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 UNIVERSITY 
 
 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CRITICAL NOTICES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FIRST AND SECOND EDITIONS 
 
 OF 
 
 BAINES'S COMPANION TO THE LAKES. 
 
 " Travellers to the Lakes have long felt the want of a book which 
 should be written by a person possessing sufficient ability to describe 
 the romantic scenes they exhibit with taste and feeling, but at the 
 same time willing to enter into all the little details and instructions so 
 necessary for the traveller in his every-day toils and perils. The work 
 on our table is very properly termed a Companion, rather than a 
 Guide, and, in a very well written and amusing introduction, it 
 brings us acquainted with three or four characters, one or two of which 
 it is probable will be found in almost every party setting forth on a 
 similar expedition. The very full account which is given of every 
 object worthy of attention, the friendly tone which the author assumes 
 in giving advice to his readers, the complete and useful Itinerary which 
 follows the details, and the excellent Map with which they are pre- 
 ceded, render this not only a very superior guide-book, but a very 
 interesting volume as a descriptive tour. It is rarely, indeed, so 
 much talent and information are employed on such works, and we 
 should have no slight pleasure in finding the author employing his 
 next summer's unoccupied months in preparing a similar guide for us 
 to some other place of healthy and romantic resort. We recommend 
 the work to any one visiting the Lakes, as likely to contribute very 
 much to the pleasure of their journey." — Monthly Review. 
 
 " With a good map prefixed, this book contains all that is necessary 
 for the information of the tourist, who (with fine weather) may spend 
 a month or six weeks most delightfully in visiting these sylvan beau- 
 ties of England. The Companion really deserves its name, for it is 
 an amusing miscellany, and contains many things to interest the 
 reader, or while away the duller hours that occur on every party of 
 pleasure." — Literary Gazette. 
 
 " We can recommend this book to persons who intend to visit the 
 English Lakes. The author possesses taste and sense, a just percep- 
 tion of the picturesque, and a wide range of topographical, antiquarian, 
 and general information, of which he makes a good use. The largest 
 part of the book is in the form of a tour by a family party, which is 
 judiciously managed so as to embrace a notice of every thing remark- 
 able, and to combine with this an idea of how the different objects are 
 likely to affect the young and the middle-aged, the lively and the 
 pensive. This is followed by a " Tour on Horseback," through lines 
 partly different ; and after this comes a Pedestrian tour, which differs 
 in some points from both. From internal evidence, we infer with 
 certainty, that the writer has travelled through Westmoreland in all 
 these modes." — Scotsman. 
 
" Mr. Baines has succeeded in combining in this volume the 
 accuracy of a Guide- Book with the liveliness and interest of a Per- 
 sonal Narrative. Knowing,, something of the district of which it 
 treats, we are the better able to recommend the volume with confi- 
 dence to our readers." — Edinburgh Literary Journal. 
 
 " Mr. Baines has provided the tourist to the English Lakes with an 
 excellent Companion. Every thing enchanting in their beauties, 
 romantic in their scenery, and interesting in their history, is here 
 faithfully described. To the traveller who visits these delightful 
 scenes for amusement, such a work is invaluable ; and even the fire- 
 side tourist, who performs all journeys in his easy chair, will here find 
 pleasure and useful information. The book is accompanied with a full 
 and accurate Map, forming altogether a most agreeable road miscel- 
 lany." — New North Briton. 
 
 " Mr. Baines not only gives us a copious Itinerary, but he favours 
 us also with a journal of a personal tour, or family tour rather, in 
 which the various objects of an Itinerary are graphically described. 
 Mr. Baines's book will be found a pleasant and useful companion." — 
 Spectator. 
 
 " This adds another to the hundred and one already published 
 ' Guides' to our far-famed Lakes : and certainly we must class it 
 amongst the most valuable that have yet appeared. It is in fact what 
 it professes to be, a ' Companion' to the Lakes, and teaches how the 
 journey in this fairy region may be best performed, by showing how 
 it has been performed by a family party. The various beauties of 
 scenery are clearly pointed out ; the different lakes, mountains, &c. 
 lucidly and forcibly described; and the most favourable routes for 
 seeing every thing worthy of being seen recommended. When we 
 add that the volume is accompanied by an excellent map of the lake 
 district, and contains a most valuable Itinerary, with the distances 
 correctly marked, and every object upon each road carefully noted, 
 we have said enough to recommend the book to every person intending 
 to visit the Lakes, to which it is an indispensable ' Companion.' " — 
 Carlisle Journal. 
 
 " As a well-written and highly interesting descriptive Tour, Baines's 
 Companion to the Lakes has great attractions, and will be read with 
 the most pleasing associations by those who can indulge in reminis- 
 cences of ' the land of the mountain and flood.' " — Carlisle Patriot. 
 
 " Every page gives ample proof that Mr. Baines, Jun. has done 
 greater justice to the Lake and Mountain Sceneiy than any of the 
 numerous writers on the same subject who had preceded him. His 
 plan is novel, and infinitely preferable to the dry and formal style 
 which the Guide-Book writers have hitherto adopted ; in short we 
 have no scruple in pronouncing this Second Edition of ' The Com- 
 panion to the Lakes' the most useful and interesting guide extant. 
 Speaking from the knowledge which half a century of close connexion 
 with the district it describes has put us in possession of, we dare take 
 
 upon ourselves to vouch for its general accuracy." Cumberland 
 
 Pacquet and Ware's Whitehaven Advertiser. 
 
I ' 
 
COMPANION 
 
 TO THE 
 
 LAKES 
 
 OF 
 
 CUMBERLAND, WESTMORELAND, 
 AND LANCASHIRE • 
 
 IN A DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF A 
 
 FAMILY TOUR, 
 
 AND EXCURSIONS ON^HORSEBACK AND ON FOOT. 
 
 / 
 
 WITH A NEW, COPIOUS, AND CORRECT 
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 THIRD EDITION. 
 
 BY EDWARD BAINES, Jun. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 SIMPKIN AND MARSHALL; 
 
 BAINES AND NEWSOME, LEEDS ; WALES AND RAINES, LIVER- 
 POOL J M. AND R. BRANTHWAITE, KENDAL ; AND ALL BOOK- 
 SELLERS AT KENDAL, CARLISLE, PENRITH, KESWICK, 
 ULVERSTON, LANCASTER, &C. &C. 
 
 1834. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The favourable reception given to this work 
 has called for a Third Edition within five years 
 after its original publication. The Author has 
 availed himself of the opportunity afforded him 
 by the publication of the Second and Third 
 Editions, to add greatly to the information it 
 contained : he has each time considerably 
 enlarged the useful contents of the volume, and 
 has revised and corrected the whole with the 
 greatest care. 
 
 This volume is intended to combine the 
 accuracy of a Guide-Book with the liveliness 
 and interest of a Personal Narrative. It con- 
 tains all and more than all the information 
 usually given in the former, but so arranged as 
 to fall naturally into the latter. Avoiding the 
 dry and didactic form of the Gazetteer- Guide, 
 the Author has aimed to produce a readable 
 volume, which may at once serve as a pleasant 
 Companion in the carriage, the boat, or the inn, 
 
 A 2 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 and afford the best practical directions to tourists, 
 by giving an actual exemplification of the man- 
 ner in which the Tour of the Lakes has been 
 accomplished both by a Family Party and by an 
 individual. From this the traveller will receive 
 a distinct view of the most advantageous method 
 of making each excursion, — of the time con- 
 sumed, the accommodations or inconveniences 
 experienced, and the precautions to be taken. 
 Ladies, in particular, will learn what enterprises 
 they may safely attempt in the mountainous 
 region, and where they would be exposed to 
 danger or excessive fatigue. 
 
 Much of the information concerning the 
 objects seen, the families and distinguished men 
 residing at the Lakes, the manners and customs 
 of the inhabitants, and the history and anti- 
 quities of the district, is conveyed in the form 
 of conversation ; but, although this has fre- 
 quently been adopted as the most agreeable 
 method of communicating facts, the Author has 
 never exercised his invention or imagination as 
 to the facts themselves, but has in all cases 
 scrupulously confined himself within the strict- 
 est bounds of truth. 
 
 The Family Tour is a narrative of a Tour 
 actually performed by a Family Party, consisting 
 of two ladies and two gentlemen ; the journeys 
 
PREFACE. V 
 
 were made as they are described ; and the inci- 
 dents, with a few trifling exceptions, occurred 
 just as they are related. 
 
 The Excursion on Horseback and the 
 two Excursions on Foot are faithful descrip- 
 tions of journeys performed by the Author, and 
 they will be found to contain much useful 
 information for those who may travel in either 
 of these methods. 
 
 The Four Parts together contain a full 
 description of all the principal Routes and Ex- 
 cursions at the Lakes ; including a particular 
 account of the ascents of Skiddaw, Helvellyn, 
 Scawfell Pikes, Great Gavel, Bowfell, Lang- 
 dale Pikes, Hill Bell, High Street, and several 
 other mountains. 
 
 The Itinerary is an original feature of 
 this work, and will be found of great utility. 
 It gives numerous statistical details concerning 
 the towns, villages, lakes, and mountains, — 
 the distances of all the places in every stage, — 
 the names of the noblemen's and gentlemen's 
 seats, with those of their owners or occupiers, 
 (a species of information always desired by the 
 Tourist,) — and many other particulars concern- 
 ing inns and accommodations. 
 
 The Map with which the work is embel- 
 lished will be found strictly faithful, having 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 been carefully corrected down to the year 1834.* 
 It is also engraved with a clearness and dis- 
 tinctness rarely perceived in maps of moun- 
 tainous countries, which will assist the traveller 
 in consulting- it. 
 
 The engraving of Derwentwater and the 
 Borrowdale Mountains, in the Frontispiece, 
 will be regarded as an ornament to the volume ; 
 perhaps a more beautiful combination of lake 
 and mountain scenery is not to be found in 
 Cumberland or Westmoreland. The view is 
 taken from Castlehead, near Keswick. 
 
 The Index of Places will enable the 
 eader to turn immediately to the page where 
 any town, village, mansion, lake, mountain, or 
 other object is mentioned, either in the Com- 
 panion or the Itinerary. 
 
 Leeds, June 9, 1834. 
 
 * The volume is sold both with and without the Map and 
 Frontispiece, — of course at different prices ; and the Map is sold 
 separately in case, accompanied with the Itinerary. 
 
 1 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 FAMILY TOUR. 
 
 Chap. page. 
 
 I. Introduction — General Remarks on the Lakes 1 
 
 II. Liverpool — Preston — Lancaster 14 
 
 III. Lancaster — Castle — Assizes 26 
 
 IV. Lancaster to Kirkby Lonsdale — Vale of the Lune... 38 
 
 V. Kirkby Lonsdale to Bowness — Kendal — Winder- 
 
 mere 50 
 
 VI. Excursion on Windermere 66 
 
 VII. Bowness to Ambleside 79 
 
 VIII. Langdale Excursion 90 
 
 IX. Ambleside to Dunmail Raise 103 
 
 X. Dunmail Raise to Keswick 115 
 
 XI. Excursion on Derwentwater 126 
 
 XII. Ascent of Skiddaw 138 
 
 XIII. Excursion to Borrowdale, Wasdale, and Calder- 
 
 bridge 151 
 
 XIV. Calder-bridge to Buttermere and Keswick 169 
 
 X V. Keswick to Penrith and Lowther Castle 1 83 
 
 XVI. Excursion on Ullswater — Patterdale 198 
 
 XVII. Ascent of Helvellyn ) 211 
 
 XVIII. Patterdale to Ambleside — Conclusion 223 
 
V1I1 CONTENTS. 
 
 EXCURSION ON HORSEBACK. 
 
 Chap. page. 
 
 I. Lancaster, over- Sands, to Ul version, Furness Abbey, 
 
 and Coniston Water 230 
 
 II. Ascent of Scawfell Pikes — Langdale — Ambleside 250 
 
 III. Esthwaite Water — Rydal Mount — Honister Crag — 
 
 Watendlath— Carlisle 264 
 
 FIRST EXCURSION ON FOOT. 
 
 Kendal to Bowness and Hawes Water — Ascent of Hill Bell 
 
 and High Street — Ullswater Derwentwater — Gras- 
 
 mere 272 
 
 SECOND EXCURSION ON FOOT. 
 
 Ambleside to Wythburn, and across the Thirlmere-fells to 
 Watendlath and Keswick — Derwentwater — Borrowdale 
 — Seatoller — The Wad Mines — Ascent of Great Gavel 
 — Rosthwaite, by Langstreth and the Stake, to Lang- 
 dale Pikes — Ascent of the Pikes 287 
 
 ITINERARY 313 
 
 INDEX of Places 347 
 
COMPANION TO THE LAKES. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION — CHARACTER OF THE LAKE SCENERY, COMPARED 
 WITH OTHER PARTS OF ENGLAND ; COMPARED WITH THE 
 SWISS AND ITALIAN LAKES ISLANDS WATERFALLS MAN- 
 SIONS MONUMENTS OF ANTIQUITY COMPANY AT THE 
 
 LAKES SEASON OF VISITING MODES OF TRAVELLING. 
 
 1 he Lakes of Cumberland and Westmoreland are 
 allowed to excel every other part of England in the 
 combined grandeur and loveliness of their scenery. 
 The general character of English scenery is cheerful 
 beauty, whilst the sublime and romantic are rarely 
 met with : and though some of our counties boast 
 the finer and bolder features of nature, it is no dis- 
 paragement to them to say that they must all yield 
 the prize of beauty to the northern Lakes. Rich, 
 noble, and picturesque as are the banks of the Wye, — 
 wild and romantic as are the hills, rocks, and valleys 
 of Derbyshire, — varied and fascinating as are the 
 
 B 
 
2 CHARACTER OF THE LAKE SCENERY. 
 
 beauties of the Isle of Wight, — luxuriant and opulent 
 as are the borders of the Thames, the Trent, and the 
 Severn, — delightful as are the dales of Yorkshire, — 
 all these tracts yield in some important respect to 
 the region of the Lakes, which may be truly said to 
 combine the beauties of each, whilst it far surpasses 
 them all in grandeur and sublimity. 
 
 The fine groups of mountains which cover a large 
 part of Cumberland and Westmoreland — extending 
 about thirty miles from north to south, and as many 
 from east to west — stretch from the Irish Sea to a 
 long chain of hills which has been called the back- 
 bone of England. This chain, of which Cross Fell 
 is the most elevated summit, runs northward to the 
 mountains of Scotland, and southward, along the 
 frontiers of Yorkshire and Lancashire, to the hills 
 of Derbyshire. In Cumberland the mountains rise 
 to a greater elevation than in any other part of Eng- 
 land ; and in their forms and positions there is that 
 happy mixture of the regular and the irregular, 
 which is most pleasing to the admirer of the 
 picturesque. There is no general elevation of the 
 land above the level of the sea : but the hills spring 
 up directly from plains and valleys scarcely raised 
 above that level, and stand with the full advantage of 
 their noble stature, in groups of gigantic bulk, or in 
 ridges running towards every point of the compass. 
 Enclosed among the mountainous ridges are numerous 
 valleys of considerable fertility, which, being adorned 
 with wood both natural and planted, covered with ver- 
 
CHARACTER OP THE LAKE SCENERY. 3 
 
 dure of the most brilliant green, and intersected 
 by meandering streams or glassed with spreading 
 lakes, present a rich variety of the most delicious 
 landscapes. 
 
 The last-mentioned feature of this tract is its most 
 striking characteristic, and has given to it the general 
 designation of the lakes. Lakes are rarely found 
 except among elevated mountains, and none of con- 
 siderable magnitude exist in any other part of England. 
 Hence those parts of Cumberland, Westmoreland, and 
 Lancashire, where they are found in such numbers and 
 of such considerable extent, have naturally received 
 the distinguishing appellation of c The English Lakes.' 
 Water is the richest feature of natural scenery. 
 When spread out in ample sheets, and especially Avhen 
 fringed by wood, sprinkled with islands, and em- 
 bosomed in the depth of valleys, the mirrored sur- 
 face is itself most grateful to the eye, and sets off 
 every other beauty of the landscape. The towering 
 crag or mountain looks still bolder when rising from 
 the smooth sheet of the lake : the crisped foliage of 
 the wood, and the emerald carpet of the field or 
 knoll, have their colours heightened, and their out- 
 line more distinctly traced, from contrast with the 
 silvery expanse. The water reflects the tints of the 
 hill and the azure face of heaven. It sweeps grace- 
 fully round bays and promontories, and ' clips in' the 
 islands as with a loving embrace. When slightly 
 ruffled with the breeze, it assumes a clear lead 
 colour, of the most delightful freshness. The pros- 
 
 b 2 
 
4 CHARACTER OP THE LAKE SCENERY. 
 
 pects from the surface of a lake are still more 
 pleasing than from its shores,, and, whilst enjoying 
 them,, the spectator may also have the healthful exer- 
 cise of rowing, or the amusement of fishing. 
 
 Beautiful in itself, the lake becomes much more so 
 when surrounded by mountains of noble form and 
 sublime elevation, like those of Cumberland and West- 
 moreland. The rarity of lake and mountain scenery 
 in this country adds greatly to its charm in the eyes 
 of the English tourist. Nor would I rank the lakes 
 of England far below those of any other country in 
 point of beauty. It is true that many of the Swiss 
 and Italian lakes are of much larger dimensions, and 
 the mountains and precipices by which they are en- 
 vironed are several times more lofty. In point of 
 sublimity, therefore, our native lakes are greatly sur- 
 passed ; yet even in this quality the superiority of 
 the Alpine lakes is by no means so striking as their 
 magnitude might lead us to suppose. Beyond a certain 
 point, increased size produces but a comparatively 
 small addition of effect, owing to the limited powers 
 of human vision. Among the Alps, too, the magni- 
 tudes of all the objects are proportionate, and they 
 are consequently the less striking to the spectator. 
 So much do the mountains and lakes of Cumber- 
 land and Westmoreland exceed the other parts of 
 this country in grandeur, that they would unquestion- 
 ably appear more astonishing to Englishmen in gene- 
 ral, than Switzerland seen after having visited the 
 Lakes. The continental traveller may even return 
 
ISLANDS WATERFALLS. 5 
 
 from the Oberland of Berne and the valley of Cha- 
 mouni, and still visit this delightful part of our native 
 country with high admiration. Such views as that of 
 Scawfell Pikes, seen from the platform of Styhead, — 
 the Old Man, from the surface of Coniston Water, — ■ 
 Langdale Pikes, from the head of Langdale, — and 
 Honister Crag, from Gatesgarth Dale, — cannot fail 
 to impress the mind with mingled awe and transport. 
 In one important feature our native lakes surpass 
 those of Switzerland and Italy, namely, in their islands. 
 This ornament is entirely wanting to the continental 
 lakes, whilst it eminently increases the charms of 
 Windermere, Derwentwater, and several of the 
 smaller lakes of Westmoreland and Cumberland. The 
 spectator who views Windermere from Elleray or 
 the Station, Derwentwater from Wallow Crag, or 
 Rydal Water from Rydal Mount, must acknowledge 
 that the sheets of water would be comparatively 
 tame without the beautiful tufted islands which stud 
 their surfaces. It may be difficult to pronounce what it 
 is that gives the last and highest finish to these charm- 
 ing scenes ; but if required to offer an opinion, I 
 should say it is the islands. 
 
 The ivaterfalls at the Lakes are eminently beauti- 
 ful, and not the less pleasing to the tourist because he 
 has generally to reach them by penetrating through 
 a rough and tangled glen. The streamlets which 
 supply them are invariably of the most limpid clear- 
 ness, which gives to the falling waters a sparkling 
 lustre. In point of sublimity these waterfalls cannot 
 
6 MANSIONS AND PARKS. 
 
 be compared with those of Switzerland ; but they 
 rival the cascades of any country in picturesque 
 effect. Colwith Force is the only one which can 
 claim the character of wild and impetuous grandeur ;* 
 but Stockgill Force, Ayrey Force, the Rydal water- 
 falls, and many others, are distinguished by all that 
 can delight the lover of the picturesque. 
 
 The variety to be found at the Lakes greatly en- 
 hances their charms ; for natural beauties, however 
 splendid, soon pall upon the taste without the aid of 
 diversity. Every lake has its distinguishing character ; 
 the valleys exhibit all the varieties between rugged 
 grandeur and soft luxuriance. Sunshine, cloud, and 
 storm, the morning and the evening glories, are per- 
 petually changing the aspect of these mountainous 
 regions, and thus their graces become more fascinat- 
 ing, — as the female countenance is rendered piquant 
 from changes in the expression. 
 
 When the tourist has exhausted his powers of 
 admiration in surveying mountain, lake, and valley, 
 the beauties of art may afford a new stimulus. These 
 counties have their mansions and parks, adorned with 
 all that wealth and taste can furnish, to gratify the 
 wishes of their owners. The stately castle and noble 
 woods of Lowther, the delicious grounds of Conishead 
 Priory and Holker Hall, the elegant mansion of 
 Storrs, and many other beautiful residences, claim 
 the admiration of the traveller. It is true that art 
 
 ! The Fall of Lowdore is ftiagnificent immediately after heavy 
 rains, but at all other times the quantity of water is small. 
 
MONUMENTS OF ANTIQUITY. 7 
 
 has sometimes been employed to mar, rather than to 
 mend the scene ; but this is not frequently the case ; 
 and on the whole the Lakes have gained in beauty 
 and attraction by the residence of men of fortune 
 amongst them. 
 
 A source of still greater attraction is to be found 
 in the monuments of antiquity which may be seen at 
 the Lakes. These are of three kinds — druidical re- 
 mains, ruins of ecclesiastical structures and of baronial 
 castles. Near Keswick and Penrith are several inter- 
 esting relics of druidical temples and places of judica- 
 ture. Of the ecclesiastical structures, the principal is 
 Furness Abbey, one of the grandest ruins in the king- 
 dom. The castles of Cockermouth, Egremont, Brough- 
 am, Penrith, Kendal, Lancaster, and several others, 
 merit the attention not merely of the antiquarian, but 
 of the artist. An ancient castle and a venerable cathe- 
 dral adorn the capital of Cumberland ; and there are 
 many interesting remains of feudal grandeur in the 
 northern parts of the county, where fortresses were 
 in former days unhappily too much needed, from the 
 ravages and hostilities which afflicted the ' Borders.' 
 
 To the geologist, mineralogist, and botanist, this 
 district affords an ample field of research. Here are 
 mines of iron, copper, lead, plumbago, and coal, and 
 slate quarries of great extent. There is also an abun- 
 dance of minerals, collections of which are to be seen 
 at Keswick and other places. The elevation of the 
 mountains and the variety of the soil also make the 
 range of the vegetable kingdom extensive. 
 
B COMPANY AT THE LAKES. 
 
 Possessing these high and varied sources of gratifi- 
 cation, it is not surprising that the Lakes should 
 attract visiters from every part of the kingdom 
 during the summer and autumn. They appear to 
 have been frequented soon after travelling became 
 easy in England, from the formation of turnpike 
 roads. I have been informed by one of the oldest 
 guides at Keswick — an octogenarian — that they were 
 much brought into notice on occasion of a celebrated 
 contested election for Cumberland, when Sir James 
 Lowther and three other candidates brought up friends 
 and supporters from very distant places,* Avho then 
 saw the Lakes and carried away the fame of their 
 beauties. My informant resided five years, in his 
 youth, at Buttermere, and during that time never 
 heard of a stranger visiting the place. Gray, the poet, 
 Gilpin, Mrs. Radcliffe, Pennant, and other distin- 
 guished authors, visited this region of the picturesque, 
 and much increased its celebrity by their graphic 
 delineations. Mr. West, a Roman Catholic clergyman, 
 who resided long at Ulverston, contributed to excite 
 the public interest by the eloquent descriptions of the 
 lake scenery in his " Guide," and by his book on 
 " The Antiquities of Furness." Artists have found 
 here one of the richest fields for the exercise of the 
 pencil ; and the landscapes of the Lakes, seen in 
 
 * This was in 1768. Sir James Lowther, Bart, and Humphrey 
 Senhouse, Esq. were returned, but Henry Curwen, Esq. and Henry 
 Fletcher, Esq. petitioned against the return, and were declared by 
 a Committee of the House of Commons to be dulv elected. The 
 Sheriff Was committed to Newgate for his misconduct. 
 
COMPANY AT THE LAKES. 9 
 
 public exhibitions, or more widely distributed by 
 means of the engraver's art, have doubtless attracted 
 visiters to see the surpassing originals. 
 
 For the last fifty years these districts have constituted 
 a favourite resort of the lovers of nature, whose means 
 enable them to travel ; and as the wealth and population 
 of the country have increased, the number of visiters to 
 the Lakes has augmented in a more rapid ratio. Dur- 
 ing the same period most of the mansions on the banks 
 of Windermere, Derwentwater, and the other lakes 
 have been built, and a great quantity of wood planted. 
 The inns and all the accommodations for travellers 
 have been materially improved, so that now neither 
 comfort nor luxury is wanting; and the tourist may 
 travel through this mountainous region, either in his 
 own carriage or in vehicles found on the spot, with 
 nothing of discomfort to interrupt his enjoyment, ex- 
 cept what may occasionally arise from the crowd of 
 travellers. 
 
 The musing sentimentalist, or the fastidious travel- 
 ler who is nice about best rooms and constant atten- 
 tion, might wish that the number of tourists were 
 diminished. But such, I am persuaded, is not the 
 general desire of the visiters, any more than of the 
 inhabitants. There is ample space among these moun- 
 tains and valleys for the rovings of those who love 
 seclusion ; and even in the height of the season the 
 rambler will meet with very few parties in any excur- 
 sion he may make, except in the immediate neigh- 
 bourhood of the towns. There is also time enough 
 
 b 3 
 
10 SEASON OF VISITING. 
 
 for solitude in ascending the mountains, visiting the 
 waterfalls, rowing on the lakes, and passing from 
 stage to stage. Delightful and impressive as it is to 
 contemplate the sublimities of nature in deep silence, 
 undisturded by the busy hum or the appearance of 
 men, there are few who can long endure the loneliness 
 of such contemplation, and who would not, at the close 
 of a five or six hours' ramble, hail the sight of a friend, 
 a townsman, or even a fellow creature. For my own 
 part, in the course of many rambles in this and other 
 countries, I have found my gratification much en- 
 hanced by the alternations of solitude and society : 
 it has given me great pleasure to meet an intelligent 
 traveller on the top of a lofty hill, or in the depth of a 
 lonely valley, — to sit down, after a day spent upon the 
 mountains, at a table d'hote with ten or twenty persons, 
 each of whom had his narrative of wonders, toils, and 
 pleasures, — or (in England) occasionally to join my 
 own party to another, of which the members were 
 well-informed and conversable. Even to look over the 
 book of visiters at a favourite resort, and to see the 
 names of friends, or of persons illustrious for talent or 
 rank, is generally found amusing. 
 
 The season at which the Lakes are usually visited 
 is from the middle of July to the end of September ;* 
 but they may be very well visited as early as the be- 
 ginning of June, and (in many years) as late as the 
 
 * The bustle at the inns during this season, contrasted with their 
 dreary loneliness at all other times, is striking, and caused an old 
 Boniface to observe, that " they were mad three months of the year, 
 and melancholy the other nine. " 
 
SEASON OF VISITING. 11 
 
 middle of October. In the former month the length 
 of the days is favourable to excursions, and vegetation 
 then appears in all its freshness and luxuriance. 
 Though the woods are of somewhat too uniform a 
 green., the hedges are then decorated with the wild 
 rose, the honeysuckle, the yellow broom, and innumer- 
 able humbler flowers, hung Avith bells of pink or 
 purple, or dropped with gold. The birds fill every 
 grove with melody, the white-fleeced lambs bound on 
 the mountain side, and all nature appear to rejoice in 
 the fulness of life and vigour. The atmosphere is 
 then also clearer than in an advanced period of 
 autumn, when morning and evening mists begin to 
 prevail. On the other hand, the woods and mountains 
 are seen in their glory in September and October, 
 when the foliage is enriched and variegated with the 
 autumnal tints, and when the hills, assuming a warm 
 brown from the sun-baked fern which covers them, or 
 a bright purple from the innumerable bells which 
 deck the heather, are contrasted with the yet brilliant 
 green of the valleys. The evening skies, too, are now 
 more glowing than at any other period of the year. 
 On the whole, therefore, the landscape is more rich 
 and diversified in the advanced part of the season, and 
 the painter would certainly choose this time for visit- 
 ing the Lakes, — putting up with the inconveniences 
 of shortened days and cool evenings. The heat of 
 summer is unfavourable for pedestrian excursions 
 either in the valleys or to the tops of mountains, and 
 the tourist who is compelled to make his visit at this 
 
12 MODES OF TRAVELLING. 
 
 time would do well to take his long walks very early 
 in the morning, or in the evening. The view from a 
 high mountain is clearer just before sunrise than at 
 any other hour of the day : at noon there is generally 
 a degree of sun-haziness, which renders distant objects 
 indistinct. 
 
 The modes of travelling are various. Where ladies 
 are of the party, a carriage is indispensable ; and the 
 most convenient vehicle is a chariot, where the party 
 is not too numerous, as it gives the opportunity of 
 seeing the country better than any other kind of car- 
 riage, and at the same time aifords protection against 
 the uncertainty of the weather. A party of gentlemen 
 might find it more agreeable to travel on horseback, 
 not merely for the sake of the exercise, but from the 
 greater independence the rider enjoys, and the power 
 he possesses of taking his horse over tracks which a 
 carriage could not traverse. Those who have time, 
 health, vigour, and a disposition to enjoy rambling, 
 will find a pedestrian excursion the most agreeable : 
 they will thus be more independent even than the 
 horseman, and may deviate at pleasure from the beaten 
 track, to climb the rocks, explore the woods, roam 
 from mountain to mountain, cross from valley to 
 valley, sketch, or collect specimens. I have found, by 
 experience in more than one tour, that two fellow- 
 travellers may journey very agreeably by taking a 
 single horse, and riding alternately. This plan, whilst 
 it allows great freedom of motion, affords the pleasure 
 both of foot and horse exercise, diminishes fatigue, 
 
MODES OF TRAVELLING. 13 
 
 saves time, and enables the travellers to convey by- 
 saddle-bags or valise the small stock of clothes they 
 may need in those excursions in which they are dis- 
 tant from the principal towns, — the coaches serving to 
 convey a trunk or portmanteau from one town to 
 another. I do not recommend solitary rambling, if 
 pleasure be the object. I have tried it, and found it 
 dull and wearisome. A friend to whom you can ex- 
 press the feelings which the beautiful and sublime of 
 nature excite, whose gratification you can at once par- 
 take and enhance by sympathy, and with whom you 
 can converse when there are no objects demanding 
 attention, will increase tenfold the pleasure of the 
 tour. 
 
 I may be excused for hinting, as the conclusion of 
 this introductory chapter, that the pleasure of travel- 
 ling depends at least as much upon the state of a man's 
 mind as on the objects he beholds. Those who set out 
 in good health, with light hearts, and a disposition to 
 be pleased, will be likely to secure a large sum of en- 
 joyment. A peevish or fastidious traveller will find 
 sources of dissatisfaction amongst the highest beauties 
 of nature or art ; whilst the good-humoured man will 
 draw amusement even from accidents and hardships, 
 and will freely indulge his admiration without trou- 
 bling himself to seek for faults. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 PLAN OF THE " COMPANION " ORIGINAL SCHEME OF THE 
 
 FAMILY TOUR ALTERATION IN THE PLAN GREAT PRE- 
 PARATIONS — COMMENCEMENT OF THE TOUR ORMSKIRK 
 
 PRESTON LANCASTER. 
 
 In conducting my reader through the district of 
 the Lakes, I believe I shall be able to do it in no way 
 more satisfactory or agreeable to him, than by re- 
 questing him to accompany me along the routes I 
 have myself repeatedly taken. If he will do me the 
 honour to accept of me as a " Companion," I will 
 take him from stage to stage, and from scene to 
 sight, in the order and manner in which I have 
 found it most convenient to visit them. To avoid the 
 dulness of solitary rambling, I shall also take the 
 liberty of introducing him to a family party, whom I 
 hope he will find agreeable and good-natured people, 
 and whose conversation he may feel to be a pleasant 
 . resource, especially on a rainy day or when the road is 
 uninteresting. I own they are no heroes or heroines, 
 but very much like the greater number of families 
 who visit the Lakes ; they eat, drink, and sleep, are 
 subject to be fatigued by a long day's journey, and do 
 not always agree among themselves in their opinions 
 on men and places. But as my reader is doubtless 
 made, of flesh and blood, it can be no objection to him 
 
ORIGINAL SCHEME OF THE TOUR. 15 
 
 to tarry for refreshment, to ' ' sleep o' nights/' to have 
 moderate days' work cut out for him, and to find that 
 he is not obliged to think in every case precisely as his 
 guide would have him. 
 
 A family residing in the neighbourhood of Liver- 
 pool, to whom I am distantly related, formed a pro- 
 ject, some few months ago, of making a summer 
 excursion to the Lakes of Westmoreland and Cumber- 
 land; and as the party consisted of an odd number, 
 two ladies and one gentleman, it was resolved, after 
 great deliberation I believe, to invite their bachelor 
 cousin to join the expedition. To this determination 
 they were led by various reasons. My cousins had 
 been very little accustomed to travel, and the ladies 
 therefore conceived this to be an enterprise of some 
 importance and danger, in which it was highly ne- 
 cessary that they should be protected, as well against 
 banditti and rude men, as in the navigation of un- 
 fathomable lakes, and the passage of frightful glens 
 and mountains. And / was pitched upon as their 
 companion, partly because I had often been at the 
 Lakes, and by my great prudence and dexterity had 
 escaped all their dangers, bringing back with me 
 extensive knowledge of " men and things," — partly 
 because I was on pretty good terms with all the 
 family, — and partly because, as a relation, there 
 could be no possible exception taken to me by the 
 censorious, as there might have been to certain other 
 gentlemen of their acquaintance. 
 
 When the project was broached to me, as it was 
 
16 SCHEMES OF THE TOUR. 
 
 with much ceremony by the senior lady, I heartily 
 accepted the invitation, with due acknowledgments 
 for the honour done me. No sooner was it known 
 that I should accompany them, than they produced 
 numerous maps and guide-books, and began to 
 unfold to me, with something more of eagerness than 
 of clearness or method, the routes which they had 
 respectively marked out. The lead was taken very 
 
 decidedly by a maiden aunt, Mrs. Anabella G -, 
 
 who, having made a short trip to the Lakes some 
 twenty or thirty years ago, undertook to direct all our 
 movements ; yet I soon found that she had seen but 
 few of the Lakes, and had gone rapidly over the 
 most beaten tracks. Her niece, my fair little cousin 
 Matilda, who, though no enthusiast, entered with 
 unwonted ardour on this scheme, had marked out a 
 route which excited her aunt's indignation ; for, with 
 a total disregard to roads and tracks, she took the 
 shortest cut from place to place, dragging the car- 
 riage unmercifully over mountain tops and through 
 the midst of lakes, and showing that she had not 
 very accurately consulted the geography of the coun- 
 try. Her brother George had made a far more 
 reasonable route, but somewhat of the widest : his 
 showed that he was bent on seeing every thing, and, 
 what was less practicable, on taking his aunt and 
 sister every where : but he had sadly miscalculated 
 times and distances, and he was for taking the car- 
 riage over routes never yet crossed by wheels, and 
 rarely trodden by the foot of fair lady. 
 
PROPOSED ALTERATION IN THE PLAN. 17 
 
 On all these plans I made few remarks, but I 
 ventured to offer two suggestions ; first, that we 
 should put off the trip till autumn ; and second, that 
 we should go at the time of Lancaster Assizes, and 
 stay two or three days to witness the proceedings in 
 the courts. When I uttered the first of these propo- 
 sitions, I was interrupted by a general exclamation of 
 " Impossible I" My cousins had made up their 
 minds to go in July, and it seemed an age to wait 
 till the beginning of September. It would dis- 
 arrange all their plans ; the season would be too far 
 advanced ; winter would be coming on ; Mrs. Ana- 
 bella's engagements with different Institutions, of 
 which she was a member, would not admit of it j 
 Matilda's Italian lessons would be interrupted ; it 
 was incompatible with George's business ; above all, 
 the Musical Festival would take place at the begin- 
 ning of October, and they should need a month to 
 prepare for it : in short, the whole party with one voice 
 reiterated that the thing was on every account quite 
 out of the range of possibility. It would have availed 
 little to urge any thing about the greater mildness of 
 the season, the mellower tints of autumn, &c. &c, and 
 I therefore called in aid my second proposition — the 
 Lancaster Assizes. None of them had ever been at an 
 Assize, and I saw instantly that their curiosity was 
 stimulated. Mrs. Anabella, you must know, has been 
 a passionate admirer of Mr. Brougham* ever since he 
 
 * Of course this journey was performed before Henry 
 Brougham, the powerful advocate of popular rights, became Baron 
 
18 ALTERATION IN THE PLAN. 
 
 said some very civil things to her at Liverpool, when 
 he was candidate for that town in 1812 : she has a 
 wonderful veneration for his eloquence, and she thinks 
 him the most agreeable gentleman in the world into 
 the bargain. She went to hear his speech at the din- 
 ner given to him not long since in our Music-Hail ; 
 and she was amongst the first to dart into the Orches- 
 tra, long before the gentlemen were at liberty to lift 
 their eyes from the substantial banquet before them 
 to the feast of beauty prepared for them on the side- 
 board. I need hardly add, that the idea of seeing 
 and hearing her great favourite at Lancaster went fast 
 and far towards cutting down the impossibilities which 
 had previously been urged. My cousin Madge, who is 
 a shrewd girl, with not much romance about her, but a 
 quiz, and a lover of the droll and comical, was exces- 
 sively curious to see how some young barristers of her 
 acquaintance looked in wigs and gowns. She had 
 never seen Mr. Brougham, but, having heard rather 
 more of him than she liked from her aunt, I believe 
 she had a spiteful desire to see him, suspecting that he 
 was not the all-perfect being Mrs. Anabella described, 
 and quite prepared, like the Athenian, to vote him an 
 ostracism, merely because she was tired of hearing his 
 praises. George, though one of the best-natured 
 
 Brougham and Vaux, the reforming Minister, and sat upon the 
 woolsack. Of all the rejoicing that took place on that event, no 
 
 exultation equalled that of Mrs. Anabella G , whose sagacity 
 
 was thus triumphantly established beyond the reach of cavil or 
 ridicule, and whose ambitious views for her favourite orator were 
 more than realized. 
 
GREAT PREPARATIONS. 19 
 
 beings in the world, is very romantic and bashful, and 
 he therefore vigorously opposed the postponement of 
 his ramble amongst the Lakes, and deprecated the idea 
 of appearing in a crowded court, where he should pro- 
 bably have to suffer several introductions, and to listen 
 to very tedious trials. However, his pliability and 
 want of self-confidence induced him soon to yield to 
 our persuasions, which he did the more readily as he 
 knew that it was vain to oppose his aunt in any thing 
 on which she had set her mind. It is true that the 
 ladies themselves wavered betwixt the immediate en- 
 joyment offered by their own plan, and the higher 
 though later entertainment proposed by mine ; but 
 after a long, grave, and anxious discussion, the amend- 
 ment was put to the vote, and carried by a decided 
 majority. 
 
 However interesting the detail, it would occupy too 
 much time to mention particularly all our deep deliber- 
 ations, extensive purchases, and laborious preparations 
 before setting out for the north. Suffice it to say, that 
 we had every thing ready at least a month before our 
 departure, and that we settled our affairs as though Ave 
 were about to circumnavigate the globe. At length, 
 in the middle of the Assizes, (for I had with difficulty 
 prevailed upon them not to set off the first day,) we 
 quitted Liverpool, after a sleepless night, at eight 
 o'clock in the morning. It was resolved that, though 
 we were to make a short stay in Preston, we should 
 not dine till we arrived at Lancaster ; and never party 
 formed such a resolve with less danger of perishing 
 
20 GREAT PREPARATIONS. 
 
 from inanition. What with our own foresight and that 
 of the housekeeper, we had a far greater quantity of 
 eatables and drinkables than the pockets of the carriage 
 would hold ; and, after leaving many things behind, 
 we found ourselves entrenched to the teeth in cakes, 
 sandwiches, wine, glasses, maps, fans, reticules, guide- 
 books, note-books, and lead pencils. We had also pro- 
 vided a pocket compass, whereby to steer our course ; 
 and I afterwards found that George had secreted a pair 
 of pistols in the hinder part of the carriage, to defend 
 us against robbers ; though he prudently refrained 
 from mentioning this to the ladies, who would have 
 been as much frightened by the contiguity of such 
 weapons as by an actual attack of highwaymen. It 
 had been thought advisable to procure a roomy travel- 
 ling chariot, without a barouche seat, in order that we 
 might have the fullest possible view of the country in 
 front and on each side ; but this was attended with the 
 inconvenience, that one of the party was obliged to 
 sit bodkin. Matilda, George, and myself took this 
 enviable post of precedence in turns ; but as Matilda 
 loved comfort more than glory, and as I had rather too 
 much length of leg to be easy in that station, we con- 
 trived to let George have considerably the longest turn. 
 He, to be sure, was not at all shorter in limb than 
 myself, but, being more eager to see the country, he 
 was content to endure the constraint. When we got 
 amongst the hills, however, he soon gave us leg bail ; 
 he walked up all the steep ascents, and often stretched 
 on for several miles. He annoyed his aunt and sister 
 
DEPARTURE ORMSKIRK. 21 
 
 by climbing rocks and hills out of the road for the sake 
 of a view,, which obliged us to wait for him; and 
 sometimes we were even alarmed for his safety, as he 
 has a most extraordinary proneness to get into awkward 
 predicaments. 
 
 The morning was propitious. A few light clouds, 
 intended to " deck the sky/' not to hide it, sailed 
 with imperceptible motion from the north, and by 
 their elevation promised some continuance of fine wea- 
 ther. The tide was up as we passed the mouth of 
 the Mersey, and several vessels were just sailing out 
 of the river, destined for the most opposite quarters 
 of the globe. So clear was the atmosphere, that from 
 the hill above Ormskirk we saw distinctly the coast 
 of Wales as far as the Ormes Heads, and the grand 
 range of Snowdon in the rear. In the ride from 
 Liverpool to Preston, there is little to interest, owing 
 to the flatness of the country. We admired the 
 grotesque appearance of the old church at Ormskirk, 
 in which a slim spire stands close by the side of a 
 massive square tower. The church, as Mrs. Anabella 
 informed us, was built at the expense of two maiden 
 ladies, one of whom preferred a tower and the 
 other a spire ; and as neither would give up her 
 favourite idea, they agreed to erect both a tower and 
 a spire side by side. Such at least is the tradition 
 which has descended through many centuries. The 
 church contains the burial-place of the Stanleys. 
 Ormskirk is famous for the number of maiden ladies 
 who reside in it, and perhaps on that account it is a 
 
22 PRESTON. 
 
 favourite place with Mrs. Anabella. In going through 
 the town we were amused by the alluring signs over 
 more than one of the shops which deal in its staple 
 manufacture, — Old Original Best Ormshirk Ginger- 
 bread. 
 
 Two miles from Ormskirk, on our right, we saw the 
 solitary Gothic arch which is all that remains of Burs- 
 cough Priory. A little further we passed within a 
 short distance of the place where once stood Latham- 
 house, so gallantly defended by the heroic Countess of 
 Derby against the forces of the Parliament. The 
 house being ruined by the sieges it withstood, it has 
 been replaced by a more modern structure. Latham- 
 house was formerly the principal seat of the Stanleys, 
 but now belongs to Lord Skelmersdale. RufFord Old 
 Hall, which is built with a wooden front, curiouslv 
 painted in stripes of black and white, and with some 
 dozen of gable ends like pigeon-cotes, was long the 
 seat of the Hesketh family ; but Sir Thomas has built 
 a new hall, in the modern style, at a short distance from 
 it, where he resides. About ten miles from Preston, 
 we had a good view of the Ribble, where it expands 
 into a broad estuary, and the village of Lytham may 
 be seen on the opposite bank. The approach to 
 Preston is interesting. The old low mansion of Pen- 
 wortham-hall stands on a steep grassy bank overlooking 
 the valley of the Ribble, which forms a noble sweep 
 round the south side of the town. The valley is 
 luxuriant and beautiful ; the woods of Walton-hall are 
 seen to the right, and beyond rises the hill which is 
 
PRESTON LANCASTER. 23 
 
 crowned with the ancient seat of Hoghton Tower : 
 both of these mansions belong to Sir Harry Hoghton. 
 Preston stands on a gentle elevation at the north of the 
 river., and looks a handsome town as seen in the descent 
 of Penwortham hill. 
 
 " Proud Preston" is less deserving of its title now 
 than it was before the late extraordinary increase of 
 its manufactures, which, though they have added 
 greatly to its wealth and population, have impaired 
 its aristocratic claim to peculiar gentility. It is a 
 well-built-town, with a delightful neighbourhood, but 
 has no curiosities claiming the attention of the tourist, 
 and therefore it did not detain us longer than enabled 
 us to visit the promenade called Avenham Walk (pro- 
 nounced Aynham) which affords a beautiful view of 
 the river and valley. Mrs. Anabella knew much of 
 the by-gone times of Preston, and could enumerate 
 many of the " fair women and brave men" who shone 
 at the last three Guilds,* but most of whom, alas ! 
 had passed away from this worldly stage. 
 
 Between Preston and Lancaster the country is still 
 flat, but fertile, the soil being very favourable for 
 wheat. A few miles to the right of the road, and 
 running parallel with it, is a long ridge of hills, 
 which we kept in view during the remainder of our 
 journey. Their height is sufficient to have gained for 
 them the name of Felkf — a name with which we 
 
 * The guild is a festival held at Preston every twenty years, and 
 celebrated with great splendour. 
 
 f Longridge Fells. 
 
24 LANCASTER. 
 
 became very familiar before we quitted the Lakes. 
 The undulating and sloping ground at the foot of the 
 hills, agreeably sprinkled with wood, affords pleasant 
 prospects from the road. In the direction of the sea 
 the land is perfectly flat, and contains extensive 
 mosses : it bears the name of the Fylde. Three miles 
 from Lancaster on our left, we passed Ashton-hall, a 
 seat of the Duke of Hamilton : it is not visible from 
 the road. 
 
 Lancaster is not to be seen till you arrive within 
 about a mile of the town, when, on ascending an 
 acclivity, its castled height rises to view proudly over- 
 looking the valley of the Lune : the Lune itself, here 
 a fine estuary, winds majestically to the sea ; and the 
 extensive Bay of Morecambe spreads beyond the town, 
 backed by the Westmoreland and Cumberland moun- 
 tains. The magnificent appearance of Lancaster Castle 
 drew forth exclamations of astonishment from George, 
 and excited the admiration of Matilda. Its numerous 
 towers and extensive battlements, cresting the hill, 
 give it an air of grandeur scarcely equalled by any 
 other castle in England ; and the flag which now 
 waved from the top easily recalled to my cousin's sus- 
 ceptible imagination the days of the renowned John of 
 Gaunt, with the palatine glories of Lancaster. He had 
 very little time to contemplate this object before we 
 arrived at the end of our journey. 
 
 We were fortunately not under the necessity of 
 taking up our quarters at an inn, where it might have 
 been difficult to find good accommodation, owing to 
 
LANCASTER. 25 
 
 We were fortunately not under the necessity of 
 taking up our quarters at an inn, where it might have 
 been difficult to find good accommodation, owing to 
 the crowd of persons attending the Assizes. We 
 had an invitation to spend a few days with some 
 friends who lived about a mile out of the town, and 
 whose house and grounds command beautiful views 
 of the Lune and surrounding country. We arrived 
 there to a late dinner, and remained several days 
 under our friends' hospitable roof. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 LANCASTER SALMON FISHERY THE TOWN THE CASTLE 
 
 SPLENDID PROSPECT FROM THE CASTLE CROWN COURT 
 
 NISI PRIUS COURT MR. BROUGHAM GEORGE IN LOVE 
 
 MURDER TRIAL CAUSE AT NISI PRIUS. 
 
 When we had assembled for breakfast on the 
 morning after our arrival, our host brought in a fine 
 salmon, which had just been caught in his nets in the 
 river Lune. He informed us that the salmon fishery 
 in this river was much less productive now than 
 formerly, as is the case in most of the rivers on 
 the western coast.* The diminution of fish in some 
 of the streams is accounted for by the increase of 
 manufactories, which pollute the water ; but there are 
 no manufactories on the Lune, and it has been pro- 
 nounced by competent judges one of the best salmon 
 streams in the kingdom. The prevalent opinion is, 
 that the fish are frightened away by the steam- 
 packets, which make a much greater noise and dis- 
 turbance in the water than sailing vessels. If this 
 
 * So plentiful was salmon in former days at Lancaster, that it 
 was customary for apprentices to stipulate in their indentures, that 
 they should not be fed upon salmon more than three days in the 
 week ! The same agreement was common at Kendal. 
 
 
LANCASTER. 27 
 
 be the case, it must be said on behalf of the steam- 
 packets, that they have not more disturbed our waters 
 than facilitated and increased our traffic ; and that if 
 they have frightened away the salmon of the Lune, 
 the Ribble, and the Eden, they make some compen- 
 sation by regularly bringing Irish salmon to the fish- 
 markets of England. 
 
 After breakfast we walked into the town, accom- 
 panied by our host and his lady. Lancaster is a clean, 
 well-built, well-paved, and agreeable town. It lies 
 on the south-eastern slope of the castle hill, and the 
 lower parts of it descend to the river, which ser- 
 pentizes through the valley, and makes a double 
 bend at the foot of the hill. The houses are all built 
 of stone, and have consequently an appearance of 
 solidity and respectability : several of the streets are 
 genteel and handsome. Lancaster had once a more 
 extensive foreign commerce than it can boast at 
 present. A range of deserted warehouses along the 
 quay speaks of departed trade ; the decline has been 
 occasioned partly by the rivalry of ports more con- 
 veniently situated in respect to the sea and to the 
 manufacturing districts, partly by a disastrous series 
 of failures among the bankers of the town, and partly 
 also by the fact that the navigation of the river has 
 of late been much obstructed by sand banks. The 
 vessels bound to Lancaster now chiefly unload at 
 Glasson Dock, five miles below the town, and just 
 within the mouth of the Lune. 
 
 c 2 
 
28 THE CASTLE. 
 
 The ascent from the town to the castle is a short 
 but steep acclivity. In toiling up it our party were 
 repaid for their exertion by the noble entrance to the 
 castle, which is an ancient and lofty tower, flanked by 
 two octagonal turrets. Over the portcullised gateway 
 is a shield bearing the arms of France semi-quartered 
 with those of England ; and in a niche is the statue of 
 John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, in complete armour. 
 It was by this illustrious prince that the tower was 
 built and the castle re-edified, in the fourteenth 
 century : it was originally built by Roger de Poictou, 
 in the eleventh century, on the site of a Roman for- 
 tification, but was destroyed or greatly injured, by 
 the Scotch invaders in 1322. 
 
 The castle stands on the brow of the hill, but 
 descending a little in the direction of the town. It 
 covers a great space of ground, and consists of several 
 distinct buildings. In the centre is a massive square 
 tower, called the Lungess tower, seventy -eight feet 
 high, on the top of which, at one angle, is a turret 
 called John 0' Gaunt' s chair. This tower and the 
 spacious court-yard are surrounded by several outer 
 towers, joined by a lofty wall. A great part of the 
 pile is modern, but the Lungess tower, the Gateway 
 tower, Hadrian's tower and the Dungeon tower on 
 the western side, and the Well tower on the southern, 
 are all ancient. The lower part of the Lungess tower 
 is supposed to be of Roman architecture, and it is 
 certainly of great antiquity. The modern parts are 
 castellated, and made to correspond with the ancient. 
 
VIEW FROM THE CASTLE. 29 
 
 As a prison, Lancaster castle is one of the strongest 
 and best-regulated in the kingdom. The courts in 
 which the Assizes are held form part of the castle, 
 and are on the north side. On the western side part 
 of the ancient moat remains. 
 
 Walking round the castle, we came to the 
 terrace, which commands a splendid view of the 
 Lune, the sea, and the mountains. We also en- 
 tered the church-yard, which immediately adjoins, 
 and whence we saw the valley above the town. 
 The church is a fine structure, and harmonizes well 
 with the castle ; at a distance, the towers and battle- 
 ments of both appear as if they belonged to one huge 
 pile of building. 
 
 In order that my cousins might enjoy the best pos- 
 sible view of the surrounding country, we entered the 
 castle, and ascended to John 0' Gaunt' s chair, whence 
 we had a prospect not surpassed by many in England 
 for grandeur, beauty, and variety. I could not have 
 wished for a clearer or brighter day, to show them this 
 view, which possesses nearly every feature of a per- 
 fect landscape. The hill on which the castle stands 
 rises abruptly in the midst of the vale of the Lune, 
 and commands a complete panoramic view of the 
 country. The river is seen winding round the foot of 
 the hill, and may be traced up the valley as far as the 
 aqueduct, and, in the opposite direction, to the sea. 
 Just below the town it expands into a broad estuary, 
 which makes a sweeping bend through the valley, 
 and at high water has a noble effect. Looking north- 
 
30 VIEW FROM THE CASTLE. 
 
 ward and beyond the Lune, the eye beholds the whole 
 of the extensive Bay of Morecambe, running several 
 miles inland, and the white houses of Ulverston, at 
 the distance of fourteen or fifteen miles, on the oppo- 
 site shore. The fine wooded estuaries of the Kent 
 and the Leven penetrate the northern shore of the 
 Bay, and give it a richly picturesque effect. Rising 
 beyond the Bay is the whole range of the Westmore- 
 land and Cumberland mountains — the ultimate object 
 of our expedition. To the left, nearest the sea, is the 
 regular and rounded yet high mountain of Black 
 Comb, said to command one of the most extensive 
 views of any hill in England ; and further inland 
 springs up the loftier and more rugged cluster of Scaw- 
 fell and his neighbouring heights, which, as wejjfcis 
 the range of Helvellyn, further still to the right, 
 display the pointed and irregular forms common to 
 high mountains. I thought George would have gazed 
 his eyes out at this splendid view of the mountains 
 which he had been so eager to behold : the sun, 
 resting upon them, showed their barren sides and 
 bold summits to great advantage, and the slight 
 degree of indistinctness and softening which their 
 remoteness occasioned, gave them an almost unearthly 
 and perfectly fascinating appearance to one who saw 
 them for the first time. Turning eastward, the eye 
 follows a long chain of hills till it rests on the broad 
 head of Ingleborough, the prince of Yorkshire moun- 
 tains, rearing his enormous bulk over the upper 
 extremity of the vale of the Lune. The vale itself 
 
VIEW FROM THE CASTLE. 31 
 
 is fertile and beautiful, highly adorned by the wind- 
 ing stream, and by a majestic aqueduct which carries 
 the canal across it by five lofty arches, at the dis- 
 tance of a mile and a half from the town. Both the 
 aqueduct and bridge are here in view, and, being 
 very fine erections, they add much to the interest of 
 the prospect. Woods, corn-fields, meadows, villages, 
 and mansions are beautifully disposed on the sides of 
 the valley, and on the long slip of land which lies 
 between the river and the Bay of Morecambe. On the 
 south-east, the town is overlooked by heath-covered 
 hills, but on the south-west a fine expanse of country 
 opens, and runs down to the sea-shore. 
 
 Mrs. Anabella gazed with delight on a scene which 
 sjae^had once before beheld, and still faintly remem- 
 bered ; and whilst she pointed out to her niece the 
 different objects, as old friends which recalled the 
 feelings of her youth, Matilda too caught the infec- 
 tion, and our whole party became quite amiable. 
 Nevertheless, as we intended to visit the courts, it 
 was now high time to quit this beautiful scene ; and 
 we repaired to the Crown Court, which looked suffi- 
 ciently gloomy by the contrast. This court is plain, 
 sombre, and rather incommodious ; the " dim judicial 
 light" shed into it through windows overtopped by 
 the spike-surmounted walls of the prison, seemed 
 not inappropriate to the dismal investigations carried 
 on there. The presiding judge was Sir John Bayley, 
 an amiable, upright, and independent man, but who 
 was thought to err on the side of humanity. The court 
 
32 CROWN COURT. 
 
 was engaged in the trial of a man charged with 
 burglary, who seemed likely to escape owing to the 
 stupidity and hesitation with which the prosecutor 
 gave his evidence ; the witness quailed and floundered 
 under the cross-examination of a noisy counsel ; but 
 the case was helped out by the glib swearing of a 
 constable, and the prisoner was convicted. This trial 
 possessed little interest, but the sight of the barristers 
 in their wigs and gowns afforded infinite amusement 
 to Matilda, who now saw the legal attire for the first 
 time. She recognized some of her friends in this 
 disguise, but with the same astonishment as if she had 
 seen them in a masquerade dress. It seemed to her 
 of all things the most preposterous thus to disfigure 
 and disguise the human countenance, and she pro- 
 nounced it at least as bad as the tattooing of the 
 New Zealanders. 
 
 From the Crown Court, Ave proceeded to the Nisi 
 Prius Court, where Mr. Baron Hullock (since de- 
 ceased) presided, and where some of the most 
 eminent counsel of the day were wrangling about the 
 death of an old horse. This is a spacious and hand- 
 some Court, and contrasted very advantageously with 
 that which we had just quitted. The Nisi Prius 
 Court is, I believe, one of the most beautiful halls of 
 justice in the kingdom ; for my own part, I have not 
 seen its equal. It is built after the ancient fashion, 
 and with Gothic ornaments ; but it is exceedingly 
 lightsome and elegant. The form is nearly that of a 
 semicircle, and the Judge sits with his back to the 
 
NISI PRIUS COURT. 33 
 
 Avail in the centre of its base : in the curve opposite to 
 him are half a dozen tall windows, with the pointed 
 arch and handsome mullions ; and above him are 
 two other windows, which, being of stained glass, 
 admit less light, but give great richness to the build- 
 ing. The wall is indented with niches, above which 
 a screen carved in stone, of delicate workmanship, runs 
 along like a string ; and upon it rest two full-length 
 portraits, very well painted, the one of Col. Stanley, 
 and the other of Mr. Blackburne, who were the 
 members for the county when the portraits were 
 placed there. The roof corresponds with the Gothic 
 character of the hall, rising upwards in a concave 
 form, and being carved in stone, with several clustered 
 pillars supporting it. The substantial oaken furni- 
 ture, and the yeoman-like bailiffs in uniform, pacing 
 about with their halberds, complete the venerable 
 appearance of the Court of Common Pleas of the 
 County Palatine of Lancaster. 
 
 Here Mrs. Anabella had the unspeakable pleasure of 
 seeing her old friend, Mr. Brougham, and hearing one 
 of his wittiest speeches. Before he rose, she observed 
 to me that fifteen years had made a very perceptible 
 alteration in his appearance. " So many sessions in 
 the House of Commons," she said, " in which, you 
 know, Sir, he often made his great speeches after mid- 
 night, — so many years' confinement in crowded courts 
 like this, or in his chambers, — so many years of severe 
 and unceasing labour, in literary and scientific 
 studies, — so much writing, speaking, thinking, and 
 
 c 3 
 
34 MR. BROUGHAM. 
 
 wrangling, — so much trouble, vexation, and fatigue, — 
 all undergone, you know, Sir, for the good of his 
 country and of mankind — all these, Sir, must have 
 made great inroads upon his constitution." Matilda, 
 who had been watching Mr. Brougham's meagre and 
 unprepossessing countenance, and wondering how it 
 could belong to so eloquent a man, here interposed — 
 " You know, aunt, Mr. Brougham is the god of your 
 idolatry — and (aside) I marvel at your taste — but 
 should you not think that, with all his patriotism and 
 philanthropy, he has some little regard for his 
 own fame and emolument ?" Mrs. Anabella declared 
 with warmth that Mr. Brougham was the most public- 
 spirited man in the kingdom, and that he had done 
 more for the cause of education and for the spread 
 of knowledge than all the other members of Parliament 
 of his age. She was proceeding to expatiate on his 
 great labours and achievements, when she was inter- 
 rupted by his rising to reply in the horse cause. The 
 speech was a series of felicitous jokes, which kept the 
 whole court in a roar of laughter, and had well nigh 
 been the death of Mrs. Anabella, who was prodi- 
 giously tickled by every pun and happy turn that fell 
 from her favourite orator. Matilda, too, was delighted 
 by Mr. Brougham's wit and drollery, and her opinion 
 was very much changed in his favour, though she still 
 declared that he was " any thing, any thing but what 
 she had expected.'' 
 
 During this trial, George, who sat at the end of the 
 bench on which we were seated, was remarkably taci- 
 
GEORGE IN LOVE. 35 
 
 turn, and I soon discovered that he was engaged in 
 much better employment than conversation with us. 
 He was stealing glances at a very sweet girl who 
 stood near him : for, though exceedingly bashful, he 
 is a passionate admirer of beauty when he can observe 
 it quietly. Matilda was the first to perceive how he 
 was engaged, and she whispering to me, we watched 
 him for a considerable time to our great entertain- 
 ment. His glances became more frequent and less 
 timid, as he thought himself perfectly unobserved. 
 The lady was very young, with a placid and interesting 
 countenance, and was one of those innocent creatures 
 who can sustain, and even exchange, a look of admi- 
 ration, without being excited or afflicted. George, 
 therefore, perused her delicate features, soft, clear 
 eye, and brow of alabaster, till it seemed almost 
 necessary for him to speak. His bashfulness strug- 
 gled for a long time, but at length, when I turned to 
 peep at him, I saw, to my amazement, that he was 
 standing, and the lady sitting in his place. He had 
 plucked up courage to offer her his seat, and with a 
 face of crimson was addressing to her some laconic 
 observation. From want of spirit on his part, and a 
 certain taciturnity on hers, the conversation did not 
 become very brisk ; but before the day was over I 
 agreed in the remark which Matilda whispered in 
 my ear, (except as to the libellous part of it) that 
 " George was over head and ears in love with a doll." 
 She rallied him unmercifully in the evening, but I 
 hope he received ample atonement from his dreams. 
 
3(j MURDER TRIAL. 
 
 We remained five days in Lancaster, two of which 
 we spent in the courts. We heard the trial of a young 
 woman, named Jane Scott, of Preston, a monster of 
 iniquity, who had poisoned her father and mother for 
 the sake of obtaining a trifling sum with which to 
 tempt her paramour to marry her. She was first tried 
 for the parricide, but was acquitted from an accidental 
 defect in the evidence. At the following Assize she 
 was tried for the matricide, convicted, and executed ; 
 and before her execution she confessed that she had also 
 murdered an illegitimate child of her own, and a child 
 of her sister's. This wretched murderess was a 
 compound of brutal ignorance, sensuality, and hypo- 
 crisy, — one of the most awful instances of the depravity 
 of human nature. 
 
 In the Nisi Prius Court we heard the trial of an 
 indictment against the Mersey and Irwell Navigation 
 Company, preferred by the Corporation of Liverpool, 
 for nuisances in the erection of extensive works con- 
 nected with the canals of the Company, which were 
 calculated, according to the allegation of the prose- 
 cutors, to injure the navigation of the river Mersey. 
 Mr. Brougham was the leading counsel for the prose- 
 cution, and Sir James Scarlett, then the Attorney- 
 General, was brought down by special retainer for the 
 defendants. Both these eminent counsel put forth 
 their strength. Mr. Brougham made an eloquent 
 speech ; and Sir James cross-examined, spoke, and 
 manoeuvred with matchless dexterity. The evidence 
 for the prosecution was so defective, and that for the 
 
CAUSE AT NISI PRIUS. 37 
 
 defence so strong, that the Jury stopped the examina- 
 tion of the witnesses, and returned a verdict for the 
 defendants. Mrs. Anabella, however, to this day 
 believes that the verdict ought to have been the other 
 way ; she commends Mr. Brougham's speech as equally 
 eloquent and unanswerable, and remembers with con- 
 siderable bitterness the triumphant and arrogant air of 
 the Attorney-General.* 
 
 * For various statistical details connected with Lancaster — an 
 account of its population, buildings, trade, inns, distance from 
 London and the principal towns at the Lakes, and the seats of the 
 neighbouring gentry, see the Itinerary at the end of the volume. 
 The Tourist will find it useful frequently to consult the Itinerary, 
 as it includes many particulars which would have encumbered the 
 narrative and descriptive parts of the work, and are therefore 
 omitted in the Companion, but which will materially add to the 
 information of the traveller. He will find there every considerable 
 village, most of the gentlemen's seats, and all the objects worthy 
 of notice, in the stages from town to town, and on all the routes at 
 the Lakes. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 FROM LANCASTER TO KIRKBY LONSDALE PARTING VIEW OF THE 
 
 BAY OF MORECAMBE AQUEDUCT VALE OF THE LUNE 
 
 CROOK OF LUNE SPLENDID PROSPECT HORNBY CASTLE 
 
 DERIVATIONS OF NAMES BRIDGE AT KIRKBY LONSDALE 
 
 VIEW FROM THE CHURCH- YARD UNDERLEY PARK SUNSET. 
 
 After a very agreeable sojourn at Lancaster, we 
 quitted our kind friends, to prosecute the main 
 object of our tour, in a visit to the Lakes. It was a 
 lovely morning, and we were all in the highest 
 spirits, for we had become weary of sitting in court, 
 and, the novelty of the thing having passed off, my 
 cousins found their curiosity fully satisfied with law 
 and lawyers. Their eagerness to see the Lakes, for 
 some time repressed, now revived with great ardour. 
 The fineness of the weather also relieved them from 
 considerable solicitude, as the preceding day had been 
 dull and rainy, and they had been alarmed lest they 
 should enter the hill country without seeing its beauties. 
 For two days the Westmoreland mountains had been 
 concealed or dimly visible, and a south-west wind 
 had driven the streaming clouds just over the tops of 
 the black hills south of Lancaster, occasionally cover- 
 
DEPARTURE FROM LANCASTER. 39 
 
 ing the highest of them with a misty cap. This 
 morning there were only a few fleecy clouds lying 
 high in the blue heaven, 
 
 " In beauteous semblance of a flock at rest :" 
 
 and the wind, having gone about to the north, gave us 
 assurance that the weather would continue favourable, 
 at least for some time. 
 
