Day 5 - Yoga and a Force and Day 6 - Another Fell-Pike

July 6:  We slept in, but Betsy needed a yoga fix.  She spotted a yoga class near us at a convenient time and trotted down in the morning to see how it worked.  For 8 pounds, she got to stretch and bend, and tells me she is now sore but got what she needed.  Meanwhile, I planned a 3-day excursion to the NW Lakes District for Sunday through Tuesday.

About noon, expecting rain later, we walked up our back street to the entrance of Stock Ghyll Park, a small city-managed park to see Stock Ghyll Force.  It is a handsome dual waterfall of about 50 feet with numerous additional cascades below.  We walked up one bank and down the other side.  There is what I call a "cleaver" of rock that splits the water at the head of the falls, thus making two roughly equal halves.

Stock Ghyll Force

We then walked up around the edge of town on some one-lane roads and a bridle path, reentering the town near another pub named the Golden Rule.  We had to stop for a break.  The pub was quiet and quintessentially British.  There were black timbers on the ceiling, which was under 7 feet high, horse brasses nailed to the timbers, and pictures and other doodads covering the entire wall spaces.  There were also little round stools, bankettes and iron-legged, round tables, exactly what a traditional pub has.  I thought this decor would work great in our basement back in Portland, though Betsy wasn't too keen.

We finished up our afternoon stroll by visiting a very large garden center on the south end of town.  It has a full array of plants, bushes and trees, outdoor furniture, green house kits, grills with all of the accessories, fire pits, garden pots and ornaments, fountains, water plants, and all manner of implements and tools.  It was so large that it had two cafes and is quite a local attraction.  We strolled home and relaxed.  We ate in and I watched some of the Euro Soccer Championship - Wales got beaten by Portugal.

July 7:  Today was another hiking day.  We completed a 7.1 mile circuit east and uphill of Ambleside.  After leaving the cottage, we went straight up (in the traditional English route engineering) to nearly 1,600 ft to the top of Wansfell Pike.  The path was completely lined with rock slabs sunk partway into the ground, creating a series of ramp-like steps that made for easy if energetic walking.

Going up Wansfell Pike, Ambleside in the background

We reached the summit in an hour and took in the view for quite awhile.  We could see: four parallel ridges or fells running north of us (we were standing on the end of one of them), Ambleside, all of Lake Windermere to the south,  Morecambe Bay on the coast further south, and a variety of fells, pikes, crags, etc. to the west.  The highest fells were in the clouds.  Scafell, the highest mountain in England, is in this direction.

Lake Windermere and westward

Ambleside and more westward views

Kirkstone Pass and Red Scree to the left, looking northward

After leaving the top we had a gentler descent through sheep pastures into the village of Troutbeck.  There is a pub here called the Mortal Man, but we went to the tea shop in the old Post Office, instead.  After coffee and a treat, we went of in search of a National Trust property - a traditional home lived in by a prosperous farming family for 400 years.  We found it, but it was closed for repairs.  "Wet rot" was found in the main beams of the house which are being replaced.

Troutbeck Old Post Office - now a tea shop

Prosperous Farm House, under renovation

The rest of the hike was a traverse around the south end of the ridge through "woods" and by pastures with sheep and a few cows.  The rock walls that divide the grazing areas are massive and run all the way up the fell sides.  We crossed lots of becks (aka. streams) and arrived home mid-afternoon.  No rain, midges, mosquitos, or flies, and cool temperatures - a perfect day for walking.

View from Troutbeck

A massive stone wall

A 'beck' with a gnarly tree