Living in Britain, the Lake District seems to be one of those places where everyone has visited. From childhood holidays to cycling outings and everything in between, I felt like I’d missed out on a key life experience each time a colleague came to the office with Grasmere Gingerbread and everyone else gathered ’round to reminisce about the beauty of the Lake District.

So, Jeff booked us a week-long trip to the Lake District (where he, like everyone else in Britain, holidayed as a child) to show me what I was missing…

On this day we visited Walla Crag, Surprise View and Keswick.

We went fell walking (read: basically hiking) up the eastern side of Derwent Water through Walla Crag, starting in Castle Rigg and ending near Ashness Bridge. It was about a 5K walk, and while I do that regularly in London the roads here are paved and fairly level – not rocky and steep in places – so it was significantly more physically demanding than I gave it credit for. Learn from my mistakes and wear proper hiking shoes, not every day sneakers!

But Walla Crag is totally worth it. Gorgeous vistas of rolling green hills and Derwent Water, stone walls, Shetland ponies and wild sheep. It was like walking through a painting and perfectly picturesque.

And if you don’t fancy the hike? Just head over to Surprise Point and Ashness Bridge; there is a bit of a walk, but you can get pretty close by car. Here you’ll get a stunning view of Derwent Water, and the bridge is like something out of a fairy tale.

When we were ready to head back, we took a ferry (they run regular services around the lake) back to town to catch a coach to our hotel.

Is the Lake District on your travel wish list?

Much love, Katie xo