 Who has not felt the exhilarating effects of such a 
 change ? Who does not know that the mind of him 
 who waits for the sun-shine, sympathizes with the 
 changeful face of the sky ? — is darkened by gloomy 
 forebodings when the heavens are overcast, — is cheered 
 by the beamings of hope when the clouds break and 
 disperse, — fluctuates with the shifting wind, — and 
 brightens into joy and confidence when the sun reigns 
 alone in the firmament ? But in a mountainous coun- 
 try these feelings are unusually lively : you come there 
 for out-of-doors pleasures, and when the weather 
 keeps you prisoner in the house, you are nearly desti- 
 tute of resources, and have nothing to do but to sigh 
 for a change. The more beautiful the landscape, the 
 more mortifying it is to see it blurred, and in great part 
 hidden, by dark masses of cloud and streaming showers : 
 and afterwards the more delightful to see the mourn- 
 ing veil uplifted, and the clear eye of heaven and 
 the lovely face of nature shine forth in renovated 
 splendour. 
 
 We had had some discussion the previous evening 
 as to the route we should pursue to Kendal, — whether 
 
40 CHOICE OF ROUTE. 
 
 the shorter one of Milnthorpe, or the more interest- 
 ing and beautiful route by the vale of the Lune and 
 Kirkby Lonsdale. The former is recommended by the 
 fine view it occasionally affords of the sea and the moun- 
 tains, and by the scenery in the neighbourhood of 
 Milnthorpe — the parks of Dallam Tower and Levens 
 Hall. The latter, however, as leading us through 
 one of the richest and finest valleys in England, and 
 through the pleasant town of Kirkby, was preferred. 
 There is still a third route, which might have been 
 taken with advantage, namely, over the sands to 
 Ulverston, so as to see Furness Abbey and Coniston 
 Water before coming to Windermere. George earnestly 
 advocated this route, which I myself was disposed to 
 recommend ; but such was the terror of the ladies on 
 being told that they would have to ford two considera- 
 ble rivers, where the water was so deep as sometimes 
 to enter the bottom of the carriage, that we were 
 obliged to keep on terra Jirrna* 
 
 From a rising ground near Lancaster we had a 
 parting view of the Bay of Morecambe. The ex- 
 panse of waters, of a deep lead colour, fretted and 
 partially whitened by the breeze, looked most re- 
 freshing, and at the same time awakened that feeling 
 of the sublime, which any fine view of the sea 
 
 * The route " over sands" is described in the " Tour on Horse- 
 back," forming the second part of the " Companion." Those 
 who wish to visit Furness before seeing the rest of the Lakes— 
 which is desirable for all who have sufficient time — may also go 
 from Lancaster to Ulverston by Milnthorpe and Newby bridge, 
 which is sixteen miles longer than the route " over sands. ' 
 
BAY OF MORECAMBK. 41 
 
 inevitably produces. The tide was up, and the sands, 
 which are so firm as to be crossed by carriages, at 
 ebb-tide, some miles below high- water mark, were 
 now entirely covered. So extensive are the sands left 
 dry at the ebb in this shallow Bay, that the portion 
 of Lonsdale Hundred lying to the north of them is 
 called Lonsdale North of the Sands. But at present 
 the waves advanced and spilt their foam on the verv 
 edge of the green fields ; and boats scudded about, 
 with their well-filled sails almost dipping in the water, 
 in many parts of the Bay. The white houses and 
 smoke of Ulverston were distinctly visible, and the 
 eye followed the coast, from the rugged hills of 
 Cumberland and the dome of Black Comb, to the 
 low tongue of land at the mouth of the Bay, on which 
 stands Pile Castle. Further still, in the open sea, we 
 discerned a faint line of smoke, which indicated the 
 passing of a steam-boat. 
 
 Leaving this fine view and the noble castle of 
 Lancaster behind us, we took the road to Kirkby 
 Lonsdale. A mile from the town we had a near view 
 of the aqueduct which carries the canal over the 
 Lune. " I understand," said George, " that this is 
 considered the finest aqueduct in the kingdom : it was 
 built by the late Mr. Rennie, the celebrated engineer, 
 and the laying of the foundation alone cost £15,000 : 
 owing to the softness of the earth, it was necessary to 
 drive piles to a very great depth, and to lay a wooden 
 platform upon them, on which the stone foundation 
 was laid. The whole work is said to have cost more 
 
42 AQUEDUCT MR. RENNTE. 
 
 than £50,000." " Is not the aqueduct of Pont y Cys- 
 syllte," I asked, " which conveys the Ellesmere canal 
 across the Dee and the valley of Llangollen, in Wales, 
 a greater work ? I have only seen it from a distance, 
 but I counted seventeen or eighteen arches, which 
 seemed to me considerably higher than these."* 
 
 " I have not seen the aqueduct you speak of," 
 rejoined my cousin, "but this ranks amongst the 
 finest works of the kind in Europe. Its height is 
 fifty-one feet from the surface of the river to the sur- 
 face of the canal, and the length nearly seven hundred 
 feet ; and, as you perceive, a vast embankment is 
 made in connexion with the aqueduct, to carry the 
 canal across the valley." " Rennie ! " said Matilda, 
 " I think I have heard of him before ; was he not 
 originally a poor man ?" " He was the son of a Scotch 
 farmer," replied George, " and rose by his own 
 genius, like Smeaton and Brindley, to the highest 
 eminence as an engineer. The celebrated James 
 Watt was one of the first to appreciate and bring 
 forth his merit. Rennie has immortalized himself by 
 the Breakwater at Plymouth, and by Waterloo and 
 Southwark bridges at London : I have not seen any of 
 those works; but I have often heard you say, William,f 
 
 * Pont y Cyssyllte is both higher and longer than the 
 Lancaster aqueduct ; it consists of nineteen arches ; its height is 
 a hundred and twenty-six feet, and its length a thousand feet ; 
 but it is much narrower than the Lancaster aqueduct, and of a 
 less firm and solid construction. Its cost would probably be less. 
 
 f This is the name by which the author is mentioned throughout 
 the book. 
 
CROOK OP LUNE SPLENDID PROSPECT. 43 
 
 that you think Waterloo bridge a sublime monument 
 of art." " It is indeed/' I said : " I have seen no- 
 thing of the kind equal to it for combined simplicity, 
 symmetry, majesty, and strength." 
 
 We soon came to a part of the valley where it makes 
 a bend, and opens out into a finer expanse. Here the 
 river sweeps so completely round as nearly to form a 
 circle, on which account the place is designated the 
 Crook of Lune. The view from this spot has long been 
 famous, and, in order to see it to the best advantage, 
 we left the carriage three miles and a quarter from 
 Lancaster, and, passing through a field on our right, 
 climbed up a craggy hill, in the side of which a stone 
 quarry has been worked. The ascent was very toil- 
 some to Mrs. Anabella, but the prospect richly repaid 
 her for the exertion. 
 
 The Lune lay far beneath us, sweeping round the 
 foot of a wooded hill, and enclosing within its dark 
 broad circle a peninsula covered with grass and fern. 
 Beyond, for many a mile, stretched the rich and open 
 valley, fertilized by the river, which was seen wind- 
 ing through it in graceful curves. On the left side 
 of the valley rose a high and steep hill, wrapped in 
 a mantle of wood ; on the right the hills are more 
 rugged. Some miles before us we saw Hornby castle, 
 on a hill of moderate elevation, on one side of which 
 branches off the valley of the Lune, and on the other 
 that of the Wenning, like the fork of a Y. And, 
 as the magnificent back-ground of the landscape, rises 
 
44 HORNBY CASTLE. 
 
 the vast form of Ingleborough, whose broad and lofty 
 head 
 
 ' The semblance of a royal crown has on,' 
 
 which fits him to preside over so noble a scene. 
 
 Gray speaks in the highest terms of this prospect ; 
 he says that " every feature which constitutes a per- 
 fect landscape of the extensive sort is here not only 
 boldly marked, but also in its best position."* He 
 saw it, however, from a field on the left of the road, 
 which must be much lower than the station we 
 climbed to, and cannot therefore have so commanding 
 a view of the valley. Mrs. Anabella informed us that 
 Queen Elizabeth had pronounced this the finest pros- 
 pect in her dominions. From these two high authori- 
 ties we felt little inclined to differ. 
 
 Passing through several pleasant villages we came 
 to Hornby, a small market-toAvn near the confluence 
 of the Wenning and the Lune, and saw on the hill 
 which rises above the town, the castle, part of which is 
 ancient and belonged to the Barons Monteagle. The 
 keep of the ancient castle remains, but just in front 
 of it a modern house has been built, which conceals 
 this interesting relic of antiquity from the passing 
 spectator. Two miles beyond, we passed Thurland 
 
 * Gray visited this part in returning from his solitary tour in 
 Cumberland and Westmoreland, of which he gives a brief but 
 pleasing account in a journal kept for the amusement of his 
 friend, Dr. Wharton, who had been prevented by illness from 
 accompanying him. He made this tour in the autumn of 1769, 
 when he was in a poor state of health, and less than two years 
 before his death. 
 
DERIVATIONS OF NAMES. 45 
 
 castle, the seat of Mr. North : it is a fine old massive 
 structure, and stood a siege in the Civil Wars of 
 Charles I. The valley continues highly fertile and 
 beautiful, though with no striking objects — Ingle- 
 borough being no longer within view — till w r e come to 
 the immediate neighbourhood of Kirkby Lonsdale. 
 
 In this ride George, who had been dipping into a 
 book of antiquities which he found in the library of our 
 friend at Lancaster, enlightened his aunt and sister as to 
 the derivations of the names of many of the places we 
 had passed through or were approaching. Preston, he 
 said, was a corruption of Priests' town, so called from 
 being a kind of head-quarters for the Roman Catholics. 
 Lancaster was the Roman fortified station on the Lune, 
 whose ancient name was Lon or Loyne ; the town was 
 therefore called Longovicum, and also Lon-caster — camp 
 on the Lon (whence Lancaster) ; as Rib-caster, (now 
 Ribchester) was the fortified station of the Romans on 
 the Ribble. Lonsdale, the name of the Hundred of 
 Lancashire we were traversing, derived its name from 
 the fine valley by which it is intersected from the 
 borders of Westmoreland and Yorkshire to the sea. 
 The Dale of Lon, now generally called the vale of the 
 Lune, thus gave name to the Hundred, and also to 
 the town of Kirkby Lonsdale, which signified the 
 kirk (church) town in the dale of Lon. Kendal, of 
 which the correct name was Kirkby in Kendal, also 
 signified the kirk town in the dale of Ken or Kent. 
 As for the name of the county we were approaching, 
 Westmoreland, there were, he said, two probable 
 
46 KIKKBY LONSDALE BRIDGE. 
 
 etymologies, besides many improbable ones ; the first 
 was, that it implied the land of the Western moors, 
 which etymology was adopted by Camden ; and the 
 second, which was founded on the ancient spelling of 
 the word, Westmerland, was, that it signified the land 
 of the Western meres, or lakes — mere being the Saxon 
 word for lake, and being retained in many of the 
 names to the present day, as Windermere, Grasmere, 
 Thirlmere, &c. 
 
 When we came to the bridge over the Lune, at 
 the entrance of Kirkby Lonsdale, (where we also 
 entered Westmoreland) we got out of the carriage and 
 sent it forward to the inn, whilst we proceeded to 
 inspect and admire the curious construction of the 
 bridge, and the prospect of the river and valley from 
 this place. The spot is truly romantic. The river, of 
 considerable width, rolls in the bottom of the valley, 
 and is overshadowed by the trees that grow upon its 
 banks. Its current is roughened by the rocks which 
 form its bed, and some of which stand up in huge 
 moss-grown blocks in the midst of the stream. The 
 water is clear to a great depth, though of a deep amber 
 colour, indicating that it has flowed from peat-covered 
 hills. The steep grassy banks and the abundance of 
 trees close in the prospect, and give it an air of seclu- 
 sion. This is a good trout and salmon stream, 
 and, both on account of its fish and its natural 
 beauties, it would have charmed the scientific author 
 of "Salmonia."* The bridge is of immemorial 
 antiquity : it is a long, lofty, firm, and handsome 
 * The late Sir Humphry Davy. 
 
BRIDGE TRADITION. 47 
 
 structure, but so narrow as almost to deserve the 
 taunt cast upon the " auld brig of Ayr/" 
 
 " Where twa wheelbarrows trembled when they met." 
 
 At least no two carriages of a larger size can pass 
 each other ; but, for the security of foot passengers, 
 there are angular recesses in the battlements, corres- 
 ponding with the projecting piers. The bridge has 
 three arches, which are ribbed, and of remarkable 
 beauty : the centre arch rises twelve yards above 
 the stream. 
 
 Like many other very clever works executed in 
 difficult circumstances, this bridge has been ascribed 
 to the devil, who has been a bridge-builder time out 
 of mind. It seems improbable, indeed, as was ob- 
 served by Mrs. Anabella, that that personage should 
 employ himself in works of so much real utility to 
 men. Nevertheless there is a tradition in the neigh- 
 bourhood, that he built the bridge one windy night, 
 and that in fetching the stones from a distance, he 
 let fall the last apron-full as he flew over a fell 
 hard by. This very probable story accounts for the 
 huge blocks of stone found on some of those elevated 
 moors. 
 
 From the bridge we walked up the hill into 
 Kirkby Lonsdale — a neat, clean, stone-built town, 
 with an excellent inn. Having ordered dinner, we 
 proceeded to the church-yard, from which there is a 
 charming and splendid prospect. On the brow of the 
 hill is a seat shaded with trees, whence we looked 
 
48 VIEW FROM THE CHURCH YARD. 
 
 down upon a deep and luxuriant valley. The hill 
 on the summit of which we were seated descends 
 headlong to the river, which rolls at a depth of nearly 
 two hundred feet below, and sweeps with a majestic 
 bend through the vale. On the opposite hill, which is 
 higher than that of Kirkby Lonsdale, are the fine 
 woods and lawns of Casterton-hall, (the seat of Wm. 
 Wilson Carus Wilson, Esq.) combining the richness 
 of the park with almost the boldness of mountain 
 scenery. The eye, pursuing the valley upwards, 
 reaches the fells of Sedbergh, and, in the opposite 
 direction, follows a range of heath-covered hills, which 
 are terminated by the bold front of Ingleborough. 
 The noble woods which hang upon the sides of this 
 valley, and the clear winding stream that flows 
 through it, give an uncommon richness to a land- 
 scape the principal features of which are simple and 
 grand. 
 
 In the evening we visited the church-yard a second 
 time, and walked forward to Underley-park, the seat 
 of Mr. No well. The path leads for some distance 
 along the brow of the hill, commanding delightful 
 views of the valley, and then gradually descends 
 towards Underley-park, which lies nearly on a level 
 with the river. The distance is about a mile. Mr. 
 NowelFs house has been erected only a few years ; it 
 is an extensive and handsome structure, built of the 
 finest stone, and principally in the old English style, 
 but with a Grecian portico. The grounds were in 
 a neglected state, being not yet finished. 
 
SUNSET. 49 
 
 In returning we saw a fine effect of sunshine on the 
 heath-covered hills beyond Casterton-hall. A mass 
 of clouds had long obscured the descent of the sun 
 towards the horizon, but a gleam of red light on the 
 distant fells told us that he was to have a glorious 
 setting. We were so situated that we could not see 
 the sun himself, and the hill-side upon which we stood 
 formed a vast shadow ; but this only heightened the 
 effect of the glare on the opposite hills, which were 
 lit up with uncommon splendour, less resembling the 
 usual effect of sunshine than the reflection of an 
 enormous conflagration. From Casterton-hall, quite 
 along to the head of Ingleborough, the hills seemed 
 bathed in a flood of crimson light. The clouds above 
 caught the same rich hue, and made the whole scene 
 one of nature's most resplendent pictures. We lin- 
 gered in our walk, and dwelt with delight on a scene 
 so rarely equalled. I compared it to a sunset in 
 Italy, where, in the words of Byron — 
 
 ■ " Parting Day 
 
 Dies like the dolphin, whom each pang imbues 
 With a new colour as it gasps away, 
 The last still loveliest, till — 'tis gone — and all is grey." 
 
 D 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 FROM KIRKBY LONSDALE TO BOWNESS — VALE OF THE KENT — 
 
 KENDAL CASTLE MANUFACTURES FINE DISTANT VIEW 
 
 OF THE MOUNTAINS APPROACH TO WINDERMERE DISAP- 
 POINTMENT ON THE FIRST VIEW OF THE LAKE ; CAUSES 
 
 WINDERMERE BOWNESS SAIL ON THE LAKE BELLE ISLE 
 
 THE STATION EXQUISITE BEAUTY OF THE SCENERY. 
 
 On the following morning we left Kirkby Lonsdale, 
 immediately after breakfast, for Kendal, intending to 
 make a short stay in that town, and to reach Bowness, 
 on the lake of Windermere, in time for dinner. In 
 quitting Kirkby Lonsdale we had a fine view of the 
 Sedbergh fells, but the rest of the stage, till we came 
 to the neighbourhood of Kendal, was not particularly 
 interesting. 
 
 The vale of the Kent is lively and fertile, but by 
 no means equal in beauty to that of the Lune. As 
 we looked down upon it, we saw the town of Kendal, 
 lying at the foot of a steep fell, called Underbarrow 
 Scar.* It was partly concealed from us by a round 
 grassy hill, which rises in the midst of the valley, 
 and on the top of which stand the ruins of Kendal 
 
 * Scar signifies a brow of naked rocks, and is applied to most 
 of those ridges the summit of which is fronted by a line of perpen- 
 dicular crags. 
 
AN INTERESTING DISCOVERY. 51 
 
 castle. Looking up the valley, we saw the high 
 mountains among which the river Kent takes its rise. 
 The most remarkable of them is Hill Bell, a mountain 
 with a conical and verdant summit, which forms a 
 beautiful and commanding object from the lake of 
 Windermere. The hill nearest to us in that direction 
 is Potter Fell. Stretching away to the left is a 
 splendid range of mountains, including those of the 
 Langdale and Coniston districts, and among which 
 Langdale Pikes, Bowfell, Scawfell Pikes, Wry nose, 
 Wetherlam, and the Old Man, were conspicuous ; 
 but I shall not now describe their appearance more 
 particularly, as we afterwards saw the same range 
 from a nearer point between Kendal and Bowness. 
 
 As we approached Kendal, a light carriage passed 
 
 us at considerable speed. I observed that George, 
 
 who at that moment was sitting forward, looked 
 
 eagerly at the persons in the carriage, and that his 
 
 cheek was slightly flushed when he saw them. He 
 
 pretended, however, not to know who they were, 
 
 having had a mere glimpse, from which he only saw 
 
 that there were two ladies and a gentleman. When 
 
 we arrived at the King's Arms, the same carriage, 
 
 having changed horses, was just driving off; but 
 
 Matilda had time to see the persons within, and 
 
 exclaimed, almost loud enough to be heard by them — 
 
 " There's George's flame — I suspected as much by his 
 
 blushing." George, who I believe had not been quite 
 
 assured of this happy fact, looked half-pleased and 
 
 half abashed, but chid Matilda warmly for speaking 
 
 d 2 
 
52 KENDAL CASTLE. 
 
 so loud, and protested that he neither knew nor 
 cared any thing about that young lady, whoever she 
 might he, except that he gave her his seat in court, 
 rather than see her stand all day. When, however, 
 Matilda afterwards asked him plumply if he had not 
 been inquiring of the postillion the name of the 
 gentleman whose carriage had driven off, he was 
 obliged to confess that he had, and it was forthwith 
 voted that all his pretended indifference was a cloak 
 for a very tender feeling. 
 
 We stayed in Kendal about a couple of hours, which 
 allowed us time to look round the town, and pay a 
 hurried visit to the castle. Kendal lies, as has been 
 mentioned, beneath the lee of a scar, or lofty perpendi- 
 cular cliff, which overlooks the town on the west side, 
 whilst the river runs in the valley on the east, and 
 beyond it is the castle-hill. The castle is well worth 
 visiting, both from the situation, and from the interest 
 always attaching to the venerable relics of former days. 
 Its appearance, however, is more imposing from a dis- 
 tance than close at hand. The walls are circular, and 
 have been surrounded by a deep fosse, over which there 
 is an entrance on the west. There are remains of 
 three towers, two of them circular, and also traces 
 of a keep ; but, excepting these, all is a mere shell. 
 The castle belonged, in the fifteenth and sixteenth 
 centuries, to the family of Parr, or Parre, one of whose 
 members, Catherine, the daughter of Sir Thomas, was 
 raised to the throne of England — being the last wife 
 of Henry VIII. 
 
 
KENDAL MANUFACTURES. 53 
 
 Kendal is the seat of an ancient woollen manufac- 
 ture, to which it was long indebted for a steady pros- 
 perity. This manufacture was founded in the four- 
 teenth century, when Flemish weavers were invited to 
 settle in this country, at the same time that the export- 
 ation of English wool was prohibited. Kendal was 
 one of the few towns in which these foreign importers 
 of the woollen manufacture took up their abode. The 
 woollens made here were coarse, and, what is remark- 
 able, they went by the name of Kendal Cottons at a 
 much earlier period than the real cotton manufacture 
 was known in England. Of late years the manufacture 
 of coarse woollens has greatly declined, owing to the 
 successful competition of the Yorkshire manufacturers ; 
 and a finer kind of goods is now made here, consisting 
 principally of fancy waistcoatings. Leather is also 
 extensively manufactured ; and there is an establish- 
 ment for the cutting of marble, of which several 
 different kinds are found in Kendal fell. As the 
 country people for many miles round attend the 
 market, this town combines the character of a manu- 
 facturing place with that of the centre of an agricul- 
 tural district. 
 
 Kendal contains nearly 12,000 inhabitants, and is 
 the most populous and wealthy town in Westmoreland. 
 It is a neat, clean, and agreeable place ; and consists 
 principally of one good street, a mile in length, running 
 parallel with the river, with a few small streets 
 branching from it at right angles. The church is a 
 handsome and spacious Gothic structure, and contains 
 
54 KENDAL TO BOWNESS. 
 
 many monuments of the Parrs., the Stficklands, the 
 Bellinghams, and other old families of the neighbour- 
 hood. Near it stands Abbot-hall, the seat of Chris- 
 topher Wilson, Esq. which derives its name from 
 having heen the occasional residence of the Abbot of 
 St. Mary's, York, before the dissolution of monasteries. 
 
 The greater number of persons who visit the Lakes 
 pass through Kendal. The quakers are a numerous 
 and highly respectable body here ; and Mr. Brougham's 
 greatest strength, in his contests with the Lowthers 
 for the representation of Westmoreland, always lay 
 amongst the independent " grey coats" of Kendal. 
 For this cause Mrs. Anabella has the highest respect 
 lor the town, and looked, I thought, upon every person 
 she met in the streets with peculiar benevolence, as 
 probably a fellow- worshipper of the great orator.* 
 
 From Kendal to Bowness, a distance of nine miles, 
 the road is excessively uneven, and, after leaving the 
 valley of the Kent, passes over a barren, rugged, and 
 desolate tract. I had not gone by this road on any 
 of my former visits to the Lakes, but either to Newby 
 bridge, or along the Ambleside road, so as to come 
 down upon Windermere a mile or two above Bowness. 
 I had, however, afterwards visited that place, in 
 which I had the advantage of Mrs. Anabella, who, 
 having made a flying expedition round the Lakes, had 
 taken the high road to Ambleside, so as only to see 
 
 * Kendal received by the Reform Act the privilege of sending 
 one Member to Parliament; and the first Member was James 
 Brougham, Esq., brother of Lord Brougham; on the death of this 
 gentleman in December, 1833, John Barham, Esq. was elected. 
 
FINE VIEW OF THE MOUNTAINS. 55 
 
 Windermere at its upper extremity. My fellow 
 travellers were not prepared for the uninteresting 
 moorland over which our road now lay, but I ventured 
 to promise them an ample compensation before the day 
 was over. Nor was the journey altogether disagree- 
 able, for, as it lay over the high ground between 
 Windermere and Kendal, we enjoyed very extensive 
 views of the Westmoreland, Cumberland, and Lanca- 
 shire mountains, which, being harmonized by distance, 
 seemed to form one grand chain, encircling half the 
 horizon. We spread out our map, therefore, and 
 began to trace them upon it, — a task which my cousins 
 found much more difficult than they had anticipated, 
 owing to the great number of hills which rose before 
 us, and their ignorance of the respective distances. I 
 distinctly recognized most of the principal summits, 
 but mj companions were generally very wide of the 
 truth in their guesses. 
 
 George was unspeakably delighted when he had 
 ascertained the names and positions of these fine 
 mountains. I repeated my lesson several times at 
 his instance — " The lofty and pointed mountain in 
 the distance, nearly opposite to us, but a little to the 
 northward, is Coniston Old Man, which rises over the 
 head of the lake of Coniston, and is the pride of 
 Furness ; more to the north is the broad back of 
 Wetherlam ; then Wrynose ; still further is the 
 pointed and rocky summit of Bowfell, a mountain 
 nearly 3000 feet high, which stands at the head of 
 Great Langdale. The two remarkable peaks which 
 
56 MOUNTAINS APPROACH TO WINDERMERE. 
 
 you see next, one of them pointed and the other 
 ending in a blunt knob,, are Langdale Pikes. Con- 
 siderably further to the right is Loughrigg fell, at 
 the head of Windermere, comparatively a low hill ; 
 then the lofty Fairfield, and then Scandale and 
 Wansfell ; which brings us round to Hill Bell, the 
 conical mountain we saw from the other side of Ken- 
 dal." " What," inquired George, " are those faintly- 
 marked and confused summits which seem to be beyond 
 Bowfell ? They must be very lofty." " They are 
 the highest mountains in England — Scawfell and 
 Scawfell Pikes, which, you will find from the map, 
 are considerably further from us than Bowfell : they 
 stand at the head of Wasdale. Great Gavel may also 
 be seen more to the right." I soon found that George 
 had an excellent memory for places and objects ; 
 having once learnt the form and situation of a moun- 
 tain, he never forgot it : whereas his sister, though 
 for other matters she had a retentive memory, was 
 very dull in learning localities, and forgot one day 
 what she had learnt the preceding. These varieties 
 in the faculty of memory are rendered very manifest 
 in a mountainous country : I suppose a phrenologist 
 would discover that in George's skull the organ of 
 locality was large, and in Matilda's very small. 
 
 During our ride great impatience was displayed by 
 our party to obtain a view of Windermere — the first, 
 as well as the largest of the lakes. George sat for- 
 ward in the carriage, straining his eyes to discover 
 the wished-for object. When we were only half-way 
 
FIRST VIEW OF WINDERMERE. 57 
 
 to Bowness, he suddenly ejaculated " Windermere !" 
 and was pleasing himself with the thought that he 
 had been the first to see the lake ; but the postillion 
 damped his joy by telling him that the water he saw 
 was the river Kent at Milnthorpe. The ladies were 
 in great terror at the steepness of some of the hills 
 we descended, which might well alarm persons accus- 
 tomed to the most level part of Lancashire ; but 
 before we had finished our tour, they learnt to view 
 the descents with more calmness, and to trust more 
 to the strength of the horses and the skill of the 
 postillions. 
 
 Our first view of Windermere was from the brow 
 of a hill, which looks down immediately upon the 
 lake, and from which we saw it nearly in its whole 
 extent. An exclamation of delight burst from our 
 party when the first view of the water presented 
 itself; but this was immediately followed by silence, 
 and we were all busily employed in looking right 
 and left at the long-expected and interesting object. 
 Very few remarks were made in descending the steep 
 hill to Bowness ; for in truth Ave all felt, though none 
 of us expressed the sentiment till some time after- 
 wards, a little disappointment at the coup d'oeil. 
 Various circumstances contributed to produce this 
 feeling. Having come upon the lake at its centre, 
 and having understood that this was the largest of 
 the English lakes, my companions had expected to 
 see a magnificent expanse of water. But unluckily 
 this is the narrowest part, and in the very midst of it 
 
 d 3 
 
58 DISAPPOINTMENT CAUSES. 
 
 runs an island three quarters of a mile long, which, 
 being covered with wood, partially conceals the water 
 beyond it, and looks like the further shore. Add to 
 this, the effect of the woody promontories which run 
 into the lake on either side, and of the dark and lofty 
 hill that rises precipitously from the opposite bank, 
 both of which tend still further to diminish the appa- 
 rent breadth of the water ; and it is not surprising 
 that my cousins should have thought that Windermere 
 looked only like a considerable river. Another cir- 
 cumstance still contributed to their disappointment. 
 It was afternoon, and the sun was declining towards 
 the opposite hill, whose shaded side was presented to 
 us; and this, combined with a considerable degree 
 of sun-haziness, gave an indistinctness to the objects 
 which lay below us in the valley. In the morning the 
 scene would have been incomparably finer. Having 
 done much to raise the expectations of our party, I felt 
 some anxiety about the impression which would be 
 made upon them ; and, as I knew that the view from 
 the lake itself was far more striking than that from 
 the hill above Bowness, (at least under the circum- 
 stances in which we had seen it) I was desirous of 
 getting them into a boat as soon as possible.* 
 
 * The hill from which we obtained the first sight of the lake 
 commands one of the finest general views of Windermere, but the 
 best point is nearly a mile north of the Kendal road, in the rear of 
 Bowness. The chief causes of our disappointment were, first, the 
 dimness of the atmosphere, which is always most perceptible in 
 looking down from an elevated situation ; and second, the height 
 of the two hills that hem in this part of the lake, and which, to an 
 eye unaccustomed to mountain scenery, makes all objects appear 
 much smaller than they really are. 
 
WINDERMERE — BOWNESS. 59 
 
 Windermere (more correctly, but less commonly 
 written Winandermere) is nearly 11 miles in length, 
 and has an average breadth of three quarters of a 
 mile. The lake runs north and south, with a very 
 slight curve near the centre. The middle and lower 
 parts of the lake lie between bold and steep hills : 
 that on the west, called Furness fell, is clothed in 
 woods of larch and fir ; that on the east rises with a 
 rugged surface into crags and heath-covered fells. 
 The lake is contracted towards its foot, where its un- 
 dulating shores are adorned with forest trees ; and it 
 pours out its waters by the river Leven at Newby- 
 bridge. Towards the bead the hills recede, leaving 
 a broad but irregular margin of woods, meadows, and 
 lawns, beautifully spread over a waving surface, and 
 affording the most delightful situations for gentlemen's 
 seats. The lake is a mile in width in the upper part, 
 and presents a very fine expanse of water. Around 
 the head stand lofty mountains, which combine grace- 
 fulness with boldness of form. Windermere contains 
 fourteen islands, most of them forming a cluster near 
 the middle. Both the shores are cultivated in the 
 intervals of the plantations, and adorned with hand- 
 some mansions, which heighten the natural beauty of 
 the scenery, and contribute to give to the queen of 
 English lakes a character of unequalled richness and 
 elegance. 
 
 The village or small town of Bowness,* by far 
 
 * Formerly Bulness : the termination ness, fnese, Sax. nose, J 
 which signifies point or promontory, indicates that the town is 
 near a promontory, though it is also situated upon a bay. 
 
60 BOWNESS. 
 
 the most considerable, and perhaps the most beau- 
 tifully situated, of any on the borders of the Lake, 
 stands on uneven ground rising somewhat rapidly 
 from a semicircular bay. Its whitened church and 
 houses, appearing amongst the trees which adorn the 
 village, have a charming effect ; and, as we drove up 
 to the White Lion, the mixture of rustic simplicity 
 and irregularity with cultivated taste, in the flowers 
 and gardens which ornamented the fronts of the 
 houses, made my cousins pronounce it a very sweet 
 spot. 
 
 We were lucky in obtaining bed-rooms which 
 looked upon the lake, but our parlour fronted towards 
 the village. We ordered dinner immediately on en- 
 tering the house, and, that being about the usual 
 dinner-hour, the preparations were so far made that 
 we were able to sit down to table as soon as the 
 ceremonies of unpacking and dressing had been gone 
 through. An excellent dinner, in which the rarest 
 and most delicious dish was char fresh from the lake, 
 was served up. We lost very little time at the 
 dessert, but, having made an agreement with a boat- 
 man to take us to the Station, we entered the boat 
 about an hour before sunset. 
 
 The very first view of the lake obtained from the 
 level of its own surface, impressed my cousins most 
 favourably. They were now aware that the long slip 
 of land which lay opposite to us was an island, and, 
 on observing more attentively the trees on the hill 
 which formed the actual boundary of the lake, they 
 
SAIL ON THE LAKE. 61 
 
 found that the hill was considerably higher and 
 further distant, and the lake consequently wider, than 
 they had supposed. Our view of the water was circum- 
 scribed by the woody promontories which flank the 
 bay of Bowness, and by a large island called Belle 
 Isle, or Curwen's Island; yet it was a lovely and 
 even fascinating view. The profusion and extreme 
 beauty of the wood upon the island and shores, — the 
 clear and glassy surface of the lake, reflecting all the 
 objects upon its borders, — the majestic hill and forest 
 which rose in front of us, — the perfect placidity and 
 still seclusion of this hill-embosomed view, not dis- 
 turbed, yet enlivened, by the tiny marine reposing 
 at anchor in the bay, and consisting of a few fishing 
 vessels and elegant pleasure-boats, — all tended to 
 inspire the mind with serene admiration and delight. 
 
 For some time after we had pushed off, we were 
 employed in observing the limpid clearness of the 
 water, which enabled us to see the bottom at the 
 depth of several yards. Shoals of small fish, sus- 
 pended in the pure element, were gliding gracefully 
 about, keeping together like migrating flocks of birds, 
 and, when alarmed by the splash of the oars, darting 
 into the subaqueous forests of weeds, which grow to a 
 great height round the bay. Sometimes large dark- 
 coloured fish were seen alone, pursuing their silent, 
 thief-like course, as monsters of prey prowling round 
 the skirts of a wood, and, when alarmed by the 
 approach of man, plunging into the thicket. Whilst 
 we observed these tenants of the lake, and the 
 
62 WINDERMERE BELLE ISLE. 
 
 rocks and aquatic plants amongst which they were 
 moving, Matilda said this was a sight she had not 
 calculated upon, and she did not know whether the 
 prospect beneath or around was the more pleasing. 
 
 When we passed out of the bay of Bowness, the 
 water deepened so as to deprive us of any further 
 observations of this kind. But as we rowed along 
 the channel which lies between Belle Isle and the 
 shore, fresh beauties opened upon us every instant. 
 The island itself is a scene of fairy elegance. Its 
 verdant eminences slope down in lawns to the very 
 brink of the water, which is skirted, for the whole 
 length of the strand, with trees of every form and 
 hue. The graceful willow droops its streamers into 
 the lake; the elegant larch springs up towards heaven ; 
 the sombre and matted tufts of the fir-tree contrast 
 with the freely-waving foliage of the yellow ash ; 
 and the delicate twigs and silvered bark of the birch 
 set off the sturdy and gnarled branches of the oak. 
 The beech, the plane, and the chesnut also abound 
 among the forest trees ; and aged yews and hawthorns 
 are scattered upon the lawns. The green island, thus 
 exquisitely fringed, is set, as it were, in the mirror of 
 the lake, which reflects from its bosom every shape 
 and colour with perfect fidelity. Out of the midst 
 of the trees rises a cupola, which indicates the man- 
 sion of Henry Curwen, Esq., the proprietor of the 
 island.* As we passed, all was perfect stillness, 
 
 * Mr. Curwen is the son of the late John Christian Curwen, 
 Esq., M. P. for Cumberland, who bought this island from Mr. 
 
WINDERMERE. 63 
 
 except the occasional baying of a large hound belong- 
 ing to the island, and we felt the calmness of the 
 scene infused into our spirits ; but as we returned, a 
 party of Italian musicians were sounding their tim- 
 brels and guitars on the lawn in front of the house, and 
 the merry tunes came dancing over the lake, and 
 seemed to fill with melodious sound what before was 
 all harmony to the eye. 
 
 Having passed the island, and what I have called 
 the channel, as we approached the Ferry, about a mile 
 to the south of Bowness, the lake opened out on both 
 sides into an expanse which may be termed mag- 
 nificent. On our right, and to the rear of the island, 
 the waters form a bay which washes the foot of the 
 steep hill opposite Bowness ; and on our left the lake 
 makes a corresponding indentation of the shore. The 
 Ferry has been established where two promontories ad- 
 vance towards each other from the opposite sides of the 
 lake, and form a strait, below which there is again a 
 fine sweep of about a mile, to the promontory of Storrs, 
 on which stands the handsome mansion of John Bol- 
 ton, Esq. The evening was bright and beautiful : all 
 the haze we had seen in looking down from the hill, 
 when the sun was just in our eyes, had passed 
 away ; the lake was as clear and tranquil as the blue 
 
 English about the year 1790, and laid it out in the present tasteful 
 manner. Mr. Curwen also planted Furness fell with larch, of 
 .which valuable tree he had at one time planted a greater quantity 
 than any landed proprietor in the kingdom. Visiters are allowed 
 to land upon Belle Isle, and to walk round it — a circuit of two 
 miles. 
 
64 WINDERMERE THE STATION. 
 
 heaven which it reflected, and the sun shed his last 
 glory over the scene ere he sank behind the mountain 
 top. 
 
 We had time, before the sun set, to reach the 
 Station, a small house of observation built on the top 
 of a wooded rock, which rises behind the Ferry-house, 
 on the west side of the lake. From this point nearly 
 the whole extent of the "liquid vale" may be seen, 
 from Newby bridge at the southern extremity, almost 
 up to Ambleside at the northern. A richer landscape of 
 wood and water cannot be pictured by the imagination 
 of man. The glassy lake returns the heaven and 
 the mountains, enriched by the reflection. The 
 islands, the promontories, the hills are all covered 
 with wood, yet endlessly varied, from the natural 
 thicket which feathers the islets, and the regular 
 grove that environs the mansions on the shore, to the 
 solemn forest of larch and fir with which the hills are 
 mantled. Southward the landscape is graceful with- 
 out boldness ; but the head of the lake is surrounded 
 by lofty mountains, which are sufficiently near to 
 impart magnificence to the view. The windows of 
 the Station are partly filled with stained glass of 
 several colours, by looking through which you see the 
 lake as it appears in the four seasons of the year. 
 The green glass imparts to the landscape the fresh 
 vernal hue ; the yellow throws over it the full bril- 
 liance of a summer's noon-tide ; the orange invests it 
 with the mellow tints of autumn ; and the light blue" 
 gives the pale, chill, snowy aspect of winter. 
 
EXQUISITE BEAUTY OF THE SCENERY. 65 
 
 Perhaps nothing is more impressive, in the contem- 
 plation of this exquisite scene, than the perfect calm 
 and death-like stillness which reigns over the whole. 
 At this time not a breeze stirred,, — not even the faint- 
 est sound reached the ear, — nothing moved ; the lake 
 lay below us clear and bright, but so unruffled that it 
 seemed like one vast mirror without a flaw. The pre- 
 ternatural silence, combined with the ravishing beauty 
 of the scene, gave us the impression of a vision, or 
 an Elysium peopled rather by shades than by mortal 
 men. Our party were even oppressed with emotion ; 
 the tears gathered in Matilda's eyes, and she after- 
 wards declared that she felt a mixture of awe and 
 transport which she never before experienced. 
 
 We descended from the Station, and returned with 
 the deepening twilight to Bowness, all delighted by 
 the scenery we had beheld, and Mrs. Anabella, 
 Matilda, and George uniting to declare, that their 
 highest expectations had fallen far beneath the reality. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 MORNING VIEW OF WINDERMERE — GEORGE'S DREAMS TOMB 
 
 OF BISHOP WATSON-— WATER EXCURSION THE ISLANDS — 
 
 SPLENDID VIEW FROM RAYRIGG BANK PROFESSOR WILSON 
 
 THE LAKE POETS HOLMS BELLE ISLE. 
 
 Our party assembled before breakfast in the morn- 
 ing on the grass-plot in front of our windows, which 
 commanded a full view of Windermere. The sun 
 was already on his march, and was busily employed in 
 drinking up the vapour which hung about the tops 
 and sides of the mountains, as if he meant to have 
 " all heaven to himself." When we first saw the 
 hills at the head of the lake, — Fairfield, Scandale, 
 Hill Bell, and others, — they were half enveloped in 
 white clouds ; but, as we watched them, the clouds 
 streamed up their sides like smoke ; and though occa- 
 sionally a fleece or two, which hung from the ragged 
 edge of the cloudy mantle, seemed to drop down to a 
 lower position, the tendency on the whole was up- 
 wards; and with great delight we saw them slowly 
 uncover ridge after ridge, and summit after summit, 
 till they left the whole cluster of hills without a 
 vapour, and were dissipated in the higher regions of 
 the atmosphere. A gentle breeze produced a ripple 
 on the surface of the lake, and gave us a sensation of 
 
MORNING VIEW OF WINDERMERE. 67 
 
 delightful freshness. We now saw the hills on the 
 opposite side of the lake., and every ohject upon them, 
 with the most perfect distinctness ; and indeed so 
 much difference does the position of the sun make 
 in such a country as this, by the manner in which 
 the shadows are cast, and the objects brought out, 
 that you can scarcely be said to have the same view 
 in the morning as you have in the evening. When 
 the eye has been long accustomed to the scene, the 
 difference is less perceived, but to a stranger it is 
 very remarkable. A distant boat struck Matilda as 
 a pretty and interesting object : it could scarcely have 
 been discerned but for the long wedge-like track 
 which it left behind in the waters, and which con- 
 ducted the eye to the dark point at its apex ; one 
 felt inclined to pity the insignificance of the object, 
 though, for any thing we knew, there might be, in 
 that nutshell vessel, a cargo of passengers more im- 
 portant in their own eyes, and in their own circle, 
 than all the world besides. 
 
 At breakfast George told us that he had scarcely 
 had a quarter of an hour's sound sleep all night. 
 The visions of his imagination had kept him lively 
 and restless. He had been surrounded by mountains 
 reaching up to heaven, and woods richer than tropical 
 forests : he had been wandering up and down in the 
 valley of Rasselas : he had walked under the crystal 
 waters, and visited the grottoes of the Naiads : he 
 had been a willing prisoner in enchanted islands, had 
 heard the song of the syrens, and been intoxicated 
 
68 george's dreams 
 
 by the charms of Calypso : he had peeped through the 
 windows of Elysium, and seen its immortal bowers : 
 he had navigated seas of glass in the shell of the 
 nautilus. In short, every object he had seen the pre- 
 ceding day had risen up in his imagination during the 
 night, magnified, coloured, distorted, associated at 
 random with a thousand objects previously in his 
 memory, and quite uncontrolled by reason. When 
 George had related to us his " visions of the night" 
 with a copious eloquence which showed that he had 
 been under strong impressions, Matilda asked him if 
 he would have the goodness to tell her whom Calypso 
 looked like ? — what was the colour of her eyes and 
 the shape of her features ? George's face was in- 
 stantly flushed, and, in spite of himself, there was a 
 smile of pleasure on his lips ; at which we all laughed 
 heartily, and Matilda said, she did not wonder at his 
 not sleeping, or at his being intoxicated, or at his 
 seeing Elysium ; but she wanted to know whether 
 Calypso was at Low Wood or at Ambleside, because 
 it was very necessary for us to avoid so dangerous a 
 personage. It will be long before George is allowed to 
 forget Calypso. 
 
 After breakfast we summoned our boatman, and 
 consulted him as to the best points of view on the 
 lake. He proposed to take us up to Ambleside, and 
 recommended us to send the carriage to the same 
 place ; but, as we wished to have the views both on 
 the lake itself and from the shore, we declined his 
 offer. He then told us that Rayrigg bank, a mile and 
 
TOMB OF BISHOP WATSON. 69 
 
 a half above Bowness, commanded the most extensive 
 view of the lake which was to be had in that neigh- 
 bourhood, and we therefore determined to go there in 
 the boat. 
 
 In walking from the inn to the lake, we passed by 
 the small church of Bowness, whose whitened exterior 
 and stunted square tower are in accordance with the 
 cleanliness and rustic simplicity of the village. The 
 gate of the church-yard was locked, but as we knew 
 that the remains of the late Bishop of Landaff were 
 interred here, we sent for the sexton, that we might 
 see the burying-place of so distinguished a man. 
 Entering the grass-grown cemetery, we were con- 
 ducted to a plain grave-stone, raised about two feet 
 above the ground, and enclosed by an iron railing, at 
 the corner of the church. Nothing can be more 
 appropriate to his character than the inscription on his 
 tomb. It is as follows : " Ricardi Watson, Episcopi 
 Landavensis, cineribus sacrum ; Obiit Julii 1. A. J). 
 1816. jEtatis 79." No array of titles, no parade of 
 honours, talents, and virtues, offends the character of 
 the place or of the man. In the height of the fame 
 to which his talents raised him, Bishop Watson never 
 forgot his humble origin, and never was ashamed of 
 it.* It may be permitted me to say, that I revere his 
 
 * Bishop Watson was the son of a schoolmaster, and his ances- 
 tors farmed their own small estate at Heversham, near Kendal. 
 He was Professor of Chemistry, and afterwards Regius Pro- 
 fessor of Divinity at Cambridge, and was raised to a bishopric 
 by the Earl of Shelbume in 1782. He advanced the science of 
 Chemistry, triumphantly defended Christianity, and benefited 
 
70 EXCURSION ON THE LAKE ISLANDS. 
 
 memory for the services he rendered to the cause of 
 science and of truth, and for the example he set as an 
 independent bishop and an honest man. 
 
 Retiring slowly from the contemplation of this tomb, 
 we proceeded to the boat, and rowed out of the bay. 
 Our course lay past several beautiful islands, covered 
 thickly with natural wood. My memory does not 
 present to me any one scene amongst the lakes of Swit- 
 zerland or Italy so profusely rich, so perfectly deli- 
 cious, as this part of Windermere. Six or seven 
 islands, of different sizes, are within view at the 
 same moment, all of them crested with masses of the 
 most luxuriant foliage, and some of them presenting 
 amidst the trees bold crags adorned with heath and 
 moss. These umbrageous spots on the lake, situated 
 at various distances, are a relief to the eye, and add 
 exceedingly to the effect of the water ; for in a lake 
 without islands the eye glances at once across the 
 water, and rests on the shore, but here it is detained 
 and diverted by objects beautiful in themselves, and 
 heightening by contrast the beauty of the glassy 
 element which floats around them. Islands in a lake 
 answer the same purpose as insects in amber, by 
 setting off the lustre and purity of the material in 
 which they are enclosed. 
 
 But, though the beauty of a lake is much height- 
 ened by being thus varied, it is the unbroken expanse 
 
 Agriculture by his experiments in planting. But his politics were 
 too independent to allow of his receiving promotion from Mr. 
 Pitt or his successors. 
 
VIEW FROM RAYRIGG BANK. 71 
 
 of water which produces a sense of sublimity. And 
 this, too, you may have in Windermere, when you 
 have passed the islands which occupy the middle por- 
 tion of the lake. Skirting the eastern shore, we saw 
 on our right Rayrigg-hall, in the recess of a quiet bay ;* 
 and as our boat glided along, the hills of the Langdale 
 district opened upon us magnificently from behind 
 Furness fell, which had screened them from our view 
 at Bowness. We left our boat at a landing-place, 
 and walked up Rayrigg bank, which is a grassy dome 
 rising out of a girdle of woods. 
 
 From this eminence you see at once the whole of 
 the upper reach of Windermere — a noble sheet, about 
 four miles in length and one in breadth. Branching 
 off from it in every direction are crooked valleys of 
 inconceivable richness and beauty, leading up to lofty 
 and barren mountains, from which descend the streams 
 that feed the lake. These valleys spread out, as they 
 open upon the basin of Windermere, in little deltas 
 clothed with wood and verdure ; and betwixt them, 
 bold ridges push forward their promontories almost to 
 the water's brink. To your right, as you look north- 
 ward, is the valley of Troutbeck, running up to the 
 mountains of Hill Bell and High Street, with Calgarth, 
 the seat of the late Bishop Watson, (and now of his 
 son) at its mouth, surrounded by wood, much of it 
 planted by the bishop himself. On the hill, still further 
 
 * Rayrigg-hall, the seat of the Rev. John Fleming, has been 
 thought to resemble Ferney, the residence of Voltaire, near the 
 Lake of Geneva. The house is a plain, whitened mansion. 
 
72 VIEW FROM RAYRIGG BANK. 
 
 to the right; is Elleray, the delightful cottage of Pro- 
 fessor Wilson. Beyond Calgarth is Low Wood, con-^ 
 cealed by the trees which cover the whole shore ; and 
 Dove Nest stands on an eminence above, embowered 
 among woods. At the head of the Lake is the bold 
 and rugged hill called Loughrigg fell, with the mansion 
 and park of Brathay lying at its foot nearly on a 
 level with the lake. On the right of this hill lies 
 the rich valley of Ambleside, terminated by the 
 heights of Fairfield. And on the left of Loughrigg 
 is the valley of Langdale, branching off in an oblique 
 direction from the head of Windermere, and carrying 
 the eye many miles back to the rocky crest of Bow- 
 fell, and the fantastically-shaped Langdale Pikes, the 
 most bold and irregular in their forms of any moun- 
 tains in Westmoreland or Cumberland. The Pikes 
 have three summits, two of which rear their pointed 
 shafts to the sky, whilst one, with a broader head, 
 seems as though it had been pushed out of the per- 
 pendicular, and beetles awfully over its base. They 
 are naked and dark, and their steep sides are furrowed 
 by ravines. The craggy and stupendous hills of this 
 district have received very appropriate names, which 
 appear to have been conferred by a people of rude 
 and homely imaginations : one is called Hardknot, 
 another Wrynose, a third Rainsbarrow, a fourth We- 
 therlam, &c. South of this group is the regular and 
 lofty mountain, called Coniston Old Man, with a pile 
 of stones on the summit. This brings us round to 
 Furness fell and the lake ; the islands from hence 
 
PROFESSOR WILSON — BLLERAY. 73 
 
 form a picture of inexpressible loveliness, and be- 
 yond which the lake with its wooded and waving 
 shores stretches for several miles in a narrowing vista, 
 till it is terminated by the hill above Newby bridge, 
 crowned with a monument. 
 
 We stood a long time surveying this splendid 
 view. Matilda's eye rested on the softer parts of the 
 scenery — Calgarth, Brathay, the islands, and the 
 white houses and meadows on the opposite shore. 
 But George gazed with insatiable delight on the wild 
 magnificence of the Pikes, — that kind of scenery 
 being quite new to him, and kindling all the enthu- 
 siasm of his nature. 
 
 Returning to our boat, we rowed directly across the 
 lake, intending to skirt the foot of Furness fell, for 
 the sake of varying the prospect, and to land upon 
 Belle Isle before returning to Bowness. When we 
 were gliding over the glassy water, the following 
 conversation arose : — Matilda : " Did not you say, 
 William, that Professor Wilson lived at Elleray ? Is 
 he the < Isle of Palms' Wilson ?' " William : « The 
 same : he is Professor of Moral Philosophy in the 
 University of Edinburgh. He spends his time be- 
 twixt Edinburgh and Elleray : he is, as you may 
 infer from his poems, devotedly fond of the sublimi- 
 ties and beauties of nature, and especially of this 
 ' loveliest of all earthly Lakes,' as he calls it." 
 George: (pointing to the Professor's cottage) — "Look, 
 Matilda ! look, aunt ! Does not Elleray answer well 
 to his description of it ? — 
 
 E 
 

 74 THE LAKE POETS. 
 
 And that sweet dwelling rests upon the brow 
 (Beneath its sycamore) of Orest-hill, 
 As if it smiled on Windermere below, 
 Her green recesses and her islands still." 
 
 Mrs. Anahella : " The situation is truly delightful ; 
 it would make a poet : I think the Lake Poets have 
 all chosen their houses judiciously." Matilda : " How 
 many are there of the Lake Poets., and where do they 
 live ?" W. : " Five or six : Wordsworth, the father 
 and king of the school, lives at Rydal Mount, a house 
 charmingly situated at the extremity of the valley 
 of Ambleside, — the front of it commanding a view 
 of that valley and Windermere, whilst from his gar- 
 den he looks down on the little lake of Rydal, which 
 on the small scale is the loveliest landscape in nature. 
 Southey lives at Greta-hall, near Keswick, with Skid- 
 daw at his back, and Derwentwater spread out before 
 him. Coleridge, who married a sister of Mrs. Southey, 
 has abandoned the Lakes, and lives at Highgate ; but 
 he has a son, Hartley Coleridge, whose verses you 
 have seen in the Annuals and in Blackwood; he 
 lodged for some years at the inn in Grasmere, but has 
 since been a poet-errant. De Quincy, the author of 
 the f Opium-Eater/ makes up the number ; he had 
 a house in the vale of Grasmere, but he likewise has 
 left Westmoreland, and lives in Scotland." Matilda : 
 " What sort of a man is Professor Wilson ?" W. i 
 " I have never seen him : he is still in the prime of 
 life; when a young man he was a noted athlete— 
 an accomplished wrestler and a great leaper, being 
 
THE HOLMS. 75 
 
 fitted for gymnastic exercises by his height, strength, 
 and agility : he used to be fond of the chase, and was 
 also the patron of the yearly wrestling matches that 
 take place at Low Wood. If you have read his 
 works, I dare say you will think that his bodily 
 powers and personal accomplishments have not inter- 
 fered with the cultivation of his genius." 
 
 We were now opposite Belle Grange, the house of 
 Mr. Edwd. Curwen, at the foot of Furness fell, near 
 its northern extremity ; and we rowed down the lake 
 towards Belle Isle, greatly admiring the shifting 
 islands, and the reflection in the lake of the wooded 
 steep which rose above us. George lavished the most 
 enthusiastic eulogies on the scene, and quoted the 
 lines of Wilson — 
 
 All those sister-isles that sleep 
 
 Together, like a happy family 
 Of beauty and of love" — 
 
 Matilda asked the names of the islands. " The island 
 opposite to us — the larger of the two— is Lady Holm, 
 so called from having formerly been the site of an 
 Oratory dedicated to ' our Lady/ the Virgin Mary ; 
 the smaller island, nearer to us, is Hen Holm ; that 
 higher up the lake is Rough Holm ; House Holm and 
 Thompson's Holm are before us ; and two little specks 
 of islets beyond are called Lily of the Valley Holms." 
 Matilda : " Wilson may well call them ' sister-isles,' 
 for they seem all to have the same surname : the family 
 of the Holms is a large one here, and I dare to say 
 ancient. They seem also to be maiden isles." George .- 
 
 e 2 
 
76 BELLE ISLE. 
 
 " Then they are old maids ; they are a thousand 
 times too pretty — (here the rude boy checked himself, 
 perceiving the*colour come into Mrs. Anabella's face) 
 — I mean to say that the name is as old as the Saxon 
 times : holme signifies a river-island." William : " Holme 
 also signifies a hill. That is a pretty idea of Matilda's., 
 that these are maiden isles — they are so bewitchingly 
 beautiful, and just as nature made them. Belle Isle 
 is the eldest sister, and her name and appearance 
 bespeak the matron ; yet, methinks, art has added to 
 her dignity without imparing her gracefulness." 
 
 We had now arrived at Belle Isle, and we landed 
 at the northern extremity, near some gigantic oaks. 
 The gardener, espying us, came up and oflFered to 
 accompany us round the island. We accepted his offer 
 for the sake of the information he might give us, and 
 he described to us the various improvements effected 
 by his late master, who planted all the young trees on 
 the island, as well as a great many acres of larch on 
 Furness fell. The larch woods had been planted thirty 
 years, and were now becoming valuable. We admired 
 every thing on the island, except the house, which is 
 neither handsome nor in character. The walk round 
 the island presents many delicious views ; differing 
 greatly from each other. The view on the west is 
 limited to the glassy lake, and the grand but sombre 
 forest which towers above it — 
 
 " Insuperable height of loftiest shade." 
 The east, on the contrary, is a bright, lively, and lumin- 
 
BKLLE ISLE. 77 
 
 ous prospect,, embracing the village and bay of Bow- 
 ness, green meadows and pastures, several pretty villas, 
 and the hill in the rear. From the north we saw the 
 fine expanse of the upper part of the lake, with the 
 high mountains around its head. And from the south 
 a more confined and sober, but still most lovely land- 
 scape, — the bays below the island, — the pretty islands 
 called Crow Holm and Berkshire Island, — the strait of 
 the Ferry, and the woody promontory on which stands 
 the neat, white Ferry-house, — beyond this, another ex- 
 panse of the lake, smooth and translucent as a mirror, 
 on the further side of which the beautiful mansion of 
 Storrs rises out of its ornamental groves, with a point 
 of land running into the lake, at the extremity of 
 which is a little naval temple built by its former 
 proprietor (Sir John Legard, Bart.),* — and then, 
 stretching beyond for several miles, the lower part of 
 Windermere is seen, gradually dwindling to a point 
 betwixt its wooded shores. 
 
 Having nearly completed the circuit of the island, 
 we re-entered our boat at the landing-place, admiring 
 a majestic Spanish chesnut, fifteen feet in girth, which 
 overshadows the spot. We left the island with regret, 
 believing that we should see nothing more beautiful in 
 the course of our tour. George and I had enjoyed 
 the fine exercise of rowing during the whole of the 
 
 * Storrs-hall was partly built by Sir John Legard, and finished 
 by Col. Bolton, a Liverpool gentleman, and the electioneering 
 friend of Mr. Canning and Mr. Huskisson. The deceased 
 statesmen were frequent visiters at Storrs. 
 
78 BELLE ISLE. 
 
 morning's excursion, and we availed ourselves of every 
 opportunity to take the same exercise whilst we were 
 at the Lakes.t 
 
 f The names of the gentlemen's seats near Bowness and on the 
 banks of Windermere will be found in the Itinerary — See Bow- 
 ness, Newby Bridge, the route from Bowness to Ambleside, and 
 Ambleside. The Index will enable the reader instantly to find all 
 the pages both of the Companion and Itinerary where any town, 
 village, gentleman's seat, or other place, is mentioned. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 BOWNESS TO AMBLESIDE — SCENERY — OLD CALGARTH — VALLEY 
 
 AND VILLAGE OF TROUTBECK SUPERSTITIONS, MANNERS, 
 
 AND CUSTOMS OF THE INHABITANTS DISEASES HEAD OF 
 
 THE LAKE — LOW WOOD — CHAR AND TROUT — ROMAN STA- 
 TION — AMBLESIDE — STOCKGILL FORCE. 
 
 We left Bowness for Ambleside about two o'clock 
 in the afternoon. On the same day several different 
 parties had arrived at and quitted the White Lion, as 
 well as the Crown, a smaller, but even better situated 
 inn at Bowness. They came from all points of the 
 compass, and were of very different qualities and 
 characters. We had not much time to observe them, 
 but we learnt who they were from the book in which 
 travellers enter their names at the hotel. 
 
 The Ambleside road runs parallel with the lake, 
 but generally at the distance of a few hundred yards 
 from it. The greater part of the way it is shaded by 
 trees of luxuriant growth, amongst which the oak, 
 the sycamore, the beech, the chesnut, and the ash 
 are the most abundant. The plentifulness of the 
 wood, though in itself so ornamental, prevented u 
 from having frequent views of the lake ; but as the 
 road ascends and descends with the very unequal 
 
80 SCENERY OF WINDERMERE. 
 
 surface of the ground, we sometimes caught glimpses 
 of the lake from an elevated spot, and occasionally 
 obtained extensive prospects of the most striking 
 beauty. 
 
 As we proceeded Matilda made a very just observa- 
 tion concerning the scenery of Windermere : " It 
 seems/' she said, ". as if Furness fell were placed on 
 the other side of the lake as a side-screen, to vary 
 the scenery. At Bowness it shuts in the view with 
 its high and solemn forest — though I wish the trees 
 had been oak, instead of those formal larches — and 
 confines the eye to the lakes and the islands, which 
 are enough to fill the imagination, and which perhaps 
 would not look so delicious if the scenery were open 
 all around : and then, as you pass up the lake, it is 
 as if the screen were gradually removed, and this 
 magnificent view -.of the Langdale mountains is re- 
 vealed." George : " Yes : the change is delightful, 
 and I scarcely know which to prefer — the secluded 
 beauty of Bowness, or this splendid amphitheatre of 
 mountains, with the noble expanse of water that floats 
 in its midst." William ; " Both the views are grand 
 and both lovely ; but in the one the beautiful pre- 
 dominates, and in the other the sublime. I think 
 they have their best effect when taken in the order 
 in which they have presented themselves to us." 
 
 When we came near Troutbeck bridge, where the 
 rushing streamlet that gives its name to the valley 
 pours itself through the grounds of Calgarth into the 
 ake, Mrs. Anabella espied the old hall, which is in a 
 
OLD CALGARTH THE PHILIPSONS. 81 
 
 half ruinous state, and inquired to whom it belonged. 
 " It was/' I said, " the seat of the Philipsons, an- 
 ciently a family of the first distinction in these parts, 
 who possessed not only Calgarth, but the large island 
 in Windermere which we visited this morning, where 
 they had a house called the Holm-house. During the 
 Civil Wars in the reign of Charles I. Mr. Robert 
 Philipson sustained a siege of eight or ten days in the 
 island, and was then relieved by his brother, Mr. 
 Huddleston Philipson. The former obtained the 
 nick-name of Robin the Devil, from an act of des- 
 perate enterprise which he performed, in riding with 
 three or four companions into Kendal when it was in 
 possession of the royalists, and entering the church on 
 horseback, during service, to search for a special foe. 
 He missed his man, but he himself escaped unhurt, 
 after killing a sentinel. The old hall is said to be 
 haunted : two human skulls for a long time occupied 
 a place in the windows, and tradition says that when 
 taken away, though they should be buried or burned, 
 they invariably re-appeared in their place at the win- 
 dow ; they were supposed to have belonged to two poor 
 old people who were unjustly executed for a robbery. 
 So says Mr. West ; but Mr. Green* informs us 
 
 * Mr. Wm. Green, the late artist, and author of " The Tourist's 
 New Guide," in two octavo volumes, published in 1819. This 
 gentleman resided at Ambleside, and for many years devoted all 
 the powers of his pencil and his pen to illustrate the picturesque 
 scenery of the Lakes. His water-colour Views of the Lakes may 
 be seen in the Exhibition at Keswick, and will gratify the visiter. 
 Mr. Green's " Guide" contains by far the most elaborate and 
 
 E 3 
 
82 SUPERSTITIONS, MANNERS, AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 that Time has proved more than a match for the 
 invisible agent that sought to perpetuate these monu- 
 ments of wrong, and that one of the skulls has turned 
 to dust, and the other is fast mouldering." Matilda : 
 " I commend the taste of the ghost j he has chosen a 
 pleasant situation. The architect of the new hall was 
 no witch ; he has made a great staring house." 
 
 William. — " This is precisely the place for a ghost 
 story, so rude and simple are the people. If we had 
 sufficient time, it would be worth our while to ascend 
 the valley of Troutbeck to the village, which is- 
 in a secluded and beautiful situation, two or three 
 miles hence. The houses are very ancient, and if any 
 genuine specimens remain of the old manners, cus- 
 toms, and superstitions of Westmoreland — any true 
 descendants of c the rude forefathers of the hamlet,'— it 
 would be in Troutbeck. Here you might hear of the 
 pranks of the goblin, Hobthurst ; here you might see, 
 in the houses of the statesmen, the ancient, substan- 
 tial, oaken furniture, carved with quaint devices ; here 
 you might eat the genuine haver-bread (oat-bread) ; 
 and here probably courtships are still carried on in a 
 style which would outrage the delicacy of modern 
 
 complete account of the Lake district ever published ; and its only 
 fault is, that it is too minute in its descriptions, and therefore swells 
 to too large a bulk to be convenient to travellers. A visiter making 
 a long stay at the Lakes will find a mass of interesting and useful 
 information in these volumes, and directions for penetrating into 
 every nook of the mountains and valleys, which the author dis- 
 covered in his frequent rambles, and which he has described with 
 taste and enthusiasm. 
 
TROUTBECK— -STATESMEN— DISEASES. 83 
 
 days." " Statesmen !" said George, " do any states- 
 men live in Troutbeck ?" " A statesman," replied 
 Mrs. Anabella, " is the name given in these counties 
 to a landed proprietor who farms his own estate : I 
 remember to have heard the title applied to a dull- 
 looking, farmer-like man near Keswick, during my 
 last tour." William ; " Yes, ma'am, and in some of 
 these valleys you may find lands which have des- 
 cended for centuries in the same families ; yet their 
 owners have no genealogical pride. They are men 
 who work like horses, who drive their own ploughs, 
 and look after their own sheep on the mountains." 
 Mrs. Anabella : " I should think that in such a situa- 
 tion you would find as much of health, happiness, 
 simplicity, and virtue, as is to be found any where in 
 the world." William : " I really cannot tell ; the 
 inhabitants are almost necessarily ignorant, and I 
 question if ignorance was ever the parent either of 
 virtue or true simplicity. I apprehend you would find 
 the same evil passions and fraudulent purposes in 
 these retired valleys as in populous cities, though 
 differently manifested. As to health, formerly rheu- 
 matism and ague were very prevalent in these parts ; 
 I believe they are less so now. Perhaps the husband- 
 man's limbs grow stark, and his frame wears out, from 
 the effects of toil and exposure to the weather, as 
 soon as the citizen sinks under his confinement and 
 commercial care. I have heard a medical man in these 
 parts say, that from the extensive intermarriages in 
 the small population of the villages and valleys, you 
 
84 LOW WOOD. 
 
 may know the diseases of the whole valley if you 
 know those of a single family. You would perhaps 
 not suspect, but it is perfectly true, that there is one 
 town at the Lakes where there is an extensive taint of 
 insanity." 
 
