Orrest Head World of Attraction

On the Lake Around the Lake Family Activities From the rugged backdrop of mountains to wooded Even without leaving dry land there is plenty to do all year In and around Windermere and Bowness, there is a huge shores and secluded bays, Windermere is surrounded by round. Take a leisurely stroll along the lakeshore, explore choice of activities for the whole family to enjoy. some breathtaking scenery – best appreciated from the the area by bicycle or open-top , or visit one of the lake itself. numerous historic houses or gardens. 8 Lakes Aquarium (SD378873) This freshwater aquarium is home to more than just fish. You 1 (SD401968) Viewpoints can see otters, British sharks and diving ducks and interact with Cruise in comfort, with sailings all year round between Bowness, The short walk to Orrest Head (SD415994) 4 is well worth the hippos and crocodiles in the virtual dive bell. Easily accessible and Lakeside or enjoy a special 45-minute island uphill effort, for at the top is an outstanding panoramic view of the from the Windermere Lake Cruises jetty at Lakeside. sightseeing cruise. Summer sailings to , , lake and surrounding mountains. Other viewpoints can be found at Tel: 015395 30153 www.lakesaquarium.co.uk House and Fell Foot Country Park. Evening buffet cruises Biskey Howe (SD409969), Post Knott (SD406964), Hammar with traditional live jazz music (summer only). Bank (SD405991) and Queen Adelaide’s Hill (SD403987). 9 Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway (SD378875) Tel: 015394 43360 www.windermere-lakecruises.co.uk Cockshott Point (SD396964) 5 , a rocky promontory jutting Take a nostalgic steam-powered trip along a scenic section of into Windermere, provides magnificent views over the lake. railway from Haverthwaite to Lakeside. Trains can be boarded 2 Fell Foot (SD382871) at Lakeside (in conjunction with Windermere Lake Cruises) or A restored Victorian park with lakeshore access to Windermere 6 Holehird Gardens (NY410009) Haverthwaite (with car parking, restaurant and woodland picnic and children’s playground. Hire a rowing boat and head out on This 10-acre hillside garden, managed by the Lakeland area). Special event weekends. the lake, or enjoy a picnic and a paddle. There is a ferry across to Horticultural Society, has been transformed from an abandoned Tel: 015395 31594 www.lakesiderailway.co.uk Lakeside and Windermere Lake Cruises stops at Fell Foot during rock garden into a ‘garden for all seasons’, with specimen trees, the summer months. a walled garden with herbaceous borders, and displays of alpine Look out for special combined tickets which include by Open all year round (tearoom Mar–Oct only). plants. The national plant collections for astilbe, hydrangea and steamer (or launch) to Lakeside, entry to the Lakes Aquarium and Tel: 015395 31273 www.nationaltrust.org.uk polystichum ferns are held here. a ride on the Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway. Tel: 015394 46008 www.holehirdgardens.org.uk 3 Shepherds Windermere Ltd 10 World of Beatrix Potter Attraction (SD403971) Hire a self-drive motor boat or electric cabin cruiser and explore 7 Blackwell, the Arts & Crafts House (SD401946) Bringing all 23 of Beatrix Potter tales to life, complete with sights, Windermere at your leisure. Blackwell was built as a holiday home for Sir Edward Holt, a sounds and smells! Discover in Mr McGregor’s Windermere Marina Village, Bowness Bay, LA23 3JQ wealthy brewer from Manchester. No expense was spared in garden, visit Mrs Tiggy-winkle in her kitchen and explore the Tel: 015394 46004 www.shepherdswindermere.co.uk creating a finely detailed home that takes its inspiration from woodland glade with Jemima Puddleduck. The nature. The house was completed in 1900 to a design by Mackay Room uses film, displays and virtual technology to explore the Hugh Baillie Scott – one of the foremost architects of the Arts author’s life. & Crafts movement. Changing exhibitions on contemporary and Tel: 015394 88444 www.hop-skip-jump.com historic crafts. Tel: 015394 46139 www.blackwell.org.uk

