Through a glass darkly
Last time we visited the Museum of Lakeland Life & Industry in Kendal, we came across an old map of the shores of (Lake) Windermere between Windermere (town) and Ambleside. It dated from sometime in the 18th or early 19th century, I think - well before the area started to become more developed after the... Continue Reading →
Sorry about the pun - I couldn't resist. It's true though - there's a new museum right here in Windermere that is both beautiful and full of boats! This is Windermere Jetty (full name Windermere Jetty: Museum of Boats, Steam and Stories), which has appeared on the site of the old Steamboat Museum like a... Continue Reading →
Windermere town centre isn't particularly big, but it's well stocked with a selection of shops, cafes and restaurants - and more than a few interesting or unusual features if you know where to look. One of these is on Crescent Road, one of two main streets that form the town centre. At first glance, it... Continue Reading →
The UK's towns are full of history, often reflected in their odd street names. Here's a small collection I've gathered on my travels around the country over the last few years: High Wiend, Appleby-in-Westmorland, Cumbria Appleby used to be the county town of Westmorland and mostly dates from the early twelfth century when the castle... Continue Reading →
Well, march might be pushing it, but we certainly took part in a protest on Saturday against the current state of Northern trains. When we first moved to Windermere, one reason for choosing the town was the fact that it had a rail station, with reasonable links to the outside world. Trains ran roughly every... Continue Reading →
On Saturday we braved the bitter cold (minus 2c, to be precise), wrapped up in our woollies and headed to the Windermere Christmas market. The town held this for the first time last year, and great fun it was too. It was called 'Ja Windermere' in a slightly odd nod to German Christmas markets elsewhere,... Continue Reading →
Birds can be really difficult to take good photographs of - just as you click the shutter they move, squawk, waddle away or fly off. But over the years I've been lucky enough to snap a few memorable, and unusual, shots, which I thought I'd share with you here. Seagull, Windermere This seagull was cheerfully... Continue Reading →
I'm cheating a tiny bit with this one. There is indeed a flippantly-named "Windermere Three Peaks Challenge" which takes in three of the low hills at the back of the town (Orrest Head, School Knott and Brant Fell). However, two others are so close to the route that they might just as well be on... Continue Reading →
I got cabin fever this afternoon so set off for a walk round the local streets - and because we'd had the first proper snowfall of the winter overnight, I took my camera with me. It wasn't sunny, but there were odd brighter gleams amongst the dark clouds, just enough to light up some of... Continue Reading →