 We had now reached the summit of a hill between 
 Troutbeck bridge and Low Wood, which commands 
 one of the finest views of the head of Windermere, 
 the valleys of Great and Little Langdale, and the 
 mountains.* Loughrigg fell, at the head of the lake, 
 now looked a very bold eminence ; and Brathay park, 
 which lies at its foot, and spreads its rich lawns and 
 woods over a broken surface, had a beautiful effect. 
 The lake, as seen from hence, is superlatively grand. 
 Langdale Pikes now appeared more towering than 
 they had done before, and their remarkable form 
 became still more strikingly conspicuous. 
 
 We descended to Low Wood, a hamlet on the 
 very brink of the lake at its widest part. There is 
 here a spacious and handsome inn, which stands in a 
 finer situation than perhaps any other in the district 
 of the Lakes. It is much frequented by visiters, 
 who find around the place many interesting walks, and 
 have every facility for rowing on Windermere. The 
 view is nearly the same as that just mentioned from 
 the hill ; but the mountains, and especially the Pikes, 
 appear to have still greater elevation and grandeur 
 
 * The mountains are seen from this place in the same order in 
 which they are mentioned in the stage from Kendal to Bowness, 
 chap, v 
 
LOW WOOD TROUT AND CHAR. 85 
 
 from Low Wood, and the lake forms one of the 
 loveliest mirrors ever spread out by Nature. If our 
 time had allowed, we might have spent some days 
 here very much to our satisfaction. There is an 
 annual Regatta held on Windermere in the autumn, 
 with boat-races and other amusements. On these 
 occasions Low Wood, Bowness, and the Ferry -house 
 are the head quarters of the company, which is very 
 numerous and of the highest respectability. 
 
 As we were proceeding to Ambleside, I mentioned 
 that the two principal feeders of the lake are the 
 rivers Brathay and Rothay, the former of which flows 
 through Great Langdale, and the latter through the 
 lakes of Grasmere and Rydal. The rivers unite half 
 a mile before they fall into Windermere. The trout 
 and char of the lake go up these rivers, in the season, 
 to spawn ; and it is a remarkable fact that the trout 
 always choose the Rothay, and the char the Brathay. 
 The char is a delicate fish, resembling the trout: it 
 will only live in deep lakes, and is most abundant in 
 Windermere, some parts of which (opposite Low 
 Wood) have a depth of two hundred feet. The angler 
 has a great choice of fine trout streams at the Lakes, 
 and he may pursue the streams up to the lonely tarns 
 in the heart of the mountains, many of which abound 
 with fish. 
 
 At the head of the lake is a spot which is indicated 
 as the site of a Roman city and burial-place. Of this 
 station there were considerable remains as late as the 
 time of Sir Daniel Fleming, (at the beginning of the 
 
86 ROMAN STATION-^AMBLESIDE. 
 
 last century) who says of them — " There is the 
 carcase as it were of an ancient city, with large 
 ruins of walls ,- and without the walls the rubbish of 
 old buildings in many places." The traces of the city 
 are now almost entirely obliterated, but its position is" 
 indicated by the Rothay flowing on its western side, 
 and the lake washing its southern. Roman weapons, 
 armour, coins, and other antiquities found here, are 
 to be seen in the museums of Keswick and Kendal. 
 The small town of Ambleside* is a mile above the 
 head of the lake, in a superb valley ; and, as we 
 approached it, we admired its picturesque situation. 
 It hangs on the side of a steep hill, which forms the 
 root of the mountain ridge called Scandale, and at 
 the mouth of a narrow glen down which rushes the 
 brook, or gill,\ named Stockgill. This glen runs up 
 betwixt Scandale and Wansfell to the elevation of 
 twelve hundred feet, and then opens on to Kirkstone- 
 moor, over which lies the mountain pass to Patterdale 
 and Ullswater. Another lateral valley branches off 
 from the main valley on the same side as Stockgill ; 
 and both of them are richly hung with wood. Oppo- 
 site the town are the craggy heights of Loughrigg 
 fell, the lower parts of which are also begirt with 
 wood. The valley is nearly three miles in length, 
 
 * Ambleside was spelt Amelsate in 1273, and afterwards Hamel- 
 side, Amylside, and Amelside : the name has had its present form 
 since the reign of Elizabeth. This town is supposed by Horsley 
 to have been the Roman Dictis. 
 
 f GiU, or ghyU, is a mountain torrent with steep banks. 
 
AMBLESIDE. 87 
 
 and at its upper extremity it seems to be blocked up 
 by Fairfield, a huge mountain which rises to the 
 height of 2,950 feet above the sea ;* but, though this 
 is the appearance, the valley does not end there, but 
 turns off abruptly to the left, between Fairfield and 
 Loughrigg, and afterwards opens out so as to form 
 the bed for the small lakes of Rydal and Grasmere. 
 
 The town is very ancient, and irregularly built; 
 but at either extremity, and on points of the hill 
 above it, there are several neat and handsome houses, 
 surrounded by gardens well filled with fruit and 
 flowers. Beneath the town is a valley, whose verdure 
 is always kept fresh and brilliant by the streamlets 
 which flow down the sides of the hills, and by the 
 winding Rothay. The woods of Rydal hall, and of 
 the different glens which diverge from the valley, 
 adorn the prospect from Ambleside; whilst, in con- 
 trast to the towering and bulky form of Fairfield at 
 one extremity of the valley, the sheet of Windermere 
 opens out in sweet repose at the other. 
 
 We drove to the Salutation, an excellent inn, and 
 found the house quite full of visiters. However, a 
 party went away in the course of the same afternoon, 
 which made room for us. Having ordered dinner, we 
 
 * That part of Fairfield which is seen from Ambleside is gene- 
 rally called Rydal head ; yet this is more properly the head of 
 the valley of Rydal than the mountain itself; but as the valley 
 runs up in a wide ravine to the very summit of the mountain, 
 that summit is generally called Rydal head. The upper part of 
 most of the valleys, where they terminate among the mountains, 
 is called the dale head. 
 
88 STOCKGILL FORCE. 
 
 walked up to Stockgill Force,* perhaps the most 
 beautiful waterfall amongst the Lakes, which is at 
 the distance of half a mile from the inn. We climbed 
 a rugged foot-path, through a deep and narrow glen 
 choked with wood, in the bottom of which a streamlet 
 rushes over its rocky bed. The waters are perfectly 
 limpid, and even after they have brawled down a 
 steep declivity, or tumbled in foam over a perpendicu- 
 lar rock, they are seen in the basin below transparent 
 to the depth of several feet, and gliding gently on, as 
 though, like the sleep of infancy, forgetful of the past 
 and careless of the future. It was beautiful to see 
 the torrent, through the deep shade of the glen, and 
 at a considerable distance below us, wheeling from side 
 to side, leaping from rock to rock, or suddenly brought 
 to repose in basins set round with moss-covered 
 crags. 
 
 We had pursued our upward course for some time, 
 when, on climbing a sharp ascent, and going to the 
 edge of the chasm, the cascade burst upon us in all 
 its splendour. It was immediately opposite to us, 
 and we were about midway between the top and 
 bottom, its height being one hundred and fifty feet. 
 The stream is divided into two portions by a huge 
 crag interposed just in the centre of the precipice over 
 which it flings itself, and covered with bushes and 
 trees ; yet both branches of the fall are visible at once, 
 and the division heightens its beauty. They do not 
 
 * The name of Force is common to nearly all the waterfalls at 
 the Lakes ; its meaning is obvious. 
 
STOCKGILL FORCE EVENING SKY. 89 
 
 reach the abyss at a single leap, but, after falling 
 about half the depth in smooth lines of silver, they 
 meet with a projecting rock, from which they rebound 
 in larger volumes of flashing foam and spray, — uniting 
 at the bottom in a very deep, but clear basin, dark- 
 ened by the rocks, as well as by the numerous trees 
 which have taken root in their crevices, and which 
 throw out their tender foliage in search of light and 
 moisture. This, like all the cascades at the Lakes, 
 varies exceedingly with the wet or dry weather, being 
 swelled to a thundering torrent by a heavy fall of 
 rain, and dwindled to a mere trickling rill after 
 drought. We saw it when it had about the average 
 quantity of water, and we thought it highly pic- 
 turesque. 
 
 From the hill-side just above the force there is a 
 fine mountain view. On an autumn evening, soon 
 after sunset, this view is peculiarly rich and grand. 
 The rugged forms of Loughrigg fell and Silver How, 
 and the bold summits of Bowfell and Langdale Pikes, 
 all invested in a mantle of the deepest purple, stand 
 in striking relief against the western horizon, which 
 glows with a mellow and golden light. To a mind 
 imbued with the love of nature, and apt to rise from 
 her works up to their almighty and all-wise Creator, 
 I know no scene more calculated to inspire lofty yet 
 serene and delightful contemplation. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 LANGDALE EXCURSION — CHANGES IN THE WEATHER — GREAT 
 
 LANGDALE SKELWITH FORCE LOUGHRIGG TARN ELTER- 
 
 WATER LITTLE LANGDALE COLWITH FORCE BLEA TARN 
 
 — HEAD OF GREAT LANGDALE — THE STICKLE PIKES — 
 DUNGEON GILL— HIGH CLOSE. 
 
 Of the many excursions that may be made from 
 Ambleside, the most interesting is that through Great 
 and Little Langdale.* We had therefore fixed to 
 make this expedition, if the weather should be favour- 
 able, — 'for, as it is necessary, on account of the roads, 
 to go in an open car, or a cart, the weather may make 
 all the difference between great enjoyment and posi- 
 tive misery. By one of those sudden and seemingly 
 capricious changes which are common in mountainous 
 countries, a beautiful evening was succeeded by a 
 dripping morning, — the sight of which drove George 
 to bed again, when he had risen early with the view 
 of scaling Loughrigg fell or Nab scar before the 
 
 * In the opinion of some, the excursion to Coniston Water Head 
 may be more interesting than this. I acknowledge that it is ex- 
 ceedingly beautiful, but we had not time for both, and I recom- 
 mend the Langdale Excursion in preference. Coniston Water is 
 best visited from Ulverston, as it was in the Excursion on Horseback, 
 which see. 
 
LANGDALE EXCURSION. 91 
 
 ladies had opened their eyes. Many a time did we 
 rise from breakfast, to see if the clouds which hung 
 upon the sides of Rydal head showed any disposition 
 to ascend and disperse. Many a transient gleam of 
 hope was dissipated by thicker volumes of cloud 
 driven by the wind down the great ravine of the 
 mountain. Many a consultation did we hold with the 
 landlord, car-driver, hostler, and every person about 
 the place who could have the least pretensions to 
 meteorological skill. At length the clouds broke, 
 and the sky became clear ; but, before the car was 
 brought out, another shower passed over the town, 
 which made us apprehensive that in the long ride we 
 contemplated we might have a succession of such 
 visitations. It was eleven o'clock before there was an 
 appearance sufficiently settled to induce us to set out. 
 We then entered the car, having provided ourselves 
 with sandwiches, in the expectation (which proved 
 to be well founded) that the excursion would occupy 
 between six and seven hours. As we advanced, the 
 weather became bright and beautiful, and we had to 
 congratulate ourselves on enjoying that transparent 
 state of the atmosphere so well described as " the 
 clear shining after rain." 
 
 Having crossed the valley of Ambleside and the 
 sparkling Rothay, we held along the foot of Loughrigg 
 fell, having the craggy and wooded steep on one hand, 
 and the undulating park of Brathay, with the sheet 
 of Windermere, on the other. Passing the village of 
 Clappersgate, we came to the banks of the river 
 
92 GREAT LANGDALE. 
 
 Brathay, the water of which is of crystalline clear- 
 ness., though frequently roughened by its rocky bed. 
 
 The entrance of Great Langdale* wants the soft 
 beauty of the scenery we had already beheld, but it 
 possesses what tends more to exalt the imagination, 
 namely, a character of wildness and stern grandeur, 
 mingled with beauties in which art has no share, but 
 such as nature often scatters with a careless yet 
 magnificent profusion in a mountainous country. The 
 trees are plentiful, and mount high up the craggy 
 hills, feathering the sides of rugged precipices ; the 
 verdure of the dale is of a living green ; but no arti- 
 ficial grove, or shapely lawn, or handsome mansion 
 offends the character of the place. The Brathay 
 winds in the bottom — sometimes a huddling stream 
 hemmed in by thickets, and sometimes spreading out 
 in small sheets, which reflect the pastures, trees, and 
 hills with the most brilliant clearness. 
 
 A little within the vale, we found ourselves sur- 
 rounded by an amphitheatre of wooded hills, and in 
 the midst of a scene which, of its own character, is 
 perhaps not to be equalled at the lakes. The woods 
 of Loughrigg rose behind us, and those of Skelwith 
 mantled the opposite hill. Wansfell reared his pike 
 beyond Windermere and Ambleside, and Wetherlam 
 lifted his sublime mass over Little Langdale. 
 
 * Langdale sufficiently explains its own meaning — long-dale. 
 Yet it is a modern corruption of Langden ; den being the Saxon 
 word for valley. In Yorkshire this termination is common, e. g. 
 Todmorden, Ripponden, &c. The termination dale, however, 
 prevails more in Westmoreland and Cumberland, 
 
LANGDALE SKELWITH FORCE. 93 
 
 Amidst scenery such as this, varying its details at 
 every turn of our winding and uneven road, we came 
 down to Skelwith bridge, three miles from Amble- 
 side, where we left the car, and proceeded a short 
 distance up the river to Skelwith force. This waterfall 
 is remarkable, not for its height, but for the body of 
 water it contains, which is greater than in any other 
 fall at the Lakes. Its height seemed to me not 
 more than twenty feet, yet the scene is fine, and well 
 worth visiting. The river Brathay is contracted, for 
 some distance above the fall, within the space afforded 
 by a chasm in an enormous bed of rocks. After 
 rushing down this crooked trough, the waters are 
 precipitated, with the noise of thunder, into a foaming 
 •abyss. The bold masses of rock, and the rush and 
 fall of so great a body of water, make Skelwith force 
 grand and interesting. 
 
 Our next object was Colwith force, which Ave might 
 have reached in about two miles by crossing Skelwith 
 bridge, and keeping along the hill-side into Little 
 Langdale ; but this is a very rugged road, and our 
 driver wisely determined, as his car was heavily laden, 
 to go round by Elterwater, which, though upwards 
 of three miles, would be easier for his horse. I 
 found, indeed, that he had a hankering after a route, 
 which would greatly abridge our excursion. Though 
 I had clearly explained the route we designed to 
 take before we set out, he pretended to have under- 
 stood that we only wished to go up Great Langdale 
 as far as Dungeon Gill, and then return to Ambleside. 
 
94 ANCIENT SAXON NAMES. 
 
 He also pleaded the difficulty of the road through 
 Little Langdale and by Blea Tarn, and said that he 
 had never taken a car by that route, but that parties 
 always went in a cart. As, however, the plan he 
 proposed would have cut off the finest part of the 
 excursion, and as I was convinced that a car might 
 pass those roads as well as a cart, I insisted on his 
 proceeding according to the original plan, but offered 
 that the party should walk at the steep hills and 
 difficult places. Finding that he could neither cheat 
 nor frighten us, he took our course ; and, as he 
 had a strong horse, we got through with very little 
 difficulty. 
 
 Ascending the hill on the north side of the valley, 
 we passed Loughrigg tarn — a small lake in a woody 
 hollow of the hill, over which towers, at a great per- 
 pendicular elevation, the head of Loughrigg fell. 
 When I told our party the name of the lake, adding 
 that tarn was the name given to a small lake found at 
 a considerable elevation on the hills — " I like," said 
 George, " these old-fashioned and rough- sounding 
 names — Loughrigg, and Langdale, and the Pikes, with 
 force and^/e//, tarn and scar, gill, glen, holm, and mere •' 
 there is an ancient Saxon simplicity about them ; they 
 breathe a mountain air." " I should like to hear what 
 you can make of Loughrigg ?" — said Matilda. " Oh !" 
 replied he, " I could not make it out till* we came to 
 this little lake, but now I find it means the hill of the 
 lake — lough or loch meaning lake, and rigg meaning 
 ridge or hill." " The name," I observed, " is no doubt 
 
GREAT LANGDALE. 95 
 
 derived either from the lake upon the hill, or from those 
 by which it is surrounded : as we proceed we shall 
 find many riggs." Matilda : " Well, brother, you are 
 very clever, but I hope you will take care, in your rage 
 for climbing, not to ' run a rig,' for riggs in these parts 
 seem to be formidable things/' 
 
 After having ascended a considerable hill, we came 
 in view of the small and pleasing lake of Elterwater, 
 lying in the bottom of the valley. From this eleva- 
 vation we also saw the grand valley of Langdale 
 stretching before us for several miles, betwixt hills 
 whose sides form a splendid concave sweep ; and in 
 the bottom the infant Brathay, wandering through the 
 green pastures and meadows, with irregular dotted 
 lines of trees and thickets marking its course, and 
 little rustic arches here and there spanning the stream. 
 At the head of the valley rises the frowning summit 
 of Bowfell ; on the right the Pikes lift their gigantic 
 heads, and seem to nod over the chasm that intervenes 
 between them and the rugged Lingmire. Harrison 
 Stickle sits upon a throne of rocks piled up to the 
 clouds, with an inferior Pike on one side, and the 
 craggy brow of Pavey Ark on the other. Langdale 
 makes a bend near the head, and is lost to the view 
 among the mountains, whose rocky fastnesses have 
 from this point an awful appearance. Hence must 
 Wordsworth have drawn his sketch, when accom- 
 panying his friend, the Wanderer, in his Excursion up 
 Langdale to Blea Tarn : — 
 
96 GREAT AND LITTLE LANGDALE. 
 
 " He led towards the hills ; 
 
 Up through an ample vale, with higher hills 
 
 Before us, mountains stern and desolate ; 
 
 But, in the majesty of distance, now 
 
 Set off, and to our ken appearing fair 
 
 Of aspect, with aerial softness clad, 
 
 And beautified with morning's purple beams. " 
 
 Hence, too, Mr. Allom must have taken his lovely 
 and striking view of Langdale, which does so much 
 credit to his taste and the power of his pencil.* 
 
 We descended the hill to the village of Elterwater, 
 situated at the head of the lake of that name, and, 
 crossing the river, went through a considerable wood 
 and over a hill into Little Langdale. 
 
 This valley branches from Great Langdale, and runs 
 nearly parallel with it, but at a higher elevation : the 
 two dales are separated by the high, black, heath- 
 covered hill of Lingmire, at each end of which there 
 is a communication between them. The ancient road 
 from Kendal to Whitehaven passes through Little 
 Langdale : and the narrow valley of Tilberthwaite 
 runs from it to the south, overlooked, like Little 
 Langdale, by the huge, dark mountain of Wetherlam, 
 also called Tilberthwaite fell. There is in this valley 
 an appearance of mountain wildness and seclusion 
 more decided than any thing we had hitherto seen ; in 
 many parts not a single human habitation is visible. 
 At the entrance, which is narrow and crooked, there 
 is a great deal of wood, consisting chiefly of birch and 
 
 * In Fisher's Picturesque Illustrations of Westmoreland, Cum- 
 berland, &c. 
 
LITTLE LANGDALE COLWITH FORCE. 97 
 
 hazel bushes ; and the river, which runs in a deep 
 glen, is concealed by the wood that envelops its sides. 
 The rugged hills by which we were surrounded are 
 covered with heath and fern, which, as the sun shone 
 upon them, seemed to clothe them in a rich and party- 
 coloured mantle. The heath was now in full flower 
 and in all its purple splendour, and the fern had 
 been turned by the sun's rays into a lively red ; so 
 that, in the midst of desolation, we saw proofs of the 
 exuberant bounty of Him, " whose paths drop fatness 
 upon the pastures of the wilderness," and make « the 
 little hills rejoice on every side." 
 
 Colwith Force is not far from the entrance of the 
 valley. We left the car, and walked to it through a 
 pathway walled on each side by hazel bushes, which 
 hung their clusters of nuts temptingly before our 
 faces. An opening in the copse reveals the force, 
 which, both from its grandeur and the sublimity of 
 the situation, excited our high admiration. A 
 stupendous crag rises out of the river, so placed as if 
 it had been flung in by some Titanian hand for the 
 express purpose of blocking up its course. Below 
 this crag the glen sinks at once to a depth of more 
 than a hundred feet ; the river, diverted from its 
 course, rushes round the side of the rock, and at 
 four several leaps plunges into the gulf below. 
 Clouds of spray shoot up from the abyss, and the 
 waters, after boiling in the whirlpool, dart forth down 
 the glen, as if in mortal terror. The water here is 
 not scanty, as in most of the other falls at the Lakes, 
 
 F 
 
98 COLWITH FORCE LITTLE LANGDALE. 
 
 but is a river scarcely inferior to the Brathay at 
 Skelwith Force. The four falls are several yards 
 apart, but the lowest is of greater depth than all the 
 other three, and the whole are in view at once. In 
 beholding the headlong rage, the flashing and boil- 
 ing of the cascade, George was transported with 
 delight, and exclaimed, in the words of Wilson — 
 " Well done, Water I" He and I let ourselves 
 cautiously down the steep side of the glen, by the aid 
 of the trees, and obtained a view of the force from 
 its foot, which was very striking ; but we did not 
 remain there long, as the clouds of spray which rise 
 from the fall, and which are carried about by gusts, 
 plentifully bedewed us. 
 
 From this place we proceeded about two miles up 
 the valley, passing Little Langdale tarn and the 
 peaceful hamlet of Fell-foot, sheltered by trees, and 
 situated amidst a considerable tract of green pasture. 
 We then quitted the old Whitehaven road, which 
 crosses Wrynose, and turned to the right, in order to 
 pass over a slack* into Great Langdale. In this 
 slack, the general appearance of which is wild, barren, 
 and desolate, lies a green hollow, and in the midst of 
 it a little lake, named Blea tarn, overhung by the 
 enormous and ragged precipices of Blakerigg, called 
 Bessy Crag. So completely secluded from the world 
 is this remarkable recess of the mountains, that it 
 might be the chosen abode of a hermit. Wordsworth 
 
 * A slack is a dip in the hills, or a pass— itself elevated— between 
 two higher elevations. 
 
ELEA TARN GREAT LANGDALE. 99 
 
 has made it the residence of his Solitary., and has 
 painted the scene with such perfect fidelity, that I 
 need only copy the passage — observing that he and his 
 friend approached Blea tarn from Great Langdale — 
 
 " We scaled, without a track to ease our steps, 
 A steep ascent ; and reached a dreary plain, 
 With a tumultuous waste of huge hill tops 
 Before us ; savage region ! which I paced 
 Dispirited ; when, all at once, behold ! 
 Beneath our feet, a little lowly vale, 
 A lowly vale, and yet uplifted high 
 Among the mountains : even as if the spot 
 Had been, from eldest time by wish of theirs 
 So placed, — to be shut out from all the world ; 
 Urn-like it was in shape, deep as an urn ; 
 With rocks encompass'd, save that to the south 
 Was one small opening, where a heath-clad ridge 
 Supplied a boundary less abrupt and close; 
 A quiet treeless nook, with two green fields, 
 A liquid pool that glitter'd in the sun, 
 And one bare dwelling ; one abode, no more ! 
 It seem'd the home of poverty and toil, 
 Though not of want; the little fields, made green 
 By husbandry of many thrifty years, 
 Paid cheerful tribute to the moorland house. " 
 
 Excursion. 
 
 The grandest view we had this day was from the 
 edge of the slack, looking down upon the head of 
 Great Langdale, where the Pikes stood directly in 
 front of us, and Bowfell on our left, all of them 
 seen at one glance from the base to the summit. 
 These mountains are only separated by a narrow dell, 
 forming the head of Langdale, which runs up a mile 
 or two further into the heart of the mountains, where 
 cultivation ends, and the strip of verdure terminates 
 
 f 2 
 
100 BOWFELL AND LANGDALE PIKES. 
 
 in a wilderness of heath and rock. All the features 
 of this view are simple, but of the most striking 
 sublimity. The Pikes tower aloft like pillars of the 
 skies. The highest of them, called Harrison Stickle, 
 has an elevation of 2400 feet above the sea ; and the 
 other, called Pike o' Stickle, of 2,000 feet. The 
 latter is pointed by a shaft of naked rock, apparently 
 slender, but in reality enormous, and which appears 
 to be perpendicular towards the valley. Gimmer Crag, 
 between the two Pikes, presents to the valley a lofty 
 and prodigious mass of rock. Bowfell lifts his rugged 
 peak to the height of 2,911 feet, and a long range of 
 crags, called Crinkle crags, extends to the neighbouring 
 heights. The sides of the mountains are furrowed 
 with deep and awful ravines. Our whole party were 
 lost in admiration of the stupendous scene ; and I 
 question if they afterwards saw any thing which 
 impressed them so strongly, except, perhaps, the view 
 from the top of Skiddaw. I was the object of envy to 
 George, when I told him that I had sat on the point 
 of the Stickle Pike, and on the loftier platform of 
 Harrison Stickle, both of which on this side appear 
 to be inaccessible.* 
 
 A steep and rugged descent brought us down to 
 Wall End, the last house but one in the valley ; from 
 which we began our return down Great Langdale, 
 
 * An account of the ascent of Bowfell and Scawfell Pikes, 
 from the head of Langdale, will be found in the Excursion on 
 Horseback ; and an account of the ascent of Langdale Pikes will 
 De found in the Second Excursion on Foot. 
 
DUNGEON GILL. 101 
 
 and in two miles further we came to Mill-beck. 
 From this place we climbed the mountain-side for no 
 contemptible distance, to see the waterfall of Dungeon 
 Gill, which is a beautiful fall situated in a deep cleft 
 of the hill under Harrison Stickle. The profound 
 chasm in which it is situated is called, in the lan- 
 guage of the country, a dungeon, whence the name 
 of the fall. The quantity of water here is not con- 
 siderable, but the fall is high and exceedingly pic- 
 turesque. It descends in a fine sheet of foam betwixt 
 two walls of perpendicular rock, which I should judge 
 to be more than a hundred feet high. Two enormous 
 rocks have fallen into the top of the chasm, and 
 hang suspended in a way alarming to the spectator. 
 Trees have taken root in the sides of the cleft, and 
 hang out their branches to receive the perpetual rain 
 of spray from the waterfall. Wordsworth has a pretty 
 poem, founded on the fact of a lamb being carried 
 over the fall, and plunged into the basin below, 
 whence it was rescued unhurt. From Mill-beck 
 travellers not unfrequently climb to the Stickle tarn, 
 celebrated for its superior trout, and to the summit of 
 Harrison Stickle ; the ascent is steep, and requires a 
 great exertion, or rather great patience and perse- 
 verance. 
 
 The remainder of our journey presented no object 
 particularly worthy of notice, except the extensive 
 slate quarries with which Langdale abounds, one of 
 which, at Thrang Crag, we entered, and admired with 
 awe its enormous masses of slate-rock, threatening to 
 
 4 
 
102 VIEWS FROM HIGH CLOSE. 
 
 entomb the spectator by a hideous fall. At Elterwater 
 there is a manufactory of gunpowder. We returned 
 by the route of High Close, which crosses Loughrigg 
 fell, and passes through the beautiful vales of Gras- 
 mere and Rydal ; but as we saw these exquisite scenes 
 again on the following day, I shall leave my account of 
 them to the next chapter. The views from High 
 Close, both on the Windermere and Grasmere sides, 
 are of singular magnificence and beauty, and should 
 be seen, if possible, by every traveller. 
 
 I 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 AMBLESIDE TO KESWICK RYDAL HALL RYDAL MOUNT — MR. 
 
 WORDSWORTH THE FLEMING FAMILY RYDAL WATER 
 
 VIEW FROM LOUGHRIGG FELL GRASMERE LAKE AND VALE 
 
 HELM CRAG DUNMAIL RAISE AN ANTIQUARY ANTIQUA- 
 RIAN INFORMATION. 
 
 We quitted Ambleside for Keswick between ten 
 and eleven in the morning, as it had been agreed 
 that we should take an early dinner at Keswick, and 
 afterwards go on Derwentwater in a boat. The 
 distance to that place is sixteen miles, and perhaps 
 England does not afford a ride of equal length so 
 abounding in romantic and magnificent scenery. The 
 road passes nearly the whole distance through a 
 valley, on one side of which towers the gigantic 
 chain of Helvellyn and Fairfield, whose broad and 
 rugged sides rise steeply from the vale ; and, on the 
 other, stand the lower, but more diversified, broken, 
 and picturesque ridges of Loughrigg-fell, Silver How, 
 Steel-fell, and the Thirlmere and Derwent fells. 
 Three lakes, Rydal Water, Grasmere Water, and 
 Thirlmere, two of them small but extremely beautiful, 
 lie in the several divisions of the valley, and, by their 
 soft repose, as well as by the luxuriance of their 
 
104 RYDAL MR. WORDSWORTH. 
 
 borders, afford a charming relief to the sternness and 
 barrenness of the mountains. 
 
 For something more than a mile our road lay 
 through the valley of Ambleside, and on the banks of 
 the Rothay, when we came to Rydal Hall, the seat of 
 Lady le Fleming. This mansion (which I cannot 
 help calling a great, staring, yellow house) stands on 
 a slight eminence, not far from the road, and is shel- 
 tered by fine old timber, of which there is an 
 abundance in the grounds and on the hill side. 
 Behind the house rises the steep and lofty Fairfield. 
 A few minutes' walk in the ascent of the bill would 
 have brought us to the residence of Mr. Wordsworth, 
 named Rydal Mount. In this place, within view at 
 once of Windermere and Rydal Water, the father of 
 the Lake School of poetry has passed, I believe, the 
 greater part of his life ; and the scenery around him, 
 scarcely equalled in beauty by any in Westmoreland 
 or Cumberland, has probably tended to enrich his 
 imagination, to refine the natural purity of his feel- 
 ings, and to produce many of the noble and exquisite 
 descriptions of nature which adorn his poems. We 
 had the offer of being introduced to him by a friend 
 on whom we called in Ambleside, but, though we 
 should have appreciated highly the opportunity of con- 
 versing with such a man, we found that our time 
 would not allow us to make any stay at Rydal 
 Mount.* The same cause prevented us from leaving 
 
 * For an account of Mr. Wordsworth's residence, see the 
 Excursion on Horseback, chap. iii. 
 
 ft tt 
 
THE FLEMING FAMILY— RYDAL WATER. 105 
 
 the carriage to see two small, but highly picturesque 
 waterfalls in the grounds of Rydal-hall, which I 
 should recommend other tourists, who have more 
 leisure, to visit. 
 
 When I mentioned the name of the owner of 
 Rydal-hall, George observed that Le Fleming had an 
 ancient sound, and he inquired if the family was not 
 old and of foreign origin. " The family of the 
 Flemings," I replied, " is one of the most ancient 
 and honourable in these parts. Sir Michael le Fleming 
 was related to Baldwin, Earl of Flanders, brother- 
 in-law of the Conqueror, and was sent by him to assist 
 William in England. His ser vices were repaid with 
 large grants of land in Furness. Rydal came into the 
 family in the reign of Henry W¥: by marriage with 
 Isabel, a co-heiress of Sir John de Lancaster, of How- 
 gill castle ; and it has been the principal seat of the 
 Flemings ever since. Sir Daniel Fleming, who was 
 created a baronet in 1705, made large collections of 
 materials for the history of his own family, and also 
 of the counties of Westmoreland, Cumberland, and 
 Lancaster, which are still in existence at Rydal-hall. 
 Like several other members of his family, he repre- 
 sented the county of Westmoreland in the House of 
 Commons. The present owner of the hall is the relict 
 of the late baronet. 
 
 Just beyond Rydal-hall, the valley contracts and 
 turns abruptly to Jhe left, through a defile formed by 
 the northern point of Loughrigg-fell on one side, and 
 Nab-scar on the other. At the foot of the latter is 
 
106 VIEW FROM LOUGHRIGG. 
 
 the extensive slate quarry of White Moss. Here we 
 came upon Rydal Water, which is a gem amongst the 
 lakes. It is not more than a mile long, and has little 
 depth, but the water is of a sparkling transparency, 
 and its surface is spotted with several woody islands, 
 on one of which is a heronry. Hemmed close in by 
 the hills, it has an air of seclusion which very few of 
 the lakes possess. 
 
 As we were skirting Rydal Water, which lies under 
 the northern side of Loughrigg-fell, I mentioned that 
 some of the most extensive views of lake scenery are 
 obtained from the top of that hill, which, though only 
 of the height of 1050 feet, is so placed in the midst 
 of a wide circle of loftier mountains, and is so sur- 
 rounded by lakes, that it commands a much finer 
 prospect than many hills of greater elevation. From 
 it are seen Windermere, (in nearly its whole extent), 
 Esthwaite Water, Bielham-tarn, Elterwater, Lough- 
 rigg-tarn, Grasmere Water, and Rydal Water ; the 
 mountains of Coniston and Furness, Bowfell, the 
 Langdale Pikes, the Langdale and Borrowdale fells, 
 Silver How, Helm Crag, Skiddaw, Helvellyn, Fair- 
 field, Scandale, Kirkstone, Hill Bell, and Wansfell 
 Pike ; and the towns and villages of Bowness, Hawks - 
 head, Elterwater, Grasmere, Rydal, and Ambleside. 
 From Nab-scar, which is a salient point of Fairfield 
 overlooking Loughrigg-fell, a yet more extensive pros- 
 pect is obtained ; and from Helm Crag, in Grasmere, 
 nearly the same objects are seen, with some variety in 
 the details. 
 
GRASMERE LAKE AND VALE. 107 
 
 A little beyond Rydal Water, the valley opens out 
 into a small plain, and forms a bed for Grasmere 
 Water, which is a sweet lake about a mile in length. 
 The mountains here form an amphitheatre several 
 miles in circumference, yet they are so lofty that the 
 valley which they enclose appears of small dimensions. 
 Loughrigg forms the southern barrier, and the rugged 
 hills of Silver How the western : on the north are the 
 Carrs, Helm Crag and Steel-fell ; and on the west 
 the long and lofty ridge of Fairfield from Nab-scar 
 to Seat Sandal. Being shut in on every side by 
 these hills, Grasmere appears to be perfectly secluded 
 from the world ; and as the meadows and pastures are 
 luxuriantly fertile, and their green surface is agree- 
 ably sprinkled with wood, there is a tranquil beauty 
 in the vale, calculated to excite in the mind the most 
 peaceful and delightful emotions. The lake has one 
 considerable island in the centre, which rises into 
 an eminence, and, being covered with grass, forms an 
 agreeable bank of verdure. It has only a small clump 
 of trees at one end, and a mistal to shelter the cattle 
 and sheep which feed there : a sprinkling of wood 
 on the island would make it a much more inter- 
 esting object. The small, scattered village of Gras- 
 mere at the head of the lake, with its whitened 
 and rural church, has a lively and pleasing appear- 
 ance. The plain terminates in two upland valleys, 
 one of which, named Easdale, runs up into the 
 heart of the Langdale fells, and the other, lying 
 between the range of Fairfield and Steel-fell, rises 
 
108 GRASMERE HELM CRAG. 
 
 with a long ascent into a slack, that separates the 
 valleys of Grasmere and Wythburn. Several pretty 
 houses, surrounded by trees, quite in character with 
 this rural scene, lie at the foot of the hills ; one of 
 which was formerly inhabited by Wordsworth, and 
 another belonged to De Quincy. Gray came upon 
 this valley from the side of Keswick, and calls it " a 
 little unsuspected paradise." Perhaps the finest view 
 of it is that which we obtained yesterday, in passing 
 over High Close, and down the northern side of 
 Loughrigg. Butterlip-how, a grassy knoll in the 
 midst of the valley, affords a charming panorama. In 
 the rear of the village, and in the gorge of Easdale, 
 is a waterfall of considerable elevation, which, after 
 rains, pours down a broad and ample stream. It is 
 formed by the rivulet that flows out of Easdale-tarn, 
 and from its constant whiteness it has received the 
 name of Sour Milk Gill. 
 
 The most remarkable feature of the vale of Gras- 
 mere is Helm Crag, a lofty conical hill which stands 
 at its head, and whose summit is a huge mass of shat- 
 tered rocks. Fancy has discerned resemblances to 
 several animate objects in these jumbled and toppling 
 crags ; the most striking of which is to a lion and 
 lamb, both couched down, and facing each other. It 
 is remarkable that there are two groups of rocks, 
 each of them bearing this resemblance — one seen from 
 the vale of Grasmere, and the other from the ascent 
 of the hill to Dunmail Raise : the latter group has 
 also been likened to an old woman cowering ; and 
 
HELM CRAG. 109 
 
 under it is a cavern — a retreat and breeding place for 
 foxes. I have clambered up this hill, and sat upon 
 the lion's head, enjoying the splendid view which it 
 commands. Wilson has a sonnet written on Helm 
 Crag in a storm at midnight. George declared that 
 he envied him the sublimity of the situation, and he 
 seemed very anxious to ascend the hill, which he 
 thought might be done in a quarter of an hour or 
 twenty minutes. I told him that the ascent had cost 
 me an hour, and that the grand and simple forms of 
 this and the surrounding hills deceived him as to the 
 height of Helm Crag. With some difficulty we dis- 
 suaded him from attempting the ascent whilst we were 
 walking up the long hill to Dunmail Raise. 
 
 The valley which lies between Helm Crag and 
 Steel-fell on one side, and Seat Sandal on the other, 
 appears at the first glance so narrow, that George 
 thought a nimble giant might leap across it. When, 
 however, at my suggestion, he fixed his eyes steadily 
 on Steel-fell, he found some difficulty in distinguishing 
 the sheep which hung browzing on its sides from the 
 stones that lay scattered about upon it, and could only 
 ascertain what they were by observing if they moved. 
 This showed him the real dimensions of the scene, 
 and proportionably exalted his ideas. Matilda was 
 delighted with the lion and lamb on Helm Crag, and 
 bid me notice how affectionately the lamb raised its 
 mouth to the nose of its grim protector, and with 
 what magnanimity the monarch bowed his awful head 
 to the caress of his meek protege. 
 
110 DUNMAIL RAISE. 
 
 The top of the pass which separates the valley of 
 Grasmere from that of Wythburn also divides the 
 counties of Westmoreland and Cumberland. It is 
 720 feet above the level of the sea, and is the lowest 
 pass in the chain of mountains which forms the 
 southern boundary of Cumberland, from near the sea- 
 coast to the county of Durham. On this spot, and 
 touching the boundary wall, is the ancient monument 
 of Dunmail Raise, a considerable heap of pebble stones, 
 said to have been raised on the defeat of Dunmail, 
 King of Cumbria, in this place, a.d. 945, by Edmund 
 I. King of England, who put to death the vanquished 
 monarch, with his four sons, and gave his dominions 
 to Malcolm, King of Scotland. This cairn, therefore, 
 marked the frontier of the two kingdoms, as well as 
 commemorated the victory of Edmund and the ex- 
 tinction of the kingdom of Cumbria. It is about 
 seven miles from Ambleside and nine from Keswick. 
 We had read a good deal concerning this monument 
 in our guide-book, and George had raised his expect- 
 ations very high. Matilda also anticipated something 
 striking and stupendous. When we came to it, we 
 found two carriages standing near, and the parties 
 who belonged to them gathered round the cairn, 
 listening to an elderly gentleman, who expounded the 
 antiquarian lore concerning it. Matilda, however, 
 demanded in the first place where the monument was ; 
 and, on being shown a heap of stones on the road-side, 
 only a few feet in height, and fifteen or twenty yards 
 over, (which certainly no unlearned passenger would 
 
AN ANTIQUARY. Ill 
 
 have taken for a monument, or for any thing more 
 than materials to repair the road with) she exclaimed, 
 in a tone of extreme disappointment, loud enough 
 to be heard by the old gentleman, " Is this all ?" 
 
 The antiquary no sooner heard this disparaging 
 observation than he raised his spectacled eyes from 
 the heap on which he stood, and looked at us with 
 ineffable contempt. He was a meagre, sallow, and 
 most slovenly sexagenarian, with a countenance 
 expressive of great acuteness, and eyes at this mo- 
 ment lighted up with fervour and indignation ; for he 
 was in the very midst of an oration in praise of this 
 inestimable specimen of antiquity, and was triumph- 
 antly displaying the stores of learning which he had 
 accumulated on the subject. " This all !" he ex- 
 claimed, " and pray what did you expect, Miss ? 
 Did you expect a heap as high as the moon ? Per- 
 haps you thought it was a pyramid with hiero- 
 glyphics, or an obelisk, or a Doric column, like the 
 London monument ? When you leave school, Miss, 
 you will learn that this species of monument, simple, 
 unadorned, natural, and characteristic of the a^e 
 when it was reared, is more precious in the eyes of 
 the true lover of antiquity, than all the gaudy pillars 
 which please children. This all ! indeed. The true 
 cairn or ra-ise of British antiquity — more venerable in 
 my eyes than the tumuli on the shores of Ilium I" 
 
 Matilda was at first quite disconcerted, and her 
 cheek flushed, by this rude attack in the presence of 
 strangers ; but, recovering herself before the peevish 
 
112 A DISPUTE. 
 
 old man had ceased, she said with spirit — " I crave 
 your pardon, learned Sir, for the display of my ig- 
 norance ; it is true that I have not studied anti- 
 quities so long as to make little things appear great 
 in my eyes ; I did not indeed expect to see either a 
 pyramid or a column, but, as you have reminded me 
 of school, I must say that I expected to see a some- 
 what larger heap than a parcel of school-boys might 
 throw up in a holiday afternoon." 
 
 " Bravo \" exclaimed two or three gentlemen of the 
 company, who seemed struck with admiration at 
 Matilda's beauty and wit ; and one of them imme- 
 diately insisted that the " old fellow" should apolo- 
 gize to the lady for his incivility. They declared that 
 she had buried him under his own cairn, and they 
 proceeded to demand his apology with a very deter- 
 mined air. This only put him in a towering passion, 
 and unpleasant consequences might have ensued, if 
 Matilda, with a generosity and discretion which sur- 
 prised every one, had not gone up to her adversary, 
 and given him her hand, saying that she had a great 
 veneration for learning, and was extremely sorry that 
 she had unwittingly offended one of its votaries, but 
 she hoped they should forgive one another, and be 
 good friends. This quite subdued the old gentleman, 
 and he began to pour out a flood of apologies, oddly 
 mixed up with assertions of the real dignity of the 
 monument, and his duty, as an humble member of 
 the Antiquarian Society, to maintain it against all 
 disparagement. He then, at her request, though at 
 
ANTIQUARIAN INFORMATION. 113 
 
 greater length than she would have liked, narrated 
 the history of the monument to her, and explained 
 the controversies which had arisen upon it, proving 
 that his own conjecture was in all respects indubitably 
 true, and that every other was utterly contemptible. 
 He also enlightened us on several other points of 
 antiquity, concerning which we were in danger of 
 going astray. Some one having observed that he 
 supposed Helm Crag was so called from its resem- 
 bling a helmet, he said that that was altogether a 
 mistake, as the real, ancient name was not Helm, but 
 Holme Crag, which signified hill-crag. I also ha- 
 zarded my conjecture that Grasmere derived its name 
 from the verdure around it, and on the island in the 
 lake, adding that none of the lakes had such a grassy 
 margin. But this, too, was quite wide of the mark ; 
 for the old name, he said, was Gresmere, or Grismere, 
 and that it signified the lake of swine, from the Saxon 
 grise, which had that meaning. He added that this 
 country was in former days famous for its wild swine, 
 as was proved by the names of many places round, as 
 Grisedale, Boredale (Borrowdale), Stybarrow, Sty- 
 head, &c. George asked if Rydal was not formerly 
 Rydale, and if it was not so called from the growth 
 of rye in the dale. " Such a derivation," replied our 
 oracle, " has been assigned to it by illiterate persons ; 
 but I coincide with the erudite Sir Daniel Fleming, 
 of Rydale, that the name is an abbreviation of Row- 
 tha-dale, from the river Rowtha, in modern days 
 corrupted to Rothay: the same senseless passion for 
 
114 ANTIQUARIAN INFORMATION. 
 
 modernizing names has led to Rowlh Mere being 
 turned into Rydal water." These explanations in- 
 duced Matilda to say to him, that his learning had 
 as much lowered Grasmere in her esteem, as it had 
 elevated Dunmail Raise ; and then, with a profusion 
 of courtesies on all sides, of which Matilda received 
 the greatest share, we parted company, and entered 
 our respective carriages. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 CUMBERLAND VIEW FROM DUNMAIL RAISE SKIDDAW HEL 
 
 VELLYN THIRLMERE VALE OF SAINT JOHN SADDLEBACK 
 
 CASTLERIGG ; MAGNIFICENT VIEW OF DERWENTWATER 
 
 AND THE SURROUNDING MOUNTAINS KESWICK NEW 
 
 ACQUAINTANCES DERWENTWATER EARLS OF DERWENT- 
 WATER. 
 
 At Dunmail Raise we entered Cumberland, the 
 country of the ancient Cimbri, " the true and genuine 
 Britons/' who long maintained themselves amongst 
 these mountains when the more level parts of the 
 country had become entirely Saxon. The names still 
 retained by several places indicate a British origin 
 —as Helvellyn, Glenridden, Glencoin, Penrith, 
 Penruddock, &c. Cumberland contains the highest 
 mountains and the most sublime scenery in England, 
 and the greater number of the lakes are also in this 
 county. 
 
 From Dunmail Raise we looked down upon the 
 valley of Wythburn and the lake of Thirlmere. Here 
 also we obtained the first view of Skiddaw, whose 
 double summit rose majestically beyond the valley 
 which stretched before us, at a distance of about sixteen 
 miles. His base was concealed by the Derwent-fells, 
 but we saw nearly the whole bulk of the mountain. 
 
116 SKIDDAW HELVELLYN. 
 
 which, having great regularity of outline,, and being 
 clothed with grass to its summit, has a character of 
 beautiful and simple grandeur. Immediately on our 
 right hand, and forming the eastern side of the valley 
 of Wythburn, arose the rugged and precipitous form of 
 " the mighty Helvellyn," on which in many parts the 
 naked crags spring up to a great perpendicular eleva- 
 tion, and below them lie strewn large quantities of 
 stones and shingle, which are broken off by frosts, and 
 slide down the steep declivity. His sides are furrowed 
 by ravines, wrought by the perpetual descent of small 
 torrents, which wet weather frequently converts into 
 fine cascades. The top of Helvellyn is not visible 
 from the valley until you come within three miles 
 of Keswick, — the broad shoulders of the mountain 
 projecting so far as to hide his head. The bulk of 
 Helvellyn is much greater than that of Skiddaw, 
 and he is somewhat higher,* but, being hemmed round 
 by other lofty mountains, he is less frequently visible 
 in a tour through the lakes, and has far less dis- 
 tinctness of form than his rival, who, standing apart 
 and alone, may be seen nearly on every side in his 
 entire elevation.t 
 
 Before us, and lying along the foot of the fells, 
 which separate this valley from that of Watendlath, 
 
 * According to the trigonometrical survey, the height of Skid- 
 daw above the sea is 3022 feet ; and that of Helvellyn 3055 feet. 
 
 f Helvellyn may be ascended from the Horse Head, Wythburn, 
 and also from the sixth mile-stone from Keswick : the ascent is 
 steep and arduous — much more so than that of Skiddaw. An 
 account of the ascent from Patterdale is given in a subsequent 
 C hapter. 
 
THIRLMERE. 117 
 
 stretched the dark,, narrow lake of Thirlmere, which 
 bears also the names of Leathes Water and Wyth- 
 burn Water.* It is nearly three miles in length, but 
 about the middle the shores approach each other so as 
 almost to divide it into two distinct lakes, — a bridge 
 being thrown over the strait. It is overhung and 
 shaded by crags, some of which are stupendous, and 
 all naked and gloomy. The most conspicuous is 
 Raven-crag, near the foot of the lake, which forms 
 a striking object for many miles, — resembling a 
 gigantic round tower, blackened and shattered by 
 the lapse of ages. Thirlmere has a higher elevation 
 than any other lake, being 500 feet above the level 
 of the sea : its greatest depth of water is eighteen 
 fathoms. Its borders are not adorned, like those of 
 the other lakes, by wood, with the exception of a 
 few fir plantations, (which rather increase the gloomi- 
 ness of the scene), and of a bold wooded eminence, 
 called the How, at the foot of the lake. This valley 
 has no luxuriance, and its general character is wild 
 magnificence. The road descends through it for 
 several miles with scarcely any change in the objects. 
 If the traveller, however, should be able to cross the 
 strait I have mentioned, and to pass down the other 
 side of the lake, he would see the house and grounds 
 of Dale-head, and some beautiful scenery, which are 
 
 * It is called Leathes Water, from having been for many 
 generations the property of the family of Leathes, or Laithes, at 
 Dale-head ; and the name of Wythburn Water is derived from the 
 village of Wythburn, the most considerable place on its borders. 
 
118 VALE OF ST. JOHN SADDLEBACK. 
 
 hid from the passenger on the high road by an in- 
 tervening elevation. 
 
 When we had passed down the valley four or five 
 miles, we found it divided into two branches by Naddle 
 fell — on the right of which is the interesting valley of 
 St. John or Wanthwaite. This is a verdant and 
 peaceful vale, lying betwixt enormous crags, and 
 through its vista is seen the noble mountain of Sad- 
 dleback, or Blencathara. This mountain derives the 
 name by which it is commonly known from the pecu- 
 liarity of its shape ; on the south-west side it rises 
 with a regular convex swell from the base nearly to 
 the summit, and being rounded off on each side, and 
 covered with verdure, the whole side or bach of the 
 hill appears like a smooth, sloping saddle for some 
 Brobdingnagian rider. The summit is craggy, and 
 on the east and south-east the hill is scarred with 
 awful ravines. The foot of Saddleback touches that 
 of Skiddaw. 
 
 Leaving the vale of St. John on our right, we 
 crossed the river Greta, which flows out of Thirlmere 
 lake, at Smalthwaite-bridge, and passing betwixt the 
 How and Naddle-fell, we came upon a desolate moor 
 lying between the latter hill and the Derwent-fells. 
 At length, about two miles from Keswick, Ave began 
 to ascend Castlerigg, the hill which slopes down 
 from the Derwent-fells to the valley of the Greta. 
 
 When we had passed along the top, and came to 
 look down upon Keswick, a grand and extensive pros- 
 pect, of which we had not yet had even a glimpse, 
 
VIEW FROM CASTLERIGG. 119 
 
 opened to our view. An amphitheatre twenty miles in 
 circumference lay before us, environed by a multitude 
 of bold and lofty mountains, and adorned by two fine 
 lakes. On the north rose the majestic form of Skid- 
 daw, now revealed from the base to the summit, and 
 from the Dod on his western flank to Latrigg on the 
 eastern. At his foot lay the small town of Keswick, 
 and a valley branched off from the plain on either 
 side of him. In that which ran to the north-west, 
 lay the sheet of Bassenthwaite or Broad Water, a 
 lake about four miles in length, and at an equal dis- 
 tance from Castlerigg. To the south of Keswick, in 
 the bottom of the great mountain-basin, we saw the 
 beautiful and interesting lake of Derwentwater, 
 adorned with several woody islands. Its whole extent 
 was not visible from this place, but as we descended 
 the hill, we saw the head of the lake, and the jaws 
 of Borrowdale beyond. The mountains on each side 
 of Derwentwater are peculiarly bold in their forms, 
 and present several sharp ridges of great elevation 
 running off obliquely from the lake ; at its head is 
 the wild valley just mentioned ; and at its foot a con- 
 siderable plain of great fertility and beauty, and 
 plentifully sprinkled with wood, extending to the base 
 of Skiddaw, and onwards to Bassenthwaite Water. 
 
 Our party gazed on the splendid prospect with eager 
 eyes, and, after they had perused its general features, 
 all my topographical knowledge was called forth to 
 satisfy their inquiries as to the details. " The bold, 
 steep hill," I said, " that overlooks the head of Bas- 
 
120 VIEW FROM CASTLERIGG. 
 
 senthwaite Water on the west, (beyond Skiddaw) is 
 called Barf, and Lord's Seat is the neighbouring eleva- 
 tion. Further to the left is Whinlatter, over which 
 passes the road to Crummock Water. The high mountain 
 that rises next, in tracing the hills on the horizon from 
 north to south, is Grisedale Pike ; then the still higher 
 summit of Grassmoor ; then the horned top of Causey 
 Pike, to the left of which is the beautiful vale of 
 Newlands. Beyond the extremity of this vale, you 
 see the sharp point of Red Pike, and the higher 
 elevation of High Stile, which rise above the further 
 shore of the lake of Buttermere : then Robinson and 
 Hindscarth, the latter of which has a pile of stones 
 on the summit. The sharp ridge, with two hunches, 
 whose grassy side slopes down to the head of Der- 
 wentwater, is Catbells : it is not unlike the back of a 
 camel. Beyond are the crags of Borrowdale, and in 
 the valley you perceive a conical hill clothed with dark 
 firs, called Castle Crag. At the upper extremity of 
 Borrowdale are Scawfell Pikes, and you may discern 
 upon them the pile of stones which stands upon the 
 highest point in England. The crags of Lowdore are 
 at the head of the lake ; and this broad and towering 
 precipice, just on our left hand, with a fine wood 
 spread at its base, is Wallow Crag. The conical hill 
 that stands between us and the lake, so finely clothed 
 with wood, is Castle-head." This magnificent assem- 
 blage of objects fully engaged our attention whilst we 
 descended the steep hill that brought us into the town 
 of Keswick. 
 
KESWICK NEW ACQUAINTANCES. 121 
 
 We drove to the Royal Oak, and were speedily pro- 
 vided with apartments by the active and attentive 
 landlady, who told us that her house was now quite 
 full, and had been so for the last six weeks. The 
 Queen's Head also, another good inn, and all the 
 lodging-houses, had been filled, and they had had a 
 very busy season. Keswick, in fact, is the metropolis 
 of the Lakes, where tourists often take up their 
 head-quarters, and whence they visit all the surround- 
 ing lakes and mountains. It is the largest and most 
 central town of the district, has better sources of 
 amusement in unfavourable weather than any other, 
 and enjoys the most magnificent situation. Here 
 meet nobles and commoners, merchants and tradesmen, 
 students and idlers, artists, poets, mineralogists, 
 anglers, the valetudinarian in search of health, the 
 healthful in quest of pleasure, the man of pleasure 
 in pursuit of variety, foreigners, authors, lovers, — in 
 short, samples of every class of mankind, whose cir- 
 cumstances enable them to travel. 
 
 I have omitted to mention that at Ambleside we 
 fell in with, and were introduced to a very inter- 
 esting party, with whom we have peculiar reasons for 
 hoping to be better acquainted. The party con- 
 sisted of Col. H n, his daughter and niece, — and 
 
 the daughter was the young lady who had so power- 
 fully attracted the admiration of George in the court 
 
 at Lancaster. We found that Col. H n was an 
 
 old friend of George's father ; they had been school- 
 fellows, and the Colonel had visited at the house of 
 
 G 
 
122 NEW ACQUAINTANCES. 
 
 Mr. G., where he had seen Mrs. Anabella when in 
 her teens. He was a man of great talents and vir- 
 tues ; had served many years with distinction in 
 India, where he lost an amiable wife; and had sent 
 his daughter to England, to be educated in the family 
 of his brother-in-law. Affliction had exercised a 
 softening and exalting influence on his mind. After 
 a long absence, he had returned over land to England 
 about two years ago, and he was now revisiting a scene 
 with which he had been familiar in his youth. It 
 would be superfluous to say that George was delighted 
 beyond measure with this happy rencontre : and after 
 the bashfulness he always manifested on a new intro- 
 duction had subsided, he took an active part in the 
 conversation, and endeavoured, with a natural and 
 honest eagerness, to ingratiate himself both with 
 the father and the daughter. So well did he develop 
 his talents and information in this interview, that I 
 believe he succeeded in his object ; and, on the other 
 hand, we were all charmed with the Colonel and his 
 interesting daughter. We spent the evening with 
 them at Ambleside, and they had preceded us this 
 morning in the journey to Keswick, where it was 
 agreed that we were to dine together, and afterwards 
 to row round Derwentwater. 
 
 The Colonel having arrived nearly an hour before 
 us, dinner was ready quite as soon as the ladies of our 
 party were prepared for it ; and, though the hour was 
 early, the keen pure air of the Cumberland mountains 
 had so sharpened our appetites, that we did ample 
 
DERWENTWATER EARLS OF DERWENTWATER. 123 
 
 justice to the viands. Rising soon after the cloth was 
 drawn, we all set out, accompanied by a boatman, to 
 make the circuit of Derwentwater. 
 
 We had to walk upwards of half a mile from the 
 town to the lake, skirting the beautiful pasture of 
 Crow Park, which swells gently above the foot of 
 Derwentwater. When we got into the boat, the sun 
 had made considerable progress on his downward 
 march ; but I think, on the whole, we were not losers 
 by the circumstance, as he poured such a flood of 
 glory on the woods and fells 'which tower over the 
 eastern border of Derwentwater, that we were fasci- 
 nated by the scene. We rowed up that side of the 
 lake, and of course saw the shores and the islands to 
 the utmost advantage, whilst the hills on the opposite 
 shore were shaded, and their grand outline was re- 
 lieved against a splendid evening sky. 
 
 Derwentwater and the lands around it were formerly 
 in the possession of the unfortunate family of the 
 RatclifFes, who took their title of Earls • of Derwent- 
 water from the lake. They had anciently a castle on 
 Castlerigg, and afterwards a house on one of the 
 principal islands of the lake, which has since borne 
 the name of Lord's Island. The family did not usually 
 reside here, but at Dalston, in Northumberland. 
 Whilst in their possession, Crow Park, at the north- 
 east corner of the lake, and all the long slope of the 
 hills on the eastern shore, were covered with noble 
 forests of oak, which gave to the scene a character of 
 grand solemnity. But when Lord Derwentwater 
 
124 DERWENTWATER. 
 
 forfeited his head on Tower-hill for partaking in the 
 rebellion of 1715, his estates were confiscated, and 
 bestowed upon Greenwich Hospital, the trustees of 
 which charity, with the discretion that often charac- 
 terizes the management of distant property, especially 
 by public bodies, cleared away the forests at one fell 
 swoop, and stripped the hills of their majestic mantle ! 
 Great and irreparable as is the injury, it must be 
 admitted that the knolls and lawns now seen on the 
 waving surface of the shore are highly beautiful : 
 several of the small hills and promontories are again 
 covered with trees, which enclose and enrich the 
 tracts of verdure ; and the steep sides of the fells are 
 feathered with natural wood, which, if a less rich and 
 ample, is perhaps a fresher and livelier covering than 
 the old forests. The trustees of the hospital also, 
 whilst the estate was in their possession, refused 
 to let the land on long leases, of which complaint has 
 been made, as it prevented individuals from building 
 mansions on the shore, which, in the opinion of the 
 complainants, would be a great ornament to the lake. 
 In my judgment, however, Derwentwater would be 
 spoiled by the erection of villas and mansions on its 
 borders. I like it now for its seclusion, and should 
 be sorry to see it environed by houses. Windermere, 
 the scenery of which is soft and beautiful, may have 
 its charms heightened by introducing the elegance of 
 art. But the character of Derwentwater is high sub- 
 limity : on every side the mountains lift their rocky 
 heads to heaven : and in expatiating over the vastness 
 
DERWENTWATER. 125 
 
 of the scene, the mind rises far above the insignificant 
 works of man, and delights to feel itself at liberty, 
 unconstrained by the observation of others, to range 
 and exult in the magnificent temple of nature. 
 
 The ancient demesne of the Derwentwater family 
 is now in the possession of John Marshall, Jun., Esq., 
 M.P. for Leeds, second son of John Marshall, Esq., of 
 Hallsteads. The estate was bought by Mr. Marshall, 
 when sold by the Trustees of Greenwich Hospital in 
 1832. This property includes one-third of Derwent 
 lake, with the exclusive right of fishing, the manors and 
 manorial rights connected with the township of Kes- 
 wick, and a great extent of commons, besides the good 
 land between Castlerigg, Keswick, and the lake, and 
 a considerable part of the eastern border of the lake. 
 
 Another third of Derwent lake belongs to the Earl 
 of Egremont, and the third at the head of the lake to 
 the freeholders of Borrowdale. 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 DERWENTWATEK EXCURSION ON THE LAKE VICAR'S ISLAND — 
 
 WALLOW CRAG LORD'S ISLAND LADY'S RAKE ST. HER- 
 BERT'S ISLAND — BARROW CASCADE FLOATING ISLAND 
 
 THE RIVER DERWENT THE FALL OF LOWDORE FINE ECHO 
 
 NIGHT SCENE ON THE LAKE REFLECTIONS. 
 
 Derwentwater is upwards of three miles in length, 
 and somewhat more than a mile in breadth, — which is 
 wider than any other of the lakes. It is adorned by 
 several considerable islands, richly clothed with wood, 
 of which the principal are Lord's Island, Vicar's 
 Island, St. Herbert's Island, and Rampsholm. From 
 the extent of the plain in which it lies, and the seve- 
 ral valleys diverging from it, a much greater number 
 of mountains is seen from its surface than from any 
 other lake ; and their rocky, irregular, and tumultuous 
 character gives to the scenery of Derwentwater a 
 wild sublimity, equally distinct from the solemn 
 grandeur of Ullswater and the soft beauties of 
 Windermere. 
 
 It was a bright and sunny afternoon, as I have 
 already mentioned, when our combined parties 
 embarked for the purpose of rowing round the lake. 
 We took a boat at a small pier, in a bay formed by 
 Crow Park, now the race-ground, on the north, and 
 
DERWENTWATER VICAR'S ISLAND. 127 
 
 the promenade of Friar Crag on the east. Vicar's 
 Island is immediately opposite this spot, at the dis- 
 tance of a few hundred yards, and we rowed there for 
 the purpose of seeing the beautiful pleasure-grounds 
 of General Peachy, who has a house on the island. 
 Having asked and obtained permission, we walked 
 round the grounds, accompanied by the gardener. 
 The island contains about five acres and a half, and 
 this small space is laid out to the utmost advantage 
 in lawns, shrubberies, and parterres. A grove of 
 beautiful trees encompasses the island, with only one 
 opening to the south ; and the house, which stands on 
 a rising ground, commands through this opening a 
 splendid prospect of the lake and mountains. The 
 front of the house is covered with ivy, and it has not 
 a disagreeable effect from that side on which alone it 
 can be seen. The island is sometimes called Pock- 
 lington's Island, from the name of its former proprietor, 
 and General Peachy gives it the name of Derwent 
 Isle ; but " every true lover of antiquity," as our 
 friend of Dunmail Raise would have said, will con- 
 tinue to give it the old name of Vicar's Island, which 
 it derived from having formerly belonged to Foun- 
 tain's Abbey in Yorkshire. Having hastily made the 
 circuit of the island, and admired the taste with 
 which it is laid out, we re-entered our boat. 
 
 Our course now lay between the island and the pro- 
 menade, and past the rock at the extremity of the 
 latter, which has obtained the name of Friar Crag, 
 as is said, from the fact that St. Herbert, who lived on 
 
128 lord's island — lady's rake. 
 
 the island in the centre of Derwentwater, used to 
 land there when he visited the shore. We then 
 entered a bay formed by Friar Crag on the north and 
 Lord's Island on the souths in which the one mighty 
 object is Wallow Crag, whose awful precipice towers 
 over the wood spread around its base, to the height of 
 a thousand feet above the lake. We landed on Lord's 
 Island, and saw the traces of the house built here by 
 the Derwentwater family : nothing remains except the 
 mere foundations, all the building-stone having been 
 removed to erect the town-hall of Keswick and other 
 houses. The whole island, of which the extent is six 
 acres, is now covered with wood. Again entering the 
 boat, we passed up the channel between Lord's Island 
 and the shore, from whence beautiful prospects are 
 obtained — on the one hand, of the majestic form of 
 Skiddaw, with the woods of Castlehead and Cockshot 
 Park in the foreground ; and on the other, of the 
 upper part of the lake, the beautiful islands of St. 
 Herbert's and Rampsholm, and the rugged crags and 
 
 mountains of Borrowdale. Col. H n was the first 
 
 to point out to the ladies a deep cleft in the face 
 of Wallow Crag, wrought by the descent of a torrent 
 in wet weather, and choked with wood, which bears 
 the name of the Lady's Rake, from the circumstance 
 that the Countess of Derwentwater is said to have 
 made her escape by night up the ravine, when intel- 
 ligence of her husband's arrest reached her. Col. 
 
 H n took occasion to state, by way of bringing to 
 
 the recollection of the ladies a passage of history 
 
THE EARLS OP DERWENTWATEK. 129 
 
 which they might but faintly remember, the events of 
 the period as connected with the unfortunate family of 
 the Ratcliffes. He sketched the circumstances with 
 simplicity, and not without feeling. The rebellions 
 of 1715 and 1745, — the active part taken by the Earl 
 of Derwentwater in the first, and by his son in the 
 second, on behalf of the Pretender, — the ruin of their 
 noble house, by clinging to the fortunes of an ill- 
 starred, despotic, and stubbornly unteachable race of 
 princes, — and the disasters of some other branches of 
 the family, — were briefly narrated, with a pathos 
 perhaps insensibly heightened from the scene of the 
 Countess's perilous flight being before our eyes. The 
 romantic character of the incident itself, and of the 
 mountain-pass through which the lady fled, brought 
 vividly to our minds some of the descriptions in 
 Waverley, where highland glens and " hair-breadth 
 'scapes/' unsuccessful rebellion and the ruin of ancient 
 families, are so graphically depicted. Matilda, how- 
 ever, took the liberty to doubt whether any lady could 
 by possibility make her way up a place which seemed 
 nearly perpendicular. 
 
 Our boat glided softly down the eastern side of the 
 lake, and we sat for some time silently admiring the 
 noble crags and fells which rose above us, the un- 
 ruffled surface of the water, the changing positions of 
 the islands, the beautiful vale of Newlands on the 
 opposite shore, the simple sublimity of Skiddaw at 
 the foot of the lake, and the picturesque horrors of 
 Borrowdale at its head. 
 
 g 3 
 
130 st. Herbert's island— barrow cascade. 
 
