Grasmere is an exceptionally popular place to stay as it is close to many of the biggest Lake District lakes but is a little away from the tourist circus and associated traffic jams around Windermere and Bowness. However while Grasmere village is smaller and much…Read More

Grasmere is an exceptionally popular place to stay as it is close to many of the biggest Lake District lakes but is a little away from the tourist circus and associated traffic jams around Windermere and Bowness.

However while Grasmere village is smaller and much more peaceful than its bigger neighbours (particularly after the tourist busses go to bed around 5pm), it is still a place that has sold much of its heart and soul to the tourist devil.

Poet Wordsworth lived here up until 1850, and many of his poems depict the quiet and nature of the area. I would imagine that if he lived in Grasmere today, Wordsworth will have suffered from terrible writers block beyond writing eloquent pleas to his local newspaper complaining about the tourists parking in his parking space and gawping through his living room window.

To be truthful as someone that doesn’t live too many miles from the lakes, we really shouldn't visit the area in peak tourist season as we can get it almost to ourselves if we choose a good winter's day.

The main Grasmere attractions are with Wordsworth; you can visit his cottage (Dove Cottage) on the outskirts of town, and his gravestone in the local Church. You can also look around all the local shops, restaurants and guest houses to spot the ones that don't reference towards either Wordsworth or one of his poems. There are no shortage of places to dine in Grasmere, although be warned that most if not all cater for an upmarket clientele. You will struggle to find a basic pub meal here.

The village centre is also a good place to try and hunt down walking equipment as there are several stores offering good discounts on clothing, waterproofs and rucksacks. Of course if you actually live here, I don’t suppose you can find a place that sells everyday food and household goods, but if you are after speciality chutney then Grasmere is your place.

While many of the visitors to Grasmere certainly put on a good show, I am uncertain how many of them actually need their hiking gear and venture out into the hills above the town. You are in for a treat if you do as the hiking isn't too busy and it's easy to get a good view for your efforts (assuming the weather is being kind to you rather than obscuring your view with mist.

Considering Grasmere does at least get quiet after hours and is a great walking base, it does make that reasonable compromise between commercialism and convenience to natural beauty.

Despite its touristy air, I can imagine what life must have been like here in Wordsworth day; rather remote and with its slate built houses, even rather dour on those frequent rainy days.

Overall, despite the bustle of tourists by day Grasmere still just about manages to retain most of its original interest and beauty; my tip is to come right at the beginning or end of the tourist season, stay for a night or two and bring or buy your hiking gear for the best Grasmere experience.
Close

While the UK Lake District is a particularly lush and beautifully green part of the world, it is the unpredictable weather that contributes to its beauty. As such, any visitor to the area has to prepare for contingencies in case they wake up to a…Read More

While the UK Lake District is a particularly lush and beautifully green part of the world, it is the unpredictable weather that contributes to its beauty. As such, any visitor to the area has to prepare for contingencies in case they wake up to a shroud of mist and driving rain.

We were hoping to fit in a long hike during our short stay but fortunately had already devised a plan b if the weather was unkind. Our alternative day comprised of a morning in Keswick and an afternoon tacking a shorter hike up to Easedale Tarn, a seven miler that didn't ascend too far up into the fells, mist and rain. As it happened we still got soaked to the skin and my mobile phone blew up in the rain, but we had a lovely wild hike regardless.

The hike goes through the middle of Grasmere village, and then past the Youth Hostel and just beyond the Quaker Centre along a field, and then a stony lane. This stony lane was actually a sizable stream by the time we reached it, and we marveled at the practicality of the dry stone wall field boundaries as little rivlets of water passed effortlessly through the stones as rain water ran off the sodden steep valley sides.

Another fairly steep hike over peat land (thankfully well serviced by a series of stepping stones strategically placed in the mud) and we were at Easedale Tarn. Unfortunately, our way across the mouth of the tarn to make our route circular was blocked by the high water. We felt it was just a tad too dangerous and deep to wade through the fast flowing water, and instead decided to attempt to walk around the tarn to get to the other side. It would add a couple of miles to our walk but we were wet already by that point, and the day was mild.

While we were ultimately unsuccessful though a couple of large streams carrying run off rain from the mountainside, we particularly enjoyed the solitude of the walk along the bowl of the tarn and the curious gazes of the local sheep who must have thought those dripping sorry creatures before them must be quite insane.

You can get more detailed directions for the walk from Grasmere to Easedale Tarn by buying a local OS map of the area or performing a search on the internet.
Close