Return to the Lakes - Trains, Boats and a Plane

There were plenty of cars and bikes, too!

In the end the weather today wasn’t much worse than yesterday, with occasional drizzle. The first stop was at Haverthwaite for the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway - a fairly conventional standard gauge heritage line. The route is cut into, and sometimes through, the rock alongside the River Leven and was an important link when built with ferry and boat services direct to London and other major centres.

Our loco was a visitor from the Kent and East Sussex Railway.

The building of this stretch of line enabled larger steamers on the lake as previously they’d had to navigate a few miles up the river. If I have a criticism it’s the fact that when I alighted from the train the gift shop was closed “for 5 minutes!” I hung about but there was no sign of anyone reopening it so I gave up, hopefully they were more on the ball later in the day. 

From the railway it was only a few minutes drive to the Lakeland Motor Museum. That was well worth the visit and in the end probably a lot easier using the walker than the scooter. As you’d expect there are lots of cars and motorcycles but, as per the title of this episode, boats and a single plane. Most of the cars were old enough to avoid me having actually owned them but there were a few that have been on my possible shopping list at one time or another. 

A 1959 Scootacar Mk 1, built by the locomotive builders Hunslets of Leeds, the story is that one of the directors’ wives wanted something easier to park than her Jaguar!

The Flying Flea replica - they were a French design but after three fatal accidents they were deemed too dangerous to fly.

A collection of beautiful motorcycles.

After a very nice roast beef sandwich for lunch I finished the visit with their separate Campbell Bluebird exhibition space which also includes a small Swallows and Amazons display relating to a passage in Pigeon Post. I may have missed out on seeing the real Bluebird K7 but I did get to see the replica! 

Mrs Blackett from Pigeon Post

For the sake of it I made my way back to the hotel via the cable ferry across the lake - due the the necessary slack in the cables it does travel with a curious crab-like motion but in the days before motor transport and with poor roads it must have been invaluable. 

I do like stopping in the Inn Collection Group’s establishments, The staff are all friendly and pleasant and it’s noticeable that they take time to smile and say hello to children, plus one earlier wandered round with biscuits and sausages for the dogs in the bar. 

Return to the Lakes - A Short Bimble

As I half expected I was definitely feeling the effects of the moderate amount of walking I’ve done over the last couple of days, I prefer not to have painkillers for breakfast but needs must! Having checked the weather forecast I decided on a change of plans; given that tomorrow is looking wet, and hence a good time for railways and indoor museums, I broke out the mobility scooter and had a trundle down to the Windermere Jetty Museum. The weather was drizzly when I set off but soon dried up, although there was still the chill wind to contend with. 

The museum itself was very interesting to look round, inevitably there’s some Swallows and Amazons content.. 

These two were used in the most recent (and worst) film adaptation.

Esperance may have been the model for Captain Flint’s Houseboat and was used in the 1963 film.

Steam launches are a big feature of Windermere (I did consider buying one many years ago) and come in all shapes and sizes. Branksome is one of the larger ones but what intrigued me more than the vessel was the Hunslet boiler, although it’s fired from the side it’s very similar to those used on their locomotives. 

After a coffee and another wander round I attended the Restoration Conversation, a few minutes chat from a young lady who’s been working on a project to build a replica skiff. Her background is slightly unusual as she’s Swiss, from the shores of Lake Geneva, learnt her boatbuilding in the Basque Country and is now on a fellowship in the Lake District! 

Demonstrating the difference between clinker and carvel built hulls.

I started my trundle back into Bowness with the intention of exploring up into Windermere Town when things came to a grinding halt, literally - one of the front suspension arms on the scooter sheared off. I don’t think I’d hit anything much, and I wasn’t going overly fast, so I’m really not sure what happened, in hindsight I’m wondering if it was already damaged from when I broke a suspension spring in a pothole last year. Having disconnected the wheel from the steering I was able to ride/walk the scooter back to the hotel so is safely back in the car. I should be able to get a replacement and I know how to fit it having done the spring, but obviously I’ll be walking for the rest of the holiday. That shouldn’t be too much of a problem, especially using the walker, but will be a bit limiting. Having sorted that I wandered back into the town for lunch, Fish and Chips, then just relaxed in the hotel for the afternoon, girding my loins for tomorrow. 