 When we had left Lord's Island behind us, and 
 entered another bay overhung by Falcon Crag, our 
 guide pointed to a boat-house at a considerable dis- 
 tance over the water, which seemed to us to be on 
 the opposite shore of the lake; and we were sur- 
 prised to learn that it was on St. Herbert's Island, 
 which is nearly in the centre of Derwentwater. This 
 was a remarkable proof how difficult it is for an 
 inexperienced eye to judge of the distance of objects 
 seen over a sheet of water.* 
 
 We landed near Barrow-house, the seat of Joseph 
 Pocklington, Esq., and walked up to see a very pretty 
 cascade in the rear of the house. The quantity of 
 water is not great, but it falls in a picturesque manner 
 down the face of a rock, at two distinct leaps, — the 
 total depth being a hundred and twenty-two feet. 
 The cascade is situated in a wood on the steep side 
 of the hill, and a summer-house has been built on 
 the rock above it, which commands a fine view of the 
 lake. 
 
 When we approached the head of the lake, it was 
 so remarkably clear and smooth, that we saw a re- 
 flection of the hill-side in the water, as distinct in the 
 forms and as vivid in the colours as the original. This 
 
 * We had not time to call at St. Herbert's Island, which is 
 usually visited on the return from Lowdore. I have landed there 
 on another tour. That St. Herbert had his hermitage on this 
 island is certain from the authority of the Venerable Bede, as we'll 
 as from tradition. A chantry long stood here, where mass used 
 to be sung. The island belonged to the late Sir Wilfrid Lawson, 
 who built a grotto, called the new Hermitage, upon it. The island 
 contains four acres, and is covered with wood. 
 
THE FLOATING ISLAND. 131 
 
 effect may often be seen on a small scale, but it very 
 rarely happens that a hill several hundred feet high, 
 of much greater longitudinal extent, and covered with 
 trees, rocks, and other objects, is seen reflected in the 
 water with any thing like distinctness. Yet here the 
 hydrographic repetition was as faithful as if the scene 
 had been returned by a mirror without a flaw j and 
 the setting sun, illuminating the whole, made it a 
 lovely picture.* A range of lofty crags stretches be- 
 yond the head of the lake and round the fall of Low- 
 dore ; and, being nearly perpendicular and clothed 
 with natural wood, they form a splendid silvan theatre, 
 amongst which appear rocks of varied shape and hue. 
 These crags terminate in a grand pillar of rock, named 
 Gowder Crag. 
 
 At the south-east corner of the lake there is the 
 phenomenon of a Floating Island, which rises occa- 
 sionally above the surface of the lake, but, being 
 attached to the bottom by its sides, does not change 
 its place except by rising and sinking. The extent 
 of this island is sometimes half an acre ; it has risen 
 only seven times since the year 1808, and generally 
 appears in hot summers ; it appeared in the successive 
 summers of 1824, 1825, and 1826. The most pro- 
 bable conjecture as to the cause of the phenomenon is, 
 that the vegetable substances upon it, in the process 
 of decomposition, form a large quantity of gas, which 
 
 * In a subsequent tour I saw a still more splendid reflection of 
 the whole of Catbells, Swinside, Skiddaw, and the islands, in the 
 lake, with a morning sun. See the second Excursion on Foot. 
 
132 THE DERWENT FALL OF LOWDORE. 
 
 pervades the spongy substance of the island, and 
 makes it so light as to rise to the surface. Heat pro- 
 motes the accumulation of gas, and when the gas is car- 
 ried off by exposure to the atmosphere or is condensed 
 by cold, the island sinks. When the surface is pierced, 
 gas issues forth, which has been collected, and found 
 to consist of equal parts of carburetted hydrogen and 
 azotic gases, with about six per cent, of carbonic acid. 
 It has been supposed that the water of a small cascade, 
 named Cat-gill, which tumbles down the rocks near 
 this place, and which then finds a subterraneous pas- 
 sage into the lake, may have been the cause of buoying 
 up the Island : but this supposition is generally dis- 
 allowed by men of science. 
 
 The river Derwent, up which we rowed a short 
 distance, is perhaps the most limpid and colourless 
 stream in this country ; we saw the small gray 
 pebbles which form its bed at the depth of six or eight 
 feet, and should scarcely have known that any 
 medium denser than air was betwixt them and the 
 eye, but for a certain glassy smoothness which the 
 liquid necessarily gives them. 
 
 Landing on the eastern bank of the Derwent, we 
 walked a few hundred yards to the celebrated Fall of 
 Lowdore, situated in a chasm to the rear of a hamlet 
 of that name. This cascade has much grandeur of 
 effect when the stream is swelled by rains, but at this 
 time the quantity of water was small. Its height is 
 about a hundred and fifty feet, and the water tumbles 
 over and amongst a jumbled pile of rocks, dashing, 
 
FALL OF LOWDORE AN ECHO. 133 
 
 brawling, and foaming, and in no place (at this period) 
 falling more than a few yards at once. The stream 
 comes down a ravine of the hill, out of the valley of 
 Watendlath, and, when sudden rains augment its 
 quantity and force, it flings itself furiously over the 
 precipice, and hides all the rocks which obstruct its 
 descent, roaring with tremendous dissonance, and 
 scattering the foam of its wrath far and wide. It is 
 said that the noise of the cataract can at these periods 
 be heard to a distance of ten or twelve miles ; which, 
 however, seems scarcely credible. The effect of the 
 scene is greatly increased by the prodigious crags 
 which rise on either side of the fall, one of them, 
 called Gowder Crag, to the perpendicular height of 
 five hundred feet. The opposite mass of rock is 
 called Shepherd's Crag. Numerous trees have taken 
 root in the face of the cliffs, and throw out their 
 branches into the air ; and, looking upwards from the 
 chasm at the foot of the waterfall, you see the innu- 
 merable leaves and twigs, with their fine outlines 
 printed on the clear blue vault of the sky. The wood 
 is principally the mountain-ash and the birch, and 
 a few elegant young trees stand perched on the very 
 crest of the rocks, and waving in the wind, as graceful 
 and well-balanced as birds upon a spray. 
 
 In the meadow where we landed on leaving our 
 boat, an extremely fine Echo is to be heard. It pro- 
 ceeds from the side of the fells, which here rise so 
 nearly perpendicular as to resemble a vast wall. The 
 place where we stood being several hundred yards 
 
134 AN ECHO. 
 
 from the hill-sidej it required rather a loud shout to 
 obtain a response ; but the number of syllables which 
 might be uttered before the answer came, was of 
 course proportioned to the distance. The Colonel, 
 George, and myself hollaed loud and long ; we invoked 
 SJciddaw, Helvettyn, Niagara, Himalaya, Glaramara, 
 and other magnificent and sounding names, all which 
 the faithful reflector flung back upon our ears, as 
 distinctly as if the words had been palpable and elastic 
 objects, and had struck the rocks with the sharpness 
 of a hammer. I believe a person of good lungs and 
 nimble tongue, like Mathews, might obtain a perfect 
 replication to the name of the race-horse, Caifalcarata- 
 dadera — a name given, I suppose, in the hope that 
 the horse would run the faster from having so many 
 feet. We endeavoured to prevail upon the ladies to 
 try their voices, but they pleaded inability to produce 
 an echo at such a distance. At length Matilda called 
 out Dunmail Raise with a small shrill shout, which the 
 cliffs returned in such a tone of scoffing mockery, that 
 if our antiquarian friend had been present, I am per- 
 suaded he would have flown into a rage. The singu- 
 larity of the sound, and the scene it recalled to our 
 minds, produced a loud and general fit of laughter ; 
 at which the fells unexpectedly awoke their obsequious 
 mirth, and shook their sides with laughter. Our 
 experiments were terminated by the discharge of a 
 cannon, which is placed there for the purpose, and 
 fired by the people of Lowdore Inn for the amuse- 
 ment of those who will pay for it. Mrs. Anabella 
 
RETURN TO KESWICK. 135 
 
 and Matilda were so much alarmed by the prepara- 
 tions, that they ran to a distance of fifty or sixty 
 
 yards, whilst Miss H n stood calmly near the 
 
 piece, like a soldier's daughter. The reverberation 
 was truly awful : from Borrowdale fells it was hurled 
 back to the opposite heights of Catbells and Causey 
 Pike, whence it roared round the whole amphitheatre 
 of mountains in a prolonged peal. Such is generally 
 the solemn stillness of this scene, that we felt a kind 
 of superstitious awe at having thus violently disturbed 
 it, by calling upon the spirits of the mountains to 
 answer us ; — as some enchanters in Eastern tales are 
 alarmed when their invocations are obeyed by the 
 appearance of awful genii. 
 
 The effect was increased by the approach of evening ; 
 for we had lingered so long at Lowdore, with the 
 cataract and the echo, that the sun had gone down 
 nearly an hour, and the twilight was rapidly deepen- 
 ing into dusk. We hastened therefore to the boat, 
 and directed the boatman to lose no time, but to take 
 us down the opposite side of the lake from that by 
 which we had ascended. He complied by pulling 
 vigorously across the southern extremity of the lake, 
 and along the western shore. We were now imme- 
 diately opposite the jaws of Borrowdale, and could 
 just see the tall, shaggy forms of Grange Crag and 
 Castle Crag, which guard the entrance. The extreme 
 ivildness and ruggedness of the cliffs on either side, 
 and the darkness which brooded over the valley beyond, 
 caused a shudder to come across the ladies as they 
 
136 NIGHT SCENE ON THE LAKE. 
 
 contemplated it. The obscurity of the scene only 
 gave play to their imaginations, which probably 
 conjured up ideas of Borrow dale as not less horrible 
 than the valley of the shadow of death. The moun- 
 tains on the western side of the lake, which seemed 
 almost to overhang us, were a mighty shade : and the 
 rugged outlines of Catbells and Causey Pike were 
 traced in the strongest relief against the sky, still 
 illumined by the white light which lingers on the 
 horizon in an autumn evening. On the north, 
 Skiddaw reigned in lonely majesty, his double sum- 
 mit resembling a crown ; he seemed to spring up 
 directly from the edge of Derwentwater, and his 
 broad base stretched across that end of the amphi- 
 theatre. The white houses of Keswick had before 
 been visible at the foot of the lake, and we now 
 recognized the situation of the town by its lights. 
 
 The night was one of the most brilliant I ever 
 beheld, and long before we arrived at Keswick the 
 stars shone out with the purest lustre. The crescent 
 of the new moon was divinely pencilled on the firma- 
 ment. In the lake the heavenly lights were reflected 
 with a tremulous movement, occasioned by an evening 
 zephyr which crept silently over the surface. Stillness 
 the most profound — a holy stillness — prevailed ; and it 
 was with serene solemnity that we looked up to the 
 gigantic features of earth which stood in shadow 
 around us, and the glorious canopy of heaven above 
 our heads. The silence was broken by Colonel 
 H n : " Can that man breathe," he said, " who 
 
REFLECTIONS. 137 
 
 could view a scene like this, and doubt the existence 
 of an almighty and all- wise Creator ? Who can 
 behold that moon, renewing her light without the 
 deviation of a second in time, or of a hair's breadth 
 in space — those constellations, beaming the same 
 ' sweet influences' as at the hour ' when the morning 
 stars sang together/ — and dream that they are upheld 
 and guided by a hand less than infinite ? Or who, 
 that reflects for a moment, can doubt, that the same 
 Power who sustains the whole frame-work of nature, 
 from its most sublime to its minutest forms, surveys 
 with omniscient eye the movements of all the intelli- 
 gent spirits which animate it, and judges them by 
 rules of immutable righteousness ? How high a 
 lesson does this scene convey ! It solemnizes our 
 vain thoughts, and raises them from earth to heaven, 
 from time to eternity. In the contemplation of it, 
 man feels his immortality." 
 
 These remarks strengthened the impression which 
 the scene was calculated to make upon us, and turned 
 our conversation into a higher channel than that in 
 which it had hitherto flowed. Shortly afterwards we 
 landed, and, being chilled by the evening air, we 
 walked quickly to the inn, where a blazing fire and a 
 dish of fragrant tea soon restored us to comfort. Our 
 conversation turned principally on the interesting 
 objects we had witnessed, and I am sure none of us 
 will ever forget our evening sail on Derwentwater. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 ASCENT OF SKIDDAW DIFFICULTIES OF THE WAY MAGNIFICENT 
 
 PANORAMIC VIEW FROM THE SUMMIT PARTICULAR DES- 
 CRIPTION OF THE MOUNTAINS, &C. DESCENT PARTICULARS 
 
 OF ANOTHER ASCENT. 
 
 Morning brought the lamented departure of Col. 
 
 H n, his daughter and niece, who were on their 
 
 route to Scotland. In our conversation the preceding 
 evening, many had been the hints given by George 
 and Mrs. Anabella how charming it would be if the 
 threatened departure could be postponed, and how 
 interesting were the objects which we might all 
 see together. We meditated excursions to Skiddaw, 
 BorroAvdale, and Buttermere, none of which had 
 
 Miss H n or Miss Seymour yet visited ; and 
 
 Mrs. Anabella, who was quite touched by the polite 
 attentions of the Colonel, bewailed the necessity we 
 should be under of foregoing the advantage of his 
 company and information in these expeditions. George 
 
 described to Miss H n with great eloquence 
 
 all that he had heard or read about the objects still to 
 be seen ; but there was a blushing eagerness about 
 his representations, which I think must have told a 
 tale to the Colonel. However, all this breath was 
 
ASCENT OP SKIDDAW. 139 
 
 thrown away, except perhaps on the heart of the 
 lady ; for her father told us that, notwithstanding his 
 great desire to enjoy the pleasure of our company some 
 days longer, he was compelled to proceed northwards, 
 by having previously engaged to dine with a friend 
 of his, at his seat in Dumfriesshire, on the following 
 day. This of course put an end to our dissuasive 
 arguments, though not to our lamentations ; and early 
 the following morning, after receiving a pressing 
 invitation to visit the Colonel on his return at his 
 own house, we saw our friends drive off on the road 
 to Penrith. 
 
 Scarcely had the carriage disappeared, when the 
 waiter introduced a guide, who was to accompany us 
 in the ascent of Skiddaw. The day was cloudy, but 
 there was no reason to apprehend rain ; and though 
 the summit of Skiddaw was occasionally tipped with 
 vapour, the atmosphere was clear, and our guide 
 thought we should have a good view from the moun- 
 tain. This expedition had been determined on 
 without much previous consultation with the ladies : 
 as soon as it was mentioned, Mrs. Anabella declared 
 herself eager to achieve the ascent of so celebrated 
 a mountain, and Matilda, who knew very little about 
 the matter, offered no objections. The latter, how- 
 ever, began to suspect that she had engaged in no 
 light, half-hour's trip, when I advised her to put on 
 her plainest and warmest clothing, an old bonnet, and 
 a pair of strong boots. And her suspicions were more 
 powerfully excited by the preparations which our 
 
140 ASCENT OF SKIDDAW. 
 
 guide recommended, who proposed to lay in an exten- 
 sive stock of sandwiches and brandy. She demanded 
 how long we were to be absent, and, on hearing that we 
 must calculate on five or six hours, she put on a most ( 
 rueful, unromantic countenance, and exclaimed — " Oh 
 I am tired of seeing great stones I" Mrs. Anabella and 
 George were highly indignant at a remark so deroga- 
 tory to the sublime scenery we had witnessed, and 
 pronounced Matilda utterly destitute of taste: the 
 observation certainly showed that she was not troubled 
 with an excess of enthusiasm, and indeed she on all 
 occasions manifested a true English preference of 
 comfort over most other objects of ambition. She was 
 also dissatisfied with the appearance of the guide, 
 whom she pronounced to be not only mean-looking, 
 but so much in-kneed that she believed he would 
 never get up the hill. The waiter assured us, how- 
 ever, that he was a very experienced guide, and 
 had not unfrequently ascended Skiddaw twice in one 
 day ; and we afterwards found, that he could walk 
 up hill much quicker than either George or myself. 
 
 All Matilda's objections being over-ruled, two 
 ponies were ordered to the door for the ladies ; George 
 and I were to walk at their sides for their security. 
 We set out, therefore, on the Penrith road, and, 
 after going about half a mile, we crossed the Greta 
 by a narrow bridge. Turning to the left, we began to 
 ascend by a road which passes behind the house of Mr. 
 Calvert, of Greta-bank, and winds round the front of 
 Latrigg, a smooth and verdant hill at the foot of 
 
ASCENT OF SKIDDAW. 141 
 
 Skiddaw, which has obtained the name of " Skiddaw' s 
 cub." It is deformed with one or two parallelograms 
 of fir plantations. 
 
 Our guide and our horses were both of opinion that 
 we should commence the ascent at a very slow and 
 steady pace, which was not at all pleasing to George 
 he being confident in his strength, and eager to reach 
 the summit. I told him that he would have need of 
 his vigour before we had accomplished the ascent of 
 five miles, and that if he did not begin calmly, he 
 would both exhaust his strength, and, by heating 
 himself, run some risk from the cold air on the top. 
 With these representations he was hardly persuaded 
 to keep by our sides. 
 
 Almost before we were aware, we found ourselves 
 considerably elevated above the town, and command- 
 ing a splendid view of the plain of Keswick, the 
 lakes of Derwent and Bassenthwaite, and the sur- 
 rounding mountains. The beauty of this view in 
 some degree reconciled Matilda to the expedition. 
 We soon, however, found ourselves nearly shut out 
 from this prospect, by passing round to the rear of 
 Latrigg. We also lost all appearance of a road, 
 and proceeded along a path which seemed to be 
 merely a sheep-track. After passing for a short dis- 
 tance on level ground, and then descending into a 
 little hollow, we began a very steep and long ascent 
 up the eastern side of Skiddaw, with a deep ravine on 
 our right hand. Here we were obliged frequently to 
 halt, and when we advanced it was at a slower than 
 
142 ASCENT OP SKIDDAW. 
 
 funeral pace. We were now literally climbing, and 
 in this part of the mountain it is scarcely possible for 
 the pedestrian to be too deliberate. The ponies toiled 
 patiently up the steep., but often stopped and panted 
 for breath. The hill immediately on our right hand 
 in this sharp pull, and only separated from us by the 
 ravine, is Lonscale-fell ; its sides are covered with 
 heath and fern, and a gleam of sunshine fell upon it 
 just at this moment, as if for the purpose of lighting 
 up the innumerable heath-bells, which clothed the hill 
 with a robe of the richest purple. 
 
 After more than an hour and a half's labour, we 
 came to a rounded, doAvn-like part of the mountain, 
 called Jenkin-hill, covered with a thick carpet of grass 
 and moss, from which we looked down on Der- 
 wentwater. Stopping to survey the prospect below, 
 we found that its features had most materially 
 altered. We were already higher than several hills 
 which appeared from the lake to be nearly as lofty as 
 Skiddaw ; a much greater number of summits became 
 visible ; and the lake shrunk in its dimensions, whilst 
 the houses, fields, and woods on its margin seemed as 
 if traced on a map, they lay so far beneath. We felt 
 as if we had left the world and mankind below us, and 
 were ascending towards the regions of eternal silence. 
 The scene we had quitted formed a lovely picture, its 
 beauties being heightened by contrast with the wild 
 hills amongst which it lay embosomed, and which now 
 opened very extensively to our view. On our right 
 hand, as we pursued our march, was Saddleback, 
 
ASCENT OF SKIDDAW. 143 
 
 appearing as the rival of Skiddaw. There is great 
 beauty in the flowing lines of these sublime mountains 
 as seen from this place. Before us were the two 
 summits of Skiddaw, on the highest of which is a pile 
 of stones ; but they were still far above us, and the 
 ladies, who thought we must be near the top, heard 
 with consternation that we were not much more than 
 half way up the mountain. To travellers who ascend 
 in warmer weather it may be interesting to know, that 
 on Jenkin-hill, and near the foot of the first cone of 
 Skiddaw, there is a spring of pure water, and that 
 higher up no supply of this element can be obtained. 
 
 As we were proceeding, there opened upon us, to 
 the great surprise and delight of most of our party, a 
 view of the sea, at the distance of twenty miles, seen 
 between Skiddaw and Grisedale Pike ; and we even 
 descried the hilly shores of the Isle of Man, at nearly 
 three times that distance. Passing to the north of 
 the first summit of Skiddaw, these interesting objects 
 were concealed from us again by the mountain, but 
 Solway Frith and the Scotch mountains then became 
 visible on the north. After the long and steep ascent 
 which I have described, the rest of the ascent is quite 
 easy, at least under ordinary circumstances: there is 
 no track over the grassy carpet of Jenkin-hill for 
 some distance, but the path is found again very dis- 
 tinctly marked when the traveller comes to the north 
 of the first summit of the mountain. 
 
 Here a great mountain basin, called Skiddaw forest, 
 (though without a tree) several miles in diameter, lay 
 
144 ASCENT OF SKIDDAW. 
 
 below us on the right. There is no appearance of 
 cultivation, and but a single house, in this vast hollow 
 of the hills ; which is enclosed by Skiddaw on the 
 west, Saddleback on the east, and High Pike and 
 Carrock Fell on the north. The river Caldew, which 
 flows into the Eden, takes its rise here, and may be 
 traced for some miles through " the forest :" the 
 valley in the bottom of which it runs, looks as if it 
 had formerly been the bed of a mighty river. 
 
 The greatest hardship of the journey now began 
 to be felt. A bitter north-east wind, which became a 
 stiff gale as we ascended towards the higher regions 
 of the atmosphere, blew right upon us from the 
 direction of Carrock Fell, and made it difficult for the 
 ladies to sit upon their horses. I turned towards it, 
 and felt the blast penetrate my clothes, which were 
 open at the breast, and wrap round my body, as if a 
 damp sheet were drawn about me. We made a pause, 
 during which Matilda once mentioned the idea of 
 returning ; but, as she was unsupported in her pro- 
 position, we armed ourselves for the worst, the ladies 
 fastening their bonnets upon their heads with hand- 
 kerchiefs, and George and myself putting on our great 
 coats, which the guide had providently brought with 
 him. We then resumed our march, the guide leading 
 Mrs. Anabella's horse, and George walking by her side 
 to support her in her seat, whilst I rendered the same 
 service to his sister. 
 
 When we arrived at the foot of the steep and 
 rugged ascent, which brings us to the summit of the 
 
ASCENT OP SKIDD AW. 145 
 
 mountain, we found the wind a hurricane. It would 
 have been safer for Matilda to dismount ; but as I 
 had myself ascended this place on horseback;, I urged 
 on our sure-footed pony, and we struggled up the 
 hill over the slippery shingle. When we had con- 
 quered this difficulty, we found ourselves on the ridge 
 which forms the summit of the mountain, but still two 
 or three hundred yards from the pile of stones which 
 stands on the highest point ; we therefore pushed on, 
 though alarmed at the awful depth and steepness of 
 the descent on either side of the ridge along which 
 our road lay, and leaned with all our strength against 
 the wind, to avoid being blown down the opposite side 
 of the mountain.* The surface of this ridge is a mere 
 bed of rough stones and shingle, which made our 
 footing very uncertain. At length, to our infinite 
 satisfaction, we reached the pile of stones on the 
 summit, called Skiddaw Man. When I had helped 
 Matilda off the animal, and seated her in a little 
 stone-built hut close to the pile, she was nearly 
 exhausted, and sobbed out — " O William, I would 
 not do that again for the world !" It was nearly ten 
 minutes before Mrs. Anabella and George joined us, 
 
 * I have been on Skiddaw when the wind was so tremendous, 
 that a lady and gentleman who had ridden up the hill, but had 
 dismounted, were blown down to the ground, or threw themselves 
 down, three several times, and, being utterly unable to accomplish 
 the short remaining distance, returned without attaining the summit. 
 Their footman had been obliged to stop before they did, and was 
 clinging to the stones on the hill-side : and the guide and horses 
 appeared to be in danger of being blown down the hill. I was on 
 horseback, and could give them no assistance. 
 
 H 
 
146 PANORAMIC VIEW FROM THE SUMMIT. 
 
 as they had walked up the last ascent, and had with 
 extreme difficulty kept their feet. The lady was 
 obliged to rest some minutes before she recovered 
 herself so as to enjoy the astonishing prospect 
 beneath us. 
 
 Cumberland and Westmoreland, with all their 
 mighty clusters of mountains, their lakes and rivers — 
 Lancashire, Yorkshire, Northumberland, the Solway 
 Frith and a range of Scottish hills beyond — the Irish 
 sea, and on the far horizon the hills of the Isle of 
 Man ; — such was the range of this glorious and sub- 
 lime prospect. Bassenthwaite Water lay so imme- 
 diately beneath us, that it seemed as if we might 
 easily be blown from our dizzy elevation into its bed. 
 We looked down upon the town of Cockermouth, and 
 beyond stretched the level part of Cumberland, three 
 thousand feet below us, to the sea coast, and north- 
 ward to the Solway Frith. The whole of that fine 
 estuary lay under our view, and we traced the Scotch 
 coast with perfect distinctness to Burrow-head, the 
 promontory that separates Wigtown Bay and Luce 
 Bay. I have no doubt that we saw the Mull of 
 Galloway beyond, but our guide thought it was never 
 to be seen from Skiddaw. I have not, however, found 
 the guides infallible, especially as to distant objects. 
 It is said that the city of Carlisle cannot be seen from 
 Skiddaw, but the smoke of the city was very obvious, 
 and I also saw the tower of the cathedral. The town 
 of Penrith is hid, but some houses in the suburbs 
 may be seen, and the beacon on a hill a mile from 
 
PANORAMIC VIEW FROM THE SUMMIT. 147 
 
 the town is a conspicuous object. To the south, 
 Derwentwater was concealed by the second summit of 
 Skiddaw, but beyond it a tumultuous sea of moun- 
 tains, wild, dark, and rocky, stretched in magnificent 
 confusion. Above them all towered Scawfell; and 
 the nearer summit of Helvellyn appeared to rival him 
 in dignity. Far away to the south-east, the broad 
 head of Ingleborough was just visible over some of the 
 Westmoreland fells, and, due east, on the distant 
 horizon, rose the mountain of Cross-fell, rival to 
 Skiddaw in elevation, and forming the highest point 
 of " the British Appennines." The bold form of 
 Saddleback seemed almost within arm's length, and, 
 though we looked over his bluff summit, yet he stood 
 like the twin-brother of Skiddaw.* None of the 
 lakes, except Bassenthwaite, are visible. t 
 
 * The height of Skiddaw is 3022 feet, and that of Saddleback 
 2789. 
 
 f The following mountains are visible in the grand panoramic 
 view from the summit of Skiddaw : — Eastward — Saddleback, and, 
 to the north of that mountain, High Pike and Carrock Pike ; in the 
 extreme distance, Cross-fell, Black-fell, and Stainmoor, beyond 
 the vale of Penrith, forming part of " the British Appennines" or 
 " the back-bone of England." Proceeding to the south-east, 
 Swarth-fell, Hallen-fell, and Place-fell, all on the southern shore 
 of Ullswater ; Kidsey Pike and High-street ; then the Helvellyn 
 chain, including White Pike, Dod-fell, the Styx, Catchedecam,. 
 Helvellyn, and Seat Sandal ; the head of Ingleborough, at the 
 distance of fifty miles ; Wansfell, seen over Dunmail Raise ; Steel- 
 fell, and the Derwent and Borrowdale fells : South — (beyond the 
 extremity of Borrowdale) — the parabolic summit of Pike o' Stickle 
 (in Langdale), Eagle Crag, Coniston Old Man, Bowfell, 
 Glaramara, Great End, Scawfell Pikes, (with the pile of stones on 
 the top), Lingmell, Great Gavel ; proceeding westward, Dalehead, 
 
 H 2 
 
148 
 
 THE SUMMIT OP SKIDDAW. 
 
 Scarcely any thing is more inspiring to a person of 
 susceptible imagination than to be thus placed as it 
 were on a pinnacle of the world, and to look down 
 upon a vast and varied territory, covered with human 
 beings, who, with all their works, lie so far beneath 
 him, that he feels as if he no longer partook their 
 nature, and were rather a spectator than a tenant of 
 this inferior globe. Whilst he pities the littleness of 
 man, his mind exults in the sublimity of nature. 
 Even the dullest mind is roused by such a situation, 
 and the imaginative feel emotions of uncontrollable 
 admiration and delight. 
 
 The circumference of this grand panoramic view 
 can scarcely be less than three hundred miles. We 
 continued gazing upon it for some time in high admi- 
 ration, and listening to the explanations of our guide j 
 and the ladies, though with disordered hair, blue 
 noses, and chattering teeth, declared that they were 
 amply repaid for their exertion. When the guide, 
 however, produced the sandwiches and brandy, we 
 all acknowledged their rival charms : the former were 
 speedily demolished, and such was the effect of the 
 thin, cold atmosphere, that even the ladies partook of 
 the brandy without complaining of its strength. We 
 remained on the summit, beneath the shelter of the 
 
 Hindscarth, Kirk-fell, the Screes, Robinson, Pillar, Steeple, 
 High Stile, Red Pike, Causey Pike, Grassmoor, Grisedale Pike, 
 Whiteside : West, Lord's Seat and Barf, (on the other side of 
 Bassenthwaite water, ) and North Barule in the Isle of Man : and 
 North, a long and high range of Scotch mountains, extending 
 across Kirkcudbrightshire, Dumfriesshire, and Roxburghshire, of 
 which the most conspicuous is CrirFel, near the Solway Frith. 
 
DESCENT. 149 
 
 pile of stones, or in the little stone hut, about half an 
 hour, and then addressed ourselves to the task of 
 descending the mountain. It is needless to particu- 
 larize the hardships of the way : suffice it to say, we 
 overcame them all, and had no more serious disaster 
 than the temporary loss of my hat, which, as it was 
 carried by the wind over the brow of the mountain, I 
 had no doubt would be deposited in Bassenthwaite 
 Water, but which our guide with better hope pursued, 
 and found in a deep ravine. We did not wait for him, 
 but, wrapping my head in a supplementary shawl of 
 Matilda's, we hastened down the hill. He overtook 
 us after we had gone a couple of miles, and in about 
 six hours from our quitting Keswick we re-entered it, 
 by no means ashamed of our disordered appearance, 
 but only anxious to get to the fire-side. Dinner, the 
 sofa, and a blazing hearth were to us luxuries, com- 
 pared with which the epicure and the indolent never 
 tasted luxury. The evening was not long enough to 
 talk over our adventures, and Mrs. Anabella and 
 Matilda have laid up a stock of glory which will last 
 them their lives. A calmer day would have made 
 their enterprise comparatively easy, but it would 
 have deprived them of their after-enjoyment — the 
 exquisite delight of remembered hardships. 
 
 I have ascended Skiddaw several times in more 
 favourable weather than on this occasion; there was then 
 little wind and bright sunshine, and the ascent was 
 pleasant and easy, though still requiring patience — the 
 grand requisite in such an expedition. I can never 
 
150 PARTICULARS OF ANOTHER ASCENT. 
 
 forget the view which burst upon us, seaward, on one 
 of those expeditions, when we had reached the summit. 
 It was a bright afternoon, and from the reflection of 
 the sun's rays on the calm sea, the whole expanse of 
 waters resembled a sheet of molten silver, out of 
 which rose, with surprising distinctness, the rocky- 
 shores and hills of the Isle of Man, of a deep neutral 
 tint, and with an aerial softening produced by dis- 
 tance. The effect was truly glorious. At the same 
 time a single bright cloud hung over our heads, so 
 near as to have a very unusual appearance ; it glowed 
 with deep amber, exquisitely melting off into a snowy 
 white. The blending hues, the softness and efful- 
 gence of the cloud, sailing smoothly through the blue 
 heaven, and brooding as it were over the mountain top, 
 made it an object of awful beauty. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 EXCURSION TO BORROWDALE, WASDALE, ENNERDALE, AND BUT- 
 
 TERMERE THE LADIES LEFT AT KESWICK WITH AN OLD 
 
 ACQUAINTANCE STRAITS OF BORROWDALE EOWDER STONE 
 
 CASTLE CRAG ROSTHWAITE WAD MINES SEATHWAITE 
 
 ASCENT OF STY-HEAD VIEW OF SCAWFELL PIKES NEW 
 
 COMPANION- WASDALE HEAD WAST WATER- CALDER 
 
 BRIDGE CALDER ABBEY. 
 
 We spent a Sabbath at Keswick;, — a day on which 
 we thought it not right to " seek our own pleasure/' 
 but repaired to the sanctuary, conceiving it more 
 agreeable to Christian duty to worship God in his 
 courts than even in the temple of his sublimest 
 works. 
 
 On Monday morning George and I quitted the 
 ladies., on an excursion to Wast Water. This step 
 may appear so ungallant as to require explanation. 
 The excursion to Wast Water, then, be it known, 
 comprehends some of the most sublime scenery 
 in Cumberland, and takes us over a hill which forms 
 part of Scawfell, the highest mountain in England. 
 This mountain is not to be seen, except distantly and 
 partially, without going to Wasdale. Very few 
 persons make the excursion, as it is long, and leads 
 over rugged tracks ; but this only made us the more 
 
152 EXCURSION TO BORROWDALE, WASDALE, &c. 
 
 desirous of accomplishing it. Not having seen that 
 part of the Lakes before, I was anxious to add it 
 to my stock of knowledge respecting them ; and 
 George was ready for any project, especially any 
 which would take us into the wilder parts of the 
 country. Nor was he at all sorry, as he uncivilly 
 expressed it, to get rid of the incumbrance of his 
 aunt and sister ; for if we went into Wasdale, it was 
 next to impossible that they should accompany us, 
 owing to the length and difficulties of the road. How 
 to effect our object, however, was a matter which 
 perplexed us a good deal. To leave them alone at 
 Keswick was out of the question, and we could devise 
 no means of disposing of them for the two days that 
 we should be absent. 
 
 We had almost abandoned the enterprise in despair, 
 when we unexpectedly met on the Saturday evening 
 an old friend of Mrs. Anabella's, who, having lately 
 entered into the holy bands of matrimony, was on a 
 wedding excursion to the Lakes. The bridegroom, I 
 apprehend, will never again see his fiftieth year, nor 
 the bride her fifty-fifth, yet they were dressed out in 
 the latest Parisian mode, and looked as blithe as the 
 youngest votaries of Hymen. He was a man of family, 
 a beau, and dilettante, who, having spent his life in 
 hovering round the ladies, and endlessly busying him- 
 self about trifles, had been too fastidious and fickle 
 either to obtain a wife, or to answer any one useful 
 end of existence ; until the failure of a scheme in 
 which he had invested his money had obliged him to 
 
THE LADIES LEFT AT KESWICK. 153 
 
 understand the significant commiseration of a wealthy 
 widow, and to plunge into the arms of matrimony. 
 The lady, though very far indeed from answering to 
 the picture which his youthful dreams had formed 
 of a bride, was a good-natured, comfortable dame, who 
 bad a great admiration for her husband, and was cor- 
 diality itself to all his friends. When she was 
 introduced, therefore, to Mrs. Anabella and the rest 
 of our party — though at the moment of meeting a 
 slight blush of confusion appeared in the face of the 
 gentleman — a good understanding was immediately 
 established amongst us, and George and I saw the 
 means of accomplishing our projected trip to Wast 
 Water. Not to trouble my readers with the way in 
 which it was brought about, we settled it, to the satis- 
 faction of all parties, that I and my cousin were to set 
 off on Monday morning, and were to take Crummock 
 Water and Buttermere in our return, where the three 
 ladies and the bridegroom would join us about noon 
 on Tuesday. 
 
 We set out, therefore, at half-past eight on Monday 
 morning, with a single horse, which we were to ride 
 alternately. This plan had been recommended to me 
 by a friend, and we found it far more agreeable than if 
 we had taken either two horses or none. The road 
 is of such a nature that you cannot in many places 
 safely go beyond a walking pace, and it is much less 
 fatiguing to walk and ride alternately than to ride the 
 whole distance. In a mountainous country particu- 
 larly, it is very disagreeable to be tied to a horse, 
 
 h 3 
 
154 STRAITS OF BORROWDALE. 
 
 and bound to preserve undeviatingly the beaten 
 track. 
 
 We went along the whole length of Derwentwater, 
 on its eastern side, and saw from the land the views 
 which had charmed us so much when seen from the 
 water. The morning was brilliant, with a cool breeze, 
 which ruffled the surface of the lake, and gave a 
 delightful freshness to the dark blue waters. Passing 
 Barrow-house, which is advantageously situated, so as 
 to command a fine view of the lake and islands, we 
 came to the hamlet of Lowdore ; but as there was no 
 more water in the stream than when we were last 
 there, we did not go to the Fail. Another mile, 
 skirting the foot of grotesque and tremendous rocks, 
 brought us to Grange,* a village on the Derwent, 
 situated in the straits of Borrowdale. Here the 
 mountains and crags on either side approach each 
 other so closely, as to leave a very narrow entrance to 
 the valley beyond. Borrowdale appears from this 
 
 * I cannot deny myself the satisfaction of mentioning the 
 hospitality I once experienced at the house of Mr. Thomas 
 Threlkeld, of Grange — a Borrowdale " statesman" — when driven 
 by a storm of rain, along with a lady, to take refuge under his roof. 
 We were received by his wife with a simple and hearty welcome, 
 ensconced in huge upright arm-chairs by the fire-side, which was of 
 antique dimensions ; fresh wood was heaped upon the blazing hearth, 
 and home-made cheese, butter, and bread brought forth, with rich 
 milk, butter-milk, and oat-cake, for our refreshment. I was the 
 more pleased when I found afterwards that Gray had been hospi- 
 tably entertained at the same village. The hospitality of Borrow- 
 dale is proverbial, and I shall afterwards have to mention my kind 
 reception by Mr. Fisher, of Seatoller, who has done as much as any 
 other individual to gain for this valley the reputation of a hearty 
 and generous treatment of strangers — See the Second Excursion 
 on Foot. 
 
BORROWDALE BOWDER STONE. 155 
 
 point to be choked up with immense rocks and frag- 
 ments, which lie strewn in the wildest disorder, as if 
 they had been torn by some great convulsion of 
 nature from the neighbouring mountains, and tumbled 
 down into the valley. A deep and narrow channel 
 is left in the bottom for the river, but all besides is 
 rock, either perfectly bare and formless, or slightly 
 covered with moss. Rising just opposite Grange, 
 indeed, is a conical hill, which has in process of time 
 received a covering of earth sufficient to afford root to 
 trees, and it is now clothed with wood. But, with 
 this exception, the first mile of Borrowdale is strewn 
 with the hideous debris of the mountains ; and in the 
 higher part of the hills slate-quarries are worked, 
 which add to the deformity of the scene. 
 
 The road here was formerly very rugged and wind- 
 ing, requiring care in the rider, and putting the 
 shoes of the pedestrian to the test ;* but it is now 
 greatly improved. After passing for a mile through 
 this kind of scenery, with the vast precipice of Gate 
 Crao - on our right, and the steep of Grange-fell on 
 our left, we came to Bowder Stone, a rock of enor- 
 mous size, which appears to have been detached from 
 
 * As the result of considerable experience, I may say that shoes 
 are much preferable to boots for walking in mountainous coun- 
 tries, as leaving the ancles unconstrained, and being less liable to 
 chafe the feet. The shoes should be very strong and roomy, and 
 gaiters should be worn, to keep out sand and small stones. Too 
 much attention can scarcely be paid to these particulars in moun- 
 tain excursions, as, when the foot is once hurt or inflamed, all 
 enjoyment is at an end, and the traveller is perhaps laid up for two 
 or three days. 
 
156 
 
 BOWDER STONE CASTLE CRAG. 
 
 the neighbouring height, and to have slidden or rolled 
 to its present situation. From the position in which 
 it lies, it has been compared to a ship resting on its 
 keel ; and, though larger than an ordinary house, it is 
 so balanced on one of its edges, that two persons on 
 opposite sides may shake hands through a hole under- 
 neath it. This mass of rock is sixty-two feet in 
 length, and thirty-six in perpendicular height ; it is 
 estimated to contain 23,000 solid feet, and to weigh 
 1,971 tons. It stands on a platform of rock, at a 
 great elevation above the bed of the river, and near 
 the edge of a precipice. A cottage has been erected 
 hard by, and is tenanted by an old woman, who gains 
 a subsistence by talking about the stone to travellers. 
 Opposite to Bowder Stone, and rising very preci- 
 pitously from the river, is the noble height of Castle 
 Crag, so called from having anciently had a fortifica- 
 tion on its summit, the vestiges of which were lately 
 to be seen, but have now been effaced by the working 
 of a slate quarry on the spot. It was no doubt 
 erected to command the pass of Borrowdale, through 
 which the depredating inhabitants of the northern 
 parts of the island might have made their way south- 
 ward, and more particularly into the fertile district of 
 Furness, in Lonsdale north of the Sands. It has been 
 said that the castle was of Roman construction, and 
 that it was afterwards held by the monks of Furness 
 to guard their possessions ; but neither of these state- 
 ments rests on satisfactory evidence. The Crag is 
 lofty and peaked ; and its sides are finely mantled in 
 
BORROWDALE ROSTHWAITE. 157 
 
 wood. The summit commands a magnificent view 
 of Derwentwater and Skiddaw, with all their beau- 
 ties, on the one side, and of Borrowdale, with all its 
 rugged grandeur, on the other. 
 
 The old road up Borrowdale led, by many ups and 
 downs, immediately past Bowder Stone ; but the im- 
 provements in road-making have reached even these 
 valleys, and a new and good road now runs nearly on 
 a level with the river, and avoids the elevation on 
 which the huge Stone is perched. 
 
 After passing Bowder Stone, the valley widens, 
 and forms a small and fertile plain, which, consisting 
 principally of meadows and pastures intersected by 
 luxuriant hedges, and being watered by the beautiful 
 and winding stream of the Derwent, contrasts very 
 advantageously with the scenery in the straits of 
 Borrowdale. The vale is blocked up at the extremity 
 by lofty mountains of an imposing boldness of form, 
 some of which have a considerable quantity of wood 
 around their base. Rosthwaite Cam and Glaramara 
 rise in front, as the-* spectator looks up the valley from 
 Bowder Stone ; Eagle Crag (where the royal birds for- 
 merly built their aerie) towers above the valley of 
 Stonethwaite on the left, and Scawfell Pikes, Great 
 End, and the regular cone of Great Gavel (or Gable) 
 over that of Seathwaite on the right. We descended 
 the hill to the level of the river, and proceeded to 
 Rosthwaite, a village in the middle of the valley, 
 a mile beyond Bowder Stone. Here is the last public- 
 house to be found on this route, and therefore we 
 
158 BOKROWDALE ROSTHWAITE. 
 
 stopped to obtain the materials for a lunch, which 
 we intended to enjoy on Sty-head, within sight of 
 Scawfell Pikes. 
 
 The traveller might be much worse provided, either 
 with bed or board, than at the Royal Oak, Rosthwaite, 
 which I venture to pronounce a snug, comfortable, and 
 respectable house of entertainment.* 
 
 * I cannot deny myself the pleasure of introducing here Mr. 
 Wordsworth's account of the former state of society in the valleys 
 of Cumberland and Westmoreland : it is contained in his 
 " Description of the Scenery of the Lakes," — a critical dissertation 
 composed with the taste of a poet, the discrimination of a philoso- 
 pher, and the heart of a philanthropist. He says — 
 
 " From the time of the erection of these houses, (after the wars 
 of the Roses) till within the last sixty years, the state of society, 
 though no doubt slowly and gradually improving, underwent no 
 material change. Corn was grown in these vales (through which 
 no carriage-road had been made) sufficient upon each estate to 
 furnish bread for each family, and no more : notwithstanding the 
 union of several tenements, the possessions of each inhabitant still 
 being small, in the. same field was seen an intermixture of different 
 crops ; and the plough was interrupted by little rocks, mostly 
 overgrown with wood, or by spongy places, which the tillers of 
 the soil had neither leisure nor capital to convert into firm land. 
 The storms and moisture of the climate induced them to sprinkle 
 their upland property with outhouses of native stone, as places of 
 shelter for their sheep, where, in tempestuous weather, food was 
 distributed to them. Every family spun from its own flock the 
 wool with which it was clothed ; a weaver was here and there found 
 amono- them ; and the rest of their wants was supplied by the 
 produce of the yarn, which they carded and spun in their own 
 houses, and carried to market, either under their arms, or more 
 frequently on pack-horses, a small train taking their way weekly 
 down the valley or over the mountains to the most commodious 
 town. They had, as I have said, their rural chapel, and of course 
 their minister, in clothing or in manner of life, in no respect 
 differino' from themselves, except on the Sabbath-day; this was 
 the sole distinguished individual among them; everything else, 
 
SEATHWAITE. 159 
 
 Leaving this place, we approached Borrowdale chapel 
 a little rural structure which no one can see without 
 interest ; and leaving the chapel and Rosthwaite Cam 
 on our left, and turning our backs on the village and val- 
 ley of Stonethwaite, we followed the curve of Borrow- 
 dale to the right, and went to Seatoller, a mile and a 
 half beyond Rosthwaite, where Mr. Fisher, the principal 
 " statesman" of Borrowdale, lives in yeomanlike style. 
 Here the road to Buttermere begins to ascend a long 
 and steep hawse on the west side of the valley. Our 
 road, however, lay due south, and therefore, turning 
 to the left, we proceeded two miles further, through a 
 hazel wood and over some boggy pastures, to Seath- 
 waite, a wretched village situated nearly at the ex- 
 tremity of the valley, where cultivation terminates, 
 and where the overhanging mountains in front and 
 on both sides apprise the traveller that he must pre- 
 pare for climbing. You are here in the very centre 
 
 person and possession, exhibited a perfect equality, a community 
 of shepherds and agriculturists, proprietors, for the most part, of 
 the lands which they occupied and cultivated." 
 
 Modern improvements, both agricultural and manufacturing, have 
 introduced considerable modifications into this state of society ; 
 and Mr. Wordsworth, with the fond partiality for ancient times 
 and modes which forms a part of his character, deplores the change. 
 A younger man, though with far less practical knowledge, yet 
 having perhaps less prejudice, ventures to doubt if at any former 
 period either the "statesmen" or the labourers enjoyed so much 
 comfort as at present. The same hand cannot with advantage 
 drive the plough and the shuttle ; the union of employments so 
 different is sure to produce bad cloth and bad husbandry. The 
 farmers of Borrowdale are likely to be better clothed and fed when 
 they sell their wool and their cattle, and buy the cloths of Leeds 
 and Manchester. 
 
160 WAD MINES STY-HEAD. 
 
 and citadel of the mountainous district, and you can 
 only proceed by scaling its frowning ramparts. 
 
 On the hill to the right of Seathwaite are the 
 celebrated Wad Mines, where the mineral called 
 plumbago, or vulgarly black-lead, and on the spot 
 denominated wad, is found. These are the only mines 
 of the kind in England, and the mineral is very rarely 
 discovered in other countries, and of a very inferior 
 quality. The article is of course a monopoly, and 
 for many years the market has been supplied with 
 just that quantity which the owners thought most 
 advantageous for themselves : by stinting the supply, 
 they keep up the price, and as the market is very 
 extensive — the English black-lead pencils being used 
 in many foreign countries — the mines must be very 
 profitable. We learnt, however, from Mr. Crosthwaite, 
 the intelligent proprietor of the Museum at Keswick, 
 that the workmen are often many months seeking the 
 wad, without finding any. It does not lie in veins, 
 but in masses, or sops, sometimes of a ramified form 
 like the root of a tree, and its discovery is conse- 
 quently accidental.* 
 
 Having carefully inquired at Seathwaite the path 
 we were to keep in crossing Sty-head, and being 
 informed that it was marked by a bed of stones so 
 distinctly that we could not miss it, we addressed 
 ourselves to the ascent of the mountain. Keeping by 
 the rocky channel over which the Derwent, now a 
 
 * An account of a visit to the Wad Mines will be found in the 
 Second Excursion on Foot. 
 
SCAWFELL pikes. 161 
 
 small torrent, urges its rapid and turbulent course, 
 we crossed a rude bridge (called Stockley-bridge) 
 thrown over a tributary streamlet, nearly a mile beyond 
 Seathwaite, and then began to ascend the hill on our 
 right. The path is very steep and winding, and the 
 stream of Taylor's Gill rushes down a ravine by the 
 side of it in one almost continuous fall. 
 
 The hill of Sty-head forms a slack between the 
 two mountains of Scawfell and Great Gavel ; its 
 elevation is 1,250 feet above the valley, and it is 
 comparatively level for about a mile, so as to form a 
 narrow plain or valley betwixt them. The brow of 
 the hill on the side of Seathwaite commands a very 
 fine view down the whole length of Borrowdale, and 
 the vale of Keswick, which is terminated by Skiddaw. 
 After a good breathing, we attained this point, and 
 were much gratified by a retrospect of our journey 
 since leaving Keswick, as well as exhilarated by the 
 pure mountain air. We did not pause, however ; for 
 the great object of our curiosity, the view of Scawfell 
 Pikes, was to be enjoyed from the opposite edge of 
 the small elevated plain we had attained. The 
 path is here at once rocky and boggy, and requires 
 care in the rider to prevent bad consequences to his 
 horse and himself. The Derwent is now reduced to 
 a mere rill, and one of its sources is a small tarn, 
 called Sty-head tarn, which lay to the left of our 
 path. Above it, at a dread elevation, towers Great 
 End, one of the summits of the vast mountain of 
 Scawfell. 
 
162 
 
 SCAWFELL PIKES. 
 
 Arrived at the southern extremity of the pass, we 
 stood on the brink of a precipice, and as it were on a 
 platform raised opposite Scawfell Pikes, and midway 
 between the summit and the base. Immediately in 
 front of us, that mountain " reared his mighty stature." 
 We saw him at a single glance, from the verdant tract 
 of Wasdale at his foot, to the overhanging precipices, 
 crowned by a conical pile of stones, which indicate the 
 head of the Pikes, and the highest summit in England. 
 The side forms one long concave sweep, becoming 
 gradually steeper as it ascends, till the highest part 
 rises in perpendicular crags, like a mountain battle- 
 ment. This is the only object in view, except the 
 small valley of Wasdale-head, and the distant sea — 
 Wast Water and the country beyond being shut out 
 by Lingmell, and the monotonous, shale-covered sides 
 of Great Gavel and Kirkfell. Yet there is a simple 
 grandeur in this mountain view, which deeply im- 
 pressed us, and at the moment when it burst upon 
 us George raised his arms in astonishment and 
 exultation. The top of the mountain is not conical, 
 but the precipices stand all round the head of a 
 ravine which runs up from Wasdale, and resemble 
 the sides of an enormous quarry. George was eager 
 to climb the Pikes, which appeared to be close at 
 hand ; but I had had too much experience of moun- 
 tains to venture over the uncouth rocks which lay 
 between us and the summit, without a guide or some 
 very precise directions. We should have been very 
 likely to get into the situation which the hunters here 
 
A NEW COMPANION. 163 
 
 call "crag-fast/' where we could neither get on nor 
 back. Our horse, too, could not have been disposed 
 of. We were therefore obliged to content ourselves 
 with sitting down to feast our eyes upon the view, 
 and we found it no unwelcome accompaniment to treat 
 our empty stomachs to a lunch.* 
 
 We were here joined by a young and stout pedes- 
 trian, whom we had before met, with two gaily- 
 dressed maidens, on the Seathwaite side of the hill. 
 He told us that they were his cousins, that he had 
 come with them from Calder-bridge, and had been 
 setting them on their way to Keswick, where thev 
 were going on a visit, to attend the races, which were 
 to take place on the following Thursday. They had 
 ridden on horseback as far as Wasdale-head, and had 
 then climbed Great Gavel on foot to Sty-head, — a cir- 
 cumstance at which we marvelled, as the ascent is 
 not only very steep and long, but the path is covered 
 with sharp stones, which perpetually slide down the 
 
 * Let no untravelled enthusiast despise me for the zest with 
 which I have more than once mentioned the amusement of eating 
 and drinking on the top of a mountain. Romantic feelings are 
 pleasant, but romance on an empty stomach is a " windy recrea- 
 tion." When he has toiled up an ascent of a few thousand feet, 
 as I have done many a time and oft, and with weary limbs and 
 nagging spirits has nothing to feed upon but the thin mountain air, 
 he will find that a little " provant" would not be amiss, and will 
 long for the commissariat of Major Dalgetty. In short, he will 
 find that prudent foresight goes much farther than enthusiasm ; 
 and, though I would advise no young and healthy person to shrink 
 from a little fatigue or hardship, yet I would suggest to all, that 
 if their object is enjoyment, that cannot be secured without moder- 
 ation in their efforts, and proper precautions against pain and 
 hunger. 
 
164 
 
 WASDALE-HEAD WAST WATER. 
 
 face of the mountain. Our new companion manifested 
 a wish to travel with us through this lone and silent 
 country,, the sublimity of which had no charms for 
 him., and he offered to lead our horse down the hill — 
 a task of no small difficulty, as the animal slid amongst 
 the loose stones at every step. We cheerfully accepted 
 his proffered aid and company, and derived from him 
 some information and a good deal of amusement. 
 The descent of the mountain, from the circumstances 
 I have mentioned, was painful and fatiguing, but we 
 saw none of the danger which our guide-book had 
 promised us. 
 
 A walk of a mile and a half from the bottom of 
 the hill — through the green pastures of Wasdale- 
 head, and by the hamlet of that name, with its diminu- 
 tive chapel — brought us to the lake. The patriarchal 
 family of this valley is that of Mr. Thomas Tyson, a 
 " statesman," a bold fox-hunter, and a right hospitable 
 man. A little below the hamlet of Wasdale-head, 
 we had a peep up the side-valley of Mosedale on our 
 right, lying between Kirkfell and Yewbarrow, at the 
 head of which valley soars the almost inaccessible 
 summit of the Pillar. Up Mosedale, but keeping 
 to the right, so as to leave the Pillar always on the 
 left hand, is the shepherd's track from Wasdale to 
 Ennerdale and Buttermere, — a track by which a horse 
 could not be prudently taken. 
 
 Wast Water is three miles in length and three 
 quarters of a mile wide. It is the deepest of all the 
 lakes, being forty -five fathoms, and is never frozen 
 
WAST WATER. 165 
 
 over. Its banks have very little variety, the southern 
 shore being a long, monotonous, and nearly perpen- 
 dicular ridge, called the Screes, the surface of which 
 is constantly crumbling away, and increasing the beds 
 of shale which hang upon its sides. Within the last 
 twenty years, as I was informed, the appearance of 
 the ridge has very materially changed. The soft red 
 ore used for marking sheep is found in holes under the 
 cliffs, and men are let down occasionally from the 
 precipices by ropes, to obtain a quantity of this sub- 
 stance : when they have finished their labour, they 
 slide down the beds of shale to the foot of the ridge. 
 At the head of the lake on the north-western side, is 
 Yewbarrow, next to which rises Middle-fell ; and 
 below this the mountains recede considerably from the 
 lake, leaving a wide space, on which, towards the foot 
 of Wast Water, there are some gentlemen's seats and 
 handsome woods. The dark and majestic form of 
 Seatallan is, however, long kept in view. Betwixt 
 Yewbarrow and Middle-fell runs the lateral valley of 
 Bowderdale, at the head of which is seen the Hay 
 Cock. 
 
 We perceived, as we turned our backs on Scawfell, 
 Kirkfell, and Great Gavel, that we were emerging 
 from the hill country, and should soon be on com- 
 paratively level ground. Scawfell now presented to 
 us another and more gracious aspect. Towards Wast 
 Water the slope is more gradual, and the surface of 
 the hill is covered with verdure ; on this side the 
 mountain bears the name of Lingmell, but it is in 
 
166 FROM WAST WATER TO CALDER BRIDGE. 
 
 fact the base of the Pikes. As we stood upon the 
 banks of the lake, we saw a heron fishing in the 
 water : he watched us suspiciously, as if little accus- 
 tomed to be disturbed by man ; and when our com- 
 panion shouted to alarm him, he sprung up, and, 
 throwing out his long legs behind him so as to resem- 
 ble a tail, winged his way heavily towards the upper 
 part of the valley. 
 
 Our original intention was to take up our quarters 
 for the night at Strands, in Nether Wasdale, a village 
 a mile beyond the foot of the lake, where there are 
 two small but neat-looking inns, and then to retrace 
 our steps on the following day to Wasdale-head, 
 whence we might go by the shepherd's track between 
 Kirkfell and Yewbarrow, over Black Sale, across the 
 narrow valley of Ennerdale, and over . the pass of 
 Scarf-gap, between the Haystacks and High Crag, 
 into the vale of Buttermere. But our companion, 
 who joined in our consultations, recommended us 
 rather to go on to Calder-bridge, seven miles beyond 
 Strands, where there was a much better inn than at 
 the latter place, and where the ruins of an abbey 
 were also to be seen. He said that we might proceed 
 to Crummock Water and Buttermere on the following 
 day, taking the lakes of Ennerdale Water and Lowes 
 Water in our route. It was a great recommendation 
 in his eyes that we should thus avoid the two moun- 
 tain passes between Wasdale and Buttermere, and 
 should have a good carriage-road all the way ; and 
 the greater number of objects which this route would 
 
CALDER ABBEY. 167 
 
 include, added to the doubtful practicability of the 
 other route, for a horse, decided us to adopt his sug- 
 gestion. At Wasdale-head our companion had picked 
 up two excellent horses, which he had borrowed from 
 a farmer at Calder-bridge, to convey his fair cousins 
 in the morning ; and when we had determined to 
 proceed to that place, he urged the expediency of one 
 of us mounting the horse which he led, so that we 
 might get over the ground at a better speed. We had 
 now come to plain high road, and there was nothing 
 to be gained by walking : the afternoon, too, was 
 waning away, and we did not like the appearance of 
 the sky — a halo having encircled the sun, and a few 
 straggling and ragged clouds, which portended rain, 
 approaching from the north-east. We, therefore, 
 without hesitation accepted his offer, and, George 
 having mounted on a lady's saddle, we set off at a 
 round pace towards Calder-bridge. 
 
 We soon found ourselves nearly upon the sea-coast, 
 which is here very open. The mountain of Black 
 Comb, which we had not seen since we quitted Lan- 
 cashire, now appeared in the south ; and the hilly 
 shores of the Isle of Man were perceived with the 
 utmost distinctness, stretching out to a great length, 
 at the distance of forty miles. The country through 
 which we passed was rather pretty, but of course it 
 appeared tame to us, who had just issued from the 
 region of the sublime and picturesque. We reached 
 Calder-bridge at five o'clock, when we parted from 
 our new acquaintance, whom we could hardly persuade 
 
168 CALDER ABBEY. 
 
 to accept any remuneration for the services he had 
 rendered us. Our day's journey had not exceeded 
 twenty-seven miles, and we felt but slightly fatigued. 
 Having ordered dinner, we walked to Calder Abbey, 
 at the distance of a mile from the inn. It is a small 
 and beautiful ruin, whose Gothic arches, mantled with 
 ivy, and shaded by a row of stately elms, stand in the 
 grounds and close to the mansion of the Senhouses, 
 occupied by Captain Irwin. The ruin forms a boundary 
 to his lawn, and the Captain, whom we found on the 
 spot, told us that he had done a good deal to improve 
 its effect, by taking down some modern encum- 
 brances. The Abbey is seven centuries old,* and 
 the central part is still entire. Some of the out- 
 buildings have long been used as stables ; we entered 
 one of them under a venerable Gothic archway, and 
 found that the cows ruminate now where the monks 
 ruminated in former days. The grounds are pretty, 
 and the woods, together with the woods of Ponsonby- 
 hall, the seat of Edwd. Stanley, Esq., M.P. for the 
 western division of Cumberland, give considerable 
 beauty to the village. We had scarcely returned to 
 the inn when a storm of rain came on, which might 
 have excited our apprehensions for the following day ; 
 but we left the morrow to care for itself, and aban- 
 doned ourselves to the luxury of repose. 
 
 * It was founded in 1134 by the second Ranulph de Meschines, 
 for Cistercian monks, and was dependant on Furness Abbey. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 MORNING WALK OVER COPELAND FOREST LAKE AND VALLEY 
 
 OF ENNERDALE LOWES WATER. — CRUMMOCK WATER — SCALE 
 
 FORCE — BUTTERMERE — MARY OF EUTTERMERE VALE OF 
 
 NEWLANDS RETURN TO KESWICK. 
 
 We set out from Calder-bridge about seven o'clock 
 on Tuesday mornings having to go more than twenty 
 miles before arriving at the place which we had 
 appointed as a rendezvous with the ladies. We 
 intended to breakfast at Ennerdale-bridge, but 
 thought it not inexpedient to take a little bread and 
 milk before starting, as eight miles of dreary fells 
 intervened between us and the expected ham-rasher. 
 A good deal of rain had fallen in the night, and had 
 swollen the mountain streams, whose waters were 
 now as turbid as at other times they are clear. The 
 roads, of course, were not improved, and the air was 
 cold and raw. It may be supposed that this morning 
 stage was any thing but agreeable. After a con- 
 siderable though gradual ascent from Calder-bridge, 
 we came upon the bleak downs or fells of Copeland 
 Forest, covered with scanty herbage, from which a 
 few black-faced sheep pick up a subsistence . we 
 wended our way across them with a north-east wind 
 
170 COPELAND FOREST ENNERDALE. 
 
 in our teeth, and, though we had no rain, the clouds 
 were so low as to sweep the heads of the fells in 
 their passage. Cold-fell on our right — a name we 
 felt to be extremely appropriate — and Dent-hill on 
 our left, were thus capped with vapour ; and as we 
 travelled along on no better pabulum than a basin of 
 cold milk, and with no better entertainment than 
 watching the shifts and openings in the clouds to 
 form a guess as to the weather for the day, the reader 
 will hardly be surprised to learn that we were not in 
 the highest spirits. 
 
 Happily, when we came to the brow of the hill 
 which looks down upon Ennerdale, our gloom passed 
 away like a summer's cloud. Whether this was to be 
 ascribed mainly to the lively prospect which there 
 opened upon us, or to a sudden brightening in the sky, 
 which let in the sunshine upon the valley, or to the 
 sight of the village smoke, which, by irresistible 
 association, brought to the mind's eye, or, so to speak, 
 to the stomach's eye, the beatific vision of coffee, ham, 
 and toast, — I shall not particularly inquire. Suffice 
 it to say, that each witnessed the brightening of the 
 other's countenance, and we began to extol, with the 
 usual interjections and notes of admiration, the lake 
 and vale of Ennerdale. The vale, being at some 
 distance from the high mountains, is wide and fertile ; 
 green fields and hedges, a village and winding stream, 
 give it a character of lively beauty. The lake, which 
 lay to our right, is two miles and a half long, and 
 three quarters of a mile wide. It runs up towards 
 
ENNERDALE WATER LOWES WATER. 171 
 
 the heart of the mountains, and is skirted on each 
 side by stern and precipitous hills. Near its foot 
 are the woods of How Hall, but above this the scenery- 
 becomes barren and sublime ; and beyond the head of 
 the lake is the narrow valley of Gillerthwaite, with 
 Great Gavel at its head, and ranges of stern moun- 
 tains on each side, of which the most conspicuous is 
 the Pillar, rising to the elevation of 2893 feet. 
 
 The public-house of Ennerdale is of a very humble 
 character, and unluckily, when we arrived, there was 
 no lire in the principal room, whilst the kitchen was 
 small, dirty, and filled with roaring tipplers. How- 
 ever, by vigorous application to the old landlady, we 
 soon had a fire lighted, and a plentiful though homely 
 breakfast spread out before us. We resumed our 
 journey at half-past ten o'clock, keeping the road to 
 Lamplugh Cross, and through that place to Lowes 
 Water. The distance is six miles, and there is 
 nothing in the country we passed over worth noticing : 
 it is open, and rather elevated, but with no promi- 
 nent object in view. 
 
 After winding round the lower part of Blake-fell, 
 we turned to the south, and there found ourselves 
 re-entering the mountainous country as suddenly as 
 we had quitted it at Wast Water. Below us, in a 
 deep valley, lay the small lake of Lowes Water, about 
 a mile in length, surrounded by mountains of great 
 elevation and bold forms. Blake-fell, which on its 
 western side has a very gradual slope, so that we 
 were not aware of its elevation as we approached it 
 
 i 2 
 
172 LOWES WATER MELBREAK. 
 
 in that direction, rises abruptly from Lowes Water 
 to a commanding height. On the opposite side of the 
 lake is another hill of inferior magnitude, Low-fell, 
 and in front of us, as we descended into the valley 
 to the borders of the lake, stood the fine conical 
 mountain of Melbreak. We afterwards found that 
 this mountain forms a long ridge running along the 
 western side of Crummock Water, and that its 
 extremity only, like the gable-end of a pointed roof, 
 is presented to Lowes Water. The same conforma- 
 tion may be remarked in numerous instances amongst 
 the hills of Westmoreland and Cumberland. The 
 mountains are principally composed of schist, and the 
 softness of this material, yielding to the gradual 
 influence of the elements, naturally produces an equal 
 slope on both sides of a ridge of hills, which causes 
 the extremity of the ridge to form a regular and beau- 
 tiful cone. There is scarcely any mountain or chain 
 of mountains in this district, which does not present 
 a conical shape on one of its sides. When the 
 surface is covered with grass, as is very often the 
 case, the smoothness and regularity, the verdancy and 
 the great altitude, combine to give the mountain a 
 character of " gigantic elegance." At the same time, 
 there are not wanting, as we have already seen, the 
 sterner features of a mountainous region, where the 
 hard rock predominates, and stands out in lofty peaks 
 and terrific precipices. 
 
 Lowes Water has an air of great seclusion, there 
 being few houses near it. The bright verdure of its 
 
CRUMMOCK WATER. 173 
 
 margin, and the beautv of the woods on the mountain 
 sides, were quite refreshing to our eyes. Pastoral 
 interest is added to the scene, by the sheep browzing 
 on Melbreak and Blake-fell, from the bottom to the 
 top. Great numbers of sheep are bred in these and 
 the other Cumberland mountains, and the task of the 
 farmer, who has to watch them over such an extensive 
 tract of unenclosed and uneven ground, must often be 
 arduous ; in winter it is even attended with consider- 
 able danger, from the sheep being sometimes buried 
 in the snow, or having their retreat cut off by its 
 accumulation. 
 