By Bus Services run frequently between Windermere and Bowness. Other bus services connect with Brockhole Visitor Centre, Coniston, and the Langdales. a sense of place Service 599 runs frequently between Bowness Pier (Windermere) and (via Windermere rail station and Ambleside). Seasonal Sunday service. Service 555 between Kendal and Keswick (via Windermere. Ambleside and Grasmere) runs at regular intervals every day. The towns of Windermere and Bowness at the heart of the Service 505 – daily service to Hawkshead and Coniston. Service 516 – daily service to Great Langdale (April to October). have been a magnet for visitors since Victorian Service 517 – seasonal service to Glenridding (via Troutbeck and the Kirkstone times. With easy access to the lake shore of Windermere Pass). Check timetable for dates and times. windermere and panoramic views of the lake and surrounding fells, the Service 618 – daily service between Ambleside and Barrow-in-Furness (via Brockhole, area remains just as popular today. Windermere, Bowness, Newby Bridge and ), with connecting services for Windermere Lake Cruises at Waterhead (Ambleside) and Bowness. Windermere, ’s longest lake, is a narrow finger of A hail-and-ride road train provides a circular service between Braithwaite Fold car & bowness park and Bowness Information Centre every day from Easter to the end of October. water some 17 km (10.5 miles) long, stretching from Ambleside in the north to Newby Bridge in the south. There are 14 islands Explorer tickets allow travel on all Stagecoach in and Lancashire. Tickets can be purchased on any Stagecoach service. Bowness Bay Tourist in the lake, the largest of which is Belle Isle (formerly known Information Centre offers 4-day Explorer and 7-Day Gold Rider tickets (passport as Longholme) with its unusual circular house. A ferry service photo required). has operated across the narrowest point of the lake (Bowness to By Train Ferry House on the western shore) since the 15th century. The railway station at Windermere has trains departing every hour or so to Oxenholme – The Lake District, on the main intercity route between Scotland and Originally a small hamlet called Birthwaite, the town of the South of England. Windermere rose to prominence with the completion of the For more information on all bus, rail and ferry timetables and , contact Traveline railway link from Kendal in 1847. The railway came and so did the on 0871 200 22 33 or www.traveline.org.uk visitors – some 120,000 in its first year, mainly from the industrial By Cycle towns of Lancashire and Yorkshire. Horse-drawn carriages were Bicycles can be taken on the Windermere steamers and most launches. For more information on cycling in Cumbria generally go to laid on to ferry passengers from the station to the lakeside, whilst www.cyclingcumbria.co.uk took hotel guests on sightseeing excursions around Cross Lakes Experience the area. Explore without the car - a combination of lake cruiser, and can deliver you to the door. Service operates between Windermere, Bowness, Hawkshead, Until the 19th century, Bowness-on-Windermere was a fishing Grizedale and Coniston. Pick up a leaflet from a Tourist Information Centre, Windermere Lake Cruises or Mountain Goat and plan your adventure! Tel: 015394 45161 village. But once the railway came to Windermere, hotels, villas and houses rapidly sprang up to accommodate the Mountain Goat Victoria Street, Windermere LA13 1AD influx of visitors. Today, it is a bustling tourist destination offering Full and half day themed Lake District tours by minibus. Sit back and enjoy spectacular, a cosmopolitan mix of shops, restaurants and accommodation. panoramic views. Tel: 015394 45161 www.mountain-goat.com For advice on local events, where to eat, where to stay and what to do in Windermere For wealthy Victorian businessmen from the urban areas, the and Bowness, please call or visit: Lakes was a haven of scenic tranquillity, and many of them Tourist Information Centre, Victoria Street, Windermere, LA23 1AD acquired grand country retreats on Windermere, such as Tel: 015394 46499 Email: [email protected] (now a hotel) and (now the Lake District Storrs Hall Brockhole Tourist Information Centre, Glebe Road, Bowness-on-Windermere, National Park Visitor Centre). LA23 3HJ, Tel: 015394 42895 Email: [email protected] www.lake-district.gov.uk Today, the area is a focus for pleasure cruises and a variety of Other sources of information can be found at www.windermereonline.co.uk watersports, such as sailing, kayaking and windsurfing. Away from the lake shore you’ll find a variety of heritage sites, historic Alternatively you can check availability or book accommodation on www.golakes.co.uk houses, gardens and other visitor attractions.

Published by South Lakes Tourism Action Group and Cumbria Tourism Designed by Sedley Place Whilst every effort was made to ensure that the information was correct at the time of going to press, Cumbria Tourism can accept no responsibility for any changes, errors Cover image: Windermere and the Langdale Pikes or omissions, nor for any inconvenience arising therefrom. www.golakes.co.uk what to see & do...

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t S b 22 c Other places to see LIFE at Troutbeck: Swimming Pool & Gym 1 a a r © Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. Cartmel Fell r r Tel: 015394 43243 www.wellbeing-life.co.uk Oxford Cartographers: License No. 100031961 8 9 o Published 2008 2 w Lakeside 11 25m indoor swimming pool and 30 station gym. Day membership passes and swim Lake District Visitor Centre at Brockhole (NY389010) Tel: 015394 46601 www.lake-district.gov.uk session prices. Please call in advance to check times.