Return to the Lakes - I go Boating

There’s not too much of a written report on today as I spent it on the lake* taking in all three of the main cruises. The three boats were quite different, the first was one of the largest, a relatively modern diesel electric, which was to the northern part of the lake. I started off outside but although there was some sun there was a bitterly cold wind so I retreated below decks and had a coffee. I did get back outside on the return trip from Ambleside (partly ‘cause the wind was from astern so I was sheltered by the boat. 

The second trip was the Round the Islands cruise on one of the small modern launches, nothing fancy but functional, with the familiar smell of a not quite 100% sealed diesel system mixed with wet bilges! I sat inside but with the benefit of an opening window for photography. As it was just on midday when we returned to Bowness i decided on lunch which ended up being a cheese savoury toastie in the cruise terminal coffee shop. 

Timing worked out just right as the third cruise, to the south end of the lake, was just boarding as I finished up. The boat this time was the most interesting of the three, Tern was built in 1891 by Forrest and Son of Wivenhoe in Essex and transported in pieces by rail to Lakeside where she was reassembled. Originally she was a steamer but was fitted with Cummins diesel engines in 1951/2. 

The weather deteriorates over the next couple of days, according to the forecast, so tomorrow I’m planning on visiting the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway and the Lakeland Motor Museum - checking details the latter has the most comprehensive and informative accessibility statement I’ve ever read, and they’ve clearly thought about things, so well done to them. I shall probably be using the scooter so it’s good to know that I can get round ok. 

Here’s just a few of the photos I took, there’ll be more later.

*How many lakes are there in the Lake District? By name there is just one, Bassenthwaite, all the rest are Mere, Water or Tarn! 

Return to the Lakes - A Long Drive

This is my first time holidaying in the Lake District for nearly 40 years, the trip was initially prompted by Bluebird being displayed in the Ruskin Museum on Coniston however there’s been a huge spanner chucked in the works - they’re running the boat this week! 

I’d forgotten how long a drive it is to the Lakes but I did break the journey at The West Lancashire Light Railway. It’s not really a heritage railway as such, having been started by five schoolboys on land belonging to a clay pit but it’s pleasant and friendly, the line is only 400 yards long so it takes as long for the engine to run around at each end as the actual journey does. They have quite a few narrow gauge steam locos, mostly bought from North Wales quarries, including the oddly named Irish Mail, the sister to Covertcoat at the Launceston Railway; apparently the owner of the quarries at Dinorwic had run out of family members to name his engines after so he started using his racehorses - these two are named after the horses that came first and second in the 1913 Grand National. The engine in steam today was Sybil, a 1906 Bagnall. 

I took plenty of photos of the site as I feel a model coming on for a future project. 

The blocks on the platform are similar to ones on the current model build - photo taken for colour purposes!

One concern I had on the drive up was the limited parking at the hotel and how far away I might end up. Sure enough the car park looked absolutely full but thankfully a family were just getting into their car ready to leave - I had to wait a few minutes as they’d got young kids to sort out but I was soon parked and supping the first pint of the trip, followed by a delicious roast pork bun. 

Once I’d lunched and checked in I decided to go for a short wander round. This was partly to see how my sciatica would behave, in the end the answer was OK. I managed the walk down to the lake, had the mandatory ice cream and a slow walk back up the hill to the hotel; I wouldn’t want to go much further but at least I know I can do a bit. 

Although Bluebird K7 and Coniston were a major reason for coming to the area it will be very busy and there’ll be parking issues. I could see if the Blue Badge helped but getting round would probably be tricky so I’ve decided to look for alternatives, Kendal is one possibility or I may even spend two days locally, one cruising on Windermere and the other visiting Bowness and Windermere town on the scooter. 

Bunkfest 25 -The End

After a delicious sausage bap in the Clubhouse I packed away - I’d hoped to get the tent down dry but that wasn’t going to happen so it will need to come out again soon. The footprint (under tent groundsheet) was very wet but served its purpose. The drive home was smooth and that just left me to unload and put away. 

The weekend was partly intended to answer a few questions, which it did!

Could I manage with camping?

