Leaving for the Lakes: October 29

It is difficult to leave a place of beauty, a place where you’ve been happy. We felt that way, leaving the Welsh borders. When Luke told us on Wednesday morning that he didn’t have another guest coming until Friday, we said, “We’ll stay until Friday then!” But of course that’s not how life works—at least, not usually. We were packed and ready to go by 10:45 a.m. (checkout at 11:00 a.m.).

But Teresa and Chico surprised us for a final hug good-bye, and stayed for a cup of tea and a chat about family and life and sorrow and joy. We will miss her so much.

It was raining as we left, fitting weather for a farewell. But as we drove northward through the lush Shropshire countryside, the rain lessened and the sun began to show.We stopped three times on our journey: at the Shepherd Hills bakery again for bread, at a petrol station for gas and groceries, and at a Welcome Break for more food and Starbucks. 

We neared the Lakes around 3:00, blessed with a magnificent sky of sailing clouds, brilliant sunshine, and an occasional shower. And now we realized why we had to leave the Welsh borders: if we hadn’t, we would have missed the utterly breathtaking beauty of Cumbria. Our route took us off the main route of the A 590/595 and into the wilds of the fells, through Ulpha and Woodend and finally to Eskdale, a charming village clinging to a hillside of trees, fields, and streams. The memory of that drive still haunts me: a thin ribbon of road winding across rust-colored fells and through green valleys, populated only by the occasional sheep—a lonely, vast landscape of a kind of bleak grandeur. I was glad there was still a bit of daylight to navigate by.

After five hours of driving I was tired, and it was a relief to arrive at our cottage, unlock the front door, and brew a last cup of tea before a light dinner and then bed. Here are a few pictures of our comfortable (but strictly traditional) cottage—a “two-up, two-down” kind of arrangement.

Ours is the door to my left. These are tiny workers’ cottages,

with kitchen and reception area on floor level and

two bedrooms with bathroom above.

My bedroom. I loved sleeping next to an open window,

or lying there, watching the clouds sail over the fells.

Ruth’s room, which overlooked the fell we climbed on our second hike.

We miss our quaint little Granary Cottage, but this new place has already exchanted us with its super-fast Wi-Fi and large selection of DVDs. Movie nights coming up! After a simple bread and cheese dinner, we settled in to watch The Producers—a good laugh after hours of driving.