windermere

Visiting the Lake District? Don’t miss Brockhole.

June 24, 2011

It was not a glorious, sunny day when we last visited Brockhole, the Lake District Visitor Centre. Rather it was the end of one of those weeks that give the Lake District lakes their water. Nevertheless we spent a most enjoyable two or three hours. Brockhole is not to be confused with “Brockholes”, the nature [...]

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Holehird Gardens, Windermere

January 27, 2011

Last summer, while staying for a few days in Kendal (dog-sitting for our son who was holidaying in warmer climes) my wife and I paid our first visit to Holehird Gardens, high up on the hillside above the village of Windermere in the English Lake District. This had been recommended by friends who had “discovered” them [...]

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Another News and Views Miscellany

January 25, 2011

Looking at the variety of “Lake District and North” topics  about which I’ve “tweeted” on Twitter recently a few have triggered thoughts too long to express in 140 characters. So here’s another opinion piece. Elm Replanting We’ll start in central Lancashire. The avenue of elms at Riverside Walk in Miller Park, Preston had been there [...]

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A Lake District Update – 2010:wk03

January 19, 2010

The Lake District has been getting quite a bit of TV publicity recently.  We’ve seen a presenter “swim-hiking”, a hotelier doing an overnight two-length swim in Windermere – that is, the full length of Windermere and back – and although I am not an addict myself I understand that even Coronation Street has been showing [...]

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Changing Moods of Windermere Weather

October 31, 2009

During the past few days I’ve noticed quite a lot of comments on social sites such as Twitter about the Lake District weather.  From some it has been, “Arrrgh! It’s raining! I don’t like this!” From others it has been more like, “”It’s raining, but beautiful nonetheless.” The three photos below illustrate the final day [...]

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The Great North Swim returns to Windermere

March 5, 2009

It was announced a few days ago that The Great North Swim, organised by Nova International, a company founded by Brendan Foster the 1976 Olympic bronze medallist, is to be held again at Windermere in the English Lake District. Last year was its first, and was oversubscribed at 2,500 entries.  This year it will be [...]

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Windermere Speed Limit

March 4, 2009

The High Court has ruled in favour of the Lake District National Park Authority and its Windermere lake speed limit. A group known as the Keep Windermere Alive Association had attempted to trigger a full legal review of the speed limit which was imposed four years ago. The response to this will inevitably be mixed, [...]

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Windermere – The Great North Swim

September 1, 2008

In the past I’ve mentioned here a variety of energetic activities in the Lake District – running, walking and cycling.  On September 13th, however, there’s a new one.  It’s the “Great North Swim” – a mile in Windermere.  (No, I won’t call it “Lake” Windermere as in some of its publicity; there’s only one lake [...]

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Windermere and the Ice Age

September 1, 2008

It was the year before I was married. (I’ll let you work out when that was; I’m just indicating that it was well within living memory). Windermere was frozen over for several weeks during that winter, and for the first time in many years it was safe to skate over large areas of its surface. [...]

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Developments at Waterhead

July 8, 2008

The redevelopment of Waterhead, Ambleside, was bound to be controversial. Reconciliation of the many inevitably conflicting interests are difficult enough in an ordinary town or village but when it’s in a national park, and especially when it’s by Windermere, you can guarantee a good debate. The Westmorland Gazette a few days ago published an article [...]

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