was packed. We passed a beautiful selection of countryside.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to get shots of the last leg because I wasn't by a window. The landscape was distinctly different. Hopefully I can get some photos later.

Windermere was packed with people. Much busier than I'd expected. The taxi driver told me this is nothing compared to mid summer. My hotel is out of Windermere and nicely secluded. It reminds me of a hotel Emily and I stayed in in Ireland. I have a window with a fantastic view of the lake.

The hotel is a converted manor house.

After having a sandwich in the Drawing Room (take note Emily) I got my things together to start exploring. I walked to the nearest town Bowness-on-Windermere. It took just under 45min. It was getting late when I got there, already 4:00pm but they were still running lake cruises. The weather had improved greatly so I seized the opportunity to do a short one.

The light on the walk back to the hotel was perfect for taking some more pictures. 

Just enough time to freshen up and have dinner with the lake as backdrop. Sun very slowly fading. Occasional swan gliding by. Amazing food and wine. A lovely end to the day.

Part of my plan for coming here was to wind down. I'll probably do a little exploring tomorrow, but then I think some lazing around the hotel will be in order.