The Lake District - Day 1

Up and at 'em early this morning to catch our 9:30 train to Keswick (pronounced Kessick as we soon found out). The train station was a trip. Great people watching place. The ride itself was pretty uneventful and went by quickly. As we exited the city the landscape drastically changed. The closer we got to The Lake District the more beautiful it became. We can't wait to get out and shoot some of this scenery tomorrow. The fells (mountains) as they call them around here aren't huge but are really pretty. Keswick it in the northern part of The Lake District, located right by Derwentwater Lake. There's also a baby Stonehenge nearby as well that we're looking forward to visiting. Our train arrived right on time at 12:30 at Penrith Station. That's the image of a train station I had in my head - old and quaint.

The only hiccup in this otherwise flawless journey was our taxi that had been scheduled didn't show up. We waited a while and finally got hold of the B&B owners who set it up, but they didn't know why he wasn't there either. We ended up grabbing an available taxi and were on our way. John was a great tour guide as well. He's a local and knew the area like the back of his hand. The half hour drive flew by and was as enjoyable as watching the landscape.

Ian and Sue are our hosts for the next few days. They seem to be gracious, laid back and wonderful people and are the new owners of Seven Oaks. We have a warm, comfy room on the third level in a quaint neighborhood within walking distance of the center of town. The house was built in the late 1800's and has been updated to accommodate 5 bedrooms. This picture doesn't do it justice. Will have to fix that. 

After we checked in we headed directly to town to find some grub and something to wash the grub down with. We landed at The Bank for our late lunch (it was already about 2:30 by now). Food was ok, beer was better. The town was hopping. It reminded me of walking through Busch Gardens. After getting our bellies full we mosied back to our room and chilled for a bit ... Which is why I'm writing this now. Me thinks it may be time to hit the street again ...

By the time we recharged it was nearly dark. We decided to walk down to the lake before getting dinner. Can you believe it's time to eat AGAIN? It had really cooled down but I thought it felt so nice to need jeans and a sweatshirt instead of sweating out of every pore for a change. It was a short 3/4 of a mile walk and was well worth it. Wow. Just gorgeous!!

I didn't bring my tripod with me tonight but will have it with me tomorrow and hope to get some fabulous shots! Oh and I almost forgot ... Check out the sheep grazing right there by the lake.

How stinkin' cool is that? There's supposed to be a knitting shop down on Main Street. :) Need to find that and bring home some local wool. 

Shot this one leaving the lake. Just thought it was pretty.

We saw a pizza place earlier this afternoon walking around so thought we'd try that for dinner tonight. We went in, sat down and waited for about 10 minutes ... Nothing. Yes the server saw us. A huge party came in and I guess they were overwhelmed so we ended up walking out. Found another a pizza place walking back tonight so will try that later. We ended up at a pub called ... Wait for it ... LOL. Are you ready? ...

Love it!! We went vegetarian tonight - I got spinach and ricotta cannelloni and Bob got veggie goulash. Both were very good. Will try to make it back there for another meal before leaving the area.

Came back and regrouped; got everything ready for some hiking tomorrow. There's a hike called Catbells that's supposed to have an unbelievable view. Sue is packing a lunch for us and we're taking the boat launch all around the lake. There are 7 stops you can hop on and off of to make the complete circle. It's gonna be good!!!!

So, that's all for today!! Gotta get some shut-eye.