Coniston

Today is my birthday treat, courtesy of the Minx. She suggested we meet at my office, this morning, and leave her car there, which suggested to me that we were going somewhere in the Lakes but that was as much as I knew. 

We set off just after ten and took the A591 up to Ambleside before heading west out to Coniston, which was our daytime destination. Parking up in a car park at the north of the lake, we walked into the town. The view down the lake has a little significance for us: long before I met the Minx, when we were just acquaintances on Twitter, I posted a photo of Coniston, which she then drew.

We stopped for coffee and bacon rolls, and discussed where we might walk as there were no very enticing walks available on the web. We still weren't sure by the time we'd eaten and wandered into a local shop. Happily, they were selling maps of local walks, so we bought a set and decided on a five mile walk that would take us along a disused railway line and then alongside the lake. 

My favourite reward for a long walk is a pint in a pub and we seemed to be spoilt for choice in Coniston, in the end opting for The Crown Inn, which was lovely (and also not averse to cooking us a pot of chips even though the kitchen was closed).

After that we headed down to Bouth, where the Minx had booked us into the White Hart Inn, which was lovely; an old convoluted building, with good rooms, a cracking bar, and, as we found out in the evening, excellent food. Would recommend!

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