D R S Activities for all the family. There are exhibitions on Lakeland life and landscapes, special W S YN L A 23 Royalty Cinema (SD405972) GARDENS events and workshops, and attractive gardens with an adventure playground for children. Y WINDERMERE R RIO P A The café serves home-made food and refreshments. Free admission, but with on-site Lake Road, Bowness-on-Windermere

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B parking charges. Arrive by bus, boat, bike or on foot and your visit is completely free! Tel: 015394 43364 www.nm-cinemas.co.uk L E S Offers the latest releases and selected screenings of less mainstream films. R NE I O D PO LE E S VA 12 St Martin’s Church, Bowness (SD402961) 24 R Built in 1483, this is one of the earliest surviving churches in Cumbria. The magnificent Windermere Canoe Kayak OAD A591 east window incorporates the coat of arms of John Washington, an ancestor of the first Ferry Nab Road, Bowness-on-Windermere, LA23 3JH ST. MA RY CHURCH Tel: 015394 44451 www.windermerecanoekayak.com ’S president of the USA (George Washington). His heraldry of stars and stripes is thought P K A R R A E K P ST Full or half-day hire of canoes and kayaks. Other activities arranged from climbing and L REET to have inspired the American flag.

L Y T A E S ’S abseiling to mountain biking and archery. Tuition by fully qualified instructors. Y W R T WINDERMERE A

R S I A A G E H RAILWAY STN A M L Y G R 5 A L I 91 13 X R E

I H O R Hill Top (SD370955)

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N E A T E D C 16 N Y 25 O C R S I Windermere Golf Club (SD419962) H V O 27 Tel: 015394 36269 www.nationaltrust.org.uk P S S S T T Step into the world of Beatrix Potter in this 17th century farmhouse, which provided the Cleabarrow, Windermere, LA23 3NB Tel: 015394 43123 H

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C AI CH inspiration for 13 of her books including The Tale of Tom Kitten and The Tale of Jemima 18-hole handicap and membership of a club required. M R EE T T O B EE E E R S LD A ST S I Puddleduck. Owned by the National Trust, it remains much the same as when she lived

N C C SALIS- L O B E A I C L PO BURY 26 R N N here, with many of her paintings, furniture and china on view. Admission charge and timed T O L Windermere Lake Holidays H CH ST PLACE E L E T W L R BIR AI E G T G O O E E R D E R entry system (to avoid overcrowding). Accessible by ferry and bus from Bowness. R Ferry Nab, Bowness, LA23 3JH Tel: 015394 43415 www.lakewindermere.net A O K RO R AD D C

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S D L E B L R V T O Sailing boats for hire. A A W N O H F E A C EL D R L 14 E L S Pinfold Gallery (SD404972) E T Z E A E H R T 27 D S D Tel: 015394 42929 www.pinfoldgallery.co.uk Lakeland B R I C R I AD T O V LA

HW A E RO K IF Showcasing glassware, ceramics and jewellery, mainly from Cumbrian artists. The gallery A ROA E Alexandra , Windermere, LA23 1BQ IT B AV E wc R E S O ND AD S runs several glassmaking workshops every year. Open Wed–Sat (10.00–5.00); Sun R T Tel: 015394 88100 www.lakeland.co.uk GLA O R N AD E D LO E R S T O (11.00–4.00). Closed January. The home of creative kitchenware. Overflowing with innovative ideas to make food T O R M E E E R W T preparation, cooking, freezing and preserving so much easier. E E L P D N L R B E IV A R E T C Things to do H K HO W LLY E A R D L O A I A W L T D O Local facilities E E E R S R T S - O Park U CHESTNUT RD 15 T R D Budgie Bikes TH H O N T A P EN W A L A C D R D Post Offices – Crescent Road, Windermere. St Martin’s Parade, Bowness-on- C A O S 4 O K Tel: 01524 389410 www.budgietransport.co.uk R

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E D V Hire point at White Cross Bay, Ambleside Road, Windermere. Meet-and-greet service at N A5 O

T A A OLDFIELD D AITE RD To Bowness K Windermere Railway Station. Bikes can be dropped off at most Youth Hostels throughout THW R COURT © cumbria tourism 2008 BIR A RN P CO and Lake Cumbria – check website for details. Public Parks – Queens Park, Park Road, Windermere (bowling, tennis, children’s play area, skateboard park). The Glebe Recreation Ground, Bowness-on-Windermere