 The stream which runs through Lowes Water 
 flows from north to south, and empties itself into 
 Crummock Water ; which is an exception to the 
 general rule, — all the other lakes and valleys to the 
 north of Scawfell (which is the central and highest 
 part of the mountainous country) running from south 
 to north. 
 
 When we had passed Lowes Water about a mile, 
 we came in view of Crummock Water, which lies in 
 one of the great valleys that descend from the heart 
 of the mountains to the plain. This valley, which 
 in its upper part contains also the lake of Butter- 
 mere, is joined by the valley of Lowes Water at the 
 foot of Crummock lake, and stretches in a direction 
 due north to Cockermouth. The valley of Crummock 
 Water and Buttermere is separated from Borrowdale 
 and the plain of the Derwent by a vast group of 
 lofty and barren hills, the principal of which are 
 
174 CRUMMOCK WATER. 
 
 Grasmoor, Grisedale Pike, Hindscarth, and Robinson. 
 The regular high road from Keswick to Crummock 
 Water winds round the base of Grisedale Pike ; and 
 from the head of Buttermere there is also a horse 
 road, through Gatesgarth-dale and over Borrowdale- 
 hawse to the upper part of Borrowdale. But there 
 is a much shorter route than either of these from 
 Keswick, namely, up the vale of Newlands, which 
 runs directly through the midst of these wild moun- 
 tains, from the plain of the Derwent to the valley of 
 Buttermere. 
 
 When we came within view of Crummock Water, 
 where, as I have said, two valleys meet, we were 
 charmed by the luxuriant profusion of wood which 
 covers the whole space below the foot of the lake, 
 especially as contrasted with the barren sternness of 
 the two mountain ridges betwixt which Crummock 
 Water lies — Grasmoor and Melbreak. The former 
 is an immense mountain, whose barren sides are 
 streaked with beds of shale. The monotony of these 
 ridges is somewhat broken by a comparatively low 
 but abrupt hill, called Randon Knot, which stands 
 out into the valley at the foot of Grasmoor, and 
 pushes a bold promontory into the lake. The lake is 
 three miles in length and three quarters of a mile in 
 breadth. It contains three small islands, one a naked 
 rock, and the other two covered with wood. There is, 
 however, a great deficiency of wood on the borders of 
 Crummock Water, except just at the head and foot, 
 and the general character of the scene is bold and 
 naked grandeur. 
 
SCALE-HILL — PATH TO SCALE FORCE. 175 
 
 Near the foot of the lake, at Scale-hill, is a commo- 
 dious inn, where parties from Keswick often make a 
 short stay, and where a boat may be had to go to 
 Scale Force or Buttermere. Scale-hill, the land 
 around Lowes Water, and the mountainous ranges on 
 the western side of Crummock Water and Buttermere, 
 are the property of John Marshall, Esq. of Hallsteads 
 and of Leeds. 
 
 When we approached Crummock Water from Lowes 
 Water, we found that we were already beyond the 
 time appointed for meeting our party from Keswick ; 
 and, on looking at the map, it appeared that the high 
 road would take us a round of several miles. The 
 principal object worth seeing at Crummock Water is 
 Scale-force, which is on the same side of the lake as 
 we were now upon, namely, the western, but about 
 three miles higher up. The road takes a sweep round 
 the foot of the lake by Scale-hill, and up its eastern 
 side : and if we had gone by the road, we must have 
 returned, after reaching the head of the lake, a mile or 
 two down again, on the western side, to see the cas- 
 cade. Thus we must have gone at least seven miles 
 to attain a point, which, if Ave could only find a road 
 on the western side of the lake, at the foot of Mel- 
 break, we might reach in three miles. We were not 
 long in determining that, if the nearer route were at 
 all practicable, we would pursue it ; and as a country- 
 man told us that there was a path for cattle at the 
 base of the mountain, we forthwith proceeded along 
 it. But I advise no person to follow our example : 
 
176 RE-UNION OF THE TAVO PARTIES. 
 
 rock and bog combine to render this track not only 
 difficult, but really dangerous. Our horse sank so 
 deep in some of the bogs, that we were apprehensive 
 he would either stick fast, or break his leg in endea- 
 vouring to get out : and the rocks shelve so rapidly 
 to the edge of the lake in one or two parts, that the 
 animal would not pass along the track, and we were 
 obliged to ride him into the water to get round the 
 base of the rocks. We saved time, however, by 
 taking this route, and arrived at the foot of the glen 
 in which Scale-force lies, betwixt Melbreak and Blea 
 Crag, at about two o'clock. 
 
 But here not a creature was to be seen. We looked 
 in vain for our party, or for anv one to hold our horse 
 whilst we ascended to the cascade ; and for a long 
 time we were apprehensive that there was no opening 
 in a high stone wall, which runs from the lake up to 
 the mountain. We succeeded at length in finding a 
 gate- way, to which we fastened the animal, and then 
 we trudged up a rugged path by the side of a stream- 
 let, which we concluded must come from Scale-force. 
 The cascade is nearly a mile from the lake, and is 
 hidden from distant view by being situated in a deep 
 and narrow cleft of the hill. When we came close 
 upon it, to our unspeakable satisfaction we beheld 
 our whole party, the bridegroom, Mrs. Anabella, and 
 all, sitting on a rock near the foot of the cascade. 
 The salutations on all sides were very warm and 
 hearty, for the ladies, after waiting more than an hour 
 for us at the inn, had begun to be alarmed for our 
 
SCALE FORCE. 177 
 
 safety. They had come by way of Scale-hill to 
 Buttermere ; and at the instance of the bridegroom, 
 they had at length taken a boat, crossed the lake, and 
 come to see the force. 
 
 Scale-force has a considerably higher fall than any 
 other cascade in Cumberland or Westmoreland. It 
 makes one clear leap of a hundred and fifty -six feet, 
 and there is a smaller fall below. The quantity of 
 water is not great, except after heavy rains, and it 
 did not appear that so much rain had fallen here last 
 night as on the sea-coast. The stream was large 
 enough, however, to raise a cloud of spray from the 
 basin into which it plunges, and in climbing up the 
 rocky chasm to within a few yards of the force, we 
 were plentifully baptized. The rocks are vast walls 
 of sienite, and numerous small trees have taken root in 
 the crevices, being constantly sprinkled by the fall. 
 There is little here of the picturesque beauty of Stock- 
 gill-force ; all is harsh and wild : yet the perpendicular 
 rocks on each side of the chasm, the flashing cascade, 
 the boiling abyss, and the cloud of spray, produce a 
 very fine effect. 
 
 In descending to the boat, the guide who had 
 accompanied the ladies told us that we should find 
 some difficulty in getting our horse along the boggy 
 pasture which lay between us and the inn. We 
 thought it could not be so bad as the track we had 
 already come by, but we found it worse, at least as 
 to the swampiness of the ground. Having lost the 
 narrow and faintly-marked track for the cattle, we 
 
 i 3 
 
178 BUTTERMEEE. 
 
 found ourselves in a savanna of soft peat, intersected 
 with numerous rills. George, who was riding, made 
 the horse pass a few of them, but the animal sank so 
 deep that it became alarmed, and at length positively 
 objected to cross one somewhat broader than the rest. 
 George, seeing no other mode of getting to Buttermere, 
 was resolved to make the horse pass the quagmire ; 
 but hereupon the animal and he " joined issue ;" and 
 as a horse has great powers of passive resistance, 
 George urged and whipped in vain. At length, after 
 he had himself got mid-leg deep in the peat, whilst 
 trying to pull the animal over by the bridle, he gave 
 up the point ; and, riding back again, he succeeded 
 in finding the path we had quitted. After fording 
 the river Cocker, (which flows out of Buttermere lake 
 into Crummock Water,) and making ourselves a road 
 through the fields, where there was neither high- way 
 nor bye-way, we arrived, wet and weary, at the hamlet 
 and inn of Buttermere. 
 
 The lake of Buttermere is about a mile higher up 
 the valley than Crummock Water, and is a small sheet 
 a mile and a quarter long, and nearly half a mile wide, 
 environed by superb mountain scenery. The eastern 
 margin of Buttermere is richly adorned with a large 
 quantity of wood ; and on the west the mountains of 
 Red Pike, High Stile, and High Crag rise precipi- 
 tously to a sublime elevation. The rocky head of 
 High Crag seems to nod over the lake. Honister 
 Crag rears its noble conical form at the head of 
 Buttermere, and the valley to the west of that moun- 
 
MARV OF BUTTERMERE. 179 
 
 tain carries back the eye to the lofty summits of Great 
 Gavel and Green Gavel. Buttermere Moss, backed 
 and overtopped by Robinson, rises on the east side of 
 the lake. Seen from an elevation above the inn, the 
 two lakes, the valley, and the surrounding hills, form 
 a grand and lovely prospect. 
 
 There is an air of sweet seclusion in this vale, which 
 well fits it to be the scene of a romantic and pathetic 
 story. The incidents of the life of Mary of Buttermere 
 form an interesting, though a short and simple 
 narrative, which it has become so much the practice 
 to tell in the vale, and which has obtained so fixed a 
 place in the guide-books, that it will probably be 
 repeated to the traveller for ages yet to come. 
 Mary Robinson, the daughter of the innkeeper at 
 Buttermere, was seen by a gentleman who rambled 
 over this country in the year 1792, (Capt. Budworth) 
 and who, in publishing his " Ramble," described her 
 as an eminently beautiful yet simple and artless girl 
 of fifteen, whose manner and appearance, so unex- 
 pected in such a spot, had charmed him. This 
 panegyric drew many travellers to Buttermere, and 
 directed all eyes on the beautiful peasant. Flattery 
 enough was addressed to her to corrupt her simplicity ; 
 but she preserved her virtue unsullied and unsus- 
 pected. At length, in the year 1802, she was deceived 
 into marriage by an outlawed criminal of the name of 
 Hatfield, who had for some time before figured in 
 this part of the country under the name of the 
 Honourable Colonel Hope. He had the address and 
 
180 MARY OP BUTTERMERE. 
 
 talent to support his assumed character, but, being 
 discovered, he was apprehended, tried at Carlisle on a 
 charge of forgery, and hanged, within a year after 
 his marriage.* The young widow acted in the most 
 becoming manner under her misfortunes, and after 
 some years married again. This match was happier 
 than the former ; she and her husband for a considera- 
 ble period kept the inn which had been her father's, 
 and lived in much comfort. When I inquired about 
 her of the present landlady of this inn, I was told 
 that she had quitted Buttermere, and now lived in 
 a village near Bassenthwaite Water ; it was added 
 that she had seven children, and was in comfortable 
 circumstances. 
 
 On leaving Buttermere, we had to mount a very steep 
 and long hill, or hawse, which interposes between But- 
 termere and the Vale of Newlands. It was with con- 
 siderable difficulty, and taking many rests, that the 
 horses dragged up our carriage whilst we walked. The 
 road skirts the edge of a precipitous ravine, which 
 separates Buttermere Moss from Whiteless, and, as 
 
 * I have seen a letter from Hatfield whilst under sentence of 
 death, which, unless he remained a consummate hypocrite to the 
 last, shows that he was penitent for his crimes, and resigned to 
 death. Birkett, an ex-guide at Keswick, eiglnty-six years of age, 
 (1334) has related to me the excursions which he made with this 
 man, and his eccentric movements when attempting to escape the 
 pursuit of the officers of justice. The old guide had been 
 fascinated with the agreeable manners and generosity of the 
 adventurer, and could scarcely credit the fact of his being an 
 impostor. Birkett visited Hatfield in prison after his condemna- 
 tion. 
 
VALES OF KESKADALE AND NEWLANDS. 181 
 
 there is no fence on the side of the precipice, we all felt 
 it to be very dangerous.* The views, however, are truly 
 magnificent. When we had reached the top of the pass, 
 we looked down upon the vale of Newlands. The 
 upper part of this valley, called Keskadale, lies under 
 the side of Robinson : it presents nothing but bare 
 mountain-sides, meeting at the bases in a narrow dell, 
 down whose steep slope a torrent urges its course, and 
 forms a considerable cascade. Two or three miles 
 further, the valley is deeper, and the ground is much 
 broken ; wood begins to beautify the landscape, and 
 the pastures on the banks of the stream become green 
 and fertile. 
 
 That which is properly called the Vale of New- 
 lands is a wide and beautiful valley, plentifullv 
 adorned with wood, and winding like a majestic river, 
 till it falls into the great valley or plain of the 
 Derwent. An isolated ridge of considerable elevation, 
 called Swinside, stands like an island at the mouth of 
 the estuary, which sweeps round it on each side, one 
 arm falling down directly upon Derwentwater, and the 
 other stretching northward towards Bassenthwaite 
 Water. This approach to the plain of the Derwent 
 
 * On another occasion, in passing down this hawse, I saw the 
 hair-breadth escape of a gentleman in a phaeton. The vehicle, 
 being too slightly built for so rugged a country, broke down in the 
 steepest part of the descent ; the gentleman, who had imprudently 
 continued in the carriage, was thrown out, and the wheels passed 
 over him, but happily without doing him any injury : the horse 
 was seized on the instant by another of the party, or he would 
 doubtless have galloped off in his fright, and been dashed down 
 the precipice with the phaeton. 
 
182 DERWENTWATER. 
 
 presented it in so different a view from any in which 
 we had before seen it, that we should scarcely have 
 recognized the spot, but for the well-known form of 
 Skiddaw, who rose in his majestic breadth and altitude 
 as the back-ground of the landscape. The fore-ground 
 and centre were rich and diversified almost beyond any 
 thing we had seen. A profusion of wood in the 
 valleys, on the plain, and on the islands, — the calm 
 expanse of Derwentwater, fringed with groves and 
 meadows, — and hills on every side and of every shape, 
 made a rare and splendid combination of natural 
 beauties. We reached Keswick as it became dusk, 
 considerably fatigued, but exceedingly gratified by our 
 two days' expedition. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 KESWICK HUTTON'S AND CROSTHWAITE'S MUSEUMS DR. 
 
 SOUTHEY — DRUIDICAL TEMPLE ON CASTLERIGG JOURNEY 
 
 FROM KESWICK TO PENRITH VALE OF ST. JOHN PENRITH 
 
 CHURCH GIANT'S GRAVE CASTLE BROUGHAM CASTLE 
 
 ARTHUR'S ROUND TABLE MAYBURG DRUIDICAL TEMPLE 
 
 AT SALKELD GIANT'S CAVE— BROUGHAM HALL LOWTHER 
 
 CASTLE POOLEY BRIDGE. 
 
 On the evening of our return to Keswick, we 
 mutually rendered an account of our proceedings 
 during the Monday, and up to the happy reunion of 
 our two parties at Scale-force. The story of the 
 ladies was shortly told : they had accomplished the 
 circuit of Derwentwater by land in the carriage, pene- 
 trated into Borrowdale as far as Bowder Stone, and 
 strolled into Hutton's Museum. The object which 
 had most struck them in the Museum was the model 
 of a slave-ship with all the slaves on board, packed 
 in a lying posture, tier above tier, almost as close as 
 herrings in a barrel. This was the identical model 
 exhibited by Mr. Wilberforce in the House of Com- 
 mons during the discussions on the slave-trade, and 
 which produced a powerful impression on the House ; 
 it was afterwards presented by that gentleman, who 
 was an old friend and patron of Hutton, to his Museum. 
 
184 crosthwaite's B1USEUM DR. southey. 
 
 t 
 
 Hutton is an old guide, and has made a large and 
 valuable collection of minerals and botanical specimens, 
 all belonging to Cumberland and Westmoreland. He 
 has also received numerous presents, and his Museum 
 is curious and interesting. 
 
 On Wednesday morning, before setting out for 
 Penrith, we visited the Museum of Mr. Crosthwaite. 
 This collection was principally made by the late Mr. 
 Peter Crosthwaite, the father of the present proprietor, 
 and was first opened about half a century ago. It is 
 well worth visiting on many accounts, — from its spe- 
 cimens illustrative of the mineralogy, geology, and 
 zoology of Cumberland and Westmoreland, — from 
 the very respectable assemblage of antiquities and 
 curiosities belonging to every quarter of the globe, — 
 and from the intelligence of the proprietor himself, 
 who cheerfully imparts his information to the curious 
 traveller. His book of visiters is very well tilled, and 
 on referring to a former volume, I found that I had 
 been in the Museum that very day five years. After 
 purchasing some minerals and lead-pencils, we returned 
 to the inn. 
 
 I must not forget to mention, before quitting Kes- 
 wick, that we saw Dr. Southey at the church on 
 Sunday. This gentleman bears the character, among 
 his neighbours, of a domestic, kind-hearted, and excel- 
 lent man. He resides almost constantly at his house, 
 Greta-hall, in the immediate vicinity of Keswick, 
 where during the winter months he can command 
 abundant time for his numerous literary pursuits, but 
 
DRUIDICAL TEMPLE ON CASTLERIGG. 185 
 
 where he must receive many interruptions during the 
 summer and autumn. Connected as he is by his 
 writings with active politics, with ecclesiastical affairs, 
 and with nearly every department of literature, he 
 has a prodigious number and diversity of visiters, and 
 may be considered one of the chief lions of the Lakes. 
 The Earl of Lonsdale called upon him whilst we were 
 at Keswick. 
 
 On leaving Keswick for Penrith, we took the old 
 road, though it is very rough and passes over a steep 
 hill, which the new road avoids, — our object being to 
 visit the interesting Druidical temple on Castlerigg. 
 The temple is in a field on the right of the road, and 
 just on the crown of the hill. It consists of forty- 
 eight rude unhewn blocks of granite, placed upright 
 in an oval figure, of which the diameters are thirty- 
 four yards from north to south, and nearly thirty from 
 east to west. Ten of these stones are disposed in an 
 oblong square on the eastern side of the oval, and 
 this recess, which is seven yards by three, is sup- 
 posed to have been the sacred place, exclusively appro- 
 priated to the Druids. The largest of the stones is 
 not more than seven feet high, and the greater num- 
 ber of them are only three or four feet high. The 
 situation of this ancient place of superstitious worship 
 was skilfully chosen : Skiddaw, Saddleback, Hel- 
 vellyn, and many other of the highest mountains in 
 Cumberland, are visible from it ; and in the gloom of 
 midnight, when the most solemn rites of the Druids 
 were performed, the huge, shadowy forms of these 
 
186 CASTLE ROCK OF ST. JOHN'S. 
 
 mountains, often wrapped in cloud and tempest, must 
 have impressed the minds of the credulous barbarians 
 with a weight of awe favourable to the effect of mys- 
 teries and pretended magic. There is a common 
 notion that no person can count the stones twice to 
 the same number ; but we certainly performed this 
 feat, and found their number to be forty-eight. 
 
 Soon after leaving the Druidical temple, we saw St. 
 John's Vale in the opposite direction to that in which 
 we had seen it in our journey from Ambleside, and 
 we were much pleased with its interesting scenery. 
 The Castle Rock of St. John's is a massive crag on ' 
 the eastern side of the vale, thus called from its 
 striking resemblance to the walls and towers of a 
 ruined fortress. This is the principal scene of Sir 
 Walter Scott's romance, The Bridal of Triermain, 
 and he makes the castle open its portals to King 
 Arthur and de Vaux. 
 
 * * 
 
 " With toil the King his way pursued, 
 By lonely Threlkeld's waste and wood, 
 Till on his course obliquely shone 
 The narrow valley of St. John. 
 Piled in by many a lofty hill, 
 The narrow dell lay smooth and still, 
 And, down its verdant bosom led, 
 A winding brooklet found its bed. 
 But, midmost of the Vale, a mound 
 Arose, with airy turrets crown'd, 
 Buttress and rampire's circling bound, 
 
 And mighty keep and tower ; 
 Seem'd some primeval giant's hand 
 The castle's massive walls had plann'd, 
 A ponderous bulwark to withstand 
 
 Ambitious Nimrod's power. " 
 
JOURNEY TO PENRITH PENRITH. 187 
 
 After passing the village of Threlkeld, from which 
 the vale is seen, the journey was dreary and tedious. 
 Saddleback continued for a long time in view on our 
 left hand, and now looked as gloomy and dismal as, 
 seen from the side of Skiddaw, he had appeared to us 
 beautiful. The south side of the mountain is furrowed 
 with deep and horrible ravines, and the eastern side 
 is fronted with towering crags and fearful precipices. 
 On our right was a monotonous hill, the commence- 
 ment of the Helvellyn range. The dome-like hill of 
 Mell-fell, which stands alone on the skirts of Hutton 
 Moor, and which is of a peculiar geological structure, 
 continued in view for many miles. We crossed a 
 wearisome expanse of heath, after which we came to 
 the village of Penruddock. Leaving Greystock castle, 
 an ancient seat of the Howards, now belonging to 
 Henry Howard, Esq. on our left, we descended into 
 the delightful vale and pleasing town of Penrith.* 
 
 Our stay in Penrith was short, owing to the neces- 
 sity we were under, if we would not lose a day, of 
 hastening on to Lowther Castle and Pooley-bridge. 
 After ordering a lunch at the New Crown, we walked 
 up to the church, attracted principally by the account 
 of the Giant's Grave in our guide-book. The church 
 is a plain and good structure, but built of red stone, 
 which, having a dingy and bricky hue, is not very 
 agreeable to the eye. It was re-built in 1722, on a 
 site which has probably been as long consecrated to 
 
 * Pen-rith signifies red hill, from a hill of red rock near the 
 town. 
 
188 PENRITH CHURCH GIANT'S GRAVE. 
 
 i 
 
 religious purposes as any in the country. The 
 interior is handsome, and it contains some curious 
 monuments and inscriptions, amongst which are the 
 inscriptions on a pair of brass chandeliers, which 
 " were purchased with the fifty guns given by the 
 Duke of Portland to the tenants of the honour of 
 Penrith, who under his gracious encouragement 
 associated in defence of the government and town of 
 Penrith against the rebels in 1745." 
 
 Penrith and the neighbourhood are remarkably rich 
 in monuments of British antiquity. The Giant's 
 Grave, in the church-yard, is a rude monument, on 
 which the speculations of antiquarians have been 
 exhausted without any satisfactory result. It con- 
 sists of two stone pillars, ten feet in height, and 
 about thirteen feet apart from each other, in the 
 direction of east and west, with four large stones of a 
 semicircular form planted in the ground, two on each 
 side of the grave* Tradition says that this is the 
 tomb of an ancient British chief, Sir Ewan or Hugh 
 Csesarius, who attained his reputation, like Hercules 
 and Theseus of old, by clearing the neighbouring 
 forests of wild boars, which were a terror and scourge 
 to the country. Our British hero, however, surpassed 
 the stature even of a demi-god, if, as the vulgar 
 believe, his body extended from one of these pillars 
 to the other. But even this gives a Lilliputian idea 
 of his size, compared with that you receive from 
 another pillar at some distance from the tomb, about 
 six feet in height, which is called the giant's thumb. 
 
PENRITH CASTLE BEACON. 189 
 
 Leaving this beau morceau of antiquity, we proceeded 
 to the Castle, which stands on the hill to the west of 
 the town. We found that it looked much better from 
 a distance than close at hand. The walls are high, 
 but not strong ; and it is spoiled as a ruin by the 
 area being filled with mistals for cattle. The castle 
 is believed to have been built about the reign of 
 Edward IV. and it was dismantled in the wars of the 
 Commonwealth. From the time of Richard III. to 
 the Revolution it was the property of the crown, 
 when William III. granted it, together with the 
 honour of Penrith and other extensive possessions in 
 Cumberland, to his follower, William Bentinck, Duke 
 of Portland. From this family it was transferred, 
 with all their Cumberland possessions, to the Duke of 
 Devonshire, in the year 1783, and it still continues in 
 the possession of that distinguished house. 
 
 Had our time permitted, we should have visited the 
 Beacon, which is a lofty tower on a hill about a mile 
 from the town, commanding a most extensive and 
 delightful prospect. We found it necessary, however, 
 to return to the inn, where we lunched, and were then 
 ready to proceed on our journey. 
 
 Penrith is a neat town, chiefly built of red free- 
 stone, and the principal street contains several lofty 
 and handsome houses. Being situated so near the 
 Lakes, and on the great road from London to Carlisle 
 and Glasgow, the inns are exceedingly good. It is 
 about a mile from the confluence of the Eamont and 
 the Lowther, the former of which streams flows out of 
 
190 BROUGHAM CASTLE. 
 
 Ullswater, and the latter has one of its sources in 
 Hawes Water. Near their junction, and on the West- 
 moreland side of the river, stands the fine ruin of 
 Brougham Castle, which was anciently the seat of the 
 Veteriponts, and from them descended to the Cliffords 
 and Tuftons. It is still in the possession of the Earl 
 Thanet, who is also the proprietor of the castles of 
 Appleby and Brough, and of extensive estates in 
 Westmoreland, of which county he is hereditary high- 
 sheriff.* Brougham Castle is situated on the north 
 side of the Roman station of Brovoniacum ; the vallum 
 and the usual traces of a Roman encampment are still 
 visible, and the present high road takes the line of the 
 ancient Roman road.t We regretted that we were 
 not able to visit this interesting spot. 
 
 * The castle was built for the greatest part by Roger de Clifford 
 in the thirteenth century ; it was restored, as well as several other 
 castles, by the celebrated Countess of Pembroke, as the following 
 inscription on a stone tablet in the castle testifies : — " This castle 
 " of Brougham was repaired by the Ladie Anne Clifford, Countess 
 " Dowager of Pembrooke, Dorsett, and Montgomery, Baronesse 
 " Clifford, Westmorland, and Vescie, Ladie of the Honour of 
 " Skipton in Craven, and High Sherifesse, by inheritance, of the 
 " countie of Westmorland, in the years 1651 and 1652, after it 
 "had layen ruinous ever since about August, 1617, when King- 
 " James lay in it for a time in his journey out of Scotland towards 
 " London, untill this time." 
 
 -f- The etymology of Brougham has been much disputed, some 
 antiquarians tracing it to the Saxon Burg-ham (in which way it 
 was anciently spelt) signifying Castle-town ; and others believing 
 it to be a corruption of the ancient Roman name of the station, 
 Brovoniacum. The latter is preferred by Hutchinson, in his His- 
 tory of Cumberland, vol. 1, p. 297, and the former by Nicholson 
 and Bum, in their History and Antiquities of Westmorland and 
 Cumberland, vol. 1, p. 389. 
 
Arthur's round table — mayburg. 191 
 
 On quitting Penrith for Lowther Castle, Carleton 
 Hall, the seat of John Cowper, Esq. lay upon our 
 left hand. Our road crossed the Eamont and the 
 Lowther a little above their junction, and betwixt 
 the two bridges the postillion stopped for a few 
 minutes, to allow us to see a curious relic of British 
 antiquity, which immediately adjoins the high road, 
 on the right-hand side. It is a circular grass-grown 
 area, twenty-nine yards in diameter, surrounded by a 
 broad ditch and an elevated mound, and bears the 
 name of Arthur's Round Table. This is believed to 
 have been the scene of tournaments in the days of 
 chivalry, but whether the knights of King Arthur 
 were the first to joust in it must be left to the ima- 
 ginations of antiquarians to decide. Some have 
 believed that this was a castrensian amphitheatre, of 
 Roman construction ; if this were the case, the mound 
 would serve for the spectators, and there are two 
 entrances cut through it, opposite to each other, by 
 which the combatants would enter the arena. 
 
 A few hundred yards to the west of Arthur's Round 
 Table there is an elevation called Mayburg, or May- 
 brough, on which is a large circular inclosure, a 
 hundred yards in diameter, the circumference of which 
 is a broad ridge of pebble stones heaped up to the height 
 of twelve or fifteen feet, and having in the centre a 
 massive pillar of unhewn stone, eleven feet high, and 
 in one part twenty-two feet in circumference. It has 
 been disputed whether this is of Roman or British 
 origin, but it seems to be more probably the latter — 
 
192 DRUIDICAL TEMPLE BROUGHAM HALL. 
 
 the upright stone bearing a great resemblance to 
 several undoubted monuments of Druidical times. 
 
 About two miles below this place, in the rocky and 
 perpendicular bank of the Eamont, is a huge cave, 
 called the Giant's Cave, or I sis Pai-lis. This den can 
 only be approached by climbing carefully along 
 narrow ledges of stone on the side of the precipice, 
 and supporting yourself by roots of trees : it is 
 then found to be a deep hollow in the solid rock, 
 though with no marks of having been artificially 
 excavated. At the mouth a pillar of stone has been 
 erected, and the marks of hinges remain, which prove 
 that gates have formerly been placed at the entrance. 
 According to tradition, it was the abode of a giant 
 called Isir, who led the life of a Cacus, and it has 
 at all events been used as a strong-hold. 
 
 Six miles north of Penrith, at Little Salkeld, is a 
 very large and complete specimen of a Druidical 
 temple. It consists of sixty-seven upright blocks of 
 unhewn granite, disposed in a circle three hundred 
 and fifty yards in circumference ; and near the en- 
 trance is a stone not less than eighteen feet high. 
 The monument has obtained the familiar name of 
 Long Meg and her T)aughters. 
 
 On crossing the Eamont, we re-entered Westmore- 
 land. When we had passed the Lowther, we found 
 ourselves immediately in view of Brougham Hall, the 
 seat of Lord Brougham and Vaux, the Lord High 
 Chancellor of England. It is a plain but lofty and 
 venerable pile, with an embrasured parapet, and has 
 
BROUGHAM HALL LORD BROUGHAM. 193 
 
 been erected at different periods. Its situation being 
 elevated, the terrace in front of the house commands 
 an extensive and diversified prospect, including the 
 fertile vales of the Eamont and the Lowther, the town 
 of Penrith^ and the rich country around it, the fine 
 groves and lawns of many a noble park; and especially 
 the woods of Lowther Park; which rise in a long 
 ascent to fhe south. Saddleback and the mountains 
 round Ullswater; on the one hand; and the range of 
 Cross-fell; on the other; form the back ground of this 
 splendid view. From the situation and the prospect; 
 and especially from the fineness of its terrace; 
 Brougham Hall has been styled the Windsor of the 
 North. It belonged for some time to the family of 
 the Birds, one of whom gave it the name of Bird 
 Nest, which it still retains in the neighbourhood. 
 
 The family of Brougham; or Burgham, is one of 
 the most ancient in Westmoreland; and its members 
 have for centuries held honourable offices in the coun- 
 try. But they will derive their chief glory from the 
 genius and patriotism of Henry Brougham; for so 
 many years the terror of Tory Administrations; and 
 the favourite of the people, as leader of the Opposition 
 in the House of Commons ; and whose lofty ambition 
 has led him, since his elevation to the Chancellorship, to 
 effect larger reforms in his own court than all his pre- 
 decessors together — cleansing that Augsean stable from 
 the accumulated abuses of centuries. His country owes 
 him a large debt of gratitude for the varied good 
 effected by his wonderful energies. The spread and 
 
 K 
 
 - 
 
194 BROUGHAM HALL LOWTHER CASTLE. 
 
 improvement of education, the reform of the law, and 
 the extinction of West India slavery, owe more to him 
 than to any other man, — not to mention that measure of 
 unprecedented boldness and grandeur, the Reform Act, 
 of which the chief glory belongs to his colleague, Earl 
 Grey. Lord Brougham will not be recorded in history 
 either as the soundest of lawyers or as the most 
 prudent of statesmen; but he will have*earned the 
 praise of a champion of freedom, a reformer on the 
 most enlarged principles, a Minister disdaining pelf 
 and slighting patronage, an ardent friend of education, 
 and a benefactor of the human race. Thrice rejected 
 by his native county, Westmoreland, when he offered 
 himself as a candidate to break the monopoly of the 
 Lowthers, he was freely and as it were by acclamation 
 elected member for the great county of York in the 
 year 1830, — an event not without its bearing on the 
 great political changes which followed, as well as on 
 his own elevation to the chancellorship. 
 
 In the mansions and parks of her nobility and 
 gentry England stands without a competitor among 
 all the countries of the world ; and one of the most 
 princely of these residences, as well as one of the 
 most admirable in point of natural situation, is the 
 castle of the Earl of Lonsdale. *Lowther Castle is 
 
 * This powerful and wealthy family traces its genealogy to Sir 
 Hugh de Lowther, who was attorney-general in 1292, knight of 
 the shire in 1300 and 1305, and one of the Justices of the Court 
 of King's Bench in 1330. Sir John Lowther was created Baron 
 Lowther, Viscount Lonsdale, in 1696; he was appointed Lord 
 Privy Seal, and was the great adorner and improver of the grounds 
 
LOWTHER CASTLE. 195 
 
 at the distance of five miles from Penrith. The park 
 forms a long and gradual ascent from north to souths 
 and the castle rises magnificently at the head of the 
 slope,, looking down upon spacious lawns and spread- 
 ing woods, with the vale of Penrith, and, in the 
 distance. Cross-fell, and some of the Scotch moun- 
 tains. The noble growth of the timber in the park 
 shows how much nature may be assisted by the 
 cultivating hand of man. We had been accustomed, 
 amongst the wild scenery of the Lakes, to trees 
 of a rather feeble growth, though in some places 
 plentiful, and disposed in picturesque beauty. It 
 was, therefore, with pleasure and surprise that we saw 
 the venerable oaks, elms, and beeches of Lowther 
 Park, with their gigantic trunks and rich masses of 
 foliage, either standing in solitary stateliness upon 
 the lawns, and affording a shelter for the deer and 
 cattle, or gathered together in solemn woods, whose 
 shade gratefully invites to meditation. 
 
 The castle is quite modern, having been erected by 
 the present Earl on the site of Lowther Hall, which 
 had been partly consumed by fire a century ago. The 
 castle was begun in the year 1808 ; the architect was 
 
 and neighbourhood of Lowther. The peerage became extinct in 
 1750, in the third lord (Henry), but the baronetage descended to 
 James Lowther, descended from the Sir John Lowther who died 
 in 1675. He was created Baron Lowther, Earl of Lonsdale, in 
 1784, and died childless in 1802. The title of Viscount Lowther 
 descended to his cousin, Sir William Lowther, of Swillington, 
 Bart, who was created Earl of Lonsdale April 4, 1807, and made 
 a knight of the garter. 
 
 K 2 
 
196 LOWTHER CASTLE. 
 
 Smirke. It combines the majestic effect of a forti- 
 fication with the splendour of a palace. The north 
 front is four hundred and twenty feet in length, and 
 is in the style of the thirteenth or fourteenth cen- 
 tury. Its numerous towers, of different shapes and 
 elevations, are crested with battlements, and pierced 
 with slit windows : and the fresh colour of the stone 
 gives great richness to all these harmonious masses of 
 architecture. A high embattled wall surrounds the 
 entrance-court, and the entrance is through an arched 
 gateway. The terrace is five hundred feet long, and 
 one hundred wide. The southern front forms a re- 
 markable contrast with the northern, being built in 
 the Gothic cathedral style, with pointed and mullioned 
 windows, delicate pinnacles, niches, and cloisters : 
 and the scene from this front accords well with the 
 solemn character of the edifice, being a lawn of emerald 
 green and velvet smoothness, shut in by ornamental 
 trees and shrubs and by timber of stately growth. 
 The interior of the castle is fitted up with correspond- 
 ing taste and splendour. There is a plentiful use of 
 British oak, carved with Gothic ornaments, in the 
 furniture and wainscoting of the rooms. 
 
 The central tower, which is seen by the visiter 
 immediately on entering the castle, is supported by 
 massive clustered columns like those of a cathedral, 
 and the arches and columns in the upper part of the 
 tower are in the same rich and grand style. The 
 staircase passes round this tower ; it is of a solid 
 and costly construction, answering to the character of 
 
LOWTHER CASTLE — POOLEY BRIDGE. 197 
 
 the whole edifice. In a corridor at the top of the 
 staircase are several fine pictures by Guercino, Guido, 
 Titian, and Tintoretto, and there are a few other good 
 pictures in an adjoining room. After having gone 
 over the castle, we went with the gardener into the 
 gardens and on to the terrace which overlooks the 
 valley of the Lowther. Every thing is laid out on a 
 scale becoming the grounds of a palace, and the pines 
 and cedars have attained a truly aristocratic elevation. 
 It was with reluctance we quitted this splendid 
 abode. We crossed the river Lowther, which runs 
 through a most picturesque valley, and, after passing 
 for four miles through narrow and winding lanes, we 
 came to Pooley-bridge, where we took up our abode 
 for the night at a small but comfortable inn. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 ULLSWATER POOLEY BRIDGE — DUNMALLET SAIL UP THE 
 
 LAKE SWARTH-FELL HALLEN - FELL HALLSTE ADS GOW- 
 
 BARROW PARKS AIREY FORCE— STYBARROW CRAG UPPER 
 
 REACH OF THE LAKE PATTERDALE SUBLIME SCENERY 
 
 PATTERDALE HALL ECHOES ON DISCHARGE OF A CANNON. 
 
 We were now at the foot of Ulls water, which is 
 generally allowed to be the finest of all the Lakes. 
 The morning being very fine, we anticipated with 
 pleasure a sail up the lake to Patterdale, and we 
 intended to send the carriage to the same place. 
 
 Our parlour, which was at the rear of the house, 
 looked upon a pleasant pasture, on the further side 
 of which rolled the clear and rapid Eamont, just after 
 issuing out of the lake ; and immediately beyond, as 
 the principal feature of the view, rose the conical hill 
 of Dunmallet, clothed with a mantle of the richest 
 foliage, now beginning to assume the mellow tints of 
 autumn. Thirty years ago this hill, then recently 
 planted by Mr. Hasell, the proprietor of the neigh- 
 bouring estate and mansion of Dalemain, was pro- 
 nounced by more than one writer of taste to be too 
 formal in the disposition of the trees to constitute an 
 ornament to the landscape. This defect has been 
 
DUNMALLET ULLSWATER. 199 
 
 remedied by the subsequent growth of the wood, and 
 the mount is now encircled by a grove of the highest 
 luxuriance. Dunmallet was anciently crowned by a 
 Roman fort, the vestiges of which are still visible. 
 George and I climbed the hill in the hope of obtaining 
 a good view of Ullswater from it; but the trees on 
 the summit are so high and thick that we could see 
 nothing beyond them. The wood is plentifully stocked 
 with hares. On descending, we went with our host 
 to see a preserve of eels belonging to him in a cage 
 in the river : the cage was full of eels, some of them 
 enormously large, but the slippery tenants glided 
 about amongst each other's folds more smoothly and 
 featly than ever belles and beaux swum through the 
 mazes of the most " mystic dance." Some of them, 
 alas ! the unpitying net captured, in spite of all their 
 attempts to slide out of it ; and they were conveyed 
 to the cook, to make such pasties as we had been pam- 
 pered withal yesterday, and as constitute a favourite 
 dish at the Sun, Pooley-bridge. 
 
 Ullswater is the largest of the Lakes, after Winder- 
 mere. It is said to combine the beauties of all the 
 other lakes, and in a certain degree it does so; but 
 there is no part of it to be compared, for soft and 
 Elysian beauty, with the central parts of Winder- 
 mere. On the other hand, it runs up much nearer 
 to the heart of the mountains, and therefore still more 
 excels its rival in grandeur than it falls below it in 
 beauty. Ullswater is nine miles in length, and, being 
 forced by the bold hills which environ it to assume a 
 
200 ULLSWATER. 
 
 zigzag direction, its form is nearly that of a Z. The 
 
 lake is in many parts very deep, especially towards 
 the head, where the mountains descend in precipices 
 to the very brink of the water. " The mighty Hel- 
 vellyn" lifts his manifold crags and summits in stern 
 magnificence over the head ; and on the south and 
 
 east sides of the lake he is fronted by fells of great 
 elevation and boldness, not unworthy such neigh- 
 bourhood. 
 
 The lower reach of the lake, about three miles in 
 length, is tame, when compared with the middle and 
 
 upper reaches ; yet it is a fine sheet of water, and 
 its borders aiford scenes of varied and lively beauty. 
 On the north the hills are not particularly bold, and 
 they rise gently from the lake, leaving a margin of 
 fertile ground, which has been improved and adorned 
 by art. There are several mansions and cottages 
 both on the Westmoreland and Cumberland sides, 
 which presented themselves to us advantageously as 
 we rowed up the lake. Some of the houses stand in 
 elevated situations, commanding an extensive prospect 
 over the surrounding country ; whilst others are built 
 near the edge of the lake, under, the shelter of the 
 rising ground and of encircling groves, betwixt which 
 ornamental lawns slope down to the water's brink. 
 Amongst the houses in the latter situation is Ramps- 
 beck-lodge, the beautiful residence of Mr. Stagg, 
 about the middle of the first reach, on the Cumber- 
 land side. Beau Thorn, so called from a plantation 
 of white thorns which surrounds it, and Lemon-house, 
 
ULLSWATEB— PERILOUS ADVENTURE. 201 
 
 are also delightfully situated. Watermillock, the seat 
 of the late Colonel Robinson, now occupied by the 
 Rev. Mr. Tinkler, has long been celebrated by travel- 
 lers ; it stands on an elevated point on the same side 
 of Ullswater, looking down the lower reach of the 
 lake. The back-ground of the view from these houses 
 is formed by Swarth-fell, a bold ridge which skirts 
 the southern border of the reach, and runs up towards 
 the Martindale fells. Our boatman pointed out a part 
 of the fell, so steep as to seem to us nearly perpen- 
 dicular, down which the late Mr. Hasell, of Dale- 
 main, descended with his horse, having, in the heat 
 of the chase, passed over the brow of the hill into a 
 situation from which it was impossible to re-ascend. 
 He dismounted from his hunter, and the sagacious 
 and experienced animal, making common cause with 
 him, slid down the long and perilous descent on his 
 haunches, at once supporting and being supported by 
 his master, till they arrived safely at the bottom. 
 Under this ridge, near Pooley, is Eusemere-lodge, 
 the seat of Mr. Bristow, formerly the residence of 
 that distinguished philanthropist, whose name is 
 identified with the abolition of the slave-trade — 
 Thomas Clarkson. 
 
 A bluff mountain, called Hallen-fell, rises at the 
 head of the first reach of Ullswater, and forces the 
 lake out of a southerly into a westerly direction. 
 Between Hallen-fell and Swarth-fell, the green vale 
 of Martindale, (so named from having formerly 
 abounded in the little animal called the martin,) runs 
 
 k 5 
 
202 ULLSWATER HALLSTEADS. 
 
 up into the heart of barren hills. When we had 
 doubled the promontory which separates the two 
 reaches, a new and far more interesting prospect 
 opened upon us. The middle reach of the lake is 
 about four miles in length, and lies between the lofty 
 and precipitous hills of Hallen-felL Birk-fell, and 
 Place-fell on the south, and the long sweep of Gow- 
 barrow Parks on the north ; whilst Helvellyn and the 
 rocky mountains which stand around him like sentries 
 form a magnificent termination to the view in front. 
 His roots, pushed to the water's edge, compel the lake 
 to assume its original southerly direction ; and thus 
 the middle reach, separated by sudden bends from the 
 first and third reaches, appears like a distinct lake. 
 From the same cause, the variety and picturesqueness 
 of the views on Ullswater are much greater than on 
 any of the other lakes, and would be so even inde- 
 pendent of the greater boldness of the hills which are 
 piled around it. 
 
 On our right as we entered this division of the lake, 
 and just on the promontory which divides the first 
 and second reaches, was Hallsteads, the seat of Mr. 
 Marshall, lately high-sheriff of Cumberland, and 
 for some years member for the county of York. 
 " His house commands one of the finest views of the 
 lake, looking up the whole length of this reach, with 
 Helvellyn in front, and having Hallen-fell, Swarth- 
 fell, and the beautiful recess of Martindale immedi- 
 ately opposite. 
 
ULLSWATER GOWBARROW PARKS. 203 
 
 Gowbarrow Parks, formerly the property of the 
 Duke of Norfolk, and bequeathed by the late Duke 
 to Henry Howard, Esq. of Greystoke Castle, are 
 ancient deer-parks, stretching along a concave bend 
 of the mountain to the distance of four miles, and 
 terminating in the wild, picturesque, and beautiful 
 recess of Glencoin. They are not trimly kept or 
 adorned by walks or buildings, but left nearly in the 
 natural state, and covered in the lower part with 
 woods, and in the more elevated parts with grass and 
 fern. Their extent is eighteen hnndred acres, but 
 they are divided into three parks, Glencoin Park, 
 Gowbarrow Park, and the Low Park ; the first and 
 last of which are farmed off, and the second, which 
 contains eight hundred acres, is stocked with four 
 hundred head of deer. Between Gowbarrow Park 
 and Low Park there is a projection of the mountain, 
 fronted with a towering mass of shattered rock, called 
 Yew Crag. Gowbarrow Park is far more interesting 
 and more accordant to the rest of the scenery, with 
 its neglected woods, its aged oaks and thorns, and its 
 rough carpet of grass and fern, than if all the ele- 
 gance of art had been lavished upon it. Nature, and 
 — what is almost as good as nature — antiquity, are 
 the ideas it impresses on the mind; in beholding it, 
 you think of ancient baronial times, and a pleasing 
 melancholy, mingled with reverence, comes over you- 
 This impression is heightened by the plain gray 
 building, called Lyulph's Tower, standing on the edge 
 of a wood, whose battlements lead you to suppose it a 
 
204 ULLSWATER — LYULPH's TOWER. 
 
 fortification.* It is., however, merely a hunting-box, 
 erected in imitation of an old mansion, and decorated 
 with those old-fashioned ornaments — tokens of the 
 exploits of our British Nimrods — enormous antlers, 
 and heads of deer and other animals. A fine cream- 
 coloured bloodhound, kenneled near the door of the 
 tower, is another characteristic appendage to the resi- 
 dence of a feudal baron. 
 
 We landed at the boat-house near Lyulph's Tower, 
 and walked up to the house, the upper windows of 
 which command a view of almost unrivalled grandeur, 
 richness, and beauty. An ample expanse of the lake 
 is spread out below, bordered by all that is stu- 
 pendous and sublime in mountain scenery, with all 
 that is rich and picturesqtie in woods and vales. 
 Stybarrow Crag, a lofty promontory terminating one of 
 the ridges that descend from Helvellyn, presents its 
 oak-crowned front at the head of this division of the 
 lake: Birk-fell and Place fell rear their vast 
 mountain bulwarks on the southern shore, the 
 former sloping down at one end into a gracious vale, 
 which forms part of Martindale, and the latter 
 swelling his giant bulk to an enormous elevation. 
 On the northern shore is the wooded and uneven slope 
 
 * Lyulph's Tower has been so called after Lyulph, the first 
 baron of Greystock, who received the grant soon after the Conquest, 
 and who was the proprietor of Ullswater. The lake itself is said to 
 derive its name from this ancient baron, the root of whose name is 
 Ulf, whence L'Ulf, Lyulph. The estate of Greystock, in which 
 this is included, came into the family of the Howards in the time of 
 Elizabeth* 
 
ULLSWATER— AlREY FORCE. 205 
 
 of Gowbarrow Park, terminating in the recess of 
 Glencoin. And the sublime back-ground of the 
 whole is Helvellyn, frowning, as it were, in collected 
 might, with all his terrible array of crags surrounding 
 him. 
 
 After gazing for some time upon this matchless 
 view, we proceeded through the park and a deep 
 winding glen choked with trees, to Airey-force — a 
 cascade about a quarter of a mile distant. A pretty 
 girl was our guide, and she tripped along the rough 
 and stony path at a pace not quite convenient to some 
 of our party. At length, after making a sudden 
 turn so as to come into a nook of the glen, we arrived 
 in front of the force, which is an extremely fine and 
 picturesque object, rivalling Stockgill-force in beauty, 
 though not so high. The water falls about eighty 
 feet perpendicularly through a chasm of the rocks: 
 at the top it is divided by a narrow ledge into two 
 streams, which unite before they have fallen half- 
 way down, and are dashed against a projecting part 
 of the rock, from which they rebound in expanding 
 sheets of foam. Amidst clouds of spray the waters 
 plunge into a deep basin, and soon issue forth from 
 the gulph in a rapid stream, as transparent as before 
 their fall. The rocks and trees stand all round 
 this cascade, so as to make it perfectly secluded ; 
 the oak and the ash bend their branches over the 
 fall, and involve it in a cool shade. We ascended by 
 a circuitous path to the top ; and when we saw the 
 fall from above, it struck us even more than the view 
 
206 ULLSWATER. 
 
 from below. As the sun's rays fell upon the clouds 
 of spray, an iris flung its lovely arch over the chasm 
 — its splendour alternately brightening and fading 
 * with the greater or less density of the spray. 
 We returned to Lyulph's Tower by a different path 
 from that by which we had approached the cascade. 
 
 Re-entering our boat, I resumed the oar which I 
 had held since we left Pooley-bridge, and we rowed 
 up the lake, following for some time the indentations 
 of the shore. This gave a remarkable variety to the 
 scenes, by changing the fore-ground, and presenting 
 the features of the landscape in different directions 
 and combinations. At my instance, we rowed over 
 nearly to the southern shore, which gave us a better 
 view than we had yet had of the northern. Then, at 
 the desire of the boatman, we crossed again to the side 
 of Gowbarrow Park, just where it terminates in the 
 deep and secluded valley of Glencoin,* which con- 
 tributes its streamlet to the waters of the lake. He 
 contrived that we should creep along the shore till we 
 came close under a lofty crag, enveloped from the base 
 to the summit in natural wood. Then, turning the 
 head of the boat from the land, and desiring me to pull 
 as strongly as I could, whilst he directed us all to keep 
 our eyes on the crag, we shot out towards the middle 
 of the lake. The effect was magical. The naked 
 peak of a mountain, before concealed, seemed to rise 
 up swiftly out of the woody eminence from which we 
 
 * Glencoin, or Glencune, signifies a glen in a corner of the 
 mountains. 
 
STYBARROW CRAG PATTERDALE. 207 
 
 were receding, till it stood in its just proportions before 
 us, and appeared many hundred feet above our heads, 
 leaving at its base the bold crag from under which we 
 had darted. The eye can scarcely persuade itself that 
 the effect is simply produced by our own motion — the 
 gray and shivered pinnacle of the mountain rises 
 so unexpectedly from behind the wood which had 
 overhung us, and so entirely changes the character of 
 the view. 
 
 We were now within view of the last and finest 
 reach of the lake, which is about two miles in length. 
 Immediately before us was Stybarrow Crag — the noble 
 promontory and hill which we had seen from Lyulph's 
 Tower. The lower part of the Crag is precipitous, 
 yet the oak has struck his roots into the interstices of 
 the rocks, and grows up the steep, so that the Crag is 
 hid in a grove of fine oak-trees. Just at the bend of 
 the lake is House-holm, a small island of rock, covered 
 with shrubs, and constituting an ornament to the view, 
 but misnomered, as it bears no trace of a habitation ; 
 there are also three other diminutive islands in the 
 upper reach. At this point, on the southern side, 
 Place-fell " pushes its craggy foot into the lake like a 
 lion's claw."* 
 
 When we had passed House-holm, the fertile vales 
 of Patterdale and Glenridden, the former of which 
 branches off into three at the head of Ullswater, lay 
 before us. There is a peacefulness, a soft and exquisite 
 beauty, in these vales, lying embosomed amongst the 
 
 * Mrs. Radcliffe. 
 
208 ULLSWATER— PATTKRDALE. 
 
 high and sterile mountains, which cannot fail deeply 
 to impress a mind of the least susceptibility. Their 
 verdure is always of the brightest green, being watered 
 by innumerable springs and streamlets. Trees are 
 scattered in splendid profusion on the banks of the 
 streams, and on the sides of the green hills ; and a 
 simple white house, appearing scarcely bigger than a 
 dove-cote, is planted here and there, beneath the 
 shelter of a hill or wood. The village church rises 
 not in vain in this sequestered but majestic temple of 
 nature, and suggests how comely it is for man to 
 worship the divine Architect. A few mansions, 
 elegantly but not ostentatiously built, adorn some of 
 the recesses of the shore, but do not obtrude them- 
 selves on the eye, or violate the character of the scene. 
 Some of the mountains which environ us have a noble 
 simplicity of form, and others a sublime ruggedness 
 and barrenness. Behind Patterdale, at a little dis- 
 tance, rises a regular conical mountain, called Dod 
 Hill, clothed with verdure to the summit. To our 
 right is an extremely bold hill, called St. Sunday 
 Crag, the round head of which is covered with herbage. 
 Behind it is the range of Fairfield ; and the opposite 
 side of the lake is overhung by the dark and precipi- 
 tous ridge of Place-fell. 
 
 To the whole of our party except myself this scene 
 was new, and their admiration of it was unbounded. 
 We had so arranged our tour, that what I considered 
 the noblest part of the Lake scenery might come last ; 
 and I was gratified to find that the head of Ullswater 
 
PATTERDALE ECHO. 209 
 
 was unanimously acknowledged to surpass in com- 
 bined grandeur and beauty all we had hitherto seen. 
 
 We now approached the head of the lake, where 
 we saw Patterdale-hall, the house of Wrri. Marshall, 
 Esq., (the eldest son of John Marshall, Esq., of 
 Hallsteads,) which stands on the level shore, and pre- 
 sents its front to the lake. This was formerly the seat 
 of Mr. Mounsey, whose ancestors have for many ages 
 borne the title of kings of Patterdale, said to have been 
 given to them on account of a gallant exploit performed 
 by one of the family, who, at the head of a few 
 peasants, met a band of Scottish marauders at the pass 
 of Stybarrow Crag, and defeated them. Mr. Mounsey 
 sold the hall a few years ago to Mr. Marshall, and has 
 built himself a house, called Deepdale Cottage, two 
 miles further up the valley. 
 
 The landing-place is on the banks of a small stream 
 which flows through Patterdale* into the lake. After 
 leaving the boat, we had to walk a quarter of a mile to 
 Mrs. Dobson's, the homely but comfortable inn of this 
 delightfully-situated village. Here we took up our 
 quarters for the night ; and, after ordering dinner, we 
 climbed a rock at the back of the house, where a small 
 cannon is planted, which is fired for the sake of the 
 echoes. As the mountains rise steeply on every side, 
 the peal is flung from one to another, so as to be heard 
 several times with as much distinctness as if each 
 
 * Patterdale is a corruption of Patricks-dale, so called from 
 St. Patricks Well in the valley, near the hall. In the church- 
 yard there is one of the finest yew-trees in the kingdom. 
 
210 PATTERDALE ECHO. 
 
 repetition was a fresh discharge. When the ladies had 
 placed themselves at such a distance that they thought 
 they were out of danger, the piece was fired. At first 
 the peal roared along the hills behind us : anon, it 
 appeared to rend the bowels of Place-fell, which rose 
 immediately in front : then, when it had subsided, the 
 thunder returned upon us from the higher part of the 
 Helvellyn range : again it died away, but again 
 revived along the distant hills of Gowbarrow Park. A 
 fifth and fainter repetition of the peal was heard ; but 
 we did not catch the sixth and seventh echo, which are 
 said frequently to be distinguished. There is some- 
 thing deeply impressive in the reverberation of such a 
 burst of sound through a mighty theatre of mountains. 
 It enlarges the conception of the mind with regard to 
 the vastness of the surrounding objects : the ear sup- 
 plies the deficiencies of the eye, and informs us of the 
 loftier and more distant ranges which are shut out 
 from our view. In these vales, so far from the busy 
 hum of men, scarcely any sounds are ever heard but of 
 the winds and waters ; and in a serene autumn even- 
 ing, stillness the most profound reigned over them, 
 till our curiosity occasioned this awful uproar to be 
 awakened, which startled Ullswater " from its pro- 
 priety." We listened with wonder to the responsive 
 tumult, and were glad when the scene was again 
 hushed into its natural silence and repose. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 ASCENT OF HELVELLYN DANGEROUS PASSAGE OF STRIDING- 
 
 EDGE VIEW FROM THE SUMMIT DESCENT DEATH OF MR. 
 
 CHARLES GOUGH. 
 
 It was our intention to go on Friday from Patter- 
 dale to Ambleside. The distance is only ten miles 
 by Brotherswater and Kirkstone; and the road, though 
 rough and mountainous, may be passed by a carriage 
 with safety. But George and I had a strong inclina- 
 tion to ascend Helvellyn, which, being somewhat 
 higher than Skiddaw, and more difficult of ascent, is 
 much less frequently climbed by travellers. Neither 
 for the ladies' sake nor for our own, did we wish them 
 to accompany us ; and they were themselves of opinion 
 that they had done enough for glory in the ascent of 
 Skiddaw, without tempting the more perilous heights 
 of Helvellyn. We determined to set out on this 
 expedition not later than eight in the morning, in 
 which case we might get back to Patterdale between 
 twelve and one, and afterwards proceed with the ladies 
 to Ambleside. 
 
 We had arranged all our plans overnight, but in 
 the morning the weather threatened to mar them, and 
 to prevent us from ascending the mountain. The 
 
212 PATTERDALE. 
 
 waiter, in calling us, made the dismal announcement 
 — " Six o'clock, Sir — a very wet morning." I got out 
 of bed, and, going to the window, found that it had 
 been raining heavily : the rain had somewhat abated, 
 but the clouds covered the tops of all the hills, and 
 hung gloomily about their sides. The dense masses of 
 vapour rolled through the valley like volumes of 
 smoke from some huge furnace, and I observed with 
 despondency that the wind by which they were carried 
 along was from a rainy quarter — the south-west. 
 This prospect drove me to bed for comfort, and I lay 
 snugly till seven — George having very naturally sought 
 consolation in the same way. At that hour we rose 
 and dressed. The clouds were then higher than when 
 I first looked out, and light appeared round the edges 
 of the horizon, though the hill-tops were not yet 
 uncovered. At eight our prospects were again dark- 
 ened, and we found the barometer down at rain. But 
 in about half an hour, just as the ladies made their 
 appearance for breakfast, we observed that the clouds 
 were rising and breaking, and that the wind had gone 
 about to the north. The change of wind, and the 
 cessation of rain, gave us lively hopes that the day 
 would, after all, take up, but still it was doubtful 
 whether this would be in sufficient time to enable us 
 to ascend Helvellyn. We calculated distances, and, 
 as the morning advanced, we kept abridging the time 
 necessary for ascending the mountain, and putting off 
 the hour at which we ought to leave Patterdale for 
 Ambleside. 
 
ASCENT OF HELVELLYN. 213 
 
 At length the blue sky appeared in two or three 
 places at once ; first, the hill above Stybarrow Crag 
 became clear ; then Place- fell doffed his night-cap, 
 and put on a " shining morning face."* We were now 
 so confident that the day would prove fine, that we 
 laid in our usual stock of sandwiches and brandy, and 
 at half-past nine o'clock set out on our expedition in 
 
 * Our experience was like that of Cumberland, when, after a 
 series of gloomy weather, the sun broke forth in Patterdale, and 
 he composed the following beautiful ode : — 
 
 " Me, turbid skies and threatening clouds await, 
 
 Emblems, alas ! of my ignoble fate. 
 But see the embattled vapours break, 
 
 Disperse and fly, 
 
 Posting like couriers down the sky ; 
 The grey rock glitters in the glassy lake ; 
 
 And now the mountain tops are seen, 
 
 Frowning amidst the blue serene ; 
 
 The variegated groves appear, 
 
 Deckt in the colours of the waning year ; 
 
 And as new beauties they unfold, 
 
 Dip their skirts in beaming gold. 
 Thee, savage Wyburn, now I hail ; 
 
 Delicious Grasmere's calm retreat, 
 
 And stately Windermere I greet, 
 And Kesivick's sweet fantastic vale ; 
 
 But let her naiads yield to thee, 
 i And lowly bend the subject knee, 
 Imperial lake of Patrick's dale ; 
 
 For neither Scottish Lomond's pride, 
 
 Nor smooth Killarney's silver tide, 
 
 Nor aught that learned Poussin drew, 
 
 Or clashing Rosa flung upon my view, 
 
 Shall shake thy sovereign undisturbed right, 
 
 Great scene of wonder and sublime delight ! 
 
 Hail to thy beams, O sun ! for this display, 
 
 What, glorious orb, can I repay ? 
 The thanks of an unprostituted muse." 
 
214 ASCENT OF HELVELLYN. 
 
 the highest spirits. We had determined not to take 
 a guide with us, thinking ourselves superior to any 
 such aid, and disliking the restraint which the presence 
 of a guide would put on our motions and conversa- 
 tion. The latter, indeed, was rather a fanciful reason, 
 as the guides are usually very accommodating and 
 unobtrusive. I had taken the precaution to make 
 diligent inquiry of the boatman who came with us 
 from Pooley-bridge, and who knew the mountain 
 well, as to the path we should follow in order to reach 
 the top. He pointed out a faintly-traced pathway 
 about half the distance, as far as the summit of a 
 ridge which runs up on the north side of Grisedale- 
 beck, and conducts to the head of the mountain. He 
 then told us, that when we had got upon that ridge 
 we should see the top of Helvellyn, and, immediately 
 beneath it, a tarn ; that there Avere two ways of pro- 
 ceeding thence to the summit, — the shortest, by 
 keeping along the top of the ridge, which was called 
 Striding-edge, — and the other, which was longer but 
 much safer, by descending a little on the opposite side 
 of the ridge, and re-ascending by Swirrel-edge, which 
 would leave the tarn on our left hand. He said that 
 the passage of Striding-edge, though frequently 
 accomplished, was attended with some danger, as it 
 was like walking along the narrow ridge of a steep 
 roof; and he intimated that we should probably find 
 that part of the mountain very different from what 
 we expected. Having made up our minds to over- 
 come by our own sagacity and exertions the difficulties 
 
ASCENT OF HELVELLYN. 215 
 
 we might encounter., and supposing that the boatman 
 somewhat exaggerated the perils of the ascent for the 
 purpose of being engaged to accompany us, we made 
 light of his warnings, but carefully treasured up his 
 instructions in our memories. 
 
 For about half a mile we pursued the high road 
 to Pooley-bridge, till we had crossed the bridge over 
 Grisedale-beck, near Patterdale-hall, when we turned 
 immediately to the left, and began to ascend the 
 mountain at a very deliberate pace. Passing through 
 a wood, we came shortly to the last cottage on the 
 hill-side. The proprietor, of whom we asked the way, 
 said that there was no road without trespassing over 
 his ground. Of course we solicited a passport, and he 
 then graciously took us through his fold, and pointed 
 out the path we should follow. Keeping our eye 
 on the part of the ridge which we had been directed 
 to aim at, and which appears somewhat hollow, we 
 slowly wound along the hill-side, reserving our 
 strength for the more difficult parts of the mountain. 
 
 The views which we enjoyed in our progress were 
 interesting and splendid. Immediately beneath us 
 was the beautiful vale of Grisedale, which runs from 
 Ullswater up to the heart of Helvellyn, and separates 
 the hill we were ascending from the bold heights of 
 St. Sunday Crag and Fairfield. In the bottom of the 
 valley flows the beck, or streamlet, which forms the 
 common channel for innumerable rills that trickle 
 down the sides of the mountain, and, after watering 
 the valley, empty themselves by this mouth into 
 
216 ASCENT OP HELVELLYN. 
 
 Ullswater. Cattle and horses graze the fertile pas- 
 tures ; and the hills which tower above them are 
 nibbled by sheep. The upper part of the valley 
 becomes a mere ravine of the mountain, down which 
 we saw many rills tumbling in different directions, 
 and appearing, as the sun shone directly upon them, 
 like waving lines of silver. The lower part is beau- 
 tified with wood, as is the delicious vale of Patter- 
 dale, now far beneath and behind us. We could 
 still see the inn, and thought it not unlikely that 
 the ladies might discern us. The dark blue sheet of 
 Ullswater lay like a mirror of steel in the depth of the 
 valley, margined with the most brilliant verdure. 
 The mountain view expanded to the south and east, 
 and we found ourselves approaching to the elevation 
 of some of the bold hills, which appeared from the 
 lake to be nearly as high as Helvellyn himself. 
 
 When we had reached the brow of the ridge, a new 
 prospect to the north and east opened upon us. The 
 lower reach of Ullswater, the vale and town of 
 Penrith, and all the surrounding country to a vast 
 extent, as well as the numerous inferior hills which 
 form the group of Helvellyn, were exposed to our 
 view. The head of the mountain itself, also, was now 
 seen, crowned with a conical pile of stones, called 
 Helvellyn Man ; and immediately beneath it, at the 
 foot of a precipice upwards of six hundred feet in 
 depth, a small dark tarn, called Red-tarn, lay in a 
 hollow of the mountain. We now saw before us the 
 two ways by which we might prosecute the ascent. 
 
ASCENT OF HELVELLYN. 217 
 
 Two ridges, Striding-edge and Swirrel-edge, run 
 down from the top of the mountain, enclosing betwixt 
 them a considerable valley, in which lies the tarn just 
 mentioned. Swirrel-edge is crested by a summit of 
 the mountain, called Catchedecam, and is also con- 
 nected with the summit of Helvellyn. The ridge we 
 were upon, Striding-edge, was the shorter but more 
 rugged path ; and, in spite of the warnings of our boat- 
 man, we chose it, being incited by curiosity, and per- 
 haps quite as much by the motive which actuates most 
 men in fighting duels — a fear lest our courage should 
 be called in question if we declined the danger. 
 
