Coast to Coast UK - Spring is in the air

The air was heavy with the scent of spring as Wallsy and I went for a ramble up the lane to the south of Bank Ground Farm this morning. All our friends had left to travel home, and we were dealing with more mundane things like washing, in preparation for moving on tomorrow to the start of our hike. The ramble was taking place while the washing was doing its thing in the convenient guest laundry at the farm.

Once the clothes were dealt with, we sorted and folded and then decided to walk into Coniston village in search of lunch. We availed ourselves of the public footpath that leads across the fields of Bank Ground Farm and the neighbouring property before spitting walkers out on the lane to do battle with passing cars and cyclists.

We lunched at the Crown Hotel  and then went to buy a compass (just in case!) and a tick remover (also just in case). This done, we decided to walk to Torver along the lake path, an exercise in navigating fields of inquisitive cows, nonchalant sheep, and many gates, each with a different opening system, none of them straightforward!

Narrowly missing the return launch at the Torver jetty, we walked the 5kms back, rewarding ourselves with an icecream and a stroll through both the old and new churchyards. Wallsy was looking for a particular gravestone and it was after searching the old cemetery in vain, that we realised there must be a second, newer one elsewhere in the village. This proved correct and once we had found our way there, the graves of the family he sought were easily found.  

We walked back to the Coniston Inn, settled in for a drink on the lawns and then ordered a light dinner before walking the remaining 1.3  miles back to the Farm.

Our bags are packed, and we are ready to move on to the next leg of the journey, bidding this beautiful section of the Lakes farewell, until next time.







 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Vatican Vistas

Image
 The information for the guided tour of the Vatican Museum and St Peter’s Basilica that we had signed up for,  spoke encouragingly about beating the crowds with an early morning tour, and promised more time to view the masterpieces in a quieter atmosphere. So we left the hotel with a paper-bag breakfast in hand at 6:30 am, for the thirty minute walk beside the Tiber River, to the meeting point just outside Vatican City.  Arriving at the appointed time of 07:15 at a random address on Viale Guilio Cesare. At first there was no-one there, but soon others arrived, also looking for the tour, and finally the guides appeared and handed out the requisite tickets, identifying stickers and audio sets. Our guide was very entertaining, beginning with some very strong opinions about what was wrong with the system which didn’t cap daily ticket sales, leading to long queues and delays in entering both the museum and the Basilica.  Our entry to the museum was however quite prompt on...
Read more

Arrivederci Australia

Image
 A 23-hour-long test of patience, stamina and the ability to sleep (or not) while sitting upright in a narrow space, was the precursor to a long awaited trip to Italy for this small group of friends, family and some strangers.  Our group of four comprised of two sisters and a combination of old and new friends, left Melbourne airport on a sunny Wednesday afternoon - the last day of April, 2025.  Spirits were high and so were nerves, as we farewelled partners and stepped into the Departure tunnel where we were still to navigate the vagaries of security and passport control. An incident where one of our bags fell on top of another while traversing the scanner,  caused a slight delay and a few moments of concern as both bags were whisked away, much to the consternation of their owners, only to be rescanned and quickly returned and released.  Passport control also caused some consternation, when incomplete instructions resulted in one member leaving her glasses on a...
Read more

Roman ruins

Image
We were ready and waiting in the rooftop bar, when the Queensland crew arrived, so we all enjoyed a drink together and began the process of getting to know each other, before crossing the river to the Trastevere precinct for a dinner of traditional Roman carbonara (no cream in sight!). We were soon back at the hotel saying our goodnights, well and truly ready for a decent sleep.  Friday morning found us all greatly refreshed and keen to explore, so keen in fact, that we rendezvoused downstairs at 6:30 am in an attempt to beat the crowds to the renowned Trevi Fountain. Even at that early hour, there were plenty of people gathered at the fountain, but we could at least get down to the water’s edge and managed to get plenty of photos.  With the Palazzo Poli appearing to grow up from the same rock that the fountain’s sculptures have been carved from, this truly is an ancient Roman wonder and a sight to behold.  We smiled ruefully at the many women who were there, at 7 am, in ...
Read more