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ON A (18-hole mini golf, putting, tennis (Easter–Oct)). 4 To 16 5 G Country Lanes Cycle Centre 7 9 L A 0 2 N Windermere Q D 5 U The Railway Station, Windermere, LA23 1AH BOWNESS-ON- G S A LK A IG R A R R D B W IS Car Parks – Windermere Railway Station. Broad Street, Windermere. Hammar R Y G Y NORTH TER K I R A Tel: 015394 44544 www.countrylanes.co.uk EY R R C R 23 WINDERMERE B A H RO Bank, Windermere. Rayrigg Meadow, Bowness. Rayrigg Road, Bowness. Quarry A W U S O

O W Also at Lakeside, Newby Bridge (0845 3700778) Q U Y T

P H E R TE Mount, Bowness (short stay). Glebe Road, Bowness. Rectory Road, Bowness (owned I R K G wc B L OWA 14 A

D N G R K W Y A T E E by Windermere Lake Cruises). Ferry Nab Road, Bowness. Braithwaite Fold, Bowness. K B E K O R W 17 R R S R R Holehird Tarn (NY408008) G I O P A O O AI B H G R A P wc A A C D Stunning estate lake with carp, bream, tench and perch. Fishing permits from Bowness D 21 R C Petrol Stations – Troutbeck Bridge. Main Road, Windermere. Rayrigg Road, Bowness. W 10 HE Bay Tourist Information Centre and Windermere Service Station. Contact Windermere O LM

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A and Ambleside District Angling Association www.lakedistrictfishing.net

E B R L PO L O L T M AD Public Toilets – Broad Street, Windermere. Rayrigg Meadow car park, Bowness. A S LA

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U S G G T H E E H S IG R Lake Road, Windermere (also disabled toilet) by the Baddeley clock tower. Quarry Mount C S 18 R W I A A L’ G E Lakes Leisure O S 12 H G O E L car park, Bowness. Glebe Road, Bowness (next to Tourist Information Centre). Braithwaite C Leigh Grove , Rayrigg Road, Windermere, LA23 1BP E M ST D AR E D Windermere A T L R Fold car park, Bowness. Ferry Nab car park, Bowness. Rayrigg Road car park, Bowness. L E L H IN A I N L N V Tel: 015394 47183 www.lakesleisure.org.uk I S E W GR D L S IG G E O E B I E E O L I PA W V RK CH M BEE A range of water activities for all ages and abilities. Learn how to windsurf, canoe, kayak B 1 RA RO NT FELL

P ROAD and sail with fully qualified instructors. Children’s multi-activity courses. Also walking, Did you know? K

D E climbing and family events.

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N E I D F In 1895 Windermere became ice-bound for 6 weeks, making it possible to walk from one R ROAD I A

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D O side of the lake to the other. E B 19 A

B H R Maples Yachting E wc O

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A O L D K R L N Marina Village, Bowness-on-Windermere E D P 5 IE A N E A Under the chancel at St Martin’s Church is the mass grave of 47 people who drowned in F F F R 9 B S D IE A 2 L L D W E Tel: 07889 773292 www.maplesyachting.co.uk

B 1635 when their ferry capsized on the way back from a wedding in Hawkshead.

Park K Cruises, sailing courses, boat tuition

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D A P A A B O 5 Legend says that whenever misfortune is about to happen in the area, a ghostly white R 0 7 POST 4 K 20 horse walks on the water. Y S N OB Sailing R N E O O

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R T C A Ferry Nab, Bowness-on-Windermere, LA23 3JH E R G Windermere and Bowness were the second towns in England to have electric street

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B Tel: 015395 52338 www.obsailing.co.uk E

GLE L lighting. The power was supplied from a hydro-electric plant at Troutbeck Bridge. B G E Sailing courses with qualified instructors. Yacht hire available.

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D E An aircraft factory was once sited at White Cross Bay, near Troutbeck Bridge, operating F L E A L D C IR I R T - S RO E R O A E S EE 21 the Avro Seaplane Pleasure Flight Company. B D E C R E EN Old Laundry Theatre (SD403971) L IV T G R D 2 L Crag Brow, Bowness-on-Windermere, LA23 3BX wc 9 A 5 A D Tel: 015394 88444 ext. 223 www.oldlaundrytheatre.com N

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K Cumbria’s only professional in-the-round theatre, founded in 1992 in conjunction with © cumbria tourism 2008 playwright Alan Ayckbourn and housed in an old Edwardian laundry building.