A national holiday is a great chance to plan a long weekend trip away, but how do you manage an amazing getaway when the rest of the country has the same idea? We look at how it is possible to avoid the crowds, avoid the traffic and truly get away from it all for a few days in May.
With it being a bank holiday weekend in the UK, we made a conscious and unusual decision to book a campsite for the full duration of the long weekend. We knew from experience that the Lake District would be flooded with people, and the park authorities take a dim view of wild camping at these busy times. The Lakes is one of our favourite adventure destinations to escape to, particularly in the off season when you can pretty much have the place to yourself, as long as you know where to go! However, in peak season, it is a very different experience. The key hubs of Windermere, Ambleside and Keswick get really busy with the holiday crowds and accommodation can be really hard to come by.
We are not sure how we stumbled upon Seathwaite Farm camping, we think it was probably a recommendation from an outdoor magazine article from the dim and distant past. It was definitely a Jackie and Richard sort of place. Based on a working sheep farm at the end of the Borrowdale Valley, it can be best described as a back to basics experience. No phone signal or wifi (there is a public payphone box for emergencies), no lights at night, no electric hook-ups, no designated pitches, no card payments and £1 for hot showers at set times only.
It was a brilliant site that we would thoroughly recommend to anyone who loves the great outdoors. It is in prime location at the head of the valley for walking and climbing without having to move the van during your stay. In addition, it has a river flowing through the site for those that fancy a wild swim. In the spring, it also has lambs everywhere, as well as a lambing shed that was always a delight to visit.
The farmer was a brilliant character, always willing to chat and pass the time of day. All in, the three nights cost £49 which in the current climate is equivalent to one night at neighbouring sites. You cannot pre-book on this site, just turn up, pitch up and the farmer will find you at some point for cash payment. Refreshingly simple.
As expected, despite our best plans, the entire motorway system seemingly ground to a halt on the Friday night of a bank holiday weekend. How very dare the entire country look to get away at the same time as us! We had a tough journey north up the M6, but we knew that the effort would be worth it for three uninterrupted nights away in the mountains. We could feel the stress of the week lift as we drove towards Keswick, surrounded by impressive peaks bathed in the warmth of the fading light of the day. After squeezing through a surprising road closure, we finally arrived at Seathwaite just before the most beautiful sunset. There is no better way to start the weekend adventures than by a campfire, with some cheese and wine, surrounded by high peaks.
We both just love waking up on a working farm- we think that it must be in our rural DNA. The stray sheep and lambs wandering around before anyone has really stirred, the cows in the sheds munching away and the inevitable cockerel crowing. The plan was to get going, bag some Wainwrights and get down off the fell before the rain came. What a start- it took us about an hour to cover less than 1.5km due to the 600+ metres of elevation to Glamara, which concluded in a great little scramble to the summit. Our efforts were rewarded as we stayed high and ridge walked to Allan Crags, before completing an out and back to Great End. We descended via Ruddy Gill and Grains Gill back to Seathwaite, passing some of the most beautiful waterfalls and pools that we have definitely earmarked for wild swimming later in the year. A good day on the fells and back at the van and having a beer by 1500, cannot be bad. The Garmin told us we had clocked 14.3km and 1100m of vertical in total- we are starting to get our hill fitness back as we both felt ok after what should have been a reasonably challenging day.
As we woke on the Sunday, still a little tired from the previous day and a little groggy from the consumption of wine, the forecast was for a murky start to the day that would gradually clear up later on. We took the opportunity to pop into Keswick before the crowds arrived for a mooch around the shops. It’s amazing how our consumer habits have changed in the 4 years that we have been out and about adventuring. We are now only really interested in purchasing things that will keep us warm or dry or cool in the great outdoors. We look for practical kit that has multi uses for our time in the van. We purchase very little, and yet have real happiness in the limited things that we possess. By 1200 it was time to get out of Keswick as the crowds had started to gather and the town was getting considerably busier, great for the local traders…but not for us.
We pressed gamble on the walk and after a lazy lunch back at Seathwaite, we set off hoping that the clouds on the tops would clear by the time we got up there…they didn’t! We headed for Base Brown, following the advice of Alfred Wainwright to the letter, ascending via Sour Milk Gill which was impressively in full flow after the previous nights rain, and then taking a wild little scramble under the hanging stone and onto the summit. We were then well and truly in the clagg and visibility was pretty poor at the summit. The moorland tops were very wet with lots of marshy areas as we followed the cairns to Green Gable.
By this time, we were pretty wet from the constant fine drizzle, so descended quickly via Aaron Slack- not a route to be taken likely, or one we would ever choose to repeat. It was basically a wide scree gully that was a thoroughly unpleasant experience to descend on tired legs and in slippery conditions. Any thought of a third Wainwright for the day was off the agenda, as we passed Styhead Tarn the pull of the campsite and a hot shower was far too strong. We could soon see the campsite down the valley, but as ever at the end of any walk, it never seemed to get any closer. We eventually made it down to the beautiful bridge at Stockley Bridge and our goal was nearly in reach. A relatively short walk on the Garmin at just over 8km, but with over 700m of assent in challenging conditions it made for a good day.
As predicted, we had a wonderfully clear evening, sitting round the campfire, chatting with our neighbours, drinking far too much wine and toasting marshmallow S'mores. Only the lure of the lambing fields at dusk got us moving again, witnessing first hand the fields of naughtiness that only occurs at this time of the day. Anyone that denies that lambs bring a warm glow to the heart must surely be a liar? Moments like this really are food for the soul.
We woke with aching legs and feet and could not face another day on the fells. To be fair, it was never on the agenda as two days of back to back elevation takes its toll on old legs. Instead we had a leisurely breakfast and drank far too much fresh coffee by the river. We then looked to our trusty wild guide book to see what we could find on our journey out of the lakes towards home. We didn’t have to look far, finding the secluded Calfclose Bay on the west side of Derwent Water. Not only did this give us the chance to stretch off our weary legs from the last two days of exertions, but we also had time to play with the cameras as Derwent Water was looking resplendent in the morning light. Thanks to the wild guide, we stumbled across some modern art in the form of a split boulder sculpture to commemorate 100 years of the National Trust.
Weekend breaks are never easy to balance in the Lake District. You need to match your own level of fitness with how much activity is manageable, plan to avoid the crowds in the hotspots and also take time to explore the hidden gems that are not necessarily always on the tops of the fells. There is so much to do in the Lake District, the challenge is having the patience to know when to let things wait for another visit. Rest assured, there will always be another visits!
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