I have just spent a week in the Lake District.
Travelling with a dodgy hip makes for an interesting time
when going into an area of natural beauty with mountains and mud. In nature
there are hills, stones, steps and not many bust stops which can make it tough
to make it an enjoyable time. But we had a plan!
We had a car and a lot of tramadol. We had a small list of
things we wanted to do and as it is late November in the UK the days are short.
This meant we could keep our days at manageable length by trying to returning
back to our holiday home before dark.
The other part of the plan was to take strong pain killers
and hope I did not buy all the shiny things and also not do too much and make sure what we did was
accessible. Mr Gin said he would rather a slightly drugged me than me being in
pain. I took this on board , I don’t like the feeling of being on tramadol and
there was one point I felt like my brain had shrunk and I could feel a
breeze between my brain and skull, not
very nice. It did mean I could walk further and we did something every day. And
most of it involved some walking, generally I rested in the evening and in the
mornings not too much pain to deal with! Mr Gin was a trooper and had to
explain to some shop keepers as I lost track of my thought’s and found money a
little tricky at time. Oddly I found dealing with my camera generally fine. I
used my cane outside all the time and found most people aware off it and got
out of my way which helped too.
A couple of places that deserve mention for their amazing
accessibility and views as, for me, most of the views were out of my reach with
the walking. The first was Force , an amazing water fall in the
Pennines. The walk was a wide gravelled path, a little steep at the beginning
that would be a challenge for wheel chairs coming back. For me it was very
comfortable, and it was only at the falls I skipped the short flight if steps
to the river side. The views all the way were stunning and not going down the
stair did not mean I felt I was missing out!
Brilliant.
The old railway line walk in Keswick was also lovely, it was
a little muddy and stout boots would be advisable. The bridges were well constructed
and had anti slip bits. It is part of a bike trail to the coast there were no
steps. The general feel was tranquil and well used with lots tourists and
visitors using it, from bike riders, joggers, older walkers and lots of dogs
using the trail. We were assured there was good coffee at the end.
We visited Beatrix Potter’s Cottage, the house is generally
not open and I suspect would be very much an old building with the standard
issue winding stairs and narrow doorways and tight interiors. The original
cobbled path was a challenge but we did find an asphalt path which was much
easier to navigate. There were some
steps into the main building but I think there was a way around this. The
cottage is run by the National trust and the staff were super helpful.
Castlerigg stone circle was amazing to visit, located in a
field there was a little bit of a sort ground issue and if you were on your own
the self-closing gated could be a challenge. We parked right outside and just
crossed the road to get in. At the entrance there was a bronze plate with the relief
casting of the circle for those with vision loss. The hill was a little steep
and the grass deep but I got up the hill to be greeted with the most magnificent
view. Just breath taking. The circle was lovely and the view stunning. Had it
been any wetter I figure the grass would be mud but certainly accessible.
A lot of the Lake District towns are old and therefore have
the standard issues of steps and generally getting into places. In general we
did not find many places with toilets down stairs or upstairs like you do in
London. Most of the pavements were well cared for but of course there were places
there was no pavement and you had to go onto the road. Most of the curbs were
low and dropped in many places.
Finally the most wonderful thing was it was possible to get
to parts of the lakes and drink in the views and even driving around in the car
the views were stunning.
With the all the planning and work arounds we had a great
time, but so will be back when I can climb some mountains.