 We therefore addressed ourselves to the passage of 
 Striding-edge ; but if we had seen the most dangerous 
 part much before we came to it, we should have been 
 content to take the safer though more cowardly 
 branch of the alternative offered to us. As we 
 ascended, the hill became more steep and rugged, till 
 at length the ridge presented nothing but rocks, the 
 narrow edges of which lay upwards in the direction of 
 the sky. Their sides became steeper and steeper, 
 and it was with difficulty that we crept along paths 
 not wider than a goat-track, to avoid clambering 
 among the crags which formed the very ridge of the 
 hill. At length it became impossible to find footing 
 on the side, and we betook ourselves of necessity to 
 the ridge itself. We now came in view of the most 
 formidable part of Striding-edge, and found that it 
 rather deserved to be compared to a narrow wall, several 
 hundred feet in height, connecting the hill which we 
 
 L 
 
218 ASCENT OF HBLVELLYN — STRIDING EDGE. 
 
 had been ascending with the head of the mountain, 
 than to the steep roof of a house. It appeared to us 
 to be absolutely precipitous on each side, and the top 
 of the rocky wall was not more than from one to two 
 yards wide, whilst in some places we could not see, 
 before we came to it, as much ground as would 
 serve to plant a foot upon — the rocks presenting their 
 sharp and rugged edges upwards, like slates or tiles 
 standing on end. If we had had a guide, all this 
 would have been much less terrific, because he would 
 have led the way, and shown us where to place every 
 footstep. The possibility that we might, after all, 
 have taken a wrong direction, or that in some part of 
 the pass we should find ourselves in a situation where 
 we could neither advance nor retreat, gave us consi- 
 derable alarm. Neither of us, however, expressed 
 our fears at the time, and I felt myself bound to keep 
 up both my own spirits and George's, as the blame 
 would have been chiefly mine if any accident had 
 happened. I therefore talked loudly and confidently 
 as we scrambled along, keeping all my eyes about me, 
 and giving him such instructions as his want of ex- 
 perience in climbing rendered necessary. He said 
 little or nothing, and never ventured to cast a look 
 either to the tarn which lay several hundred feet 
 below us on one side, or to the equally awful depth 
 on the other ; but, fixing his eyes on the ridge itself 
 as if he were fascinated, he crept on after me as 
 cautiously and yet as fast as he could. In this way 
 we crossed the long and dangerous pass of Striding- 
 
SUMMIT OF HELVELLYN. 219 
 
 edge, till we came to the last ascent of the mountain. 
 This part is exceedingly steep, but still there is ample 
 room for the foot, and, without waiting a moment, 
 we began to ascend as quickly as possible. A vigorous 
 push for a few minutes placed us out of all danger, 
 and, to our unspeakable satisfaction, we found our- 
 selves on the pinnacle of " the mighty Helvellyn." 
 
 How sublime an elevation ! How glorious a pano- 
 rama ! What a mighty assemblage of mountains ! 
 What an infinite diversity of landscape ! Water — in 
 all its varieties, from the little tarn collected in the 
 hollows of mountains and the streamlet which trickles 
 down their sides, to the spreading lake, the far- 
 winding river, the broad estuary, and the unlimited 
 sea ! Land — in every form and dress, — the huge- 
 swelling, dark, and rugged mountain, — the inferior 
 hill, whose coat of fern is browned by the summer's 
 sun,— the deep, secluded valley, clothed in living 
 green, hung with woods which are putting on the 
 tints of autumn, pastured by flocks and herds, and 
 spotted with rural habitations, — and the wide-extended 
 plain, where the smoke of towns, and the inclosures 
 of parks and fields, bespeak the busy hand of man ! 
 And all this magnificent scene illuminated by a mid- 
 day sun, and canopied with a cloudless sky ! 
 
 Well might we stand gazing with unsated admira- 
 tion on this prospect ; and it was long before the 
 high and keen wind drove us to take shelter beneath 
 the pile of stones which stands on the summit. We 
 felt more than recompensed for the toil and danger of 
 
 l2 
 
220 PANORAMIC VIEW FROM HELVELLYN. 
 
 the ascent. Having emerged from the depth of 
 Patterdale, we found it most interesting to behold 
 again Skiddaw and Saddleback, Scawfell, and Lang- 
 dale Pikes, and to trace with the eye, as on a map, 
 all the journeys we had been making since we entered 
 Westmoreland. This view, though similar to that 
 we had had from Skiddaw in its general features and 
 in its extent, presented many of the objects in such 
 different positions as to give it the interest of a new 
 prospect. The boundaries of the vast panorama were, 
 the Scotch mountains on the north, the range of 
 Cross-fell on the east, the hills of Yorkshire and 
 Lancashire on the south, and the Irish sea on the 
 west. Immediately beneath us, to the west, lay the 
 rugged and savage scenery of the Borrowdale and 
 Langdale fells, and beyond these appeared successively 
 the ridges which separate Borrowdale from Butter- 
 mere, Buttermere from Ennerdale, and Ennerdale 
 from Wasdale. Scawfell Pikes, Great End, Great 
 Gavel, and the Pillar, stood " proudly eminent ;" Bow- 
 fell and Coniston Old Man were also very conspicuous ; 
 Langdale Pikes, which appeared so lofty from the 
 valley below them, now looked very humble. South- 
 ward were the summits of Fairfield, which hid from 
 us nearly the whole of Windermere ; but two small 
 portions of that lake were visible, and, beyond the 
 mountains, Morecambe Bay, and the large estuaries 
 of the Leven, the Duddon, and the Esk, were seen 
 with the utmost distinctness. High Street, Hill Bell, 
 Kidsey Pike, and the whole range of the Martindale 
 
VIEW FROM HELVELLYN — DESCENT. 221 
 
 fells, with the dark broad breast of Place-fell in 
 front, appeared in the south-east and east ; and still 
 further south Ingleborough was distinctly visible. 
 The lower part of Ullswater was seen ; Bassenthwaite 
 Water in the north, and Coniston and Esthwaite lakes 
 in the south : Derwentwater lay hid behind the Der- 
 went fells, and the lakes of Thirlmere and Grassmere 
 were concealed by the swelling sides of Helvellyn 
 himself. 
 
 It was exactly noon when we reached the summit 
 of the mountain, and we remained there twenty 
 minutes. I scarcely need say that we did not return 
 by way of Striding-edge. The other route, though 
 steep, is safe and easy in comparison. As we de- 
 scended, we cast many a glance at Striding-edge, and 
 it then came into our minds that that must be the 
 very place, from which the young man fell whose 
 death has been commemorated by Wordsworth and 
 Sir Walter Scott. The name of the unfortunate tra- 
 veller was Charles Gough, and in the spring of 1805, 
 on a day in which snow had fallen, attempting to 
 cross the mountain from Patterdale to Wythburn, 
 with no companion but his dog, he perished by falling 
 down those precipices. His body was not found till 
 three months afterwards, when the faithful dog was 
 discovered still watching over the lifeless remains of 
 his master. I cannot resist the temptation of copying 
 Wordsworth's lines commemorative of this affecting 
 instance of brute " Fidelity :" their simple pathos is 
 beyond praise : — 
 
222 DEATH OF MR. GOUGH. 
 
 " But hear a wonder, for whose sake 
 
 This lamentable tale I tell ! 
 
 A lasting monument of words 
 
 This wonder merits well. 
 
 The dog, which still was hovering nigh, 
 
 Repeating the same timid cry, — 
 
 This dog had been through three months' space 
 
 A dweller in that savage place. 
 
 Yes, proof was plain that since the day 
 
 On which the traveller thus had died, 
 
 The dog had watched about the spot, 
 
 Or by his master's side : 
 
 How nourished there through such long time 
 
 He knows who gave that love sublime, 
 
 And gave that strength of feeling great 
 
 Above all human estimate." 
 
 On reaching Patterdale we ascertained that this was 
 the very spot where the traveller perished, and we 
 congratulated ourselves that we had not recollected 
 the fact whilst we were crossing the ridge. It 
 inspired us with a feeling of gratitude for our own 
 preservation. The descent of the mountain was 
 accomplished in little more than an hour, and we set 
 out before two o'clock for Ambleside. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 FROM PATTEKDALE TO AMBLESIDE — UPPER PART OF PATTERDALE 
 
 — DEEPDALE EROTHERSWATER — KIRKSTONE AMBLESIDE 
 
 RETROSPECT OF THE TOUR ULLSWATER AND WINDERMERE 
 
 COMPARED CONCLUSION. 
 
 I have now come to the last scene of our Tour 
 amongst the Lakes. 
 
 We quitted Patterdale with lingering looks at Ulls- 
 water and Helvellyn. Our road lay for three or four 
 miles through the upper part of the valley, which 
 branches off at the head into three minor vales — that 
 of Deepdale on the right, — that of Hartshope, in 
 which lies the lake of Brotherswater, forming a con- 
 tinuation of Patterdale, — and a smaller vale to the left, 
 containing the hamlet of Low Hartshope, separated 
 from Hartshope by Dod Hill. On the hills to the left 
 are two tarns, Angle-tarn, at the southern extremity 
 of Place-fell, and Hays Water-tarn, under the north 
 side of High Street, both of which contain delicious 
 trout, and are much frequented by anglers. 
 
 The first part of our journey was through shady 
 lanes, with luxuriant meadows and pastures on either 
 hand, watered by Coldrill-beck and several subsidiary 
 streamlets, and retaining, though at this advanced 
 period of autumn, their vernal green. The valley is 
 
224 DEEPDALE BROTHERSWATER. 
 
 deep and secluded, and even where it opens out near 
 the head into three branches, the very few human 
 habitations which are to be seen, and the immediate 
 vicinity of the mountains, to the heart of which each 
 valley conducts the eye, do not diminish the sense 
 of seclusion from the world. Deepdale forms a beau- 
 tiful upland recess, the whole extent of which is at 
 once visible : it is plentifully besprinkled with trees, 
 which rise high up the sides of the hills, and it con- 
 ducts a tributary brook from the sides of Fairfield 
 into Coldrill-beck. The vale of Hartshope is ter- 
 minated at the distance of three miles further by the 
 rocky heights of Dove Crag. 
 
 The small lake of Brotherswater is pretty, and 
 looks much more so when approached from the side of 
 Kirkstone than from that of Ullswater. In the former 
 case, it is the beginning of beauties ; in the latter, it 
 is the termination of them. Yet I do not recommend 
 visiting Ullswater from Ambleside ; for then not only 
 is the finest part of the lake seen first, and the view 
 as you sail down it gradually deteriorates, but the 
 splendid effect of the upper reach, and of the branch- 
 ing valleys of Patterdale, Grisedale, Glenridden, and 
 Glencoin, with the noble mountains in their rear, 
 which open so delightfully upon you in sailing up the 
 lake, is in a great measure lost. It may seem in 
 speculation to be a matter of indifference at which 
 end you begin, as, going over the same ground, you 
 will have all the beauties, first or last ; but it is 
 found by actual observation that a great difference is 
 
BROTHERSWATER — KIRKSTONE. 225 
 
 produced by the way in which objects present them- 
 selves ; much depends on the first impression, and 
 much on the order of improvement or of deterioration 
 in which the views are seen. 
 
 Brothers water is scarcely larger than a mountain- 
 tarn. It is said to have received its present name 
 from the fact of two brothers having been drowned 
 there. Such an event occurred in the year 1785, and 
 tradition also tells of a similar tragical event having 
 happened there at a much earlier period. The ancient 
 name of the lake, however, is Broaderwater, and it may 
 be doubted whether the name has been suddenly 
 changed or gradually corrupted. The meadows which 
 extend to a considerable distance beyond it are as 
 level as the surface of the pool itself, and we conjec- 
 tured that they had once been covered with water, 
 and that an alluvial deposit, or the accumulation of 
 vegetable matter at the shallow bottom of the lake, 
 or the widening of the passage by which the water 
 flows out of it, had converted this considerable extent 
 from a pool into a meadow. 
 
 Soon after passing Brotherswater, the valley rises 
 rapidly, loses its verdure, and becomes a steep, con- 
 tracted, and barren dell, just affording room for a 
 road and a torrent, which descend from the height of 
 Kirkstone-moor. The ascent is very long and ardu- 
 ous, and the road much worse than any our carriage 
 had yet passed over. The ladies walked the greater 
 part of the way up the hill ; which the ruggedness of 
 the track, and the power of the sun's rays, reflected 
 
 l 3 
 
226 KIRKSTONE MOOR— AMBLESIDE. 
 
 from the shale-covered sides of the mountains, made 
 a very fatiguing task. From the loftiness and steep- 
 ness of the hills on each side, there is a simple 
 grandeur in this pass ; and its very barrenness pre- 
 pares the traveller to enjoy more highly the diver- 
 sified and charming prospect which opens upon him 
 from the top. In ascending, a large stone is seen 
 at the brow of the hill, on the right of the road, 
 which, from its shape, has obtained the name 
 of Kirkstone. It resembles a house seen at the 
 gable-end, and may be equally like a spireless 
 church.* 
 
 From the higher part of the pass, which is a small 
 moor at an elevation of twelve hundred feet above 
 Ambleside, lying betwixt two higher mountains, 
 Colddale-fell on the left, and Scandale-fell on the 
 right, we suddenly obtained a view of the head of 
 Windermere far beneath us, and of the beautiful 
 country beyond it, with the bold mountains of the 
 Coniston and Langdale districts in the back-ground. 
 As we descended, the groves and lawns of Brathay 
 Park, disposed over a surface most picturesquely 
 broken and irregular, came into view, and formed a 
 delicious foreground to the landscape. The valley 
 
 * On the name of Kirkstone, as on every subject of antiqua- 
 quarian lore, there are divers opinions ; some think that it has 
 arisen from the resemblance of the large stone mentioned above 
 to a church or kirk ; others say that it is an abbreviation of kirock- 
 stone — kirock signifying a heap of stones formerly used as boun- 
 dary-marks or guides for travellers, and that such heaps of stones 
 are found on the hill. 
 
RETROSPECT OP THE TOUR. 227 
 
 of Ambleside, the woods and crags of Loughrigg, and 
 the winding streams of the Rothay and the Brathay, 
 which join their waters before they fall into Winder- 
 mere, add to the beauty of the prospect. Of the town 
 of Ambleside., which lies under the hill, nothing is 
 seen except a few chimneys amongst the trees, 
 from which ascend wreaths of blue smoke. On our 
 left as we descended, was the gill in which Stock- 
 gill Force is situated. These various objects beguiled 
 the long and steep descent from Kirkstone to 
 Ambleside. 
 
 It was our original intention to remain for the 
 night at Ambleside, but, being on many accounts 
 desirous of reaching home, we determined to go 
 forward to Kendal. We accordingly proceeded to 
 that place, and on the following day a long journey 
 brought us in safety to our own homes. 
 
 I scarcely need say, that the splendid scenery we 
 had beheld, the favourable weather we had enjoyed, 
 and the friends we had unexpectedly met with, made 
 us all look back upon our tour with feelings of high 
 gratification. We had experienced just enough of 
 fatigue and danger to give a relish to enjoyments, 
 which, if they had been unvaried, might have been 
 cloying. We had the grateful consciousness of having 
 in some degree earned our pleasures by our own 
 exertions, and felt a little of the self-importance of 
 those who have to boast of dangers passed and diffi- 
 culties conquered. To some of our party nearly every 
 
228 RETROSPECT OF THE TOUR. 
 
 thing we had seen possessed the charm of novelty ; 
 the others had the pleasure of imparting information, 
 and revived their own past feelings by exciting and 
 directing the admiration of their companions. Sym- 
 pathy constitutes no small part of the gratification of 
 fellow-travellers. On the other hand, a difference of 
 tastes, such as naturally existed amongst persons of 
 different ages, sexes, and temperaments, does not 
 detract from the general enjoyment, unless when it 
 is too decided, or when accompanied with selfishness 
 or ill temper. It enlivens and diversifies conversation, 
 forms a check upon error, and brings a greater number 
 of objects under particular notice. The grave 
 enthusiasm of one of my cousins was agreeably 
 relieved by the wit and sprightliness of the other : and 
 when conversation flagged in our own company, it was 
 revived and animated by the acquaintances we met 
 with in various stages of our journey. 
 
 A party will not often be so much favoured by the 
 weather as we were. A great quantity of rain falls in 
 the mountainous country, and the changes of weather 
 are very sudden. Passing showers often add to the 
 interest of a landscape, by the effect of the contrast 
 between storm and sunshine among the mountains ; 
 but settled wet weather defies all hope of enjoyment, 
 except such as the tourist may find when thrown upon 
 his own resources. 
 
 When our party came to compare opinions, on a 
 retrospect of the whole tour, I found that the ladies 
 dwelt with the most entire complacency on the 
 
CONCLUSION. 229 
 
 scenery of Windermere. They admitted the superior 
 grandeur of Ullswater, but it seemed to me that the 
 loneliness and solemnity of that lake had insensibly 
 weighed upon their spirits* whilst in the soft charms 
 of Windermere, and its cultivated and peopled borders, 
 they found something more congenial to their tastes. 
 George spoke with rapture of the stupendous scenery 
 of Scawfell Pikes and Wast Water, and of the views 
 irom Skiddaw and Helvellyn. He preferred UUs- 
 water to Windermere. I am disposed to believe that 
 the general opinion will coincide with that of the 
 ladies, — that, though Ullswater may be more admired, 
 Windermere will be thought more pleasing, — that the 
 former will produce a higher excitement, but that 
 something like awe will mingle with the astonishment 
 and admiration, whilst the latter will infuse into the 
 mind a calm and delicious enjoyment, more grateful 
 in a composed state of the feelings. Ullswater might 
 be preferred as a scene, but Windermere would be 
 chosen for a residence. 
 
 We all felt that our imaginations were enriched 
 by the glorious works of nature we had beheld, and no 
 doubt they will often arise to the mind, to cheer it 
 amidst the duller scenes of existence and the cares 
 and business of active life. 
 
 It will afford me great satisfaction if, in the descrip- 
 tion of scenes which early charmed and delighted 
 myself, and with which frequent visits have since 
 rendered me familiar, I shall have contributed to the 
 enjoyment and information of other tourists. 
 
AN 
 
 EXCURSION ON HORSEBACK. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 COMMENCEMENT OF THE JOURNEY — LANCASTER SANDS — THE 
 
 CARTER HOLKER-H ALL LEVEN SANDS ULVERSTON 
 
 SWARTH-MOOR HALL, THE HOUSE OF GEORGE FOX 
 
 FURNESS ABBEY CONISHEAD PRIORY CONISTON WATER 
 
 WATERHEAD INN. 
 
 In the tour which I have already described, one 
 interesting district of the English Lakes was wholly- 
 omitted, namely the Lancashire portion, consisting of 
 Furness, Coniston, and Hawkshead. We left it out 
 not so much from want of time, as because we thought 
 it inexpedient to exhaust the beauties of the Lakes 
 at one visit, — having all of us the full intention of 
 revisiting scenes which had yielded us so much delight. 
 At the commencement of the summer of 1828, I 
 resolved to escape from the din and smoke of a 
 populous town, and to indulge in a ramble amongst 
 my favourite lakes and mountains. I had hitherto 
 seen them only in the autumn, and I was desirous of 
 
LANCASTER SANDS. 231 
 
 seeing them in the garb of early summer. My former 
 visits had been in company ; and though far from 
 insensible to the pleasure of sympathy in the admira- 
 tion of a fine prospect, I wished for once to be alone 
 amidst these sublime works of nature, and at liberty 
 to range where my inclination might lead me. 
 
 As the most easy and agreeable way of accomplish- 
 ing my purpose, I took a horse from Lancaster, and 
 directed my course first to those parts which I had not 
 previously seen. Setting out at the same hour as the 
 " over-Sands" coach to Ulverston, I arrived at Hest- 
 bank, on the shores of Morecambe-bay, three miles 
 and a half from Lancaster, about five in the after- 
 noon. Here a little caravan was collected, waiting 
 the proper time to cross the trackless sands left bare 
 by the receding tide. I soon saw two persons set out 
 in a gig, and, following them, I found that one of 
 them was the Guide appointed to conduct travellers, 
 and the other a servant, who was driving his master's 
 gig to the Cartmel shore, and was to return with the 
 horse the same evening. He had of course no time to 
 lose, and had begun his journey at the earliest possible 
 hour. We found the Sands firm and level, except the 
 slight wrinkles produced by the ripple of the waves, 
 but they were still wet, having only just been left 
 by the sea. The Guide appeared to drive with caution, 
 and in no place went further than a mile from land. 
 We had a good deal of conversation, and I found him 
 intelligent and communicative. His name is Thomas 
 Wilkinson. He is a tall, athletic man, past the 
 
232 LANCASTER SANDS. 
 
 middle age, and bears marks of the rough weather he 
 has been exposed to in discharging the duties of his 
 post during the winter months. In stormy, and more 
 especially in foggy weather, those duties must be 
 arduous and anxious. It is his business to station 
 himself at the place where the river Keer runs over 
 the Sands to the sea, which is about three miles from 
 Hest-bank, and to show travellers where they may 
 pass with safety. The bed of the river is liable to 
 frequent changes, and a fresh of water after rain may 
 in a very short time convert a fordable place into a 
 quicksand. When we came to the river, he got out 
 of the gig, and waded over to ascertain the firmness 
 of the bottom, the water being about knee-deep. 
 Having escorted us a little further, till we saw the 
 Guide for the Kent at a distance, and having pointed 
 out the line we should keep, he left us to return to 
 his proper post. We gave him, as is usual, a few 
 pence ; for though he is appointed by government, his 
 salary is only £10 a year, and he is of course chiefly 
 dependant on what he receives from travellers. 
 
 These sands are called the Lancaster Sands, and 
 the guide said that they were at present eleven miles 
 over, from Hest-bank to Kent's-bank, but that he had 
 known them when he could pass directly over in not 
 more than seven miles. The tide forms a channel in 
 the sand, where the water remains at the ebb ; and 
 this channel has been gradually coming nearer the 
 shore for some years past, and has obliged persons 
 crossing to take a longer circuit. It was now the 
 
 
LANCASTER SANDS. 233 
 
 spring-tide, and the sands we were travelling upon 
 would at high water be seventeen feet below the 
 surface of the sea. 
 
 The day was exceedingly fine,, and the prospects in 
 crossing over the sands were splendid. The whole 
 coast of the bay, from Pile Castle round to the shore 
 beyond Lancaster, — the stern crags of Warton and 
 Arnside-fells on the right, — further eastward, the 
 well-known form of Ingleborough, whose broad head 
 is visible from every considerable hill in Lancashire, 
 Westmoreland, and Cumberland, and seems to lift 
 itself in serene and unchanging majesty over the 
 neighbouring heights, — the broken and picturesque 
 shores of the Kent, beautifully wooded, and forming 
 a vista to the eye, — the fells of Cartmel rising in 
 the mid-distance, their sides hung with forests, and 
 several ornamental parks lying round their base, — 
 and above and far beyond them, the noble chain of 
 the Westmoreland and Cumberland mountains, whose 
 lofty summits, clothed with light, formed a sublime 
 barrier stretching along the northern horizon ; — 
 such are the principal features of a prospect, which 
 is not the less beautiful because it rises from the 
 level expanse of the sands, and which was to me 
 the more interesting from the novelty of my own 
 situation. 
 
 The Ulverston coach, several gigs, and some persons 
 on horseback, had followed us at a little distance, 
 keeping the track left by the wheels of the vehicle 
 which conveyed the Guide. When Wilkinson left us, 
 
234 LANCASTER SANDS THE CARTER. 
 
 we rode on two or three miles before we came to the 
 channel of the Kent., and there we found a Guide on 
 horseback, who had just forded the river from the 
 opposite side. The Guide stationed here has long 
 gone by the name of the Carter, and it is difficult to 
 say whether the office has been so called from the 
 family in which it has been vested, or the family 
 have assumed their official title as a cognomen ; but 
 it is certain that for many ages the duties of guide 
 over the Lancaster Sands have been performed by a 
 family named Carter, descending from father to son. 
 The present possessor of the office is named James 
 Carter, who has lately succeeded his father. He 
 told me that some persons said the office of guide had 
 been in his family five hundred years, but he did not 
 know how any body could tell that, and all he could 
 say was, that they had held it * for many grand- 
 fathers back, longer than any one knew." The salary 
 was only £10 a year till his father's time, when it was 
 raised to £20 ; yet I should suppose that the office is 
 a rather productive one, as the family have accumu- 
 lated some property. 
 
 The Carter seems a cheerful and pleasant fellow. 
 He wore a rough great-coat and a pair of jack-boots, 
 and was mounted on a good horse, which appeared to 
 have been up to the ribs in the water. When we 
 came to him, he recommended us to wait till the 
 arrival of the coach, which was nearly a mile distant, 
 as the tide would then be gone further out. I asked 
 if there had been any accidents in this place lately, 
 
LANCASTER SANDS THE CARTER. 235 
 
 to which he replied that some boys were drowned two 
 years ago, having attempted to pass when the tide was 
 up, in defiance of warnings ; but that, with that 
 exception, there had not been any accidents for a con- 
 siderable time.* When the coach came up, we took 
 the water in procession, and crossed two channels, in 
 one of which the water was up to the horses' bellies. 
 The coach passed over without the least difficulty, 
 being drawn by fine tall horses. Arrived at the other 
 side, the man of high genealogy received our gratuities, 
 and we rode on, keeping close to a line of rods which 
 have been planted in the sand to indicate the track, 
 and which have remained there for many months. 
 We shortly afterwards met the coach from Ulverston 
 and several other vehicles, and, as we proceeded, the 
 views of the estuary and the distant mountains became 
 still more beautiful and interesting. Three or four 
 miles brought us to Kent's Bank on the Cartmel shore. 
 I infer that the river is not fordable for any long 
 period, as the guide told the servant whom I have 
 mentioned that he must return in an hour if he wished 
 to pass over again that evening. 
 
 The peninsula formed by the Kent and the Leven 
 is three miles over, and, after passing it, I came to the 
 latter river, the Sands of which are of the same 
 breadth, and must be crossed to reach Ulverston. On 
 the right, approaching the Leven, is the beautiful seat 
 
 * Since that time there have been several alarming accidents, 
 and more than once the coach has sunk in the sands, and the passen- 
 gers have narrowly escaped. 
 
236 HOLKER HALL— LEVEN SANDS. 
 
 of the Earl of Burlington (formerly Lord George 
 Cavendish), Holker-hall. It lies at the foot of the 
 Cartmel-fells, and looks upon the river and the oppo- 
 site shore. The house itself is not remarkable, being 
 a plain building in the old English style, but it 
 contains a valuable collection of paintings, which I 
 should have turned aside to see if my time had 
 permitted. The park and grounds are strikingly fine. 
 Behind the house is a grove of lofty forest-trees, 
 whose heads form a dense and almost level mass of 
 the richest foliage. The fells immediately in the rear 
 are covered Avith fir and larch, which, though not very 
 ornamental, always bring to my mind, when seen on 
 the side of a steep hill, pleasing recollections of 
 Alpine scenery. In front of the house, the verdant 
 park slopes gently to the borders of the estuary, and is 
 cropped by herds of deer. 
 
 I here overtook a well-mounted farmer, who was 
 returning from Appleby fair to Ulverston, and we 
 crossed the Sands together. He told me that it is 
 safest to cross the Sands at the spring-tides, as the 
 water is then more completely out, and the force of 
 the tide sweeps the bottom clean from the mud and 
 sediment. The views up the river are fully as pic- 
 turesque and grand, though not quite so extensive, as 
 those at the mouth of the Kent. A bold woody 
 promontory, projecting into the river above the ford, 
 and narrowing it to less than half the breadth, con- 
 stitutes the foreground ; the two ridges of the Cartmel 
 and Ulverston fells, the former clothed with wood 
 
ULVERSTON. 237 
 
 and the latter with verdure, run up inland, and carry 
 the eye back to the mountains round the head of 
 Coniston Water and Windermere ; on the Ulverston 
 shore, below the town, are the grounds of Conishead 
 Priory, which adorn with their rich woods and lawns 
 the gently waving side of the hill ; and the mouth of 
 the Leven opens out to the bay of Morecambe, the 
 shores of which are visible to a great extent. 
 
 At the channel of the Leven we found a guide on 
 horseback, who escorted us over ; the water was 
 scarcely so deep as at the Kent, though this might be 
 owing to the tide being further out. The carriers had 
 just passed over with their carts. As we rode on to 
 Ulverston, my companion told me that he lived in the 
 house formerly occupied by George Fox, the cele- 
 brated founder of the Society of Friends, or Quakers. 
 The house is called Swarth-moor-hall, and the meet- 
 ing-house built by Fox himself for the use of the 
 Friends is near it. The farmer invited me to call 
 upon him, as I expressed a curiosity to see the habita- 
 tion and relics of so original and excellent a character ; 
 and I promised to take Swarth-moor-hall in my way 
 to Furness Abbey the following morning. At the 
 entrance of Ulverston I took leave of my companion, 
 and reached the Sun Inn about eight o'clock. 
 
 Ulverston, popularly pronounced Owston, is a neat, 
 cheerful-looking town, standing upon uneven ground, 
 and not very regularly built, but bearing marks of 
 prosperity, which it enjoys from the combined fruits 
 of commerce, manufactures, mines, and agriculture. 
 
238 ULVERSTON— SWARTH MOOR HALL. 
 
 It may be considered as the capital of Furness — a 
 district which comprehends the whole of Lancashire 
 north of the Sands, except the parish of Cartmel ; or 
 rather Ulverston is the capital of Low Furness, and 
 Hawkshead of High Furness. The country round 
 Ulverston has little beauty, except on the side of 
 Conishead Priory ; the fells which rise above the town 
 are verdant, but have scarcely any wood and no grace- 
 fulness of outline. The want of wood may indeed 
 be generally alleged against the scenery of Furness, 
 though the soil is very fertile. The fells produce 
 great quantities of blue slate ; the lower parts abound 
 in the richest iron ore found in Great Britain, and the 
 mineral treasures of the earth do not here, as in many 
 places, detract from the fertility of the surface. 
 
 In the morning I set out, after breakfast, to see 
 Swarth-moor-hall, Furness Abbey, and Conishead 
 Priory. The first of these places is at the distance 
 of a mile from Ulverston. In approaching it I crossed 
 a narrow dell, shaded by a grove of fine beech-trees, 
 and watered by a murmuring brook. The old hall is 
 overshadowed by two sycamores of large growth ; but 
 its dilapidated condition, the barns and stables by 
 which it is surrounded, and the litter of a farm-yard, 
 give it no very classical air. My friend the farmer 
 welcomed my arrival, and, after he had put up my 
 horse, showed me over every room in the house, from 
 the venerable lumber-room and garret down to the 
 subterranean dairy. His wife was thriftily employed 
 in whitewashing the hall, which is a spacious apart- 
 
SWARTH-MOOR HALL — GEORGE FOX. 239 
 
 merit, with oaken wainscoting, that had once been 
 handsome. I was taken into the study of George 
 Fox, where he reposed and meditated in the intervals 
 of those laborious missions which he undertook to 
 persuade men to make the gospel, in all its simplicity, 
 the standard of their conduct, in opposition to human 
 customs and inventions. The bed-rooms are spacious 
 apartments, and have in former-days been ornamented 
 with carved work, (which George doubtless found 
 there when he succeeded to the wife and mansion of 
 Judge Fell) now so damaged as to be no longer a deco- 
 ration. In one of them is a substantial old bedstead, 
 with carved posts, on which, as I was assured by the 
 farmer, the proto-quaker used to repose, and which 
 any of his followers is permitted to occupy for a 
 night ; but he said not a single Friend had availed 
 himself of the privilege during the four years that he 
 had resided there, — a circumstance the less to be 
 wondered at, as the bed is now customarily tenanted 
 by the servants. On one side of the house is an 
 orchard, which appears at least as old as the building. 
 The hall stands high, and its upper windows, over- 
 looking the trees of the orchard, command an 
 extensive and beautiful prospect. Fox did not reside 
 here more than four years, though he married the 
 widow of Judge Fell in 1669, and lived till 1690. 
 The lady and her daughters were amongst his early 
 converts, during the life-time of the Judge, who 
 himself protected the persecuted quakers. From the 
 hall we went to the meeting-house, which is about a 
 

 240 DALTON FURNESS ABBEY. 
 
 quarter of a mile distant. It is a neat, plain building, 
 in perfect repair, and is still used by the Friends of 
 Ulverston and the neighbourhood for their religious 
 meetings. Over the door is carved in stone — "Ex 
 dono G. F. 1688." A burial-place, surrounded with 
 trees, is attached to the meeting-house. 
 
 Having taken leave of the obliging farmer, I rode 
 on to Dalton, a small, neat, old-fashioned town, with 
 a church of corresponding appearance, and a square 
 tower, the remnant of an ancient castle. This was 
 the capital of Furness when the neighbouring Abbey 
 was in its splendour, but now appears as if not a 
 house had been added to it for centuries. It is sur- 
 rounded by undulating grassy hills, and has a single 
 plantation just in its rear. A mile beyond the town, 
 I turned from the high road into a lane shaded with 
 oaks, running down a narrow valley or glen, called 
 the "glen of deadly nightshade ;" and at the bottom of 
 this glen, under the solemn shade of majestic forest- 
 trees, I came upon the ruins of the famous Abbey of 
 Furness. The first effect would be much more im- 
 posing, if you did not approach through a farm-yard, 
 and by a small manor-house; but beyond them you 
 obtain a full view of the venerable ruin itself, with a 
 grassy area in front, and enclosed on each side by 
 noble groves of the plane, the ash, and the oak. The 
 Abbey, though much shattered and having lost the 
 central tower, is still extensive and magnificent. 
 Lofty walls and arches, clustered columns, and long- 
 drawn aisles, remain; and the fine symmetry and 
 
 - 
 
FURNESS ABBEY. 24] 
 
 noble proportions of the arches contrast most pic- 
 turesquely with the rents and fractures of the pile. 
 The former extent of the building may in some degree 
 be judged of when I state that what remains measures 
 five hundred feet from north to south, and three 
 hundred from east to west. A man whom I found 
 digging for stone in the hill-side, became my cicerone, 
 and took me round first to the southern extremity of 
 the Abbey. Here I saw that the glen made a very 
 sudden bend just below the ruin, which gave it the 
 appearance of a cul de sac, terminating in a concave 
 sweep of the hill, which might have served for the 
 seats of an ancient theatre. I fancied that the situation 
 reconciled opposite advantages, and therein resembled 
 the monastic institution itself. The Abbey lies in a 
 nook apparently so secluded that it might be deemed 
 the utmost corner of the earth ; yet you have only to 
 ascend the hills on either side, which is the work 
 of a few minutes, and you look abroad on the wide 
 world, embracing all the extent of sea and land pros- 
 pect which I have described as visible from the shores 
 of the bay of Morecambe. So the monks came hither 
 professedly to withdraw themselves from worldly 
 vanities, and in solitude, mortification, and austere 
 simplicity to devote themselves to penitence and 
 prayer ; yet they threw up for these purposes a struc- 
 ture whose splendour and vastness mocked the abodes 
 of princes, and where there was every provision for 
 the pleasures of sense. Thus, under the semblance of 
 extreme humility, may pride construct for itself the 
 
 M 
 
242 FURNESS ABBEY. 
 
 haughtiest dwelling-place in the recesses of the human 
 heart ; thus, when men would withdraw farthest 
 from the world, do they often deceitfully leave them- 
 selves the opportunity of peeping abroad on the fields 
 of created good. 
 
 " This Abbey," says Mr. West, " was founded by 
 Stephen Earl of Mortaign and Boulogne, afterwards 
 King of England, A. d. 1127, and was endowed with 
 the lordship of Furness and many royal privileges. It 
 was peopled from the monastery of Savigny in 
 Normandy, and dedicated to St. Mary. In ancient 
 writings it is styled St. Mary's of Furness. The 
 monks were of the order of Savigny, and their dress 
 was gray cloth, but on receiving St. Bernard's form, 
 they changed from gray to white, and became Cister- 
 cians ; and such they remained till the dissolution of 
 the monasteries." The Abbey flourished during four 
 centuries, and held almost entire and unlimited pos- 
 session of this rich and extensive district. In magni- 
 tude it was the second Abbey in England belonging 
 to the Cistercians, and next to Fountain's Abbey in 
 opulence. When the funds for its maintenance were 
 withdrawn on the dissolution of monasteries, not only 
 the monks were dispersed, but the Abbey itself soon 
 became ruinous. It is now the property of the Earl 
 of Burlington, who has recently improved the effect 
 of the ruin by clearing away a great accumulation of 
 rubbish. 
 
 As we entered the Abbey, my cicerone pointed to a 
 plant of the deadly nightshade, from the abundance 
 
FURNESS ABBEY. 243 
 
 of which the valley derives its name. The college and 
 the school-house are the most complete apartments 
 remaining : the former has an arched roof still quite 
 perfect : its tall narrow windows have no arch, but 
 terminate upwards in the shape of a pediment. The 
 school-house is equally perfect, but is smaller and less 
 ornamental. From these apartments we proceeded 
 over a space where scarcely a fragment remains, to 
 the kitchens, and thence to the refectorium, which 
 has been a very spacious hall, with a row of columns 
 in the centre supporting the vaulted roof, and the 
 walls counterarched. A few years since this hall was 
 filled with earth and fragments as high as the capitals 
 of the pillars on the walls ; of course the pillars were 
 concealed, the arches lost their effect, the walls 
 appeared comparatively low, and nothing was known 
 of the row of columns in the centre. The removal of 
 the rubbish has shown what the design and appearance 
 of the hall have been. The proportions of the walls 
 and arches are restored, and the bases of the central 
 row of columns are all found, with considerable frag- 
 ments of the columns themselves, which are placed in 
 their proper situations. The chapter-house, the most 
 sumptuous apartment of the building, is equally 
 a gainer by the operations. The fretted roof, which 
 fell in about the middle of the last century, was 
 supported by six deeply-channeled columns in two 
 rows, considerable fragments of which have been 
 rescued, and piled up in their places. The capitals 
 
 and kev-stones are richly carved, and the arches in the 
 
 m 2 
 
244 FURNESS ABBEY. 
 
 walls are beautifully proportioned. The porch of the 
 chapter-house has been adorned with small marble 
 columns, and at the entrance are Saxon arches with 
 very deep cornices. Two similar arches, but of smaller 
 dimensions, lead from the cloisters to the refectorium. 
 Passing through the cloisters, of which only the skele- 
 ton remains, we entered the church under the great 
 central tower, the lofty arches of which are yet 
 standing. The eastern window is of vast dimensions, 
 and its ornamented frame was anciently filled with 
 painted glass, some of which still exists in the church 
 of Bowness. In the wall at the right of the window 
 are four stalls, with a fretted canopy, where the 
 priests sat at intervals during the service of mass. 
 The church forms the northern side of the building, 
 but one of its walls, and both its rows of pillars, are 
 gone. Their bases, which remain, show that the 
 pillars were alternately round and clustered. Four 
 statues of admirable workmanship, two of marble and 
 two of stone, are shown to the visiter ; one is in chain- 
 armour, two others also in armour, and the fourth is 
 a lady ; they are in the recumbent posture, and have 
 lain upon sepulchral monuments. Near the central 
 tower are three chapels, with pavements of ornamented 
 brick-work, and traces of altars. At the western end 
 of the church is a winding staircase, still perfect, by 
 which I ascended to the top of the building, whence 
 there is an interesting view of the ruin. The best 
 view of the Abbey is from the hill-side opposite the 
 great eastern window, where you see the interior of 
 
VIEW FROM BIRKRIGG. 245 
 
 the church, (through that window), the chapter-house, 
 and indeed the whole pile from north to south, as well 
 as from east to west. The head of Stephen, the 
 founder of the Abbey, and that of Maud his queen, 
 both crowned, are seen on the outside of the eastern 
 window. As I was leaving the Abbey, a party of two 
 ladies and a gentleman arrived for the purpose of 
 sketching, and they could not have had a finer day 
 for the purpose. I could have lingered for hours, had 
 my time permitted, amongst these relics of departed 
 grandeur. 
 
 From the Abbey I returned to Dalton, and, half a 
 mile beyond that place, quitted the Ulverston road, 
 and took the road through Urswick and Bardsea to 
 Conishead Priory. Passing over Birkrigg, an elevated 
 common, I ascended to the top of it, and enjoyed one 
 of the most extensive prospects to be had in this part 
 of the country. The hill looks down upon the Priory 
 Park, and fully commands the grounds of Holker- 
 hall, on the opposite side of the Leven ; indeed, every 
 object which I have mentioned as within my view 
 since leaving Lancaster is here seen in one grand 
 panorama. Not merely is the whole circuit of More- 
 cambe Bay visible, but also the coast of Lancashire as 
 far south as Liverpool, and that of Wales beyond, 
 stretching out into the Irish sea, with the mountain 
 of Snowdon very conspicuous. The Isle of Man is 
 also seen to the west. It was high water, and the 
 bay was brimful, the spring-tide being carried up by a 
 brisk wind; the estuaries which I had crossed the 
 
 a 
 
246 CONISHEAD PRIORY. 
 
 evening before, when the stream was shrunk to a thread 
 amongst the sands, now seemed fit to float a navy. 
 On the land-side, the heath-covered dome of Black 
 Comb was very conspicuous to the west ; and stretch- 
 ing eastward, Scawfell Pikes, Coniston Old Man, 
 Helvellyn, Fairfield, Hill Bell, and a long range of 
 mountains quite round to Ingleborough. 
 
 Descending from this elevation, I came down to 
 Bardsea on the coast of the bay, passed the old hall, 
 and went through the beautiful park to Conishead 
 Priory. Major Braddyll has been seven years re- 
 building his mansion (1828), and it is yet little more 
 than half finished. If completed in the same style, 
 it will be an elegant and splendid residence. It is in 
 the style called the English Gothic, and is built 
 entirely of Bath stone. The gardens are extensive 
 and beautiful, and the conservatory of plants is 
 tastefully constructed ; its rich Gothic windows, with 
 stained glass, and the ivy which covers the front, 
 give it the appearance of a chapel. About half a 
 mile from the house, and hid amongst the woods, is a 
 hermitage, consisting of a " mossy cell" and a chapel : 
 it is considerably more elegant than hermits are wont 
 to construct for themselves. The walks through the 
 grounds are extensive ; and, both from their own 
 beauty and the noble prospects they afford of the bay 
 and the mountains, well deserve to be perambulated 
 by the traveller. 
 
 From these delicious grounds, which West has not 
 improperly designated as " the paradise of Furness," 
 
ULVERSTON TO CONISTON WATER. 247 
 
 I returned to Ulverston. The round I had taken was 
 about eighteen miles, and it gave me and my horse a 
 good relish for dinner. Between five and six I left 
 Ulverston, and had a delightful evening ride of six- 
 teen miles to Coniston Water Head. On the high 
 ground four miles from the former place, just where 
 the Hawkshead and Broughton roads separate, the lake 
 and vale of Coniston open to the view in their whole 
 extent, forming a noble landscape. The lake is six miles 
 long, and its foot is four miles distant. The ground 
 below the foot of the lake is much broken and diversi- 
 fied : the shores of Coniston Water are enriched with 
 wood, and the fells which rise above them are bold 
 without sublimity : but the mountains at the head now 
 stand before you in all their stern grandeur. On the 
 western side of the valley, near its head, the Old Man 
 is seen from the base to the summit ; and, being 
 flanked by Walna Scar on the left, and Wetherlam on 
 the right, he is a not less magnificent object from 
 Coniston Water than Skiddaw is when seen from 
 Derwentwater. Scawfell Pikes, with their cloven 
 summit, are also seen on one side of the Coniston 
 mountains, and Helvellyn and Fairfield on the other, 
 but all considerably in the rear. 
 
 From this place, and descending the hill, I saw 
 some curious effects of cloud and sunshine on the 
 mountains. At first the whole scene was over- 
 shadowed ; then I saw a patch of sunshine on the 
 broad and verdant top of Helvellyn : gradually the 
 sphere of light was enlarged, and the whole of that 
 distant range was illuminated, whilst the Old Man 
 
248 CONISTON WATER. 
 
 and his hard-favoured neighbours stood in the shade. 
 In process of time, a few pencils of rays shot over the 
 side of the Old Man, and gilded one of the highest 
 ridges of Wetherlam. As the clouds gave way before 
 the luminary, his rays, now almost level, streamed 
 over the mountain-top, and wrapped the most promi- 
 nent ridges in an atmosphere of gold and purple, which 
 at once enriched and obscured them. Still further 
 prevailing, the fervid orb at length chased all the 
 clouds from the face of heaven, and looked down in 
 parting splendour upon the lake. Finally, he himself 
 disappeared. Thus — thought I, as I rode up the side 
 of Coniston Water, in the serene stillness and solitude 
 of the hour and place — thus have we seen great men 
 struggling with the clouds of adverse fortune to the 
 last act of life, and only dissipating them to fix the 
 eyes of the world on their glorious exit ! Thus 
 triumphed and died Rockingham, Fox, and Canning ! 
 
 One of the most admirable views of Coniston Water 
 and the surrounding scenery is from its own borders, 
 near the foot, on a hill a quarter of a mile beyond 
 Nibthwaite. The house of Mr. Harrison, Water- 
 park, stands on the left hand, and a wooded promon- 
 tory runs out beyond it into the lake. The meadows 
 round the foot of the lake are of a rich green, and 
 slope down to the brink of the water. The fells on 
 the western side have a waving outline ; they are in 
 part verdant and wooded ; other parts are dark and 
 rocky, yet even those are rendered picturesque by the 
 stripes of green which intersect the shelving rocks and 
 black patches of heath. The road runs along the 
 
CONISTON WATER HEAD. 249 
 
 eastern side of the lake ; and the views continue to 
 improve as you approach the fertile and park-like 
 tract which sweeps round the head of the valley, 
 backed by the savage crags of Yewdale, and the 
 loftier mountains of Coniston. About half-past eight 
 I arrived at Water Head Inn, which is charmingly 
 situated at the edge of the lake, looking down its 
 whole extent.* 
 
 The head of Coniston Water deserves to rank with 
 the finest scenes amongst the Lakes, both in point of 
 beauty and of grandeur. Its broad margin of sloping 
 fields and hanging woods, interspersed with villas and 
 cottages, may vie with the borders of Windermere in 
 richness; and the noble group of mountains which 
 rise behind them, with their awful precipices, give to 
 the scene all the advantage of the most striking relief 
 and contrast. I should, however, strongly recommend 
 a visiter to approach this lake from Ulverston, and 
 not from Ambleside, if that be in his power, as the 
 scenery increases in grandeur all the way from the 
 foot to the head ; but if he can only visit it from the 
 direction of Ambleside, it would scarcely be worth 
 his while to go more than a mile or two down the 
 lake. Lower than that, he would turn his back upon 
 the most sublime features of the landscape, and have 
 before him what was comparatively tame. 
 
 * Near the head of the lake is Tent-lodge, the house of Mrs. 
 Smith. The daughter of this lady, Miss Elizabeth Smith, was a 
 young lady of the most extraordinary talents and attainments, and 
 of exalted piety, who died at an early age : her merit has been 
 recorded in an interesting Memoir, and Wilson has embalmed her 
 memory in his verse. 
 
 M 3 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 RIDE, BY YEWDALE AND TILBERTHWAITE, TO THE HEAD OF 
 
 GREAT LANGDALE ASCENT OF BOWFELL AND SCAWFELL 
 
 PIKES — SUBLIME VIEW FROM THE LATTER DESCENT RIDE 
 
 TO AMBLESIDE. 
 
 I had originally intended to proceed from Coniston 
 Water Head, by Hawkshead and Bowness to Amble- 
 side. When I found myself at the foot of so fine a 
 mountain as the Old Man, I was strongly tempted to 
 ascend it in the morning, before setting out on the 
 easy ride I had planned for the day, as the views 
 from the top of a mountain are to me far more 
 delightful than any to be had in the valleys. But I 
 had long had a hankering after the ascent of Scawfell 
 Pikes, the highest mountain in England, which, 
 from its situation, and the ruggedness of its surface, 
 is rarely ascended. I began therefore to calcu- 
 late whether it was practicable to proceed from 
 Conjiston Water to the head of Great Langdale, go up 
 the mountain from that place, and afterwards ride to 
 Ambleside in the evening. I found by the map 
 that the ascent would be a long one, as Scawfell 
 Pikes lay at a considerable distance from the head 
 of Langdale, and another range of hills appeared to 
 intervene. But I had not the least doubt of being 
 
DELIBERATION ON THE ROUTE. 251 
 
 able to accomplish it, if I should find a person to serve 
 as a guide in climbing the mountain ; which was 
 somewhat doubtful, as I should come down into 
 Langdale by a cross-road just at the head of the 
 valley, where there were only two or three farm- 
 houses. At Coniston Water Head I could find no one 
 who had ever been on Scawfell Pikes, and indeed the 
 natives of this country never ascend a mountain for 
 pleasure ; except, perhaps, on a hunting expedition, 
 when the fox often betakes himself to the tops of the 
 hills, and is followed thither by his eager pursuers. 
 
 The only persons who know the mountainous tracts 
 are the farmers' servants, who have to tend the sheep 
 upon them ; and they know scarcely any thing beyond 
 their own sheep-walk : the next hill-side is to them a 
 terra incognita. Indeed, there is an astonishing igno- 
 rance of the geography of the country amongst the 
 peasantry ; they have no notion of acquiring know- 
 ledge for its own sake, and would spend their lives at the 
 foot of a mountain without asking its name. The 
 only paths which a young fellow is acquainted with 
 are those that lead to his sheep-walk or to the house 
 of his sweetheart. 
 
 Having determined on making the expedition, I 
 breakfasted early, and provided myself with sand- 
 wiches and brandy, as I expected to find no place of 
 refreshment till I arrived at Ambleside in the even- 
 ing. About half-past eight o'clock on a hot and 
 cloudless morning, I left Coniston Water Head, passed 
 through the delightful grounds of Mr. Knott, and found 
 
 % 
 
252 YEWDALE— .TILBERTHWAITE. 
 
 my way through a wood into the valley of Yewdale. 
 This valley is probably so called from a row of yews 
 which there is in the fields, clipped into stiff and 
 odious forms, and which may be many centuries old ; 
 or from a single yew-tree in another part of the 
 valley, which is remarkably tall and beautiful. I 
 passed along under a range of stupendous crags, called 
 Yewdale Crags, whose picturesque horrors were ren- 
 dered almost amiable by the bright illumination of the 
 sun, and the tufts of fresh green which sparingly 
 embossed the face of the precipices. I soon entered 
 the valley of Tilberthwaite, where the fells on either 
 side might be thought one mass of blue slate, from 
 the great number of quarries made in them for its 
 extraction. This material constitutes the riches of the 
 valley, which is otherwise most barren and desolate. 
 At Tilberthwaite I asked my way to Blea-tarn, and 
 was directed to go over a considerable hill to my left, 
 with the assurance that I could not miss my way, as 
 there was " nae ither gate." This assurance is very 
 often given in these parts, and should always be 
 taken with some grains of allowance. It does not 
 mean in the absolute sense that there is no 
 other road, but only that there is none which a man 
 would be fool enough to take — the informant always 
 presuming that a traveller knows more about the 
 roads than is generally the fact. It may be that 
 there is one road to the right and another to the left ; 
 but the peasant, knowing that one of them leads only 
 to a quarry, or to some place far away from where the 
 
LITTLE AND GREAT LANGDALE. 253 
 
 traveller wishes to go., concludes that he cannot pos- 
 sibly take that, and therefore gives him no warning 
 against it. Thus I found it in the present case., and 
 I was obliged sometimes to trust to my own sagacity 
 in choosing my route. The track is steep and rugged, 
 but commands some fine views of the valley, in which 
 the ruggedness of the crags and quarries is relieved 
 by larch-forests of the most vivid green. The road 
 comes down into Little Langdale at a farm called 
 Fell-foot. It may be right to mention, that in 
 inquiring for the farms of Wall End and Style End 
 at the head of Great Langdale, the traveller would do 
 well to ask for Wo End and Steeal End. 
 
 At Fell- foot I entered Westmoreland, and, crossing 
 the valley of Little Langdale, ascended a slack which 
 conducts to Great Langdale. In this slack, between 
 two considerable mountains, faced with tremendous 
 crags, lies Blea-tarn, with a single farm-house near 
 it, and a plantation of fir and larch on each side. 
 I have more fully described this interesting spot and 
 the grand view in descending to Great Langdale, in 
 the Family Tour. (Page 99.) 
 
 I came down to Langdale-head at the farm of Wall 
 End, and, inquiring for a guide to the mountain, I 
 found that all the men had gone out to some distance, 
 to mend the roads. I then rode to another farm a 
 little lower down, where the only person who knew 
 Scawfell Pikes had been lamed the day before in 
 pulling down a wall. As a last resource, I went to 
 Style End, a mile further, and the ultimate habita- 
 
254 ASCENT OF BOWFELL AND SCAWFELL PIKES. 
 
 tion in the valley — exactly at the foot of Bowfell. 
 Here I found a young farmer harrowing potatoes, 
 and, learning that he had often been on Scawfell, I 
 asked him to accompany me. He seemed to have no 
 particular objection, but put what I thought a high 
 price on his services. He was a shrewd bargainer: 
 having ascertained that I could get no one else but 
 himself to go with me, he expressed his earnest wish 
 that I would find another guide, said he would much 
 rather not go, and declared that he was " thrang, varra 
 thrang." As the fellow had the monopoly of the 
 market, he put a monopoly price on his guidance, 
 and such was my need of the commodity, that I was 
 obliged to yield to his terms. After all, I believe he 
 was an honest, hard-working man, and he appeared to 
 maintain his family with decency. Having put my 
 horse in his stable, and got a little bread and milk 
 from a very comely young woman, his wife, I set out 
 with my guide for the mountain. He was well 
 accoutred for the expedition, having on a light jacket, 
 and a stout staff 7 in his hand ; his sheep-dog followed 
 him. I lightened my pockets as much as possible, 
 took off my cravat, and opened my waistcoat ; and 
 thus, with a good stick in my hand, began to climb 
 this formidable hill under a meridian sun. 
 
 The farmer had determined, after some deliberation 
 with himself, to take me to the top of Bowfell, whence 
 he intended to go along the summits of the hills to 
 Scawfell Pikes. I suspected that this would not 
 prove the easiest, if it were even the shortest route ; 
 
SHEEP ON THE MOUNTAINS. 255 
 
 but I acquiesced in his plan, both because I was myself 
 ignorant of the place, and because, if his route were a 
 little longer or more arduous, I should be repaid by 
 having ascended two mountains instead of one. We 
 began our journey in the most deliberate manner, 
 keeping on the ridge which rises immediately from 
 Style End to the very summit of Bowfell. As we 
 proceeded, the sheep-dog was very active in chasing 
 the sheep ; and my guide told me that his master (for 
 he is employed by a gentleman to farm his land at a 
 fixed salary) had not less than five hundred sheep on 
 Bowfell. The whole of the mountain does not belong 
 to him, but he has a great part of it, and his sheep- 
 walk is separated from those of his neighbours by a 
 ravine, a gill, or some such boundary. The great 
 business of the sheep-dog and the farmer's man — for 
 there is no regular shepherd — is to prevent their 
 neighbours' sheep from straying into their pasture. 
 The sheep often go out of bounds, not from ignorance, 
 but " a truant disposition ;" for the moment a dog 
 runs up to a mingled company of muttons, each 
 scampers off with all his might to his own territory. 
 A good sheep-dog knows his master's sheep as well as 
 the shepherd himself,* and will in a very short time 
 scour a large tract of mountain, over crags, bogs, and 
 
 * I am bound to confess that the evidence of a shepherd at Seath ■ 
 waite, in Borrowdale, contradicted that of my Langdale guide on 
 this point ; having told the former that I understood there 
 were dogs which knew their master's sheep, he replied — " They're 
 nobbut (only) thin i' this country, sic dogs asthae." 
 
256 ASCENT OF BOWFELL. 
 
 torrents, yelping aloud his notices to quit, and 
 expelling every intruder. 
 
 When we had been walking an hour, we sat down 
 to contemplate what had already been achieved. We 
 had almost attained the elevation of the pike o' Stickle, 
 and were above the Stake — the mountain-pass which 
 communicates between Langdale and Borrowdale. 
 The Stonethwaite branch of Borrowdale was visible 
 over the pass, and Skiddaw and Saddleback beyond. 
 In the opposite direction, that is, on our right as we 
 looked down Langdale, was the Pike o' Bliscoe, Wry- 
 nose, (which my guide pronounced Rainuz) Wetherlam, 
 and many a ridge of heath-covered fells. In front, on 
 the far horizon, was the not-to-be-mistaken head of 
 Ingleborough. The farmer here complained, like 
 myself, that it was " terrible het; I thought he 
 applied the adjective ''• terrible" appropriately enough, 
 if not grammatically, in this case, but I found that 
 he made as indiscriminate a use of it as the French of 
 their Men; for when I remarked that I had never 
 ascended a mountain on a clearer day, he replied that 
 it was " terrible clear." A quarter of an hour more 
 gave us a view of Windermere, opening out beyond 
 the valley of Langdale, and enabled us to see, over the 
 Stickle Pikes, the whole extent of the Borrowdale 
 and Langdale fells, Helvellyn, Fairfield, and many 
 other hills. Shortly after, we saw the lofty mountains 
 of Grasmoor and Grisedale Pike, to the north. My 
 guide undertook the ascent of the precipitous crags 
 which form the forehead of Bowfell ; and I had no 
 
ASCENT OF SCAWFELL PIKES. 257 
 
 difficulty in following him as he wound amongst them, 
 though, looking at the place from below, I should have 
 thought it madness to attempt scaling them. A 
 stranger, indeed, could not have done it alone without 
 peril. 
 
 At half-past twelve, being an hour and three- 
 quarters after leaving Style End, we found ourselves 
 on the summit of Bowfell. The view was glorious, 
 but the first object we looked for gave us little com- 
 fort. Scawfell Pikes appeared at least as far from us 
 as we were from the valley, and, though we were 
 within two hundred and fifty feet of their elevation, 
 many thousand feet of cruel rocks separated us from 
 them. My guide's theory had been delusive, and it 
 afforded another proof how defective a knowledge 
 these men have of their own immediate neighbourhood. 
 He had at different times tended sheep on Bowfell, 
 Scawfell, and the surrounding hills, but there was a 
 great want of combination in his knowledge : the plans 
 of his sheep-walks lay in his head like separate 
 portions of a dissecting map, which he could not put 
 together. We had to descend many hundred feet, to 
 make a long circuit, and then to re-ascend before 
 reaching the point, an inch short of which I was deter- 
 mined not to rest. Whilst we were climbing the last 
 and steepest part of Bowfell, and had been too much 
 engaged in looking to our safety to observe any thing 
 but the rocks around us, the sky had become com- 
 pletely overcast. My guide now prognosticated rain, 
 but I suspected him of doing so from a wish to return ; 
 
258 ASCENT OP SCAWFELL PIKES. 
 
 I thought it would still hold up, at least till we could 
 reach Scawfell. In the south, there was a small 
 ragged cloud hanging down from the rest over the Bay 
 of Morecambe, and if the wind had changed to that 
 direction, we were very likely to have rain. I held 
 up my handkerchief to see the direction of the wind, 
 but not a breath of air was stirring even at that 
 elevation. Then the farmer talked about thunder : 
 but as I observed that the clouds were still con- 
 siderably higher than the mountain-tops, I slighted his 
 evil auguries. However, no time was to be lost, and, 
 after I had myself taken, and given to him, a taste of 
 brandy, we prosecuted our enterprise. When we 
 reached the top of Bowfell, we had so husbanded our 
 strength, that I was as fresh as when I set out ; but 
 our apprehensions of the rain now made us push on 
 with all our vigour, and our walk over the rocks and 
 hill-tops was a severe effort till we reached the summit 
 of our ambition. At the top of Bowfell Ave passed out 
 of Westmoreland into Cumberland. We had first a 
 long descent, in which we skirted the top of tre- 
 mendous precipices, till we came to the slack called 
 Ash-course, overlooking the head of Eskdale. Here 
 I saw clearly the direction we ought to have taken, 
 and which would have saved us a long ascent 
 and descent. We now went up the east side of 
 Great End, and, passing over the top, again de- 
 scended a considerable distance. From this place 
 to the top of the Pikes, the summits are composed 
 of huge blocks of stone, just painted with the lichens 
 
VIEW FROM SCAWFELL PIKES. 259 
 
 which cleave to their weather-worn surfaces, and, 
 except in one spot, with no other symptom of vege- 
 tation. The last ascent is very steep, but I climbed 
 it with hearty good-will, as it placed me on the 
 highest summit in England. 
 
 Scawfell Pikes command the best view of the 
 mountainous region of Cumberland, Westmoreland, 
 and Lancashire, and perhaps a more extensive range 
 of prospect beyond it than any other hill. Its central 
 situation, as well as its height, give it this advan- 
 tage : it is midway between Skiddaw and Black 
 Comb, and something more than midway betwixt 
 Ullswater and the sea. Nearly all the great valleys 
 branch off from Scawfell and Great Gavel, as Mr. 
 Wordsworth has observed, like the spokes of a wheel 
 from the axle. Here I became cicerone, and the 
 farmer listened whilst I traced over the geography of 
 the district. Looking northward, Sty -head with its 
 tarn lay immediately beneath us, and I saw the spot 
 at the top of the long descent into Wasdale, where 
 George and I last year sat down to admire the sublime 
 mountain on which I now stood. Borrowdale 
 stretched away beyond, but was partly hid by 
 Great End : from Ash-course we had had a view of 
 the whole valley, and of the charming lake of Der- 
 wentwater with its islands. Skiddaw and Saddleback 
 rose beyond, and betwixt the former and Grisedale 
 Pike we saw, over the lake of Bassenthwaite, part of 
 the level country, and faintly discerned Solway Frith ; 
 but the haze prevented us from seeing the Scotch 
 
260 VIEW PROM SCAWFELL PIKES. 
 
 mountains. Turning eastward, we saw Helvellyn and 
 his range, High-street, Hill Bell, and the vast group 
 of mountains which encompass Hawes Water. Lang- 
 dale ran due east, and discharged itself into the vale 
 of Windermere, but was hid from us by Bowfell. 
 The head of Windermere and Esthwaite Water were 
 visible, and the never-failing Ingleborough beyond 
 them. Coniston Old Man, Wetherlam, Wrynose, and 
 all that group, lay to the south-east. Immediately 
 south is the summit of Scawfell, within about sixty 
 feet of the elevation of the Pikes, and separated from 
 them by the great chasm of Mickle Door. The beau- 
 tiful vale of the Esk runs down on the left to the 
 sea, and Donnerdale also conducts the eye to the 
 broad mouth of the Duddon. Morecambe Bay and all 
 the coast of Lancashire are seen due south ; and, had 
 the day been clearer, the Welsh mountains would 
 have appeared in the extreme distance. Turning to 
 the south-west, Black Comb came within view, and 
 the wide expanse of the Irish sea swept round the 
 horizon as far as the north-west, only broken in one 
 part by the hills of the Isle of Man, which appeared 
 over the foot of Wast Water. Deep, deep below us 
 lay the " Den of Wasdale," with its lake : beyond, 
 apparently within arm's length, the rival height of 
 Great Gavel, and, stretching to the left, the ridges of 
 Kirkfell, Yewbarrow, Seatallan, the Hay Cock, and 
 the Pillar, some of which excluded from our view the 
 lake and vale of Ennerdale. Proceeding northward, 
 High Crag and High Stile, which rise over Butter- 
 
DESCENT. 261 
 
 mere, and Grasmoor and Grisedale Pike, on the east 
 of Crummock Water, were proudly conspicuous ; and 
 from Great End we saw the foot of the last-mentioned 
 lake. 
 
 Though the day was now far from being " terrible 
 clear," we saw all these objects with distinctness. 
 The clouds had not lowered since Ave noticed them 
 from Bowfell, and a slight breeze had sprung up in 
 a quarter which dissipated my apprehensions of rain. 
 We sat down under the shelter of the pile of stones 
 erected on the highest Pike, and divided our sand- 
 wiches and brandy. The ascent had been made in 
 three hours and five minutes, and we had lost fully 
 half an hour by crossing Bowfell. Having seen in 
 the progress of our ascent nearly all the objects which 
 were visible from the summit, we did not tarry long 
 to survey the entire panorama. The descent cost us 
 an hour and fifty minutes, though we ran a good part 
 of the way ; but, being exceedingly thirsty, we often 
 stopped to drink at the fresh streamlets. From Ash- 
 course we kept to the left, and descended an easier 
 path to the level of Angle-tarn, which lies at an 
 awful depth beneath the precipitous summit of Bow- 
 fell. The descent into Langdale is by an excessively 
 steep and savage gill, called Rosset gill ; and when we 
 reached the valley, we had to walk about a mile to 
 the farmer's house. The route which we took in our 
 return is that by which we ought to have ascended. 
 The young farmer, though habituated to the moun- 
 tains from his childhood, was nearly as much fatigued 
 
262 
 
 RIDE TO AMBLESIDE. 
 
 as myself by our five hours' walk. My shoes and 
 stockings were soaked with the water of the bogs 
 we had crossed, and when I took them off to dry 
 them, I found that my toes had lost some of their 
 skin, from constant pressure against the shoe in 
 coming down the hills: If my shoes had not been 
 both strong and roomy, I should have suffered much 
 more. The young and pretty wife of the farmer had 
 spied us at a distance, and had prepared for us some 
 eggs boiled as hard as stones, and tea, or rather warm 
 water tinged with a spoonful of tea. Poor as the 
 beverage was, we drank it with eagerness, and I took 
 a couple of glasses of home-brewed beer into the 
 bargain, being fully of the opinion of the blooming 
 matron, that it was " varra dree wark climmin 
 t* fells." 
 
 I could not but reflect on the all-pervading power 
 of commerce, which brings into these deep recesses 
 of the mountains, and to the use of the ignorant 
 peasant, the luxuries of the most distant climes : 
 he comforts himself on the sheep-walk with a 
 soothing quid from Virginia, and is refreshed after 
 his day's labour with an infusion of the plants of 
 China, sweetened by the sugar of the Indies. His 
 rude pepper-box is filled with the produce of Java; 
 the nutmeg of Borneo is a plaything for his children ; 
 and his careful spouse dresses their hurts with the 
 spermaceti of the Antarctic Ocean. 
 
 A ride of about ten miles down the beautiful tract 
 of Langdale, and past the small lake of Elterwater, 
 
RIDE TO AMBLESIDE. 
 
 263 
 
 brought me to Ambleside. The day's journey might 
 be about thirty-two miles, reckoning twelve or thir- 
 teen for the mountain, and nine from Coniston Water 
 to Style End. I was a good deal fatigued, and needed 
 the repose of the following day, which was to me 
 emphatically a Sabbath. 
 
* 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 BOWNESS ESTHWAITE WATER HAWKSHEAD MR. WORDS- 
 WORTH'S, RYDAL MOUNT KESWICK HONISTER CRAG 
 
 WATENDLATH PENRITH CARLISLE THE CASTLE THE 
 
 CATHEDRAL NEIGHBOURING MANSIONS — CONCLUSION. 
 