Yes, certainly for a festival with food onsite, I’d have to make some minor changes for general camping but they’d be manageable. In some respects the tent has advantages over the campervan - space mainly. 

Would my sciatica cause problems?

Indirectly, yes. I didn’t have too many problems but the lack of walking recently was an issue. I could probably have done with taking the scooter but recharging wasn’t viable so I managed with walker and walking stick. 

Would I enjoy it?

Absolutely yes! It was made even better by having friends there to share with. 

Would everything go in the car?

I knew it would all fit one way or another but I managed to get all the smaller and more vulnerable bits in the boot with the parcel shelf on and the larger bits such as the tent went in the back seat. 

Will I go again?

Almost certainly yes, but probably not for a few years. I’ve got some other festivals I fancy doing, some of which are at a similar time of year. 

There are a few take-aways before I camp again:

I need to peg the tent further out, both the groundsheet and the guy lines, to get everything tighter. 

I need a better answer for waste water - I need to check it but the lidded folding bucket I was using appeared to leak. I do have ideas, making use of a small caravan waste tank I happen to have in the shed. 

Something I meant to get, from past Festival experience, was some waterproof shoes or short wellies, I needed them this morning packing up on the damp grass. The result of that omission was driving home with slightly damp shoes and socks.

I have a small 12v vacuum cleaner which I nearly took, next time it will go as it would have been handy for the tent floor before packing away. 

Finally, apologies for the lack of photos - due to the app I normally use playing up I’ve had to post directly from the web and it doesn’t support images. 

Bunkfest 25 - Sunday

 It was another busy day!

After breakfast I caught up with one of my friends on the campsite and having ascertained that they’d be at the Railway for midday decided that would be my first port of call. I’d bought a weekend pass so could have another ride for “free”. 

After having a beer or two and watching the Abingdon Morris we caught the bus up to the town. My first activity was some food, chips loaded with pulled pork and BBQ sauce, very nice but the sauce went everywhere! I cleaned up as well as I could but the walker is going to need a good wash when I get home. 

We stopped at the Bullcroft arena as friends of friends were playing later in the afternoon, a very enjoyable set by My Mate Dave, including a guest appearance by Chalky the cockatoo for their pirate song. After that I made my way back to the campsite and relaxed for a while before finishing the evening with a couple of pints in the clubhouse.  

A football match was in the telly, it always amazes me how rugby players will keep running with two or three of the opposition hanging on to them but footballers are capable of falling when a foot goes anywhere near them. One player did a lovely bit of acrobatics in falling which earned him 5.9 from the judges and a yellow card! 😀

Bunkfest 25 - Saturday

 

Today ended up being a bit truncated for a couple of reasons. 

After breakfast in the clubhouse I decided to wander up to the Cholsey and Wallingford Railway. I was stiff after the last couple of days exertions but hoped to walk it off (I didn’t). It’s one of the smaller heritage railways but friendly and pleasant, operated as usual today by two 08 shunters, one at each end, which avoids the need to run round. The train up to Cholsey was fairly empty but as it’s a connection to the main line it filled up with Festival goers heading to Wallingford. 

Once I’d had a look round their museum and shop, and had a coffee, I wandered to the nearest festival bus stop to ride up into the town. As the bus that was there was full I had to wait, but only about 15 minutes so not a problem*. I had a stroll round the site, and some lunch, then went over see what was happening at the second arena, the answer was not much! By this stage my left leg was getting very sore and the weather wasn’t great so I decided to get the bus back to the campsite. 

I did have a secondary motive - both Scotland and England were playing in the Women’s World Cup! As expected they both had comfortable wins, England by their highest ever World Cup score despite the fact it was essentially their second team that started the match. Plaudits do go to Samoa though, a part time team who’d mostly had to take leave from their jobs were always going to struggle but they played their hearts out, they may have only scored one penalty but it got the biggest cheers of the afternoon! 

Unfortunately the one act I wanted to see on the main stage, The Red Hot Chilli Pipers, start at 21:30, the last bus back to the campsite is at 22:00, there’s no way I can risk walking back so I’m having to miss them. It’s raining quite heavily anyway. 

*A couple of people in the queue were quite impressed by the fact my compact 3-wheel Walker has a seat - one of the rails I’m using it is I can sit down when in queues and the like.