My husband and I returned home today from a holiday in England. A much longed for break. We spent a little more than a week with my mother-in-law in the Lake and Peak Districts. And, three nights on our own in the New Forrest. 

The Lake District came up tops. Open and expansive. Rugged mountains, shimmery lakes and wooded tree-lined roads. Bushes of rhododendron and foxgloves (thanks to my mum-in-law, who identified them for us) and a multitude of pretty summer flowers in full bloom. Sheep and cows with their baby kids and calves on flat and undulating fields. A big wow for city folk like my husband and me.

If that wasn’t enough, the accommodation, my second in a caravan park, yes caravan park, was located by Lake Windermere, England’s largest lake at over 18 km long. And, less than a 10-minute walk to Bowness-on-Windermere, a popular tourist hotspot for motor boats, steamers and water sports like kayaking, paddleboards, sailing and swimming.

I know, I know. Could there be more? Well, yes. Ducks and ducklings, and geese and goslings swam and paddled the waters of the lake. Happily, we spent a good amount of time duck and geese watching, and taking in the scenery and activities on Lake Windermere.

We also spent a fair amount of time on day trips to Instagrammable villages and towns like Ambleside, Hawkshead, Keswick and Kendal. One standout was the walkabout in Beatrix Potter’s Hill Top Farm in Near Sawrey, not far from Hawkeshead. Interesting were the paintings, furniture, and a few original sketches, notes and books, carefully preserved in her home.

I knew Beatrix Potter wrote and illustrated children’s books, and was renowned for her globally recognised animal characters like Peter Rabbit, Jemima Paddle-Duck and Tom Kitten. I didn’t know, ‘When Beatrix Potter turned one of the tales/stories into a picture book, it was rejected by several publishers. She privately printed 250 copies of it herself. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was a great success with family and friends. In 1902, Frederick Warne & Co agreed to publish an initial quantity of 8,000. They sold out instantly and Beatrix’s career as a storyteller was launched[1].’ ‘Potter was also a pioneer of merchandising. In 1903, Peter Rabbit was the first fictional character to be made into a patented stuffed toy, making him the oldest licensed character[2].

I also didn’t know Beatrix Potter was a conservationist and an astute business person. Although she came from a monied family, she used the profits from the publication of six of her books including The Tale of Mrs Tiggy-Winkle, and an inheritance to buy her first farm, the 17th-century Hill Top Farm. She purchased more land in the Lake District. Upon her death, she left 4,000 acres of land and 14 farms to the UK National Trust – a conservation charity.

Another standout was Hardknott Pass, the shortest route my husband selected off Waze from the central Lake District to West Cumbria. Why?  So that we could catch our pre-booked 10.30am steam train ride from Dalegath for Boot to Ravenglass. If he, my mum-in-law and I, knew what the drive was like, we would have happily missed or deferred the train ride and/or taken any other more normal, albeit, longer journey. 

The sign board that greeted us at the start of the Hardknott Pass was ‘Narrow Roads. Severe Bends.’ No kidding. The hairpin bends, which there were many, boasted 25% to 33% gradients. The incline, in some parts, required the car to be in first gear constantly and consistently to avoid the car rolling backwards.   One of the descents was so steep it felt like being at the highest point of a rollercoaster just before that exhilating ‘heart in the mouth’ feeling. With sheer unguarded drops on both sides. On first gear, I inched the car slowly until we got down to what appeared like a flattish enough tight corner before we hit upon the next descent, and the next. I remember two motorcyclists waiting by the already narrow road for us to get out of their way before they began their ascent. I felt overly responsible as my mum-in-law was in the car with us. My husband. Well, he and I have done and/or do silly/stupid things, now and again.

Hardknott Pass is in a league of its own. It was described as one of Britain’s ‘most outrageous roads’ by The Guardian newspaper. The challenging 1 in 3 gradients, described as steeper than the mountain stages of European bicycle races including the Tour de France and Giro d’ Italia, attracts endurance cyclists. We laughingly agreed, retrospectively, that it was a one-time experience we will long remember but not do again. 

Yes, the holiday is over. The upside is we will continue to talk about our time together, and relive our memories for a while yet.