 Having now described at some length that district 
 of the Lakes which was omitted in our Family Tour, 
 the rest of my Excursion will be very briefly sketched, 
 as it was, with few deviations., over the same ground 
 as I have attempted to describe in the former part of 
 the volume. 
 
 On Monday morning I rose early, and rode along 
 the banks of Windermere to Bowness, where I break- 
 fasted. From Bowness I proceeded over the Ferry to 
 the Lancashire shore, intending to make a circuit by 
 Esthwaite Water and Hawkshead to Ambleside. In 
 descending the hill which separates Windermere from 
 Esthwaite Water, there is a charming view of that 
 small lake and its beautiful valley, and of Bowfell, 
 the Langdale Pikes, and the other mountains amongst 
 which I had been on Saturday. Esthwaite Water, 
 though it has nothing of grandeur, has much lively 
 beauty : the extreme prettiness of the woods and 
 
ESTHWAITE WATER RYDAL MOUNT. 265 
 
 meadows on its borders are refreshing to the eye after 
 the almost cloying richness of Windermere. The 
 lake is about two miles long, and beyond the head of 
 it is a pool which contains a floating island, bearing 
 several considerable trees and shrubs. I was assured 
 by "mine host" of the Red Lion, Hawkshead, that 
 he had seen this island several times floating from 
 one side of the pool to the other, as the wind 
 changed. When I was there, it was close to the 
 eastern shore. 
 
 Hawkshead is an ancient town, beautifully situated 
 on the hill-side half a mile from Esthwaite Water. 
 The walks round it command fine views of the 
 mountains at the head of Windermere, as well as 
 of the Langdale mountains, and interesting excur- 
 sions may be made from it in every direction. My 
 stay here was short, and I returned to Ambleside to 
 dinner. 
 
 In the evening, about five o'clock, I set out for 
 Keswick, being accompanied by a friend from Amble- 
 side, who was kind enough to introduce me at Mr. 
 Wordsworth's, of Rydal Mount. The poet himself 
 was not at home, but we saw some of the family, who 
 gave us an obliging reception. His youngest son 
 accompanied us into the gardens in front of the house, 
 which command two distinct views, each of them 
 amongst the most delicious at the Lakes. The first 
 is from a grassy terrace which looks down upon the 
 woods of Rydal-park, and along the valley of Amble- 
 side to Windermere. From no other point does this 
 
 N 
 
266 RYDAL KESWICK BUTTERMERE. 
 
 valley appear nearly so beautiful. The second view 
 bursts upon you, after passing along a shady walk, 
 i when a door is opened at the extremity. The lake 
 of Rydal, of which you have not hitherto had even a 
 glimpse, and the fine woody valley in which it is 
 embosomed, lie beneath in the most fascinating beauty 
 and the sweetest repose. This lake, with its tufted 
 islands, possesses nearly every attribute of the pic- 
 turesque ; and the suddenness with which it was 
 presented to me, combined with its perfect love- 
 liness and the unearthly stillness of the scene, pro- 
 duced on my mind the effect of a fairy vision. I was 
 informed that the walk which commands this prospect 
 was constructed by Mr. Wordsworth himself and his 
 sons. 
 
 The hour forbad me to linger here, and I rode on 
 through the valleys of Grasmere and Wythburn to 
 Keswick. Here, as well as at Ambleside and Bow- 
 ness, I found a considerable number of visiters, the 
 season having apparently commenced the preceding 
 week. 
 
 From Keswick, on the following day, I rode to 
 Buttermere and Crummock Water, through the Vale 
 of Newlands, and proceeded by Gatesgarth and Honis- 
 ter Crag, over the hawse, into Borrowdale. The 
 passage from Buttermere to Borrowdale was new to 
 me, and I was much impressed by the stupendous 
 crag of Honister, which, though not the highest 
 mountain, is by far the boldest rock in Cumberland. 
 Its total elevation is 1700 feet, and it rises from 
 
HONISTER CRAG BORROWDALE. 267 
 
 Gatesgarth-dale in a single precipice of 1500 feet, 
 imparting to the pass a character of grandeur not 
 equalled by any other in the country. It reminded** 
 me of a pun of Matilda's., who said she supposed the 
 crag was called Honister on account of its perfect 
 uprightness and loftiness of character. The track on 
 both sides of Borrowdale-hawse is excessively rugged 
 and steep. The views from it are, however, noble 
 and interesting. One-horse cars occasionally pass this 
 way, but it must be attended with great fatigue to 
 the horse and danger to the vehicle. 
 
 When I had descended Borrowdale as far as Ros- 
 thwaite, I crossed the hill on my right to see the 
 small lake and vale of Watendlath, one of the most 
 secluded in the country. At Rosthwaite I passed the 
 beck, which was now almost dry, and then began to 
 climb a long, winding, and excessively steep path, 
 which may be ascended by horses, but not by any 
 kind of carriage. The trouble is compensated by the 
 fine views which the hill affords of the upper part of 
 Borrowdale, as far as the village of Seathwaite, of 
 Scawfell Pikes, and Great Gavel, Glaramara, and the 
 awful crags of Stonethwaite. The descent to Wat- 
 endlath is still more rugged than the ascent from 
 Rosthwaite. 
 
 The valley of Watendlath is not deep, but most 
 impressively lonely. On the banks of its small lake, 
 or tarn, are a few cottage-houses of great antiquity, 
 and built of dark stone ; and besides these there is not 
 a habitation within view. The children stare at a 
 
 n 2 
 
268 WATENDLATH KESWICK TO CARLISLE. 
 
 traveller with wonderment, as if they had never 
 before seen a human being out of their own families ; 
 and a troop of terrier dogs, more clamorous than 
 Mustard and Pepper at Charlie's-hope, bark as if a 
 beast of prey were descending into the valley. The 
 stream of Lowdore flows out of the tarn over a tor- 
 turing bed of rocks, and runs two miles down this 
 elevated valley before it forms the cataract of the same 
 name. I followed its course nearly the whole dis- 
 tance, and parted from it on a hill which overlooks 
 the hamlet of Lowdore, where the vale of Watendlath 
 opens out on that of Keswick. Here, as from a 
 raised platform, I had a splendid view of Derwent- 
 water, Skiddaw, and the whole " subjected plain." 
 The road, which is very rugged, descends rapidly by 
 the farm of Ashness, and in the rear of Barrow-house, 
 to the highway round Derwentwater. I reached Kes- 
 wick between six and seven o'clock. 
 
 On Wednesday I rode to Penrith to dinner, and 
 in the evening to Carlisle. On leaving Penrith, I 
 witnessed a fine effect of the partial storms which may 
 often be seen in this country. I followed just in the 
 rear of a thunder-storm, which was passing over 
 Inglewood Forest in the direction of north-west ; and 
 from the hill about a mile from Penrith I saw the 
 country before me obscured with the falling rain, 
 whilst the extensive and beautiful plain behind was 
 perfectly clear. But the most striking contrast was 
 on the mountains to the left. The group of Saddle- 
 back, Skiddaw, and Carrock Fell was shrouded in 
 
CAELISLE. 269 
 
 tempest ; whilst Helvellyn and all the mighty hills 
 round Ullswater, without a vapour hanging near them, 
 appeared brighter in their tints and better defined in 
 their outline than I had ever seen them. When I 
 had proceeded some miles further, another storm 
 gathered on Black-law, the range of hills to my right, 
 which was soon entirely obscured, though the Scotch 
 hills on the northern horizon appeared with perfect 
 distinctness. The rays of the setting sun reddened 
 the clouds which brooded over Black-law, and gave to 
 them such an effect as would be produced by a vast 
 and distant conflagration. 
 
 The entrance of Carlisle is adorned by two magni- 
 ficent circular towers, which in their form and 
 dimensions more nearly resemble the famous tomb of 
 Cecilia Metella, near Rome, used as a fortress in the 
 middle ages, than any other structure that I have 
 seen. They are the county court-houses, and were 
 erected in 1812 on the site of two towers which 
 formerly defended the " English-gate" of Carlisle. 
 I was struck Avith the spacious, handsome, and cleanly 
 streets of this ancient city. It has of late years con- 
 siderably increased in extent, from the effect of its 
 flourishing manufactures. A great part of the city 
 walls have disappeared, but the Castle continues in a 
 defensible condition, and is a fine piece of antiquity. 
 It is supposed to have been the site of a Roman 
 fortress : Egfrid, king of Northumberland, is believed 
 to have erected a castle here in the seventh century, 
 and the massive buttresses of the north battery are 
 
270 CARLISLE CASTLE CATHEDRAL. 
 
 ascribed to William Rufus, who rebuilt the castle of 
 Carlisle, and erected that of Newcastle, " to bridle and 
 render insecure the possession of the Scottish kings 
 in the two northern counties."* The strong central 
 keep is of unknown date. Mary Queen of Scots was 
 imprisoned here for some time after her landing in 
 England, and the rooms she occupied are still shown. 
 The walls command a beautiful view of the fertile 
 country round Carlisle, and of the Eden and the 
 Caldew, which form their confluence near the city. 
 The fine bridge over the Eden, and the race-course, 
 are seen from the castle. The cathedral is a vener- 
 able pile, but inferior in dimensions and magnificence 
 to many of the English cathedrals. Its east window, 
 however, is the largest in the kingdom. The choir 
 part was built in the reigns of Edward III. and 
 Richard II. and is a beautiful specimen of architecture. 
 The edifice was much injured and curtailed of its 
 proportions in the time of the Commonwealth. An 
 abbey was attached to the cathedral, finished by 
 Henry I. and the part called the Fratry still remains. 
 It is a beautiful building, and was honoured as the 
 seat of a parliament in the days of Edward I. 
 
 In the neighbourhood of Carlisle are many ancient 
 castles and mansions, built in the times when the 
 incursions of the Scotch made the frontier residences 
 liable to frequent attack. Rose Castle, the seat of the 
 Bishop of Carlisle, Naworth Castle, the seat of the 
 Earl of Carlisle, Corby Castle, the residence of Henry 
 * Sir Walter Scott's History of Scotland. 
 
CONCLUSION. 271 
 
 Howard, Esq., and the beautiful remains of Lanercost 
 Priory, are well worthy of notice. From Carlisle I 
 returned to Penrith, and rode the same evening 
 through the grounds of Dalemain to Ullswater, and 
 along the borders of that noble lake to Patterdale. 
 The following day a long journey brought me through 
 Ambleside and Kendal, to Lancaster. 
 
 Having been much favoured by the weather, I 
 enjoyed my Excursion highly ; but my days' journeys 
 were perhaps too long, and the rapidity with which 
 I passed through the country would have been very 
 unsatisfactory to a person who had not previously seen 
 it. The mode of travelling, however, is agreeable, 
 and each tourist can regulate his journeys according 
 to his taste, strength, or convenience. He who wishes 
 to see much in little time would accomplish that object 
 by following nearly in my footsteps. 
 
 Note Since my account of the journey over-Sands, from 
 
 Lancaster to Ulverston, was written, the proprietors of the coach 
 have taken it off that route, and it now goes round by Miln- 
 thorpe and Newby-bridge. This change was made owing to 
 the accidents which occurred in crossing the Sands. 
 
FIRST 
 
 EXCURSION ON FOOT. 
 
 INEXHAUSTIBLE ABUNDANCE OF SCENES AND OBJECTS AT THE 
 
 LAKES PEDESTRIAN EXCURSION FROM KENDAL BOWNESS 
 
 TROUTBECK KENTMERE — -ASCENT OF HILL BELL AND 
 
 HIGH STREET LONG SLEDDALE BELATED AMONG THE 
 
 HILLS MARDALE-GREEN HAWES WATER— -LOWTHER 
 
 PENRITH ULLSWATER PATTERDALE KESWICK — SKIDDAW 
 
 DERWE NT WATER WALLOW CRAG WATENDLATH AND 
 
 BORROWDALE GRASMERE LOUGHRIGG AMBLESIDE 
 
 KENDAL. 
 
 The mountainous region of Westmoreland and 
 Cumberland is so extensive, and every part of it so 
 abounds in striking objects and grand or beautiful 
 scenes, that it cannot be exhausted even by the most 
 active and inquisitive traveller. The principal lakes 
 may be seen, and a few of the highest mountains 
 ascended, in a short space of time ; but after this has 
 been accomplished, there remains a vast variety of 
 objects for the admirer of the picturesque, — valleys, 
 mountains, crags, waterfalls, lakes, tarns, and streams, 
 which the adventurous may explore with even greater 
 
KENDAL TO BOWNESS. 273 
 
 pleasure than is derived from the more frequented 
 scenes. A tourist always values himself most for those 
 objects which he has seen exclusively — for what there 
 has been of rare and uncommon in his rambles ; and to 
 entitle himself to this pleasure, he must quit the car- 
 riage and the high road, and leave even his horse 
 behind, whilst he penetrates by rugged paths into the 
 mountain-fastnesses, where he will often be repaid by 
 some " little unsuspected paradise," some view of 
 surpassing grandeur, some interesting trait of charac- 
 ter amongst the retired dalesmen, or some curious 
 legend obtaining among a rude and simple peasantry. 
 
 In the summer of 1829 I set off from Kendal, to 
 ramble through some parts of the Lakes which I had 
 not yet visited. I was accompanied by a young friend, 
 who was now making his first journey to this part of 
 the country, and for whose sake we took a horse, he 
 not being able to bear the fatigue of a pedestrian 
 excursion among the mountains. I accomplished the 
 tour almost entirely on foot, but the saddlebags we 
 took saved me the encumbrance of a knapsack. 
 
 After a streaming morning the weather cleared up 
 about two in the afternoon, and we set out from 
 Kendal to Bowness. The views of the mountains 
 were fine, and we arrived in time for a pleasant excur- 
 sion on Windermere. We visited the Station and 
 Belle Isle, with which my companion was greatly 
 delighted, and which yielded me (though I had seen 
 them so often) undiminished gratification. 
 
 The following morning the weather was coquettish 
 
 n3 
 
274 BOWNESS TO HAWES WATER. 
 
 — smiling and lowering alternately ; yet, after some 
 deliberation, we thought we might safely enter upon 
 the long day's journey we had contemplated. Our 
 design was to skirt the eastern side of the valley of 
 Troutbeck, and, ascending Applethwaite-common, to 
 cross the hill into the valley of Kentmere ; thence to 
 ascend the fine mountains of Hill Bell and High 
 Street, leaving our horse at Kentmere ; to cross after- 
 wards into the valley of Long Sleddale, and to make 
 our way to Mardale Green, at the head of Hawes 
 Water. We found the journey long and rather 
 arduous, but it was so interesting as amply to repay us 
 for the fatigue. 
 
 We took the road to Ambleside till it joined the 
 turnpike-road from Kendal to that town, near Orest- 
 head. Instead of turning into the latter, we kept 
 straight forward up a beautiful lane, which leaves 
 Elleray to the right ; and for three or four miles we 
 continued to ascend along the side of Applethwaite- 
 common, with Hill Bell directly before us, and Trout- 
 beck on our left. In this part the views are delicious 
 and splendid. The whole of Windermere, from 
 Loughrigg to Newby-bridge, lay under our view, an 
 the islands formed a group in the centre, of the most 
 fascinating beauty. In the direction of Low Wood the 
 landscape was rich and varied to the highest degree ; a 
 considerable extent of fertile land, undulating in beau- 
 tiful lines, clothed with green meadows, yellow corn- 
 fields, and woods, and gradually sloping down to the 
 lake, constituted the fore-ground ; Windermere lay in 
 
TROUTBECK. 275 
 
 placid beauty in the mid distance ; and., as the back- 
 ground, Great Langdale stretched up to the heart of 
 the mountains — Bowfell and the Pikes being wrapped 
 in one of those partial storms which often add interest 
 to a summer's prospect. As we proceeded, the valley 
 of Troutbeck came more immediately under our eye : 
 it is not seen from Windermere, owing to its own 
 windings ; the vale is fertile and lively, and the 
 village, which stands on the side of the opposite hill, 
 is picturesquely irregular. A neat whitened chapel 
 stands near the beck, in the midst of the valley. The 
 hill that rises above Troutbeck is Wansfell, along the 
 side of which we traced the road that leads from 
 Troutbeck-bridge to Kirkstone and Patterdale. Hill 
 Bell descends into the valley with one long, steep, 
 and regular slope, and is clad in a coat of lively 
 verdure. 
 
 After a long and patient ascent, we reached nearly 
 the highest part of Applethwaite-common, and, turn- 
 ing sharp to the right by a stone wall, we shortly 
 came in view of Kentmere, a valley which runs 
 parallel with Troutbeck on the eastern side of Hill 
 Bell and High Street. From this part we might 
 easily have ascended Hill Bell, being already half- 
 way up the mountain ; but, not thinking it safe to 
 take the horse on a mountain where we had never 
 been before, we very reluctantly descended a long, 
 steep, and rugged path to the village of Kentmere, 
 in order to leave the animal. Had we not had this 
 encumbrance, we might have greatly abridged the 
 
276 KENTMEKE HILL BELL. 
 
 day's journey, not only by ascending Hill Bell and 
 High Street from Applethwaite Common, but by 
 descending from High Street direct to Mardale 
 Green, at the head of Hawes Water, instead of re- 
 turning to Kentmere. It is indeed practicable to 
 take a horse over this mountain range, which is tra- 
 versed by the ancient road from Kendal to Penrith ; 
 but the attempt would be very unsafe for a person 
 who was not well acquainted with the mountains. 
 
 Kentmere is a pretty valley, containing a small 
 lake, and a castellated house called Kentmere-hall ; 
 but there is nothing very striking in the scenery. We 
 asked and obtained permission to put up our horse at 
 the first farm we came to, and the good woman of 
 the house sent her " lile lad" to show us part of the 
 way up the mountain. We took the bull by the 
 horns, beginning to climb a very steep part of the 
 hill betwixt stupendous crags. When we reached 
 the top of the crags, after half an hour's toil, the lad 
 pointed out to us the course we were to pursue. We 
 were to make straight for the top of the ridge on our 
 left, which led up in a long slope over an inferior 
 summit to the highest point of Hill Bell : having 
 attained that elevation, we were to proceed along 
 the ridge that connects Hill Bell with High Street : 
 from the latter mountain we were to return, 
 sweeping round the head of Kentmere, to Nan-bield, 
 a remarkable gap lying between High Street and 
 Harter-fell, and intersected by a sharp ridge of rocks ; 
 from which place a pathway would bring us past a 
 
ASCENT OF HILL BELL. 277 
 
 slate quarry into the valley, and back to the village 
 of Kentmere. 
 
 What boots it to tell how we toiled patiently — and 
 sometimes impatiently — through the long heath, over 
 bogs and rocks, or up the slippery sward ? It is the 
 old story of the ascent of a high mountain. Suffice it 
 to say, that in two hours after leaving Kentmere, we 
 stood on the green and pointed summit of Hill Bell, 
 at the height of at least two thousand five hundred 
 feet above the level of the sea. My young friend had 
 thought the ascent the most wearisome thing in the 
 world, but the view from the summit repaid all, being 
 beyond comparison the most novel, interesting, and 
 wonderful prospect he had ever beheld. We traced 
 the valleys of Kentmere and Troutbeck through all 
 their windings, and the larger valleys into which they 
 fall, as far as the sea. The town of Kendal and 
 nearly the whole of Windermere were visible, as 
 were the estuaries of the Kent and the Leven, More- 
 cambe Bay, and the hills of Yorkshire and Lanca- 
 shire, even beyond Ingleborough and Pendle-hill. 
 We saw the fells of Cartmel and Furness, Black 
 Comb, Coniston Old Man, Wetherlam, Bowfell, 
 Scawfell Pikes, Great Gavel, Langdale Pikes, Wans- 
 fell, Kirkstone, Scandale, Fairfield, Helvellyn, High 
 Street, Harter-fell, the Shap-fells, and the country be- 
 yond Penrith terminated by Cross-fell. Place-fell, 
 Patterdale, and the upper reach of Ullswater, as well 
 as Hays Water-tarn, under the north-west side of High 
 Street, were also visible. The weather was now 
 
278 ASCENT OF HIGH STREET. 
 
 perfectly clear, and continued so during the re- 
 mainder of the day. 
 
 Whilst enjoying this magnificent prospect, we 
 lunched on the sandwiches and brandy which we 
 had brought with us from Bowness ; and after a short 
 rest, we pursued our walk along the undulating 
 ridge which connects Hill Bell with High Street. 
 We had to descend several hundred feet and to re- 
 ascend twice or thrice, and the distance was very 
 considerable — more than we had calculated upon. 
 On the side of Troutbeck the mountains have a 
 smooth swelling outline, and are clothed with a thick 
 carpet of grass, on which many sheep are fed : but 
 on the side of Kentmere the ridge shelves down 
 abruptly in awful precipices, which have a terrific 
 appearance to a person walking along the top. The 
 head of Kentmere, indeed, is remarkably grand, 
 from the amazing height of the mountain walls which 
 stand round it. Along the side and over the summit 
 of Hill Bell and High Street a green road may be 
 traced, which is believed to be the line of an old 
 Roman road from Kendal to Penrith. That it was 
 a road in use when pack-horses were the chief 
 mode of conveying goods, is certain. This, like many 
 other old roads in England, has been carried over the 
 highest ground, evidently on the jealous principle 
 of disturbed and warlike times, when it would have 
 been unsafe to travel along the valleys, from the 
 liability to be surprised and overpowered by an enemy 
 in possession of the heights. An annual meeting of 
 
SUMMIT OF HIGH STREET. 279 
 
 the shepherds formerly took place on High Street, 
 which is centrally situated betwixt several valleys; 
 they gave each other information concerning the sheep 
 that might have strayed., and the meeting was cheered 
 by a merry-making, when races and other sports took 
 place on the broad summit of the mountain, at an 
 elevation of 2700 feet above the level of the sea. 
 
 When we reached the most elevated part of High 
 Street, we found that it was three hours and a half 
 since we had left Kentmere. From hence Skiddaw and 
 Saddleback, and the Scotch mountains, were visible, 
 in addition to the objects Ave had seen from Hill Bell. 
 Kidsay Pike, we perceived, was joined to High Street, 
 as that mountain was to Hill Bell ; and it appeared 
 to us of greater elevation than either; but neither 
 our time nor our strength permitted us to extend our 
 mountain range, and we made the best of our way to 
 Nan-bield. In proceeding to this point, the lake of 
 Hawes Water for the first time greeted our eyes, 
 and its apparent nearness excited our regret that we 
 had to make so long a detour before we should reach 
 it. A tarn also, called Small water, was seen in a 
 hollow of the mountain under Nan-bield. At the 
 latter place we rested, and ate the remainder of our 
 sandwiches ; after which we descended rapidly into 
 the valley, and walked three miles to the village of 
 Kentmere. The whole walk had cost us six hours ; 
 we were a good deal fatigued, and quite prepared for 
 the plain but hearty dinner that awaited us at the 
 public-house. 
 
280 LONG SLEDDALE. 
 
 Had we been acquainted with the country, our best 
 plan would have been to get a person from Kentmere 
 to take our horse to Nan-bield, whilst we ascended the 
 mountains, to meet us there at an appointed hour, and 
 thence to conduct us down the steep but practicable 
 descent into Mardale. The neglect to do this cost us 
 a round of many miles, and nearly occasioned our 
 being benighted among the hills. It was after seven 
 o'clock in the evening when we set out from Kent- 
 mere to cross the hill into Long Sleddale, a valley 
 running parallel to that of Kentmere, and which 
 seemed by the map to lead without any intervening 
 hill to Mardale at the head of Hawes Water. When 
 we came down into Long Sleddale the shades of 
 evening were coming on, and we therefore pushed on 
 vigorously, scarcely allowing ourselves time to admire 
 the bold and craggy mountains which enclose the vale. 
 We could not, however, but be struck with the vast 
 crags of Crowbarrow on our right, which rear their 
 enormous bulk perpendicularly from the vale. To 
 our surprise we found that the valley ran up among 
 the hills, without the outlet we had expected towards 
 Mardale : and after toiling up a long ascent, we found 
 ourselves on an elevated moor betwixt higher moun- 
 tains, and not knowing which way to pursue. Two 
 slacks appeared to lie before us, but still considerably 
 above, one to the left and the other to the right. My 
 impression was that Mardale lay to the right, but the 
 track we were upon led up the hill to the left. It 
 was now half-past nine, and darkness was coming on ; 
 
BELATED MARDALE GREEN. 281 
 
 we were several miles from any human habitation ; 
 there was little time to deliberate ; we both mounted 
 the horse, and urged him up the narrow and stony 
 pathway, in hopes that we might reach the top of the 
 slack before night had so far advanced as to prevent 
 our seeing Hawes Water. The animal seemed to 
 understand the emergency : he trotted briskly up a 
 rugged ascent, pricking his ears, and snuffing up 
 the wind. At length we reached the top of the slack, 
 (which I afterwards found was called Salset-brow) 
 and the path began to descend : we looked down into 
 a deep and narrow valley, at the head of which 
 gloomy and awful precipices towered to a mountain- 
 height : we could not see Hawes Water, but it was 
 evidently our safest plan to proceed as rapidly as 
 possible along the track, which must certainly conduct 
 us to some habitation, either in Mardale or in another 
 valley. We dismounted and ran down the hill, I 
 leading the horse. We had not descended far, when, 
 to our unspeakable relief and joy, we saw Hawes 
 Water in the valley below us, which assured us that 
 we were in the right road, and were near our place of 
 rest for the night. It was now ten o'clock, and by 
 half-past ten we reached the White Bull at Mardale 
 Green. Mr. Thomas Lambley, the host, had retired 
 to bed, but we roused the family, and obtained supper 
 and comfortable accommodation for the night, both for 
 our good horse and ourselves. 
 
 I have mentioned these particulars as a warning to 
 the future rambler not to judge of the distance he has 
 
282 MARDALE. 
 
 to travel and the difficulties lie has to conquer merely 
 by the map, but always to obtain the fullest informa- 
 tion possible from persons acquainted with the country. 
 I also strongly recommend him never to deviate from 
 the beaten track when he is doubtful of the way. 
 Peat tracks and paths connected with quarries may 
 often appear to him to lead more directly to his desti- 
 nation than the track which he is upon ; but it is 
 always the safest to prosecute the main track, which, 
 though perhaps not wider than the other, is con- 
 structed with greater solidity, being generally formed 
 by a bed of small stones. 
 
 Mardale is a lively, fertile, and beautiful valley, 
 with very few habitations, at the head of Hawes 
 Water, but terminating in utter barrenness and deso- 
 lation at the foot of Harter-fell. It lies between 
 Branstree on the east, and Chapel-hill on the west, 
 and at the upper part the mountains are steep, naked, 
 and craggy — especially Harter-fell, whose stupendous 
 and furrowed precipices frown over the head of the 
 dale. A sharp and barren ridge runs up from Mar- 
 dale to High-street, and has given to a branch of the 
 valley the name of Riggindale ; that mountain and 
 Kidsay Pike are seen from the valley, and in front of 
 the latter, looking upon the head of Hawes Water, 
 is a prominent and lofty rock called Castle Crag. 
 The mountain which rises immediately on the western 
 side of Hawes Water, is Whelter, and at its upper 
 end is a grand mass of rock called Whelter Crag. 
 
HAWES WATER. 283 
 
 We left Mardale Green about noon, and a mile 
 brought us to Hawes Water, a beautiful lake three 
 miles in length and half a mile in width. The 
 western side of the lake has a margin of cultivated 
 fields, the effect of which is lively and beautiful. On 
 the eastern side the hill rises steeply to a considerable 
 elevation, and is covered with herbage, plentifully 
 bestrewn with fine natural wood. Round the head 
 the mountains are sublime and awful. Hawes Water 
 is nearly divided into two lakes by a beautiful pro- 
 montory of cultivated and wooded ground, that shoots 
 into it on the western side near the village of 
 Measandj and opposite this point, on the eastern 
 shore, is a stupendous crag, named Wallow Crag, 
 whose sides are feathered with wood.* The lower 
 part of the lake is rich, graceful, and negligently 
 elegant. One of the branches of the river Lowther 
 flows out of it in a clear and rapid stream, which 
 winds through the valley. 
 
 Below Hawes Water the valley opens out to a 
 considerable width, and quite loses its boldness, but 
 continues highly fertile and beautiful. We proceeded 
 
 * A characteristic legend is connected with this crag : the 
 vulgar believe that the spirit of " Jemmy Lawther," (as they 
 familiarly call the Sir James Lowther who was remarkable for 
 his penuriousness) is imprisoned in the dark womb of the rock ; 
 and I was gravely told by two natives of the valley that when 
 Sir James died he could not roost (rest), — that various incanta- 
 tions were tried by the learned vicar of Bampton to lay his ghost, — 
 that the reverend gentleman was roughly handled by the refractory 
 spirit, — but that at length, having " sent for more books," the 
 vicar fairly succeeded in lodging him in Wallow Crag ! 
 
284 PENRITH ULLSWATER KESWICK. 
 
 forward to Askham, a distance of five miles from 
 Hawes Water ; and having dined at the public-house, 
 we entered the splendid domain of Lowther park. 
 We saw the interior of the castle, and then proceeded 
 through the grounds to Penrith. 
 
 The remainder of this Excursion was over ground 
 which has been already described, though we made 
 several deviations from the former routes. It will 
 only be necessary for me to mention our days' jour- 
 neys, for the guidance of those who may take a similar 
 excursion. From Penrith we went, by Yanwath and 
 Tirrel, to Pooley Bridge, seeing Arthur's Round 
 Table and Mayburg on the Avay. Proceeding by land 
 to Patterdale, we were overtaken by a storm, and 
 were obliged to take refuge and dry our clothes at 
 Lyulph's Tower : we were again drenched in going 
 thence to Patterdale. 
 
 The following day we sent our horse to Lyulph's 
 Tower, whilst we rowed to the same place in a boat ; 
 and the weather being fine, all that glorious scenery 
 was revealed to us, which had been shrouded in clouds 
 the previous evening. We saw Airey Force to great 
 advantage, as the stream had been swelled by the rain. 
 We proceeded to Keswick by Dockwray, and over the 
 elevated moor which lies on the north of the Helvellyn 
 range. The views ascending the hill from Gowbarrow 
 Park to Matterdale, were superb. Our road led us 
 across the valley of Wanthwaite, which is part of the 
 Vale of St. John, and we took the new road to 
 Keswick. A thunder-storm raged over the town 
 
WATENDLATH GRASMERE. 285 
 
 after we had arrived, and the peals were fearfully 
 reverberated from the surrounding mountains. In 
 the evening, when the storm was passing off south- 
 ward, we walked to Friar Crag, the promontory on 
 Derwentwater, whence we saw the distant lightning 
 playing awfully over Scawfell, and heard the thunder 
 mutter and growl among the mountains with a sublime 
 depth of sound. 
 
 From Keswick we ascended Skiddaw on foot, and 
 rowed round Derwentwater, in one day ; we also saw 
 the waterfalls of Barrow and Lowdore, and landed on 
 several of the islands : the weather was clear, and the 
 views extremely fine. 
 
 The next day we went to Watendlath and Borrow- 
 dale. I ascended by Castlerigg to the top of Wallow 
 Crag, and walked along the Derwent fells to the farm 
 of Ashness, where I met my friend, who had ridden 
 on horseback along the high road. The views from 
 Wallow Crag, of Derwentwater and its islands, and of 
 the surrounding valleys and mountains, are most 
 interesting and splendid. We crossed from Watend- 
 lath to Rosthwaite in Borrowdale, and returned by 
 Bowder Stone and Lowdore to Keswick. The same 
 evening we proceeded to Grasmere, I taking advantage 
 of the mail. At the snug and comfortable inn, the 
 Red Lion, we found excellent accommodation and 
 provision, and felt much more at home than we had 
 done in large and crowded inns. 
 
 On the following morning I climbed Helm Crag, 
 which commands very fine and extensive prospects : 
 

 286 RETURN TO KENDAL. 
 
 we then rowed round Grasmere Water, and afterwards 
 took the road over Loughrigg and by Clappersgate 
 to Ambleside. In our way we ascended to the top of 
 Loughrigg-fell, from which, owing to its central 
 situation, there is a splendid panoramic view. 
 
 Stockgill-force, the Rydal waterfalls, and Winder- 
 mere detained us the greater part of a day, and the 
 evening brought us back to Kendal. 
 
 Our excursion had occupied ten days, during which 
 we had travelled about a hundred and sixty miles, 
 ascended three high mountains and several consider- 
 able hills, and seen ten lakes, and five or six of the 
 principal waterfalls. The tour was full of gratification 
 both to myself and to my young companion, and it 
 contributed to our health as much as to our pleasure. 
 
SECOND 
 
 EXCURSION ON FOOT. 
 
 DEPARTURE FROM AMBLESIDE — CITY OF WYTHBURN — CROSS THE 
 THIRLMERE FELLS TO WATENDLATH SUBLIME APPEAR- 
 ANCE OF HELVELLYN UNFAVOURABLE WEATHER WATEND- 
 LATH ; THE HAMLET AND VALLEY LOWDORE KESWICK 
 
 LOSS OF PORTMANTEAU EXCURSION TO BORROWDALE AND 
 
 GREAT GAVEL SPLENDID REFLECTION IN DERWENTWATER 
 
 MR. FISHER, OF SEATOLLER THE WAD MINES ASCENT OF 
 
 GREAT GAVEL VIEW FROM THE SUMMIT RETURN TO 
 
 SEATOLLER AND ROSTHWAITE JOURNEY BY LANGSTRETH 
 
 AND THE STAKE TO LANGDALE PIKES ASCENT OF THE 
 
 PIKES GREAT LANGDALE RETURN TO AMBLESIDE. 
 
 Having made a short pedestrian excursion in the 
 autumn of 1833, I shall sketch such parts of it as 
 have not been comprised in my previous tours. 
 
 I set out from Ambleside in the morning of Satur- 
 day, the 28th of September, with the intention of 
 ascending Rydal-head, passing over the summit of 
 Fairfield to that of Helvellyn, and, after this long 
 mountain ramble, descending into the valley of Wyth- 
 burn near Thrispot, and proceeding to Keswick. The 
 weather prevented the execution of this design. 
 

 288 THE CITY OF WYTHBURN. 
 
 Fairfield was capped with clouds, and I was com- 
 pelled to trudge along the valley amidst rain ; but, 
 as some compensation, the woods of Rydal and the 
 verdure of Grasmere had their brilliancy heightened 
 by the showers. As I climbed the long hill to Dun- 
 mail Raise, the clouds rose and broke, giving me 
 hopes that I might still ascend Helvellyn from Wyth- 
 burn. But the promise was not realized : when I 
 reached the Horse Head, though the rain had ceased 
 and the clouds risen, the sky was too dubious to justify 
 so serious an undertaking. However, that I might 
 not wholly lose the opportunity of tasting the moun- 
 tain air, I resolved to cross the Thirlmere fells to the 
 valley of Watendlath, and thus to make my way to 
 Keswick. I had not before been upon these fells, 
 which are as dark and savage as any in Cumberland ; 
 but, being little more than half the height of Helvel- 
 lyn, I hoped they would continue clear, though the 
 clouds should descend and wrap the loftier hills in 
 their mantle. 
 
 At half-past one I quitted the high road, and passed 
 through that ancient hamlet near the head of Thirl- 
 mere lake, called the City of Wythburn. Whether 
 in any former age, as during the independence of 
 Cumbria, this was the site of a city, — whether the 
 name has been given by some humourist among the 
 statesmen of Wythburn, — or what else may have been 
 the origin of such a designation, — I must leave anti- 
 quarians to explore or to conjecture. At present the 
 City is a little hamlet of rude architecture, and the 
 
ASCENT OF THIRLMERE FELLS. 289 
 
 citizens as unpolished as their habitations. One of 
 them, however, gave me directions how to find my 
 way over the fell. He pointed out a path which took 
 me nearly to the top of the hill, and told me that 
 when I got fairly upon the moor, I should see a ruined 
 stone fence at some distance before me and a little to 
 the right, and that I must aim at that, and proceed 
 keeping it on my right hand. The direction I was to 
 take was, as I knew, an oblique one, holding to the 
 right j that is, I was to go in a north-westerly direc- 
 tion, which would bring me in three or four miles to 
 the secluded valley of Watendlath. I am particular 
 in specifying these directions, as they may be import- 
 ant to others, especially if overtaken by clouds or by 
 evening ; but I strongly recommend no one to cross 
 these fells except in favourable weather and in broad 
 day. 
 
 The ascent of the fell side is what a dalesman 
 would call a strong dim. I took it with all coolness 
 and patience. The less you hurry in such a task, the 
 sooner you seem to yourself to leave the vale below. 
 Cool down your expectations, and just keep moving ; 
 your progress will outstrip your hopes. It is so on a 
 Cumbrian fell, and it is the same in climbing the hill 
 of life : not the impetuous and the eager, whose efforts 
 are sudden and violent, gain the highest elevation, 
 but those who keep quietly and steadily onward, never 
 wandering from the path. The reader must pardon 
 me if I sometimes moralize ; nothing so much allures 
 to moralizing as a solitary ramble on the mountains. 
 
 o 
 

 290 SUBLIME VIEW OP HELVELLYN. 
 
 In half an hour I had a sublime view. I was yet 
 winding up the rugged breast of the hill, but was 
 sufficiently high to see Wythburn below me as on a 
 map. The green valley, and the black (because over- 
 shadowed) mere, had shrunk into a very narrow 
 though lovely string, drawn round the base of the 
 vast and soaring Helvellyn. The road, seen for miles 
 through the valley, was a mere white line, and its ups 
 and downs were reduced almost to nothing. As the 
 objects below diminished, Helvellyn swelled into a 
 mightier and loftier mass. To those who travel along 
 the valley, but a small portion of him is seen at any 
 one time ; and his sides rise so steeply that the eye of 
 the traveller does not reach the receding upper parts 
 of the mountain. I was now just at the proper dis- 
 tance and elevation to comprehend his enormous out- 
 line. However scarred and rugged may be the surface 
 of such a mountain, the general contour is always 
 smooth and flowing. The ravines which so deeply 
 seam the hill are nearly lost in the vastness of a bulk, 
 which spreads along for miles on either hand, and 
 swells upward into an expanse certainly the most 
 sublime presented by any mountain in England. In 
 the lower half of the mountain, which is bestrewn 
 with shale, the grass is very scanty, and the grey pre- 
 dominates over the green ; on the upper half, where 
 the slope is less precipitous, the herbage is thicker, 
 and the green has there the predominance, though 
 here and there cloven by deep slate-coloured ravines, 
 radiating from the summit. 
 
GATHERING OF CLOUDS. 291 
 
 For about three quarters of an hour after I began 
 the ascent, the top of Helvellyn was free from clouds, 
 or only occasionally and partially obscured. But soon 
 I saw reason to rejoice that I had not attempted to 
 grapple with the giant. Vapours gathered upon Seat 
 Sandal, and gradually stole along the sides of Hel- 
 vellyn. At first they were not thick, but by and bye 
 Seat Sandal became gloomy, and substantial clouds, 
 big with rain, rolled streaming over the surface of 
 Helvellyn, at little more than half the elevation of 
 the mountain — the top still continuing visible. Though 
 this afforded an unpleasing indication, I could not but 
 admire the view of Helvellyn, round whose breast the 
 clouds sailed, not much more considerable, when 
 compared with this " monarch of mountains," than so 
 many cock-boats or canoes paddling round the hull of 
 a first-rate man of war. For some time he had merely 
 a zone of clouds, with a thin vaporous veil drawn over 
 his head, almost as transparent as gauze ; but the 
 clouds continually increased in size and density, till 
 they wholly shrouded him from view. 
 
 The reader will believe that my eyes, though often 
 attracted to the opposite mountain, not less frequently 
 turned in the direction of Steel-fell, the higher part 
 of the hill I was myself ascending, and which lay to 
 my left, that is, to windward. The clouds were 
 already lower on Helvellyn than the top of the 
 Thirlmere fells ; and though sometimes the clouds 
 embrace and cling to the larger masses of hills, and 
 leave the smaller ones without a visit, yet I could 
 
 o 2 
 
292 BAD WEATHER ON THE FELLS. 
 
 scarcely hope that this would long be the case to-day, 
 as the wind Avas southerly and very moist. I had now 
 lost sight of Wythburn, from having passed over the 
 brow of the hill which overlooks the valley, and had 
 got upon the heath- covered, boggy, and rocky moor 
 that lies between that valley and Watendlath. But I 
 had by no means attained the highest part which I 
 had to cross ; so that when the clouds began to tip the 
 fell on my left, my coolness and sentimentalizing soon 
 left me, and I knew it was my business to push on as 
 fast as my legs could carry me, in order to get a peep 
 at Watendlath ere the clouds descended. The rain 
 began to fall smartly : the clouds lowered, but happily 
 not fast. I had seen the old ruined wall which the 
 good citizen of Wythburn directed me to look for, and 
 at length I reached it, after tasting of several bogs, 
 though I kept as much as possible along the rocky 
 ridges which cross the moor. To be in a hurry among 
 the long heath, bogs, and rocks, is no enviable thing. 
 I startled the meagre, black-faced sheep, which bounced 
 off for some distance, and then stood and stared at me 
 as I leaped and splashed along. I had kept my shirt 
 dry in ascending out of Wythburn, but now it became 
 almost as wet as my stockings. It would not have 
 been prudent to spare myself till I had got over the 
 crown of the fell, and seen my way down into a 
 habitable region. 
 
 At three o'clock, an hour and a half after leaving 
 the City, I came in view of the hills beyond Borrow- 
 dale. In a few minutes more I had the high gratifi- 
 
WATENDLATH. 293 
 
 cation to obtain a view down the valley of Watendlath, 
 at the embouchure of which I saw the lovely lake of 
 Derwentwater ; and immediately after, just beneath 
 me, the little tarn-like water of Watendlath came into 
 view. The clouds were now gathering fast at my 
 heels : in fact they chased me down the hill, the de- 
 scent of which was by no means easy, owing to its 
 steepness and slipperiness. The rain fell in torrents. 
 and made the path — for I had again come to a sheep- 
 track — excessively unpleasant. This, however, I felt 
 to be nothing, as the danger of being surrounded by 
 clouds on the fell was altogether past. 
 
 It was half-past three when I reached the hamlet of 
 Watendlath, and I went into the first house to ex- 
 change a few words with the inhabitants. They asked 
 me if I had met two gentlemen on the fell, whom they 
 had a little while before set on their way to Wythburn. 
 When I told them I had not, they expressed some 
 fears lest the travellers should have missed their way, 
 and should be caught in the clouds, which now rested 
 on the whole fell. I never heard whether this was 
 the case or not, but I have no doubt that the travellers 
 ultimately got either to Wythburn or back to Watend- 
 lath. The houses here are rude, dark, dirty, and 
 comfortless. Uneven floors, old crazy furniture, and 
 patched windows, — a lump of peat just smoking in 
 the hearth, as an apology for a fire, — the women 
 habited in coarse woollen garments and wooden clogs, 
 — the men in tattered fustian, — an antique spinning 
 wheel in one corner, on which the old woman spins 
 
294 WATENDLATH. 
 
 yarn for their stockings., from the locks of wool picked 
 up by herself and the children on the hill-side, and 
 carded at Keswick, — the men and women hard-favour- 
 ed, cold-looking, and unintelligent, as might be ex- 
 pected from the drudgery in which they spend their 
 lives in this inhospitable, out-of-the-world place ; — all 
 form a picture very much the reverse of what poets 
 love to feign concerning the abodes of shepherds and 
 shepherdesses, and little suited for the theme of any 
 muse except that of Crabbe. 
 
 As there is no place of refreshment at Watendlath, 
 I pursued my way down the valley to Lowdore, two 
 miles distant. Having just come off the misty moor, 
 I was exceedingly struck with the beauty of the 
 scenery about a mile down the valley. On the right, 
 the green hill-side is besprinkled with trees of delici- 
 ous foliage, and the vivid green and brown tints are 
 contrasted with the silver grey of the rocks : on the 
 left, stupendous precipices rise from the valley to the 
 Borrowdale fells. The atmosphere was rendered only 
 more transparent by the aqueous vapour it contained ; 
 and the gloom of the shrouded hills heightened by 
 contrast the freshness, the lively colours, and the 
 variegated beauty of this upland vale, which Nature 
 has decked in her own inimitable way. 
 
 A mile and a half below Watendlath, before coming 
 to the farm of Ashness, I turned off the road to the 
 left, crossed a wooden bridge over the stream, and 
 descended by a steep winding path into the plain of 
 the Derwent, to the hamlet of High Lowdore. There 
 
LOWDORE KESWICK. 295 
 
 are few prospects more striking than that obtained 
 from the elevation above the cataract, looking towards 
 Derwentwater. The foot of the lake and its islands 
 are seen through a chasm formed by two lofty rocks, 
 one of them called Shepherd's Crag and the other 
 Gowder Crag, — the former perfectly bare, and the 
 latter made shaggy with natural wood. The distant 
 lake is all softness, elegance, and repose : the crags 
 are wild and savage. I could not help comparing the 
 scene to two hideous giants, keeping guard over sleep- 
 ing beauty. It is betwixt these crags that the stream 
 makes its awful leap, forming the fall of Lowdore. 
 I went to see the cascade, now swelled by the heavy 
 rain, and the quantity of water was greater than at 
 any former visit. 
 
 Having obtained some refreshment at the inn, I 
 walked on to Keswick, where I arrived at six o'clock, 
 wetted from top to toe. The reader will judge of my 
 satisfaction on hearing that my portmanteau, which 
 contained all my clothes except those on my back, 
 instead of having been left by the coach at Keswick, 
 had been taken on to Whitehaven, whence it could 
 not be obtained till the Monday ! If an occurrence of 
 this kind is not included in the " Miseries of Human 
 Life," I recommend it to the consideration of the 
 author in preparing a new edition. Moreover, as a 
 supplement, he may add that no dry clothes were to 
 be obtained but those of a gentleman twice as corpu- 
 lent as myself; and that in order to go out on the 
 Sunday, I was obliged to put on my own shoes, which, 
 
296 REFLECTION IN DERWENTWATER. 
 
 not having lost the memory of the bogs, gave me a 
 sore throat. 
 
 From Saturday to Tuesday, Skiddaw wore his 
 cloudy hood, and the greater part of the time an 
 ample cape, which descended so low as to be quite 
 fashionable.* On Monday I walked to Buttermere 
 and back, through the vale of Newlands ; on Tuesday 
 I lay by, to cure my throat : and on Wednesday I 
 formed one of a party to ascend Skiddaw. Old Neddy 
 Birkett, an ex-guide, and Joe Brown, one of the pre- 
 sent guides, spent part of an evening with me. We 
 fought a good many battles o'er again, and as Birkett 
 is now eighty-six years of age, he could tell of some 
 long and hard campaigns, without at all drawing 
 upon his invention. 
 
 Thursday was a glorious morning, and I set off 
 for Borrowdale, having marked out the ascent of Great 
 Gavel for that day's work, and the ascent of Langdale 
 Pikes for the following day. When passing under 
 Falcon Crag, about half way up the lake, one of the 
 richest and loveliest pictures ever seen or dreamed 
 of presented itself. The lofty and steep slope of 
 Catbells, decked in all those hues with which October 
 invests the hills, rich brown and lemon colour, mingled 
 with green, and streaked here and there like a dove's 
 neck from the effect of slate and metallic ore, was 
 illuminated by a brilliant morning sun ; and the 
 
 * Nota bene : This will not apply to the next season, as the 
 milliners will no doubt speedily retrench the ladies' capes, to cut 
 out fresh work for themselves. 
 
REFLECTION IN DEKWENTWATEE. 297 
 
 whole hill-side was reflected from the mirror of Der- 
 wentwater without a wrinkle. The inverted image 
 was actually brighter than the hill itself, as it received 
 a lustre from the glassy surface on which it was 
 painted.* As I proceeded towards Barrow-house, the 
 richly wooded islands, with their mellow autumnal 
 foliage, the beautiful vale of Newlands, the em- 
 browned ridge of Swinside, the plantations of Der- 
 went-bay and Derwent-bank, the black horn of 
 Causey Pike, and finally the whole mass of Skiddaw 
 with his azure peaks, were successively, and at 
 length all together seen reflected from the sur- 
 face of the lake, — the most glorious and inimitable 
 picture I ever witnessed. If the reader can imagine 
 a sheet, not of canvas, but of crystal, three miles 
 in extent, painted with the warm tones of Cuyp, 
 and with the exquisite finish and softness of Gerard 
 Dow or Carlo Dolci, he may imagine something which 
 would be but a rude mockery of this heavenly-tinted 
 and divinely penciled landscape. I knew not how 
 to leave it. 
 
 Borrowdale, which I had never before seen in Octo- 
 ber, was now in its perfection of beauty, from the 
 rich variety of hues which the trees and the hills 
 
 * Though any comparison of Nature's work with Man's must to * 
 a certain degree be derogatory, it may convey a more exact impres- 
 sion of the effect if I say, that the only difference between the ap- 
 pearance of the hill-side itself and the reflection in the water was 
 that which exists between a painting when unvarnished, and the 
 same painting softly and delicately varnished. 
 
 o 3 
 
I 298 SEATOLLER MR. FISHER. 
 
 assume at this season. The splendour of the weather 
 made my walk through such scenery delightful. I 
 halted at Rosthwaite merely to bespeak a bed for the 
 night, and then proceeded to Seatoller. 
 
 I had not previously had the pleasure of an acquaint- 
 ance with the family of Mr. Fisher, the principal 
 statesman of Borrowdale : but as we had common 
 friends, and as I knew well the character of Seatoller 
 for old English hospitality, I took the liberty to call and 
 introduce myself. The kindness of my reception 
 more than answered my expectations. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Fisher and their sons knew my name, and were fami- 
 liar with my rambles among their native mountains. 
 They pressed me to stay dinner, which was at the 
 good old-fashioned hour of half-past twelve ; and 
 though it is quite contrary to rule to dine before 
 ascending a mountain, yet for the sake of enjoying 
 their company a little longer, I accepted the invitation. 
 As we were dining, the company was swelled by the 
 arrival of two young ladies and a young gentleman, 
 the son and daughters of an estimable clergyman 
 residing at Buttermere, who had come with their 
 ponies over Borrowdale-hawse to see their friends at 
 Seatoller. Their reception was as kind as possible. 
 
 After dinner one of Mr. Fisher's sons was so 
 obliging as to accompany me to the Wad Mines, and 
 he would have gone with me on to Great Gavel if a 
 particular engagement had not prevented. However 
 it was arranged that I should take tea at Seatoller on 
 my return. 
 
THE WAD MINES. 299 
 
 The celebrated Wad Mines, where the useful mine- 
 ral called plumbago or black lead is found, are 
 situated at a considerable elevation on the ridge called 
 Gillercoom, connected with Seatoller-fell, and over- 
 looking the valley of Seathwaite. In walking along 
 the foot of the hill before we began to climb, we 
 saw several fine yew trees, one of which is of mag- 
 nificent growth ; its trunk measures twenty seven 
 feet in girth, and, though centuries must have passed 
 over its head, it is still in undecayed strength and 
 beauty. 
 
 The ascent to the Wad Mines is steep, and we 
 were obliged to take it very slowly, lest we should 
 heat ourselves, and make it dangerous to enter the 
 cold subterraneous passages of the mine. We found 
 at the entrance the son of Mr. Dixon, the steward, 
 who accompanied us into one of the levels conducting 
 to an old working, and also into a new working higher 
 up the hill, where a plentiful supply of the mineral 
 had lately been discovered. The earth in the level 
 is of a red colour, as our shoes and trowsers sufficiently 
 testified on our return out of the wet and cold gallery. 
 This level is two hundred and twenty yards in length, 
 and we penetrated to the extremity, each carrying a 
 candle ; but there is little here to repay the trouble 
 and unpleasantness, as the workings are abandoned. 
 
 At the new working higher up the hill, we descended 
 by ladders about four yards, and then went along a 
 short level, to the part where the miners are employed. 
 The sides of the mine are covered with shining black 
 
300 THE WAD MINES. 
 
 mineral, and the workmen detach it from the rock or 
 earth in which it is embedded ; other workmen cut or 
 scrape off any portion of stone which may adhere to it, 
 after which the lead is ready for the market. It is 
 sawn into the form proper for pencils, by the manu- 
 facturers in London and Keswick. The lead in this 
 new working is not of good quality. The purer the 
 mineral is, the lighter it weighs ; when mixed with 
 stony or earthy particles, it is of course gritty, and 
 its specific gravity is increased. Few lumps of the 
 mineral that I saw were more than three or four 
 inches long. The rock in which the mineral is found 
 is grey wacke, but a soft black earth surrounds the 
 lead in the parts where the miners were then working. 
 The black lead does not lie in veins, so as to admit of 
 its being easily traced, and the supply calculated, but 
 in sops or bellies, ramified like a tree, and surrounded 
 with hard rock, so that it is often lost, and the miners 
 penetrate the hill at hazard in search of a new supply. 
 Before this sop was discovered, the lead had been lost 
 for some time, and the miners had tried before in the 
 same part of the hill without hitting upon the mineral. 
 Mr. Green informs us that " this lead is a source of 
 almost incredible wealth to the owners of the mines: up- 
 wards of twenty-eight tons have been procured from one 
 of these bellies, of a quality worth from thirty to forty 
 shillings a pound, besides a great quantity of an in- 
 ferior sort." Mexican black-lead, however, is now 
 superseding English for most purposes except making 
 the finest pencils : the quality of the Mexican is con- 
 
ASCENT OP GREAT GAVEL. 301 
 
 siderably inferior, but its price is not more than a 
 hundredth part that of the Borrowdale lead. One half of 
 the property of the mines belongs to Henry Bankes, Esq. 
 formerly member for Dorsetshire, and the other half 
 to a company in London. These mines have been 
 known from an ancient date. They are mentioned by 
 Camden, who wrote nearly two centuries and a half 
 ago ; and before his time the shepherds used the 
 mineral for marking their sheep. They afford the 
 best black-lead in the world, and the proprietors 
 sell it at a monopoly, that is, at an arbitrary price. 
 This mineral is used not only for making pencils, 
 but for polishing iron, in the composition of cruci- 
 bles, and in making an anti-attrition paste to prevent 
 the friction of machinery. 
 
 After leaving the Wad Mines, Mr. Fisher ascended 
 to the top of the ridge with me, in order to point 
 out the best way to Great Gavel, and at three 
 o'clock in the afternoon I left him on my expedition. 
 Following his directions I kept up an elevated valley, 
 leaving the valley of Seathwaite on my left hand, 
 and excluded from my view by a high ridge. I soon 
 came to one of those large piles of stones and broken 
 crags, called fox-bields, from the foxes making their 
 holes amongst them. Passing this, I kept along the 
 right side of the valley, and climbed the hill at a green 
 slack, where the ascent was the most gentle. When 
 I had got upon the ridge, where the valley of Enner- 
 dale and its high mountains came into view, I turned 
 to the left, and in a quarter of an hour more I gained 
 
302 ASCENT OF GREAT GAVEL. 
 
 the summit of Green Gavel, where the loftier summit 
 of Great Gavel rose in frowning and fearful majesty 
 before me. It is a few hundred feet higher than Green 
 Gavel, but from the latter you see the sheer descent 
 of Great Gavel from the summit down into the head 
 of Ennerdale, and the sight of those precipices is 
 awful. Nor is it very consoling to look down into the 
 deep ravine which separates the two mountains from 
 each other, and to the almost perpendicular ascent 
 which must be climbed on the other side to reach the 
 top of Great Gavel. When Mr. Fisher told me after- 
 wards that he had often run across this ravine, which 
 is filled with sharp stones, barefoot, and carrying his 
 shoes and stockings in his hand, in order that he might 
 the more quickly pursue the fox into his mountain 
 retreats, I thought this was a kind of fox-hunting 
 which would appal the best Yorkshire and Leices- 
 tershire Nimrods. 
 
 The view from Green Gavel is superb, but I did 
 not long pause to enjoy it. I went down into the 
 ravine, and climbed up a scarcely perceptible track on 
 the steep and rocky hill-side beyond, keeping to the 
 left, — an ascent which it would hardly be prudent for 
 a person who has not a tolerably good head to attempt. 
 At half past four, that is, in an hour and a half after 
 leaving the Wad Mines, I found myself on the pointed 
 summit of Great Gavel, at an elevation of 2925 feet 
 above the level of the sea. 
 
 The whole region of the lakes lay beneath my 
 view, though most of the lakes themselves, and the 
 
VIEW FROM GREAT GAVEL. 303 
 
 more beautiful parts of the valleys., were shut out from 
 my sight by the swelling ridges which run off from 
 Scawfell Pikes and Great Gavel like radii from their 
 centre. The sun was rather too near his setting, 
 and a slight degree of haziness prevented me from 
 distinctly perceiving the sea. The tarns and little 
 sheets of water on the black mountains betvvixt me 
 and the sun, glittered like diamonds. Every con- 
 siderable hill from Black Comb to Solway frith, and 
 from the sea to Shap fells, was distinctly visible. 
 Nearest to Gavel, and separated from it by what 
 seems a narrow space, Scawfell Pikes, with their 
 lofty Man, girt with the most awful precipices, and 
 separated from Scawfell by the deep chasm of Mickle 
 Door, have a truly sublime effect. Wast Water was 
 visible from the summit, but I had to walk a few 
 yards in order to see Wasdale-head, whose green strip, 
 with its few houses and enclosures mapped upon it, and 
 shut in between enormous hills, had a singularly 
 beautiful effect. Betwixt Seatallan and the Pillar, 
 the Hay. Cock swells to an enormous bulk, little 
 corresponding with its name. The lonely valley of 
 Ennerdale, with the almost inaccessible heights of 
 the Pillar and other steep mountains rising above it, 
 runs off from the base of Gavel itself: but the lake 
 of Ennerdale, which I had seen from Green Gavel, 
 was not visible from the higher summit. Nearly the 
 whole of Crummock Water, with the beautiful valley 
 at its foot, was visible; but only a small angle of 
 Buttermere lake appeared over the top of the Hay 
 
304 GREAT GAVEL. 
 
 Stacks. Borrowdale and the valley of Watendlath 
 lay open to view ; and Latrigg, Wallow Crag, and 
 Grange fell were conspicuous, but Derwentwater lay 
 hid behind the hills. The vast ranges of Grassmoor, 
 Skiddaw, and Helvellyn were the giant features of 
 the prospect on the north and east. Langdale Pikes 
 and the head of Windermere appeared to the left of 
 Bowfell, and, much nearer, Sprinkling-tarn lay deep 
 beneath the crags of Great End. The Calder, the 
 Irt, the Nite, and the Esk were seen issuing out of 
 their respective valleys westward, and meandering 
 through the plain to the sea. To specify all the 
 mountains visible from this elevated spot, would be to 
 name nearly every mountain in Cumberland and 
 Westmoreland. 
 
 At the top of Great Gavel is a small triangular hole 
 in a rock, containing about a gallon of water ; and 
 though it is supplied only by the rain, yet so slow 
 is the evaporation at this height that the reservoir has 
 never been known to be dry, except (as I was 
 informed by Mr. Fisher) on one occasion, when Mr. 
 Tyson, of Wasdale-head, saw his fox-hounds lap up 
 the whole contents. The water of this cloud-supplied 
 well served to dilute the stronger liquid I had brought 
 with me. 
 
 I remained on the summit an hour, which was as 
 long as I durst stay ; for, it being then half-past five, 
 the sun was within a few minutes of setting, and he 
 and I had a hard race. Happily the side of Great 
 Gavel towards Sty-head, by which I descended, is 
 
SEATOLLER — ROSTHWAITE. 305 
 
 so soft, (except just on the top) and of such a regular 
 descent;, that I was able to run the whole way down 
 to Sty-head tarn : I therefore accomplished a descent 
 of nearly 1700 feet in nineteen minutes. Keeping up 
 a quick pace over Sty-head, and down the steep side 
 of the hill to the head of Borrowdale, I reached 
 Stockley-bridge, above Seathwaite, forty-two minutes 
 after leaving the summit. About two miles and a half 
 down the valley brought me to the hospitable roof of 
 Seatoller, where I arrived at a quarter to seven 
 o'clock, not before dark. 
 
 Seatoller unquestionably furnishes the finest bread 
 and the sweetest honey I ever ate : and I am sure I 
 took enough of both with my tea to enable me to 
 form an opinion. The honey is of that kind called 
 heath honey, the bees which produce it feeding on 
 the heath-flowers : it is of a darker colour and a much 
 finer flavour than the honey produced by bees which 
 feed on garden flowers ; and the two kinds are made 
 within a short distance of each other, as, for example, 
 the heath-honey at Ashness, above Lowdore, and the 
 other honey at Barrow, at the foot of the same hill. 
 Holm-honey, which is that produced in the level 
 country, is inferior to both. 
 
 After spending some time with the family of Mr. 
 Fisher, and receiving from them the truest hospitality 
 and kindness, I took my leave ; but one of the sons 
 walked with me to the village of Rosthwaite, where 
 I spent the night. 
 
 On the following (Friday) morning, I set out a few 
 
306 STONETHWAITE LANGSTRETH. 
 
 minutes after eight o'clock, to cross the Stake and 
 Langdale Pikes into Great Langdale, and thence to 
 Ambleside. The sun had risen in splendour, but the 
 clouds gradually lowered so as to cap the highest 
 hills ; and though the day passed over without rain, 
 the clouds continued to rest on all the hills above two 
 thousand feet in height, with occasional fluctuations 
 from the effect of the wind. Leaving Borrowdale 
 chapel on my right, I went through the village 
 and up the valley of Stonethwaite ; and having at the 
 village been put into the most convenient path, (which 
 should be inquired for,) I passed through a wood and 
 over some rocks into a valley which runs due south- 
 ward, called Langstreth. The views in this part are 
 of the richest picturesque, from the combination of 
 towering hills and crags, with woods, streams, and 
 branching valleys. Eagle Crag is a stupendous pile 
 of rock, soaring above the separation of the Langstreth 
 and Greenup valleys. 
 
 Above Borrowdale Chapel, the wide valley or small 
 plain of Borrowdale branches off into three, having 
 some rude resemblance to the forks of a trident, — the 
 Seathwaite branch being that to the right, the Greenup 
 branch to the left, and the Langstreth branch in the 
 centre, but much nearer the left than the right. 
 The two latter join about a mile above Stonethwaite. 
 Through the valley of Greenup and over the fells, 
 travellers may pass into Easdale and Grasmere ; 
 through Langstreth, and over the Stake, into Lang- 
 dale. I turned into Langstreth, leaving Eagle Crag 
 
 
LANGSTRETH THE STAKE. 307 
 
 immediately on my left, and, crossing the bridge, kept 
 up the left side of the valley, along a faintly marked 
 path, for nearly three miles. On entering Langstreth, 
 all cultivation ceases, and not a single habitation is to 
 be seen : yet the valley, though most impressively 
 lonely, has not a gloomy character, as there is herbage 
 in the bottom and on the sides of the hills, sparingly 
 besprinkled with fine yew trees, of graceful form, and 
 whose dark green foliage is of incomparable richness. 
 
 Something more than a mile above the bridge is 
 a large detached rock, bearing a striking resemblance 
 to a ruined tower : it appears from a distance to be 
 covered with ivy, but when you approach, you 
 perceive that it has a covering of ling or heath, 
 whence it is called the Lingy Stone ; it has also the 
 names of Black Cap and Hanging Stone. Above 
 this rock, on the left, rises the magnificent crag 
 called Sergeant Crag, on the same ridge with 
 Eagle Crag. The path goes immediately beneath 
 Lingy Stone. At the head of the valley is the dark 
 and lofty mass of Bowfell, but the clouds rested upon 
 it, so as to prevent me from seeing the summit. 
 
 Three miles from the entrance, the valley makes a 
 gentle curve to the right, and at this place a 
 mountain streamlet comes dashing down the hill on 
 the left hand, joining the main stream, (which flows 
 from beneath Bowfell,) at a wash-fold, that is, a fold 
 where the sheep undergo the operation of washing. 
 This is the commencement of the pass called the 
 Stake. A zigzag path leads up the hill to the left, 
 
308 THE STAKE LANGDALE PIKES. 
 
 besides the gill or stream which I have mentioned, 
 and which tumbles over great masses of slate rock, so 
 as to make a succession of falls. The mountain-ash, 
 whose leaves had now turned scarlet and crimson, and 
 the graceful birch, overhang the gill. 
 
 At a quarter past ten, two hours after leaving 
 Rosthwaite, I reached the top of the hill, though not 
 quite the highest part of the Stake, and Pike o' 
 Stickle came into view. I proceeded on the path as 
 far as a small pile of stones, which is exactly at the 
 crown of the pass, and which marks the division of 
 Cumberland and Westmoreland. On one side of this 
 boundary the water flows down into Langdale, and 
 on the other into Langstreth and Borrowdale. Here, 
 according to the directions I had received, I quitted 
 the path, and went over a boggy moor in an oblique 
 direction to the left, aiming directly at the Pike o' 
 Stickle. It caused some apprehension to perceive that 
 the clouds occasionally tipped the Pike in their 
 passage ; but as they again cleared off, and as on the 
 best observation I could make they were not just at that 
 time lowering, I determined to persevere. Yet I 
 thought it prudent to notice, as closely as I could, the 
 course of the gills, so that if the clouds should come 
 down on the mountain, I might by following the water 
 retrace my steps to the Stake. Again and again both 
 Harrison Stickle and Pike o' Stickle were capped for 
 a little while, but the wind carried off the clouds, so 
 that I pressed on, and exactly at eleven o'clock I stood 
 upon the pointed summit of Pike o' Stickle. 
 
