UK locations | Go Go Chlo

A few months before the country locked down due to the pandemic, my partner surprised me with a weekend trip to the Lake District National Park. Considering it was January, we had a great time exploring the beautiful scenery in this area.

Driving around the Lake District, we found ourselves making good use of first and second gear, as we climbed the huge hills. It is a long drive from Norfolk but very pleasant, as you get into lakeland and can enjoy amazing views, and feel like you are suddenly in another country.

We stayed in a lovely little B&B, (of which there are many..) in Bowness on Windermere, on the side of the Windermere lake; England’s largest lake. This is a busy village in the National Park, and has several amenities, and The World of Beatrix Potter attraction. We did see this from the outside, but we didn’t go in. Even though I loved ‘Peter Rabbit’ as a child, I cannot really get away with it now! Interesting fact though… the area gets lots of Japanese visitors, as they love Beatrix Potter stories!

We had a great stay in the B&B as it felt really traditional but had lots of nice modern decor. Plus we had great breakfasts, could get recommendations/free maps and also they gave us free fudge!

One of the other great things about staying in Bowness on Windermere, was the close proximity to the lake’s ferry service. There is an information centre and booking office where you can buy tickets for the ferry cruises that run regularly up and down the lake. The Windermere Lake Cruises company offer several boat services taking different routes around the lake, you can also charter a boat. We crossed the lake to Ambleside and it was quite a rainy trip across, but it was January… and it meant we had rainbows! There was some information provided on the cruise and there was an inside and outdoor space.

When we arrived in Ambleside, the sun came out and we started a 3 hour hike up Loughrigg Fell. This ‘low fell’ felt very mountainous to us, and clearly I am not ready for Scafell Pike quite yet!

The hike had absolutely beautiful views and different things to see on the way up and down…. including a false peak (be ready for that heart wrenching moment). We had a tasty picnic on the way up, and were sat next to a bird of prey that was simply perching on the cliffside.

Bird sitting on the rocks at Lake District hike

After being battered by wind at the peak, we started carefully making our way down. On the way down, we enjoyed views of the lakes, streams and a huge watery cave. When we eventually finished we could enjoy sitting on our cruise back looking over our gorgeous photographs, and relaxing. Later in the evening, we took advantage of a special pamper package that the B&B had running with a nearby health centre, and spent the evening in the pool and jacuzzi, soaking our muscles!

Peak
Cave

There were also plenty of places to dine out in the area and relax. We had a couple of lovely dinners both near to our B&B in Bowness on Windermere, and in Windermere town itself. If we had been there for longer than a weekend, we would have visited more of the towns and villages around the lake. Unfortunately, we only really had the Saturday, and then a long drive back on Sunday. We did drive from the top to the bottom of the lake before turning out on a misty morning, and the views were still breath taking.

I think I would definitely visit again for some more hikes, mixed in with good food. I would like to stay for a week. I would probably stay there during the winter again as well as I hear it is very busy in the Summer, and I wouldn’t want too many tourists to spoil our tranquil experience.

In the Autumn of last year we made a day trip to Bury St Edmunds & National Trust property, Ickworth House. The autumn colours were lovely, and I ticked another cathedral off the list!

Bury St Edmunds is a short distance from where I live, so it is a great choice for a day trip. The town is named after St Edmund. Edmund was the King of East Anglia, and was killed by the Vikings in 869, (the detail of which is depicted in art at the Cathedral). He became a saint and a martyr, and was buried at the town. His shrine made Bury St Edmunds popular with pilgrims. Today, the town is a great location for visitors to enjoy, with lots of opportunity for shopping, events and great dining experiences, as well as the below attractions.

St Edmundsbury Cathedral & Abbey

Originally built as a church as part of the wider abbey complex in Bury St Edmunds, the previously called ‘St James’ church didn’t become a cathedral until 1914. It certainly deserves to be a cathedral, from the sheer size of it! You can see the scale of it as it dominates over the rest of the town centre.

On entering the cathedral, you are welcomed by a volunteer (like all quality cathedrals…) and can pick up one of their useful information leaflets which will allow you to have a self guided tour. The cathedral also offers tower tours, I wish that I had done this on the day, and I think I will need to return in order to take advantage of this experience and hopefully see great views.

The cathedral has lots of information and imagery regarding St Edmund, and other big names from local history. There is also a large lego model of the cathedral which you can donate £1 to add a brick. This was quite impressive, and I don’t really like lego, so that means a lot! They have paused the “building work” during the pandemic but you can still put a donation forward online for your brick to be added, and see some photos. Check it out on the cathedral website here.

Next door to the cathedral, are the ruins of the original abbey complex. You can also see the old abbey gates still in tact in front of the road. The abbey was actually in existence before the town, and was used by Benedictine monks. The monks actually designed the town to be in a grid formation to benefit them economically, and the abbey did prove to be one of the richest in the country for some time. The abbey has a history of good and bad fortune over the centuries until eventually in 1539 is was stripped bare during the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

I enjoyed wondering the large area and trying to work out which rooms the different foundations might have belonged to. My partner and I also enjoyed trying to improve our photography skills, as there are so many different shapes and shadows to photograph. The abbey ruins are part of the abbey gardens which is a public park which everyone can enjoy. I thought that it was very nice that the park and ruins were settled into each other, as it means that the community engages with the site regularly. Whilst we were exploring the ruins, we actually came across a community gathering for a Remembrance Day memorial service which was very moving.

Ickworth House

After enjoying the town centre, we made our way to Ickworth House. This National Trust property is on the outskirts of the town, and is a great place for a walk! It is a country house shaped like an observatory (formally it is called a ‘rotunda’), which is quite cool and was originally built in the 18th century. The entire place has an Italian theme to it, and you can really tell this in the look of the building and gardens.

When we visited, the outside of the front of the house was covered in scaffolding which was a shame, but it still looked great at the back, and we could still go inside and see what was once the servant’s quarters and kitchens.

We mainly enjoyed going on a long walk across the parklands, where you can see great views and lots of sheep! We really enjoyed seeing all the autumn colours, and it made some great photographs. This was especially the case when we found a tree that had dramatic roots that were over spilling into the stream (photo below). There are multiple different walking routes available within the huge parkland area, and many of them will take you past key monuments/structures/views, such as St Mary’s church that lies within the estate, and is the oldest part of the grounds.

I think I will definitely make more visits to both the town and Ickworth House in the future, as I really enjoyed myself and it was great to stretch my legs on the walk! If possible, I think I will also try to check out the West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village & Country Park. It is a totally reconstructed early Anglo-Saxon village, and looks like a lot of fun to explore and maybe attend a re-enactment event. They do archery there… I am AWESOME at archery! Obviously I was born in the wrong era.