Things to Do in the Lake District

When you get hungry, there’s the Cartmel village shop, birthplace of sticky toffee pudding and the Grasmere Gingerbread Shop, home to Sarah Nelson’s gingerbread. It is completely different than the gingerbread in the U.S.

Why does no one on here ever mention Rum Butter, or Rum (the drink) from Whitehaven, or Herdwick Lamb (quite different from any other lamb you will ever have). Or Cumberland Sausage (best from Wooddals of Waberthwaite, butchers to the late Queen, and his many other bacon and meats, but any local butcher has his secret sausage recipe). No one mentions our several local cheese makers or jam producers, or the Whisky and Gin from the Lakes Distillery.
Has any visitor ever tried Damsons used in many foods and drinks (including gin and wine), grown in the Lyth Valley.
There are also Morecambe Bay Shrimps- usually sold potted in butter, on the subject of fishing in the Solway Estuary (between England and Scotland) there is still haaf net fishing- traditional fishing using a wooden frame and net.

And of course every walker should have a block of Kendal Mintcake in their day sac (rucksack in the UK).

At Hawkshead there is the wonderful Hawkshead Relish Company- as well as relishes/sauces for savoury dishes, they have the most wonderful range of jams. They can be found for sale in many farm shops and supermarkets in the region, but there is no substitute to visiting the companies own shop in the Market Square at Hawkshead.

There are a number of local craft breweries- there was an open weekend this weekend just gone at the Ennerdale Brewery at Rowrah, for instance. One of the others is at Keswick (which does tours a few days a month in the summer). Another one is the Hawkshead Brewery (at Staveley- a village which you by pass on the road between Kendal and Windermere).

This is still only touching the surface.

Cumbria has the highest number of Michelin star restaurants of any county outside London.

A really good place to buy local produce is at the farm shop at the unique Tebay Services on the M6.

The County is far, far more than Sticky Toffee pudding and Grasmere Gingerbread.

There is one place that has been left out. It is probably the greatest sight in all of the UK. After visiting you will ask yourself why did I waste time in London or York or the Highlands of Scotland. What could I have seen in Bath or the Cotswolds that could compare to this place.

What am I referring to? Why.......it's the......

Derwent Pencil Museum in Keswick.

The old pencil factory is being converted to be a new centre for the Keswick Convention- a three week religious event held in the town each summer.
The Company itself still exists, but no longer manufactures in Keswick- the factory is now at Lillyhall, near Workington, on the Cumbrian coast.
The story of lead extraction in the area goes back centuries, originally involving German miners.

There are many other places not mentioned above, such as the Threlkeld Quarry and Mining Museum, about 4 miles away (a good partner with the Castlerigg stone circle).
Staying on the theme of Industrial Archaeology a few days every year there is the chance to visit the Force Crag mine (outside Braithwaite). A very interesting place. This is run by the National Trust.
They also own Derwent Island in the middle of Derwentwater. Again, if you happen to be there at the right time, that is a rare opportunity, which is hoped to come back in 2024 (not open in 2023). You have to kayak out there- again a National Trust property. Time was when they chartered a lake launch.
And don't forget the still working Honister Mine and it's Via Ferrata.

Also if you get the chance to visit one of the local Agricultural Shows (Keswick's is August Bank Holiday weekend) or sports days (like at Ambleside or Grasmere) do take that chance. It's a great chance to meet the locals and get to know more of local culture.
I have a full list for anyone interested.
One of the more unusual is the Egremont Crab Fair (established in the year 1267) and World Gurning Championships in September- these are crab apples, not crabs as in crustaceans.
Several Churches also have Rushbearing Ceremonies-rushes were formerly the Church flooring for the year- Grasmere, Ambleside and Urswick (near Ulverston) are some of them.
There is also Horse Racing at Carlisle and Cartmel.
In the east of the County there are also a number of open air swimming pools- all Community run.

On water two of the more unusual things to do are-
1. On the Ullswater steamers each fall there are usually a few very early morning cruises to Howtown to experience the deer rutting- hopefully these will return for 2023- they are always announced quite late anyway.
2. On Windermere, on Saturday evenings in June, July and August there are live music cruises with an included buffet meal. These are always very popular and are confirmed as returning post Covid.

Just points out that one could visit an area multiple times and still not experience everything it has to offer.

I've lived here for 49 years (apart from periods temporarily in London, overseas and elsewhere in the UK) for work, and there are still places I either want to explore, or need to re-explore. Often places far away from where any visitor can be persuaded to get to. For space reasons RS can only cover a tiny part of the area in his guidebooks.
The what's on guide for the County for this year has 80 densely filled pages for instance.
And things are constantly changing. This year there are supposed to be 3 new jetties on Windermere, for instance. At the moment there is nothing actually confirmed about that.- updated 29 July 2023- the new jetties have been delayed

The County is far, far more than Sticky Toffee pudding and Grasmere Gingerbread.

You might get a reaction from Mardee , if she sees this