Lynne on Ulswater Steamer

Sunday 13^th May 2012

To all the Mothers - Happy Mothers Day!

Weather this morning has remained kind. Although overcast the rain is holding off. There is a cold wind blowing with temperature of 10°.

Given the reasonably good weather conditions our first stop for the day was Ullswater, a narrow “ribbon lake” formed after the last ice age. It is 12 kms long & 0.8km wide with a maximum depth of 62m.

We enjoyed a 2 hour cruise on the lake aboard the steamer “Raven” which was launched in 1889. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. The return trip down the lake was windy and cold and the Steamer had to stop to pick up a couple of canoeists who had capsized their canoes in the middle of the lake.

Disembarked the steamer at Glenridding Pier. 

Kitchen in Wordsworths house

Drove to Cockermouth to see the house where William Wordsworth was born in 1770 - for all you uneducated people he was a famous poet. The National Trust have owned the house since 1938 and it has been restored to look as it might have when the Wordsworths lived there.

After leaving the house we walked through the main street of Cockermouth and saw many interesting things including the Iron Mongers shop.

Restored Cumberland Pencil Van

Back in the car for the short drive back to Keswick to visit the Derwent Pencil Museum- very interesting especially the war time exhibit about how they made pencils with a tightly rolled map in the centre and a 7.5mm compass in the brass feral under the eraser. These were issued to allied airmen who, if captured, could use them if they managed to escape.  Outwardly the pencil looked and performed just like a normal pencil.

The rain started falling about 5:30PM so we did a load of washing and then headed out to the Pub for dinner.