LANGDALE PIKES. 309 
 
 The view down into Langdale is enough to make a 
 person of good nerves tremble, though the top of the 
 Pike is not so sharp a point as it seems from a 
 distance. However I only stayed here a few moments. 
 Harrison Stickle, which rises on the other side of a 
 little elevated plain, and is four hundred feet higher 
 than the Stickle Pike, smoked as though he was on 
 fire ; and I could not with entire complacency find 
 my head just touching the clouds, on a hill top of 
 which I knew almost nothing, except that on two sides 
 it was surrounded with frightful precipices. I there- 
 fore made all the haste I could to reach Harrison 
 Stickle, which was still occasionally clear, and in 
 twenty-five minutes more I sat down on his sublime 
 throne. The view was not only transcendantly grand, 
 but, from the clouds struggling with the sunshine on 
 the elevated ranges of hills, it was of a most peculiar 
 character. The tops of the high mountains, as Hel- 
 vellyn, Fairfield, and Bowfell, were cut off by the 
 clouds ; but immediately beneath the stratum of 
 vapour, through occasional openings, there poured in 
 floods of sun-beams, which illuminated large portions 
 of the mountains ; and as the wind carried about the 
 clouds, there was a continual shifting of light and 
 shadow in vast masses, alternately revealing and 
 shrouding hills and crags, like a phantasmagoria. It 
 was a scene at once fascinating and wonderful. 
 Whilst on Harrison Stickle the clouds were several 
 times far beneath me, but they were so transparent, 
 that I could see Windermere and most other distant 
 
310 LANGDALE PIKES. 
 
 objects through them. At a fearful depth beneath the 
 summit lies the Stickle-tarn on one side., with the 
 stupendous precipices of Pavey Ark skirting it, and 
 at the other side the more awful depth of Great 
 Langdale. 
 
 The view from the Pikes is very extensive. 
 That fine sheet, the head of Windermere, Esthwaite 
 Water in its whole extent, Blea-tarn, Elterwater, 
 a small part of Rydal Water, Loughrigg-tarn, Stickle- 
 tarn, the river Leven running to the Bay of More- 
 cambe, that extensive Bay itself, and the stream of 
 the Brathay serpentizing through the whole length of 
 Great Langdale, — such are the forms of water that 
 are visible. The mountain-view is even more im- 
 posing than from a higher elevation, because you 
 have the advantage of seeing the fine outlines of the 
 highest mountains rising above you, instead of looking 
 down upon every other, as is the case from Scawfell 
 Pikes. The noble masses of Bowfell, Scawfell Pikes, 
 and Great Gavel were unfortunately hidden on this 
 occasion : but all that splendid range on the east, 
 from Ingleborough southward, by the Sedbergh fells, 
 the Shap fells, Hill Bell, High Street, Scandale, 
 Fairfield, and Helvellyn, quite to Saddleback in the 
 north, were seen, with the exception of the highest 
 points of Helvellyn and Fairfield. Here I saw below 
 me, as in Langstreth I had seen above me, a falcon 
 making his sublime circles in the mid-air, keenly 
 watching for prey, but I did not chance to see him 
 stoop. The height of Harrison Stickle above the sea 
 
GIMMER CRAG STICKLE TARN. 311 
 
 is 2400 feet, but his form is at least as bold as that of 
 any other mountain in these counties. 
 
 Betwixt Pike o' Stickle and Harrison Stickle 
 rises a third peak, called Gimmer Crag, high enough 
 to hide Pike o 5 Stickle from spectators in many 
 situations eastward, and bearing a considerable resem- 
 blance in its pointed form to that Pike. All the three 
 summits are seen from Low Wood and the entrance 
 to Great Langdale : but near Elterwater, and also at 
 Rayrigg-bank on Windermere, only Harrison Stickle 
 and Gimmer Crag are visible, — Pike o' Stickle being 
 further back than either, and hid by the intervention 
 of Gimmer Crag. The Stickle Pike is seen to the 
 greatest advantage from Langdale-head, where it 
 looks like a pillar of the skies ; it is also distinctly 
 seen from Skiddaw : but from all points eastward, 
 owing to its situation, its elevation appears less than 
 it really is. 
 
 After remaining about ten minutes on Harrison 
 Stickle, as the clouds still occasionally gathered and 
 lowered, so as partly to hide the valley from me, I 
 thought it expedient to descend. The descent to the 
 tarn is exceedingly steep, and the precipices on either 
 hand are terrific. Leaving Stickle tarn (famous for its 
 excellent trout,) on my left hand, I followed the 
 course of the stream which issues from it ; the 
 descent into Great Langdale requires caution and 
 patience, as the hill is not only steep, but its 
 surface is very hard and slippery. At a quarter 
 before one o'clock, I reached Millbeck, in the valley, 
 seven miles from Ambleside. 
 
312 CONCLUSION. 
 
 At Chapel Style, two miles further down the 
 valley, I made a dinner of eggs, cheese, oat-cake, 
 and butter ; and I received, moreover, a severe 
 scolding from the landlady of the public-house, for 
 going on the fells in such weather, and so late in 
 the season. " You'll never be cured till you're 
 lost," she said, " and then you'll learn :" and she 
 told me of several persons who had been enveloped 
 in clouds on the fells, and had narrowly escaped 
 with their lives. There was as much real kindness 
 as plainness of speech in the good lady ; and as it 
 was then too late for me to profit by her advice, 
 seeing that my tour was at an end, I record it for 
 the benefit of all adventurously disposed travellers 
 who may honour these pages with a perusal. 
 
 About four o'clock I re-entered Ambleside, — having 
 in the last three days ascended three high mountains, 
 Skiddaw, Great Gavel, and the Langdale Pikes, and 
 passed through some of the most magnificent valleys 
 in the district of the Lakes. 
 
 
 THE END. 
 
AN 
 
 ITINERARY OF THE LAKES, 
 
 INCLUDING 
 A DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF THE TOWNS AND VILLAGES, 
 
 noblemen's AND gentlemen's SEATS, MOUNTAINS, 
 
 LAKES, WATERFALLS, AND OTHER OBJECTS WORTHY 
 OF NOTICE: FOR THE INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE 
 OF TOURISTS. 
 
 Made from actual Survey, and corrected to 1834. 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Page- Miles. 
 
 314 Lancaster to Kendal, by Kirkby Lonsdale 30 
 
 317 Lancaster to Kendal, by Milnthorpe 21- 
 
 318 Lancaster to Kendal, by Burton 21- 
 
 319 Lancaster to Ulverston, over Sands 21 
 
 322 Ulverston to Hawkshead, by Coniston Water Head 19 
 
 323 Ulverston to Bowness, by Newby-bridge 17 
 
 324 Hawkshead to Ambleside 5 
 
 324 Hawkshead to Bowness 6 
 
 325 Kendal to Ambleside, by Bowness 15 
 
 327 Kendal to Ambleside 13l 
 
 327 The Langdale Excursion from Ambleside 18 
 
 328 Ambleside to Keswick \qX 
 
 331 Keswick to Borrowdale, and round Derwentwater 12 
 
 332 Keswick to Borrowdale and Buttermere 23 
 
 333 Keswick to Wasdale and Calder-bridge 27 
 
 335 Calder-bridge to Buttermere and Keswick 29 
 
 336 Keswick round Bassenthwaite Water 18 
 
 336 Whitehaven to Keswick 27 
 
 338 Workington to Keswick 21 
 
 339 Keswick to Penrith 17A 
 
 341 Excursions to Ullswater and Hawes Water 
 
 344 Penrith to Carlisle 18 
 
 346 Penrith to Kendal 26 
 
 P 
 
314 ITINERARY. 
 
 LANCASTER to KENDAL, by Kirkby Lonsdale, 30 miles. 
 
 From Lancaster, j From Lancaster. 
 
 Miles. Miles. ! Miles. Miles. 
 
 5 Caton 5 
 
 2 Claughton 7 
 
 2 Hornby 9 
 
 2 Melling 11 
 
 2 Tunstall 13 
 
 2 Burrow 15 
 
 2 Kirkby Lonsdale 17 
 
 13 Kendal 30 
 
 LANCASTER, the capital of the county palatine of Lancas- 
 ter, is an ancient town, very finely situated on a hill rising abruptly 
 from the river Lune, which falls into the bay of Morecambe at the 
 distance of seven miles. On the summit of the hill is the castle, a 
 majestic structure, originally built by Roger de Poictou, in the 11th 
 century, and re-edified by John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, in 
 the 14th. It has been repaired and greatly enlarged in modern 
 times, and now serves as the county gaol ; it is one of the most 
 secure and best regulated prisons in the kingdom. The Assizes 
 are held in the castle, and the Nisi Prius Court is a spacious and 
 beautiful Gothic hall. The parish church of St. Mary's, an 
 ancient structure with a lofty tower, stands on the castle-hill ; it 
 consists of a nave and two side-aisles, and contains some curious 
 monuments and specimens of antiquity. There are several other 
 episcopal and dissenting places of worship in the town. The 
 principal public buildings are, the town-hall, in the Market-place ; 
 the custom-house, on St. George's Quay ; the assembly room, and 
 the theatre. The County Lunatic Asylum, on Lancaster Moor, a 
 mile to the east of the town, is a handsome building, capable of 
 accommodating 300 patients : it is near the race-course. The 
 workhouse is in a commanding situation on the Lancaster side of 
 the same hill. The foreign commerce of Lancaster, though very 
 considerable thirty years since, is now much circumscribed, hav- 
 ing been injured by the competition of Liverpool. The naviga- 
 tion of the Lune is difficult at neap tides, in consequence of the 
 sand-banks ; and the larger ships generally unload at Glasson Dock, 
 distant five miles from the town. Lancaster is connected with the 
 principal towns of the county by a canal ninety miles in length, 
 which is carried over the Lune, a mile from the town, by a 
 magnificent aqueduct of five arches, erected by the late Mr. Ren- 
 nie. In consequence of the recent communication made between 
 this canal and Glasson Dock, and of the erection of large ware- 
 houses at the latter place for the reception of grain and other com- 
 modities, a great part of the Irish trade of Kendal and Preston, 
 as well as of Lancaster, is now carried on through Glasson and the 
 canal, and the trade is annually increasing. Packet boats of a new 
 construction, very long, narrow, and flat-bottomed, are drawn on 
 these canals by horses at the rate of eight or nine miles an hour, 
 and form a cheap and pleasant mode of travelling. A steam- 
 packet passes weekly, and frequently twice a week, between Lan- 
 
ITINERARY. 315 
 
 caster and Liverpool, and conveys both passengers and goods ; 
 but it is irregular in the days of departure. The principal manu- 
 factures are, mahogany furniture, cordage, sail cloth, cotton goods, 
 candles, hats, &c. The new bridge is a fine structure of five arches. 
 There is a salmon-fishery in the Lune, which has of late years 
 been much less productive than formerly. Lancaster is incor- 
 porated under a mayor, aldermen, &c, and sends two represen- 
 tatives to parliament. It is a great thoroughfare, and has numer- 
 ous stage-coaches. Population 12,613; market-days, Wednesday 
 and Saturday ; inns, King's Arms and Royal Oak. 
 
 *** To Liverpool 53 m. ; to Manchester 53 m. ; to Preston 
 22 m. ; to Kirkby Lonsdale 15 and 17 m. ; to Kendal 22 m. ; to 
 Carlisle 66 m. ; to Ulverston 21 m. ; to London 239 m. 
 
 The following seats are near the town, in addition to those men- 
 tioned on the northern roads: — S. of the town, Springfield, Henry 
 Hargreaves, Esq. ; 1 m. Aldcliffe-hall, Edward Dawson, Esq. ; 
 2 m. Stodday-lodge, Henry Borron Fielding, Esq. ; 3 m. Ashton- 
 hall, the Duke of Hamilton ; 4 m. Thurnham-hall, John Dalton, 
 Esq. ; 5 m. the Lawnd, James Clarke, Esq. ; 5^ m. Ellel-hall, 
 unoccupied. E. of the town, 7 m. Wyerside, late John Fenton 
 Cawthorne, Esq. N. E. 2^ m. Halton-hall, Robert F. 
 
 Bradshaw, Esq. ; 4 m. Halton-park, Thomas H. Bateman, Esq. 
 W. 3 m. Poulton-hall, Anthony Eidsforth, Esq. 
 
 Caton, l|m. before, and 3^ m. from Lancaster, is an extremely 
 fine view, from a field above the road, of the beautiful and fertile 
 vale of the Lune, with Ingleborough towering over its head. 2 m. 
 before, on the r. Quernmore-park, Mrs. Gibson ; entering, on the 
 r. Grass-yard-hall, Thomas Edmondson, Esq. ; on the 1. Miss 
 Barrow. 
 
 Claughton, the ancient hall, on the r. of the village, is now 
 inhabited by a farmer. ^ m. before, on the r. West End, Samuel 
 Still, Esq. 
 
 Hornby, on an eminence on the r. Hornby-castle, the heirs of 
 John Marsden, Esq. : part of the castle is ancient, and formerly- 
 belonged to the Barons Monteagle : on the 1. Hornby-hall, John 
 Murray, Esq. 
 
 MeUing, on the r. Melling-hall, Wm. Gillison Bell, Esq. : 
 beyond, on the r. Crow Trees, Reginald Remmington, Esq., 1 m. 
 on the r. Wennington-hall, Misses Salisbury. 
 
 TunstaU, ^ m. before, on the r. Thurland-castle, Richard Toul- 
 min North, Esq. 1 m. before, on the r. Cantsfield-house, Richard 
 Tatham, Esq. 
 
 Burrow, on the r. Burrow-hall, Mrs. Smith ; I B. on the 1. 
 beyond the Lune, Whittington-hall, Thomas Greene, Esq. M.P. ; 
 1 m. beyond, on the r. Summerfield, Trotter Tatham, Esq. 
 
 p 2 
 

 316 ITINERARY. 
 
 ^ a mile from Kirkby Lonsdale, cross the Lune, and enter West- 
 moreland. 
 
 KIRKBY LONSDALE, a small neat town, beautifully situated 
 on the west bank of the Lune. The church-yard is celebrated for 
 the fine views it affords of the valley. The bridge over the Lune 
 is very old, and is an admirable structure, though inconveniently 
 narrow : it is lofty, and has three arches beautifully ribbed. The 
 mills are singularly situated, on the side of a steep bank, and 
 one above the other, so as to receive in turns the fall of water from 
 a brook which is conveyed through the town : seven wheels are 
 turned by the water in its descent into the valley. Population 1686 ; 
 market-day, Thursday ; inns, Rose and Crown, Green Dragon. 
 
 *** To Kendal 13m.; to Lancaster 15 and 17m.; to Settle 17 
 m. ; to London 252 m. 
 
 1 m. on the r. Casterton-hall, Wm. Wilson Carus Wilson, Esq. ; 
 ^ m. on the 1. Underley-park, Alexander Nowell, Esq. ; on the 
 r. entering, Lune-field, Mrs. Carus ; 3 m. up the Lune, Rig- 
 maden-park, Christopher Wilson, Esq. 
 
 KENDAL, or Kirkby in Kendal, is a neat and flourishing 
 town, the largest in Westmoreland, standing on the banks of the 
 river Kent. It is situated in a very agreeable valley, beneath a 
 lofty scar or cliff, which rises over the west side of the town. On 
 the opposite side of the river are the remains of the ancient castle, 
 situated on a considerable elevation, and commanding a beautiful 
 prospect -. the castle formerly belonged to the family of Parr, and 
 Catherine, the last Queen of Henry VIII. was born there. On 
 the western side of the town is an artificial mound, called Castlelaw- 
 hill, on which the inhabitants, in 1788, erected an obelisk to 
 commemorate the glorious revolution of 1688. The church is a 
 spacious Gothic structure, and has three chapels, memorials of the 
 ancient dignity of three neighbouring families, the Bellinghams, 
 Stricklands, and Parrs. There are several other places of wor- 
 ship in the town. Besides the public buildings of long standing, 
 are recently erected the White-hall, in Lowther-street, a large 
 handsome building : a handsome structure, situate in Highgate, 
 for the purpose of carrying oji the concerns of the Westmoreland 
 Joint Stock Bank ; and near Abbot-hall gates, an imposing build- 
 ing in the Gothic style, for the residence of a limited number of 
 spinsters. Kendal has long been famous for a manufacture of 
 coarse woollens, called Kendal cottons, linseys, serges, druggets, 
 hats, leather, and especially of knit worsted stockings. " The 
 manufacture of these articles has, however, of late years greatly 
 declined, and they have been succeeded by finer manufactures, 
 principally of fancy waistcoatings. The trade of the town is 
 facilitated by its canal communication with the principal rivers 
 
ITINERARY. 
 
 317 
 
 and towns of Lancashire, Yorkshire, and the centre and south of 
 England. It is a great thoroughfare to the north, and most of 
 the visiters to the Lakes pass through the town. Kendal is a 
 corporate town, governed by a mayor, 12 aldermen, and 20 
 capital burgesses. It received the right of sending one member to 
 Parliament under the Reform Act, and its first member was James 
 Brougham, Esq., on whose death John Barham, Esq., was 
 elected. Population (including the township of Kirkland) 1 1,753 ; 
 market-day, Saturday; inns, King's Arms, Commercial Inn. 
 
 *** To Lancaster 22 m. ; to Kirkby Lonsdale 13 m. ; to 
 Newby-bridge 12 m. over Cartmel-fell, and 17 m. by Levens- 
 bridge and the New Road ; to Bowness 9 m. ; to Hawkshead 
 13m.; to Ambleside 13| m. ; to Penrith, 26 m. ; to Appleby 23 
 m. ; to Ulverston 20 m. over Cartmel-fell, and 27 m. by Levens- 
 bridge and the New Road ; to London 261 m. 
 
 1 m. before on the 1. Helme-lodge, Wm. Dilworth Crewdson, 
 Esq. ; Watts-field, William Walker, Esq. ; ^ m. before, on the 
 1. Collin-field, Anthony Yeats, Esq. ; entering on the r. Abbot- 
 hall, Edward Wilson, Esq. ; 1 m. on the Penrith road, Mint- 
 house, Isaac Metcalf, Esq. ; 4 m. N.E. Shaw-end, Arthur Shep- 
 herd, Esq.; 5m. N.E. Mosedale-hall, James Thompson, Esq.; 
 6 m. N.E. Holme Park, Rev. T. Airey; on the r. going out on 
 the Ambleside road, Green-bank, Benj. Atkinson, Esq. ; 2 m. on 
 that road, on the r. Tolson-hall, John Bateman, Esq. ; 1 m. E. 
 Park-side, R. Benson, Esq. ; Birklands, Edward Wakefield, Esq. 
 
 LANCASTER to KENDAL, by Milnthorpe, 21^ m. 
 
 From Lancaster. 
 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 i Beetham 12^- 
 
 From Lancaster. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 2| Slyne 2j 
 
 1 J Bolton-le- Sands 4 
 
 l| Milnthorpe 13§ 
 
 lj Heversham 15 
 
 1^- Levens-bridge 16i 
 
 lj Sizergh 18 
 
 3| Kendal 21| 
 
 2 Carnforth 6 
 
 2 Junction of the Miln- ^ 
 thorpe and Burton > 8 
 
 roads 3 
 
 4 Hale 12 
 
 On leaving Lancaster cross the Lune, and a mile from the town 
 cross the Lancaster canal. 
 
 1 m. from Lancaster, on the 1. Lune-villa, Robert Gawthrop, 
 Esq. ; lj m. on the 1. Cross-hill, Richard Clark, Esq. ; H m. 
 on the r. Beaumont-hall ; a little further on the r. Beaumont- 
 castle, Rev. R. Gibson ; Hest-bank lodge, Mrs. Salisbury. 
 Slyne, on the r. Slyne-house, R. Green Bradley, Esq. 
 
 Bolton-le- Sands ; before and beyond the village, very fine view 
 are obtained of the bay of Morecambe and the mountains of 
 Westmoreland and Cumberland. 
 
318 
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 Dcjnald Mill Hole, 2 m. to the r. of Carnforth is the 
 remarkable cave, called Dunald Mill Hole, into which a con- 
 siderable brook sinks by several cascades, and runs under 
 ground till it rises again at Carnforth. Visiters may descend 
 into the cave, and follow the course of the stream for several 
 hundred feet; the remarkable rocks of the cave, the fantastic 
 masses and stalactites pendant from the roof, and the roar of 
 the waters in their rocky channel, render this place highly in- 
 teresting. 
 
 Carnforth, 2 miles beyond, on the r. is Borwick-hall, partly in 
 a ruinous state ; 2| miles on the right, Caponwray, Colonel Marton ; 
 2^ miles beyond, on the left, Hyning-nall, John Bolden, Esq. ; 
 3 miles beyond, on the left, Leighton-hall, Richard Gillow, Esq. ; 
 3^ miles beyond, on the left, Morecambe-lodge, John Ford, Esq. 
 ] mile beyond, cross the Keer. 
 
 Hale, 1 mile before, enter Westmoreland ; 1 mile on the right, 
 Elmsfield, William Cotton, Esq. 
 
 JBeetham, \ mile before, on the left, Beetham-hall ; Beetham- 
 house, William Hutton, Esq. 
 
 MILNTHORPE, a small market-town, on the estuary of the 
 Kent ; it is the only seaport in Westmoreland, and has trade to 
 Liverpool, Glasgow, &e. Population (with Heversham) 1509 ; 
 market-day, Friday ; inn, Cross Keys. 
 
 *** To Burton 4 \ miles; to Newby-bridge 14 miles; to Ulvers- 
 ton 22 miles ; to Bowness 14 miles, (3 miles nearer than by 
 Kendal); to Kendal 7^ miles; to London 253 miles. 
 
 Half mile to the left, Dallam Tower, George Wilson, Esq. 
 
 Heversham, on the r. Plumtree-hall, Wilson, Esq. 
 
 Levens-bridge ; cross the Kent ; the roads to Bowness, Newby- 
 bridge, and Ulverston, turn oif to the left. There is a beautiful 
 walk from the bridge, through Levens-park, and by the shaded 
 banks of the Kent, to Kendal, 5^ m. On the left, Levens-hall, 
 the Hon. Fulk Greville Howard ; 1^ mile beyond, on the left, 
 Eaves-lodge, James Gandy, Jun. Esq. 
 
 Sizergh ; on the left, Sizergh-hall, Thomas Strickland, Esq. ; 
 on the right, across the river, Sedgwick-house, J. Wakefield, Esq. 
 Kendal, see p. 316. 
 
 LANCASTER to KENDAL, by Burton, 2lf m. 
 
 Miles. 
 
 From Lancaster. 
 Miles. 
 
 lOf Burton 10J 
 
 4f Crooklands 15^ 
 
 i End Moor 16 
 
 Miles. 
 
 From Lancaster. 
 Miles. 
 
 2| Barrow's Green 18| 
 
 2l£ 
 
 3 Kendal 
 
 8 miles from Lancaster, leave the Milnthorpe-road to the left, 
 (see p. 317.) 
 
ITINERARY. 
 
 319 
 
 BURTON, a small market-town in Westmoreland J m. 
 beyond the Lancashire boundary ; population 733 : market-day, 
 Tuesday : inns, King's Arms, Royal Oak. 
 
 *** To Kendal 11m.; to Kirkby Lonsdale 6^ m, ; to Miln- 
 thorpe, 4| m. 
 
 1^ m. before, on the 1. Buxton-house, Mrs. Burrow ; 1 m. ou 
 the r. entering, Dalton-hall, Edmund Hornby, Esq, ; on the r. 
 Burton-house, Mrs. Atkinson, the Vicarage, Rev. Byran 
 Waller ; on the r. going out, Church-bank, John Williams, Esq. ; 
 Curwen Woods, Thomas Collon, Esq. 
 
 End Moor, i m. before, on the 1. Old-hall, — — Vincent, Esq. 
 
 Kendal, see p. 316. 
 
 LANCASTER to ULVERSTON, over Sands, 21 m. 
 
 From Lancaster. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 3^ Hest Bank 3i 
 
 J Lancaster Sands 3 J 
 
 9 Kent's Bank 12§ 
 
 1 Lower Allithwaite 13 J 
 
 Miles. 
 
 From Lancaster. 
 Miles. 
 
 1| Flookburgh 15 
 
 | Cark 15| 
 
 ^ Leven Sands 16 
 
 5 Ulverston 21 
 
 2^ m. from Lancaster, turn off the Milnthorpe-road on the left. 
 
 Hest Sank, a bathing place, agreeably situated on More- 
 cambe-bay. 
 
 Lancaster Sands. At the ebb of the tide, the shores of 
 Morecambe-bay are left dry to the extent of several miles from 
 land ; and, the sands being very firm, it is common to pass 
 over them in going from Lancaster to Ulverston, as this route 
 is 15 miles shorter than that by Milnthorpe and Newby-bridge. 
 The tract varies, as the channel formed by the sea is some- 
 times nearer and sometimes further from the shore : in June, 
 1828, and for some months previous, the track was 11 miles in 
 length, though it is frequently not more than 9, and sometimes 
 only 7. The principal danger is in crossing the rivers Keer 
 and Kent, which run over the sands to the sea ; and here, 
 therefore, Guides are stationed, (appointed by the Duchy of 
 Lancaster) whose duty it is to conduct travellers safely across 
 the rivers. The guides receive a small stipend, but it is cus- 
 tomary for travellers to give them a few pence. The guide at 
 the Keer is on foot, as the river is very shallow ; at the Kent 
 the guide is on horseback, the river being considerably wider 
 and deeper. The latter has obtained the name of the Carter, 
 the duties of the guide having been performed by a family of 
 that name for many generations. The sands can only be 
 crossed when the tide is out, and should never be attempted 
 without the guides : at high water the track is covered by from 9 
 to 19 feet of water. A coach formerly passed over the sands, be- 
 
320 ITINERARY. 
 
 tween Lancaster and Ulverston, but the sands having become 
 increasingly dangerous, it was discontinued. The views here are 
 extremely fine, comprising the whole coast of the bay of More- 
 cambe, Pile Castle at its entrance, the bold crags of Warton and 
 Arnside-fells on the right, Ingleborough to the east, the finely 
 broken and wooded shores of the Kent, and a noble range of the 
 Westmoreland and Cumberland mountains.— Arnside-tower, once 
 a mansion of the Stanleys, is seen under the fells of that name ; 
 and Castlehead, the elegant seat of the late John Wilkinson, Esq. 
 (now of Robert Wright, Esq.) at the pyramidal hill, three miles 
 above Kent's Bank, on the western shore. 
 
 Kent's Sank ; 2 miles on the r. Blawith Cottage, Thos. Holme 
 Maude, Esq. 
 
 Lower AUithwaite ; 2 miles to the r. is 
 
 Cartmel, a small market-town, containing 347 inhabitants ; 
 there is a spring of medicinal qualities, from two to three miles 
 distant, called Holy Well ; the church is an ancient and handsome 
 structure ; it was formerly a priory, and contains some interesting 
 monuments. Near the town are Bigland-hall, George Bigland, 
 Esq. ; Broughton-hall, Gray Rigge, Esq. ; Broughton-house, 
 John Atkinson, Esq. ; Broughton-grove, Richard Machell, Esq. ; 
 Aynsome, Reverend Thomas Remington ; Green-bank, John 
 Wilkinson, Esq. ; Ivy Cottage, Jonathan Lodge, Esq. 
 
 Cark, Tf mile on the r. is the finely-situated mansion of Holker- 
 hall, the Earl of Burlington, where there is a valuable collection 
 of pictures. 
 
 Leven Sands. The estuary of the Leven, ^ m. beyond Cark, 
 is three miles across, and is left dry at low water, except the channel 
 which conveys the united waters of the Leven and the Crake to the 
 sea. A guide on horseback is stationed here, and is very necessary, 
 as the channel of the Leven shifts frequently, and renders the sands 
 dangerous. The views in crossing are splendid ; on one side are 
 the woods of Holker-hall, on the other the grounds of Conishead- 
 priory, and to the north the estuary conducts the eye to a grand 
 amphitheatre of mountains round the head of Coniston Water and 
 Windermere. There is a small island below the ford, called Chapel 
 Island, on which are the ruins of a chapel originally dependent on 
 Conishead Priory. 
 
 Ulverston, a well-built and flourishing market-town, the 
 capital of Furness, is situated at the foot of green and sloping fells. 
 It has two handsome churches, one recently built by a subscription 
 of ,£5000, and a grant of the Parliamentary Commissioners. The 
 town is the mart for the agricultural and mineral productions of 
 Furness, and its market on Thursday is extremely well attended. 
 The manufactures of cotton and linen are carried on to a consider- 
 able extent, and great quantities of blue slate, limestone, and iron 
 
ITINERARY. 321 
 
 ore, extracted from the neighbouring fells, are shipped here. The 
 canal which connects the town with the Leven and Morecambe- 
 bay is 1^ mile in length, and is said to be the shortest, widest, and 
 deepest in England, admitting vessels of 200 tons burthen. 1 m. 
 to the S. W. of the town is Swarth Moor-hall, once the residence 
 of George Fox, the celebrated founder of the sect of Quakers, and 
 near it is a meeting-house built by Fox, and still used by the 
 Friends, whose number and respectability are great in these parts : 
 the old hall is inhabited by a farmer, and is considerably dilapidat- 
 ed. The principal iron mines of Furness are at Whitrigs, 3 m. 
 on the Dalton-road, and they yield the richest ore found in the 
 kingdom : great quantities of it are shipped at Barrow, within the 
 port of Ulverston, 2 m. below Furness Abbey. There is a coach 
 daily to and from Lancaster, by Newby-bridge and Milnthorpe ; 
 and a one-horse car goes daily to Whitehaven, through Brough- 
 ton, Ravenglass, and Egremont. Population 4876 : inns, Sun, 
 BraddyH's Arms. 
 
 *** To Lancaster, (over Sands,) 21 m. (by Cartmel,) 33^ m. 
 (by Newby-bridge,) 36 m. ; to Newby-bridge 8 m. ; to Bowness 
 16m.; to Kendal 27 m. ; to Ambleside, by Coniston Water, 22 
 m. ; to Hawkshead (by Coniston Water) 19 m. ; (by Pennybridge) 
 16m.; to Broughton 9^ m. ; to Whitehaven 44 m. ; to London 
 260 m. 
 
 2 miles south of the town are the delightful grounds of Conishead 
 Priory, Thomas Richmond Gale Braddyll, Esq. who is now 
 rebuilding his mansion on a scale of great expense and splendour. 
 The traveller who passes through Ulverston should not omit visit- 
 ing Conishead Priory, and especially the hermitage in the park. 
 Near Ulverston, on the S. Little Croft, William Gale, Esq. ; 
 Belle Vue, Mrs. Dodgson ; Spring-field, Rev. John Sunderland ; 
 going out on the W. Fair View, Charles S. Kennedy, Esq. ; j m. 
 on the E. the Lund, Benson Harrison, Esq. 
 
 Furness Abbey, whose interesting and magnificent remains 
 ought to be seen by every visiter to the Lakes, is 6 miles S. W. of 
 Ulverston, and 1 mile beyond Dalton. The Abbey was founded 
 a.d. 1127, by Stephen, Earl of Mortaign and Boulogne, after- 
 wards King of England, and was endowed with the lordship of 
 Furness, and many royal privileges. The monks were of the 
 Cistercian order. The Abbey is situated in a close valley, called 
 "the glen of the deadly night shade." The remains amply attest 
 the former magnificence of the structure : the walls of the church, 
 the chapter-house, the refectorium, and the school-house, are still 
 in a great part remaining, and show fine specimens of Gothic 
 architecture; the chapter-house, 60 feet by 45, has been a sumptu- 
 ous apartment ; the roof, which was of fret-work, was supported 
 by six channeled pillars. The great east window, the four seats 
 near it adorned with Gothic ornaments, and four statues found in 
 the ruins, are particularly worthy of notice. A few years ago, the late 
 
 p 3 
 
322 ITINERARY. 
 
 Earl of Burlington,* the proprietor, caused the rubbish which choked 
 up many of the apartments, to be cleared away, and the effect of the 
 ruin is now greatly improved, besides that many beautiful fragments 
 of sculpture and of columns and capitals were discovered during 
 the operations. 
 
 The small town of Dalton was formerly the capital of Furness : 
 it has an old square tower, the remains of a castle. Population 
 759 ; market-day, Saturday — In returning from Dalton, the 
 traveller may take the Urswick road, and pass over Birkrigg, the 
 top of which commands a most extensive prospect of the sea and 
 the mountains, stretching to Wales and the Isle of Man, and may 
 visit Conishead Priory in his return to Ulverston. 
 
 ULVERSTON to HAWKSHEAD, by Coniston Water- 
 Head, 19 m. 
 
 From Ulverston. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 6 Lowick-bridge 6 
 
 2 Nibthwaite 8 
 
 From Ulverston. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 8 Coniston Water Head 16 
 2 Hawkshead 19 
 
 Lowick-bridge ; 1^ m. before, at the separation of the Brough- 
 ton and Hawkshead roads, a very fine view is obtained of Coniston 
 Water and the mountains. The Old Man towers over the head of 
 the lake, flanked by Wetherlam on his right and Walna Scar on 
 his left ; in the extreme distance, Scawfell Pikes appear more to 
 the left, and the range of Helvellyn and Fairfield to the right. 1 
 mile before, on the left, Lowick-hall, inhabited by a farmer. 
 Cross the Crake, which flows out of Coniston Water. \ mile 
 below the bridge, Bridgefield, Joseph Penny, Esq. 
 
 Nibthwaite ; 1 mile before, on the left, the iron forge of Messrs. 
 Harrison, Ainslie, and Co. ; \ mile beyond, on the left, Water 
 Park, Benson Harrison, Esq. : an extremely fine view of Coniston 
 Water and the mountains from this point. The road follows the 
 eastern bank of 
 
 Coniston Water. This lake, sometimes called TJmrston 
 Water, is 6 miles long, and f mile in its greatest breadth ; it has 
 two small islands, both of them near the shore : its greatest depth 
 is 27 fathoms, and it abounds in trout and char. The shores of 
 the lake are very beautiful. The Old Man rises near the head of 
 the lake to the height of 2657 feet ; on the summit of the mountain, 
 which commands a most extensive prospect, are three heaps of 
 stones, called the Old Man, his Wife, and Son, and a beacon has 
 formerly been there. 
 
 Coniston Water Head; there is here a good inn, delightfully 
 
 * Since the *' Companion" was printed off, the Earl of Burlington who 
 was formerly Lord George Cavendish, is deceased, and his grandson has 
 inherited his title and estates. 
 
ITINERARY. 
 
 323 
 
 situated at the head of the lake, (a mile from the village of Conis- 
 ton) : 2^ miles before, on the right, Brantwood, Mrs. Copley ; 
 2 miles before, on the left, Coniston-bank, William Bradshaw, 
 Esq. : ^ mile before, on the left, Tent-lodge, Mrs. Smith ; ^ mile 
 on the Coniston road, Thwaite-house, John Beever, Esq. ; above 
 the inn, Waterhead, Michael Knott, Esq. 
 
 HAWKSHEAD, a small, neat market-town, the principal 
 place in Furness Fells, is situated in a warm and sheltered valley, 
 near the head of the beautiful lake of Esthwaite. The views round 
 it are very fine ; the mountains of the Coniston and Langdale dis- 
 tricts, with those round the head of Windermere, may all be seen . 
 Hawkshead-hall, 1 mile from the town, in which the abbots of 
 Furness formerly held a court, is now tenanted by a farmer. 
 Population 797 ; market-day, Monday ; inn, Red Lion. 
 
 * m * To Ambleside 5 miles; to Ulverston 16 miles ; to Bowness 
 5^ miles ; to Kendal 13 miles ; to Newby-bridge 8 miles. 
 
 ULVERSTON to BOWNESS, 16 m. 
 
 From Ulverston. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 1 Newby-bridge 8 
 
 8 Bowness 16 
 
 From Ulverston. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 3 Green Odd 3 
 
 3 Low-wood 6 
 
 1 Backbarrow 7 
 
 Green Odd — cross the river Crake at its confluence with the 
 Leven. £ mile on the left, at Penny-bridge, James Penny Machell, 
 Esq. 
 
 Low-wood — at this place, on the river Leven, is a considerable 
 manufactory of gunpowder, carried on by Messrs. Daye Barker 
 and Co ; \ mile before, on the right, Hollow Oak, Miss Machell ; 
 3 miles distant, on the left, Oxen-park, John Robinson, Esq. ; 
 Whitestock-hall, George Romney, Esq. 
 
 Backbarrow — cross the river Leven : here is an extensive cotton 
 manufactory, carried on by Messrs. Ainsworth, Catterall, and Co. ; 
 and Backbarrow iron-works, carried on by Messrs. Harrison, 
 Ainslieand Co. 
 
 Newby-bridge; here is an excellent inn, charmingly situated at 
 the foot of Windermere. On the right, James Machell, Esq. ; 
 1 mile beyond, on the left, Fell-foot, James Starkie, Esq. ; Land- 
 ing, John Harrison, Esq. ; 1 mile further, on the margin of the lake, 
 Townhead, William Townley, Esq. ; 3 miles from Newby-bridge, 
 Gill-head, John Poole, Esq. 
 
 From Town-head to Bowness, 6 miles on the borders of Win- 
 dermere, there are beautiful views of the lake and of the Coniston 
 and Langdale mountains. 
 
324 ITINERARY. 
 
 Bowness ; 2 miles before, Storrs-hall, John Bolton, Esq. ; 1 mile 
 before, Belfield, Andrew Henry Thomson, Esq. ; Ferney-green, 
 Robert Greaves, Esq. ( For Bowness, see p. 325. ) 
 
 HAWKSHEAD to AMBLESIDE, 5 m. 
 
 1 mile from Hawkshead, on the right, Belmont, unoccupied; 1 
 mile on the left, Field-head, unoccupied ; a little above, Borwick 
 Lodge, unoccupied. 
 
 Ambleside, 1^ mile before, on the right, Brathay-hall, John 
 Harden, Esq. ; 1 mile before, on the left, Howsley-cottage, 
 Mrs. Freeman ; on the right, Croft lodge, James Brancker, Esq. ; 
 3 miles to the left, in Great Langdale, Elterwater hall, John 
 Huddlestone, Esq. 
 
 ( For Ambleside see p. 326. ) 
 
 HAWKSHEAD to BOWNESS, 5£ m. 
 
 Sawrey 2 miles ; Windermere-ferry 2 miles; Bowness 1^ m 
 
 Total 5^ miles. 
 
 Esthwaite Water, a beautiful lake, 2 miles in length, and 
 half a mile in breadth, skirted by woods and meadows. In a small 
 pool nearly adjoining the upper end of the lake, is a floating island, 
 on which are several trees and shrubs : the island is moved from 
 side to side of the pool by the changing wind. 1 mile down the 
 west side of the lake, Esthwaite-lodge, Thomas Alcock Beck, Esq. ; 
 1 mile down the east side, Lake-bank, William Towers, Esq. 
 
 Sawrey — Mount, John Eccles, Esq. ; Sawrey-house, Thomas 
 Beck Towers, Esq. ; Lake-field, Rt. M. Frazer, Esq. ; Cottage, 
 James Watson, Esq. In ascending the hill which separates Esth- 
 waite Water from Windermere, there is a splendid view of the 
 Coniston and Langdale mountains ; in descending on the other side 
 there is an equally fine view of Windermere. 
 
 Windermere Ferry ,■ here is a good inn, delightfully situated ; 
 horses and carriages pass by the Ferry. Above the inn is a 
 pleasure house, called the Station, belonging to Henry C. Curwen, 
 Esq. , whence some of the most charming views of Windermere 
 are to be had. 4 m. below, on the w. side of the lake, Grayth- 
 waite-hall, Miles Sandys, Esq. ; Low Graythwaite-hall, John Job 
 Rawlinson, Esq. 
 
 (For Bowness see p. 325.) 
 
ITINERARY. 325 
 
 KENDAL to AMBLESIDE, by Bowness, 15 m. 
 
 From Kendal. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 2 Bowness 9 
 
 2h Troutbeck bridge 11 J 
 
 2 Low Wood Inn 13| 
 
 lj Ambleside 15 
 
 From Kendal. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 3 Bonning Yate 3 
 
 2j Quaker's Meeting ) x 
 
 house J 5 2 
 
 1^ Clay Barrow 7 
 
 The road from Kendal to Bowness possesses nothing of interest, 
 except the views of the distant mountains, Coniston Old Man, 
 Bowfell, Langdale Pikes, &c. till, at the distance of a mile from 
 Bowness, the traveller comes within view of 
 
 Windermere, or Winandermere. This is the largest of the 
 English lakes, and its scenery is of the most exquisite beauty, 
 rising towards the head into magnificence. It is 10^ miles in 
 length, measured down the middle, and its greatest breadth is 
 more than a mile. In some places it is 35 fathoms deep. The 
 lake is principally fed by the rivers Brathay and Rothay, which 
 fall into it at the head, and by the stream of Troutbeck, on the 
 eastern side : its waters discharge themselves by the Leven at 
 Newby-bridge. Windermere is adorned with no less than fourteen 
 islands, called holms, the largest of which is Belle Isle, near the 
 centre of the lake, opposite Bowness. It contains thirty acres, and 
 was beautifully laid out in groves, lawns, and walks, by the late 
 John Christian Curwen, Esq., who also built a handsome house 
 upon it, in which his son, Henry C. Curwen, Esq. the present 
 proprietor, resides. The lake abounds in trout, perch, pike, and 
 char, the last being a rare and delicate fish, found only in the 
 deepest of the lakes. Many handsome villas have been built on 
 the shores, and the groves and pleasure-grounds attached to 
 them add to the natural elegance of the scenery. The whole of 
 the western shore of Windermere, and nearly half of the eastern, 
 are in Lancashire, but the lake is considered to belong to West- 
 moreland. There is a ferry over the lake, a mile below Bowness, 
 which is the direct way to Hawkshead, distant four miles. Pleasure- 
 boats may be engaged at all the principal places on the borders of 
 the lake. 
 
 Bowness is charmingly situated near the centre of Windermere, 
 on its eastern bank, and at the bottom of a small bay. It is the 
 chief port on the lake, and has a few fishing vessels and a trade in 
 charcoal. From its admirable situation it is much frequented by 
 visiters, and has excellent accommodation for them in two good 
 inns, the Wltite Lion and the Crown, as well as in lodgings. 
 
 Rayrigg-bank, l§m. above Bowness, the Station, Belle Isle, and 
 the hill above the village, afford the finest prospects. 
 
 In addition to Storrs-hall, Belfield, and Ferney-green, men- 
 tioned p. 324, and Belle Isle, there are, in or near the village, 
 
326 ITINERARY. 
 
 Holly-hill, Mrs. Bellasis ; The Villa, — Rudd, Esq. ; the Rectory, 
 Edward Swinburn, Esq. ; and the houses of the Hon. Mrs. 
 Carpenter, Captain Butcher, Captain Beaufoy, and G. A. Aufrere, 
 Esq. ; 2 m. up the lake, on the west side, Belle-grange, Edward 
 Curwen, Esq ; 3 m. the Wray, — Wilson, Esq. ; and 1 m. on 
 the Ambleside road, to the 1. Rayrigg-hall, Rev. John Fleming. 
 
 Troutbeck bridge ; from the elevated parts of the road before and 
 beyond the bridge, splendid views are obtained of the head of 
 Windermere and of the mountains, which appear in the following 
 order, proceeding from left to right — Coniston Old Man, Wether- 
 lam, Scawfell Pikes, (in the extreme distance,) Bowfell, Great 
 Gavel (in the same distance,) Langdale Pikes, Loughrigg-fell, 
 and Fairfield. The valley of Troutbeck is worth visiting, on ac- 
 count of its picturesque buildings. Half a mile before on the 
 right, The Wood, the Misses Watson; 1 mile on the right, St. 
 Catherine's, the Earl of Bradford ; 2 miles on the r. The Howe, 
 John Wilson, Esq. ; just beyond, on the left, Calgarth Park, Rd. 
 Luther Watson, Esq; half a mile to the right, Briary Close, 
 Captain Greaves. 
 
 Low Wood Inn, an excellent inn, delightfully situated on a 
 small bay, from which the head of Windermere opens out magnifi- 
 cently, with Brathay Park and the valley of Great Langdale be- 
 yond, and the mountains above mentioned forming the back ground. 
 Many visiters take up their abode here for some time. Boats may 
 be had at the inn, and the views from the surface of the lake are 
 very fine. Half a mile beyond, Waterside, Thomas Jackson, Esq.; 
 and Waterhead, Wm. Newton, Esq. 
 
 AMBLESIDE, a small town, romantically situated in the 
 valley of the Rothay, a mile from the head of Windermere. It 
 stands on the side of the hill, and is irregularly built, but com- 
 mands charming prospects of the valley, the parks of Rydal and 
 Brathay, and the lake of Windermere. From its central situation, 
 Ambleside is frequently made the head-quarters of tourists for some 
 time. There is a superior boarding school here. The town was 
 formerly a Roman station, and faint traces of a fortress are to he 
 seen in a field at the head of Windermere. Population, 1095 ; 
 market-day, Wednesday. 
 
 *** To Kendal 13^ miles; to Hawkshead5 miles; to Coniston 
 Water Head, 8 miles ; to Ulverston 24 miles ; to Newby Bridge 
 14 miles; to Keswick \Q\ miles; to Patterdale 10 miles; to Pen- 
 rith 25 miles ; to London 278 miles. 
 
 In and near the town, The Cottage, H. T. Lutwidge, Esq. ; 
 The Oaks, Ford North, Esq. ; Belle Vue, Miss Dowling ; Green 
 Bank, Benson Harrison, Esq. ; Foxghyll, Mrs. Luff'; Covey 
 Cottage, Robt. Partridge, Esq. ; Gale-house, Edward Pedder, 
 Esq. ; Broadlands, Rev. John Dawes ; Hill-top, Thomas Carr, 
 Esq. ; Rothay-bank, Mrs. Claude ; Croft-lodge, James Brancker, 
 
ITINERARY. 327 
 
 Esq. ; Brathay-hall, the property of — Redmayne, Esq., oc- 
 cupied by John Harden, Esq. ; Oak-bank, Mrs. Carleton ; Fox- 
 howe, Dr. Arnold, (of Rugby.) 
 
 Stockgill Force, one of the most beautiful cascades among 
 the Lakes, is in a deep glen, half a mile in the rear of the town. 
 The fall is 150 feet in height, and the water is divided into two 
 portions by a crag in the centre of the precipice. 
 
 KENDAL to AMBLESIDE, 13* m. 
 
 From Kendal. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 5 Staveley ►.. 5 
 
 l£ Ings Chapel 6^ 
 
 2 Orest-head 8£ 
 
 From Kendal. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 lj Troutbeck Bridge 10 
 
 2~ Low Wood Inn 12 
 
 lj Ambleside 13^ 
 
 Orest-head; on the right, Orest-head, John Braithwaite, Esq.; 
 on the left, Birthwaite, George Gardner, Esq. ; a little beyond, 
 on the right, Elleray, Professor Wilson ; The Wood, Miss Wat- 
 son ; St. Catherine's, Earl of Bradford. An extremely fine view 
 of Windermere is obtained from the brow of the hill. 
 
 Troutbeck Bridge, &c. (see p. 326.) 
 
 Many very interesting EXCURSIONS may be made from 
 Ambleside. The finest is the Langdale Excursion, and parts of 
 it may be taken in a carriage, but it is not uncommon to perform 
 the whole excursion in carts. The traveller may proceed first to 
 Skelwith-bridge, 3 miles, a little above which is the cascade of 
 Skelwith Force; then, by a road which commands a fine view 
 of Elterwater and Great Langdale, he may proceed to Colwith- 
 bridge, above which is the waterfall of Colwith Force, 5 miles 
 from Ambleside. Then, proceeding up Little Langdale, nearly 
 three miles, he may turn to the right over a slack, in which lies 
 Blea-tarn. Descending the hill to the head of Great Langdale, 
 the Langdale Pikes appear before him, and Bowfell on his left, 
 in the utmost sublimity. The conical pike is called Pike o' 
 Stickle, and the broad-headed pike Harrison Stickle. He will 
 come into Great Langdale at the farm house of Wall End, whence 
 he might either ascend Bowfell, or pass the Stake into Borrowdale ; 
 but the regular excursion will bring him down the valley to Mill- 
 beck, where he may see the curious waterfall of Dungeon Gill. 
 Still descending the valley, he may turn to the left when he comes 
 in view of Elterwater, and cross the hill by High Close to Gras- 
 mere, enjoying splendid views of Windermere and Langdale on 
 one side, and of the lake and vale of Grasmere on the other. A 
 road which leaves Grasmere and Rydal Lakes on the left will bring 
 
328 
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 him back to Ambleside. This forms a circuit of eighteen miles ; 
 but many content themselves with going to Skelwith Force, and 
 then crossing Great Langdale, and passing over into Grasmere. 
 Coniston Water, Hawkshead, and Bowness, may also be visited 
 from Ambleside. Some pass over Kirkstone to Patterdale, at the 
 head of Ullswater, 10 m. ; but this is not the best way of seeing 
 that noble lake. There are also mountain excursions to Rydal- 
 Head, Fairfield, and to Wansfell Pike, which present very fine 
 and extensive views. 
 
 AMBLESIDE to KESWICK, 16| m. 
 
 From Ambleside. 
 
 Miles.' Miles. 
 
 4 Smalthwaite-bridge ...12^ 
 
 3 Castlerigg \b\ 
 
 1 Keswick 16J 
 
 From Ambleside. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 If %dal 11 
 
 3| Swan, Grasmere 5 
 
 2 Dunmail Raise 7 
 
 \\ Horse Head, Wythburn 8^ 
 
 Rydal; on the right, Rydal-hall, Lady le Fleming ; in the 
 grounds are two beautiful cascades ; just above, Rydal Mount, 
 Wm. Wordsworth, Esq. one of the most charming situations 
 amongst the Lakes, looking down upon the vale of Ambleside 
 and the lake of Windermere on the one hand, and the lake of 
 Rydal on the other : the house and gardens are in the best taste ; 
 the latter have assumed their present form in a great measure under 
 the poet's own hand. Beyond, on the right, Ivy-cottage, Major 
 Hamilton ; Rydal Cottage, Sir Thomas Sabine Pasley, Bart. 
 
 Rydal Water, one of the smallest of the lakes, being only a 
 mile in length, but one of the most beautiful from its woody islands 
 and picturesque shores. 
 
 Grasmere Water, a mile beyond Rydal Water, is about 
 the same length as that lake, but wider, and has one considerable 
 island, covered with verdure, in the centre. The views on every 
 side of this lake are splendid,- from the grand ampitheatre of 
 mountains by which it is surrounded. Rising above the head of 
 the lake is the lofty conical hill, called Helm Crag ; the sum- 
 mit is composed of vast rocks, in whose forms fancy has discovered 
 a resemblance to a lion and lamb, and to an old woman cowering. 
 
 On the south side of the lake are Dale-end, Mrs. Carter ; 
 Wyke, James Greenwood, Esq. ; Gell's Cottage, T. Parry, Esq. ; 
 and Allan Bank, J. Crump, Esq. The Rectory, the Rev. Sir 
 Richard Fleming, Bart. On the north side of the lake, Hollins- 
 grove, Mrs. Ashworth. 
 
 Swan, Grasmere : this inn is on the road side, a quarter of a 
 mile from the village : travellers may be well accommodated here 
 and at the Red Lion in Grasmere. 
 
 Dunmail Raise, a considerable cairn of pebble stones, which 
 marks the boundaries of Westmoreland and Cumberland, and was 
 
ITINERARY. 329 
 
 erected by Edmund I. King of England, when he had defeated 
 Dunmail, the last King of Cumbria, A.D. 945 ; Dunmail and 
 his four sons were put to death, and his dominions given to 
 Malcolm, King of Scotland. The views from this monument are 
 extremely fine, — on the one hand the lake and vale of Grasmere — 
 on the other the lake of Thirlmere and valley of Wythbum ; 
 with Helvellyn on the right, Thirlmere-fells on the left, and 
 Skiddaw in the distance. 
 
 Horse Head, Wythbum, the half-way house, at the head of 
 Thirlmere ; 2 miles beyond, on the lake, Dalehead hall, Thomas 
 Stanger Leathes, Esq. ; on the opposite side of the lake, Armboth • 
 house, John Jackson, Esq. 
 
 Thirlmere, often called Leathes Water, from the family to 
 whose estate it belongs, and Wythbum Water, from the valley, 
 is a narrow and deep lake, more than two and a half miles in 
 length, little ornamented by trees or meadows, and lying betwixt 
 the steep and rugged sides of Helvellyn and the Thirlmere-fells. 
 It is five hundred feet above the level of the sea, which is higher 
 than any of the other lakes. Near the foot of the lake, on the 
 west side, is the dark and stupendous rock called Raven Crag, and 
 higher up are Bull Crag and Fisher Crag. 
 
 Helvellyn, one of the highest mountains in Cumberland, 
 being 3055 feet above the level of the sea. Its summit, on which 
 is a pile of stones, can only be seen at a considerable distance. 
 The mountain may be ascended either from Wythburn or from 
 Thrispot, near the 6th mile-stone from Keswick, or from Patter- 
 dale ; the ascent is very steep, but not dangerous, except in the 
 part called Striding-edge, on the Patterdale-side, and this part 
 may be avoided by passing along Swirrel-edge. The view from 
 the summit on a clear day is prodigiously extensive, comprehend- 
 ing the mountains of Wales and Scotland, and the Irish Sea. 
 
 Smalthivaite-bridge, cross the Greta, which issues from Thirl- 
 mere lake ; leave St. John's Vale on the right. 
 
 Castlerigg ,■ a splendid view is obtained from the brow of the 
 hill, of the vale of Keswick, with Bassenthwaite Water four 
 miles distant in front, Derwentwater at the foot of the hill on the 
 left, Skiddaw and Saddleback on the right, Grisedale Pike, Grass- 
 moor, and Causey Pike in front beyond the vale of Keswick, and 
 the entrance of Borrowdale at the extreme left. 
 
 A Druidical Temple lies half a mile to the right, consisting of 
 48 rude stones, some prostrate and some upright, disposed in an 
 oval figure, 34 yards by 30. 
 
 KESWICK, a small market town, in a magnificent situation, 
 between the foot of Skiddaw and Derwentwater, and near the 
 river Greta. It may be considered as the capital of the Lakes, and 
 is frequented by a great number of visiters during the season, who 
 make excursions from it to the surrounding lakes, valleys, and 
 
330 ITINERARY. 
 
 mountains. The town is old, and most of the houses white- 
 washed ; it has a manufacture of coarse woollens, flannels, blankets, 
 kerseys, &c. Black-lead pencils are also extensively made here, 
 the mineral being found in the mines of Borrowdale. The parish 
 church, called Crosthwaite church, is at a distance of a mile from 
 the town. Crosthwaite's and Hutton's Museums, Mr. Green's 
 Exhibition of Views of the Lakes, and several collections of 
 minerals, are to be seen here. Guides and horses may be had for 
 the excursions, and all the accommodations for visiters are very 
 good. Population 2159. Market-day, Saturday; Inns, Royal 
 Oak and Queen's Head. 
 
 **.* To Ambleside 16| m. ; to Penrith 17| m. ; to Cocker- 
 mouth 13 m. ; to Whitehaven 27 m. ; to Workington 21 m. ; to 
 Carlisle (by Penrith) 36 m. ; to Pooley-bridge 18 m. ; to Patter- 
 dale 22 m. (carriage road) 15 m. (horse-road); to Buttermere (by 
 Newlands) 9 m.; to London 294 m. 
 
 Taking the circuit of Derwentwater, 2 miles from Keswick, on 
 the eastern side of the lake, Barrow-house, Joseph Pocklington, 
 Esq. ; returning by the western side, 2\ m. from Keswick, Der- 
 wentwater-bay, Alex. Hoy, Esq. ; and Derwent-bank, Mrs. Bla- 
 mire ; \\ m. from Keswick, on the 1. Derwent-lodge, Miss Keer; 
 on the r. 1. m. from Keswick, Derwent-hill, Mrs. Turner; ap- 
 proaching the town on the 1. The Dove Cote, Jas. Stanger, Esq. ; 
 
 on the 1. The Vicarage, Rev. James Lynn, (Rev. Whitesides;) 
 
 Greta-hall, Robert Southey, Esq. LL.D. ; Vicar's Island, in 
 Derwentwater, Major- General Peachy ; Greta-bank, Anthony 
 Spedding, Esq. ; 1. m. Penrith road, on the r. Chesnut hill, G. 
 Dare, Esq. ; Ormathwaite-hall, (under Skiddaw) Capt. Joseph 
 Dover ; Skiddaw-lodge, Rev. Chauncey Hare Townsend. 
 
 Derwentwater, at a distance of half a mile from Keswick, is 
 upwards of 3 m. in length, and 1 5 in breadth : its greatest depth 
 is 14 fathoms. It is adorned by several considerable islands, 
 richly clothed with wood — Lord's Island, containing six acres, so 
 called from having been the site of a house belonging to the Earls 
 of Derwentwater ; the Vicar's Isle, containing five acres and a 
 half, so called from having belonged to Fountain's Abbey, and 
 sometimes called Derwent Isle, on which is the house of General 
 Peachy ; St. Herbert's Island, near the centre of the lake, cele- 
 brated as the residence of that holy man, who, according to Bede, 
 died A.D. 678; Rampsholm ; Otter Isle, in a bay near the head 
 of the lake ; and three islets. At the south-east corner of the 
 lake, about 150 yards from the shore, is a floating island, which is 
 generally under water, but occasionally rises to the surface, and 
 appears for several weeks or months, when it again sinks. It has 
 appeared seven times in the last twenty-six years. The lake is 
 principally fed by the Derwent and Lowdore, which flow out of 
 the valleys of Borrowdale and Watendlath. The scenery around 
 Derwentwater is varied, and on every side magnificent. On the 
 
ITINERARY. 
 
 331 
 
 north towers the simple and majestic form of Skiddaw ; on the 
 east are Wallow and Falcon Crags and the Derwent-fells ; the 
 savage valley of Borrowdale opens on the south, and conducts the 
 eye to Glaramara and Scawfell Pikes ; Catbells, Causey Pike, and 
 Grisedale Pike, overlook the western shore, and the delightful 
 vale of Newlands runs up betwixt them. The best views of the 
 scenery are from the surface of the lake, from Castlehead — a 
 conical hill half a mile from Keswick, Crow Park, the Vicarage, 
 Latrigg, Wallow Crag, and Swinside. All the land on the north- 
 east of Derwentwater formerly belonged to the Earls of Derwent- 
 water, but was confiscated on the death of the last Earl, who was 
 beheaded for taking part in the rebellion of 1715, and until within 
 the last two years belonged to the Trustees of Greenwich Hos- 
 pital, by whom it was sold, along with the extensive manorial 
 rights, to John Marshall, Jun., Esq. M. P. for Leeds. 
 
 Skiddaw rises in a vast pyramidal form from the vale of Kes- 
 wick. It is 3022 feet in height, and is not difficult of ascent ; the 
 distance from Keswick to the summit is six miles, and ladies may 
 ride up on horseback, though not without considerable fatigue. 
 This mountain commands prospects of astonishing extent and 
 variety. Cumberland lies as on a map beneath the eye : the Isle of 
 Man and the Scotch and Yorkshire mountains are distinctly visible. 
 Bassenthwaite Water lies immediately under the eye, but most of 
 the other lakes are hid by intervening mountains, and even Der- 
 wentwater by one of the summits of Skiddaw himself. Scawfell 
 Pikes are distinctly seen due S., Helvellyn and Ingleborough 
 S.S. E., Grisedale Pike S.W., Cross-fell E., and Criffell, in 
 Scotland, N.W. 
 
 EXCURSIONS FROM KESWICK. 
 To Borrowdale and round Derwentwater, 12 m. 
 
 Total 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 2 Barrow-house 2 
 
 1 Lowdore 3 
 
 1 Grange 4 
 
 1 Bowder Stone 5 
 
 Total 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 1 Return to Grange 6 
 
 4^ Portinscale 10^ 
 
 li Keswick 12 
 
 Barrow-house, Joseph Pocklington, Esq. ; behind the house is a 
 beautiful cascade, 122 feet in height, in two falls. 
 
 Lowdore : behind the inn, in a ravine betwixt Gowder-crag 
 and Shepherd's-crag, is the fine waterfall of Lowdore, falling over 
 and amongst a jumbled pile of rocks, to the depth of one hundred 
 and fifty feet. In dry weather there is very little water here, but 
 after heavy rain it is a magnificent cataract. In a meadow in front 
 
332 
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 of the inn is a remarkable echo, and a cannon is kept there to be 
 discharged for the gratification of visiters. 
 
 Grange is situated in the Straits of Borrowdale. 
 
 Borbowdale ; at Grange the grand and savage scenery of 
 this valley commences. The valley is strewn with rocks of enor- 
 mous size in the wildest disorder, and seems like the breaking up 
 of nature. The river runs in a deep channel with rocky banks, 
 and the mountains rise on either hand in rugged and awful crags. 
 Numerous slate quarries, which yield excellent slate, are worked 
 in the sides of the hills. Beyond Castle Crag and Bowder Stone 
 the valley opens out into a small plain, which is equally fertile and 
 beautiful, and in the midst of which is the village of Rosthwaite. 
 The valley of Seathwaite forms the highest part of Borrowdale. 
 
 Bowder Stone is a rock of extraordinary dimensions, which 
 has fallen from the crags above, and is pitched on the edge of a 
 precipice overhanging the river. The stone is 62 feet long and 36 
 high : its circumference is 89 feet, and it weighs 1971 tons. 
 From this point a fine view of the upper part of Borrowdale is 
 obtained, with Castle Crag on the right, the village of Rosth- 
 waite, Eagle Crag and Glaramara in front, and Scawfell Pikes in 
 the extreme distance. Travellers seldom proceed further than 
 this, unless they intend visiting Buttermere and Wast Water. 
 Return to 
 
 Grange, where the traveller may cross the Derwent, and return 
 to Keswick by the western side of the lake, passing Derwentwater- 
 bay and the entrance of the vale of Newlands. 
 
 To Borrowdale and Buttermere, 23 m. 
 
 Total 
 Miles. Miles. 
 5 Bowder Stone 5 
 
 1 Rosthwaite 6 
 
 2 Seatoller 8 
 
 4 Gatesgarth 12 
 
 Total 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 2 Buttermere 14 
 
 9 Keswick, by New- 
 lands 
 
 23 
 
 Seatoller is a hamlet in the upper part of Borrowdale, where 
 John Fisher, Esq. has a house. A carriage may proceed as far as 
 this place, but here begins the ascent of Borrowdale-hawse, and 
 the road is so narrow, rugged, and steep, that cars pass with ex- 
 treme difficulty. When the summit of the hawse is reached, 
 Honister Crag on the left, and Yew Crag on the right, come in 
 view. . Honister springs from the vale in one enormous precipice 
 1500 feet high. The track descends through a desolate valley 
 betwixt these mountains, to the hamlet of Gatesgarth and the vale 
 of Buttermere. 
 
ITINERARY. 333 
 
 Buttermere. The lake of this name is a beautiful sheet, 
 a mile and a quarter in length, and nearly half a mile in breadth. 
 It is bordered on the east by fine woods and meadows, and over- 
 hung on the west by the rocky steeps of High-crag, High-stile, 
 and Red-pike. In this secluded valley is Haseness, inhabited by 
 the Rev. James Bush, a mile from the inn. 
 
 Crummock Water is three quarters of a mile below But- 
 termere lake ; it is nearly three miles in length, and three quarters 
 of a mile in breadth, and lies between the mountains of Melbreak 
 on the west and Grassmoor on the east. The head of the lake is 
 highly beautiful, the middle part stern and grand, and the foot 
 richly adorned with wood. Near the head is Woodhouse, Mr. 
 Robert Jopson. 
 
 Scale Force, on the west side of Crummock Water, is 
 generally visited from Buttermere. The road being very boggy, 
 it is usual to take a boat on Crummock Lake, row about a mile 
 down the lake, and land at the opposite side, whence a rocky path 
 of half a mile conducts to the waterfall. It is situated in a deep 
 chasm, and the water falls at a single leap 156 feet ; including a 
 smaller fall below, the height of the cascade is nearly 200 feet. 
 
 *** Crummock Water and Buttermere may be visited more 
 easily in a carriage by the route of Whinlatter and Lorton : this 
 would make the distance to Buttermere 16 miles, and, if the same 
 route were taken in returning, to avoid climbing the steep ascent 
 of Buttermere-hawse, the day's journey would of course be thirty- 
 two miles : many travellers go to the inn at Scale-hill, near the 
 foot of Crummock Water, twelve miles from Keswick, and take a 
 boat up the lake to Scale Force and Buttermere. 
 
 To Wasdale, Ennerdale, and Lowes Water. 
 A Two Days' Ride. 
 
 From Keswick. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 6 Rosthwaite 6 
 
 2 Seatoller 8 
 
 1 Seathwaite 9 
 
 3 Sty-head 12 
 
 2 Wasdale-head 14 
 
 From Keswick. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 6 Strands, Nether Was- \ „ 
 
 dale S 
 
 4 Gosforth 24 
 
 3 Calder Bridge 27 
 
 Second Day. 
 
 From Calder Bridge. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 7 Ennerdale-bridge 7 
 
 3 Lamplugh Cross 10 
 
 4 Lowes Water 14 
 
 From Calder Bridge. 
 Miles. Miles 
 
 2 Scale-hill 16 
 
 4 Buttermere 20 
 
 9 Keswick 29 
 
334 ITINERARY. 
 
 Rosthwaite. The ride up Borrowdale to Seatoller has already 
 been described, but, for this journey, it maybe desirable to men- 
 tion that at Rosthwaite is the last public-house before coming to 
 Strands, in Nether Wasdale. 
 
 Seathwaite, the last village in Borrowdale ; on the hill to the 
 r. are the celebrated wad-mines, from which the mineral vulgarly 
 called black-lead and wad is extracted : these are the only mines 
 of the kind in England. 
 
 Sty-head ;■ a mile above Seathwaite, cross a bridge, and ascend 
 the mountain, following the zig-zag track, and keeping the stream 
 which flows out of Sty-head tarn on the right, till the path crosses 
 it on the top of the hill and leaves the tarn to the left hand. The 
 view down Borrowdale is extremely fine. Crossing Sty-head, the 
 traveller has Great Gavel on his right and Great End on his left ; 
 and when he comes to the descent into Wasdale, there is a mag- 
 nificent view of Scawfell Pikes immediately before him. 
 
 Scawfell Pikes, the highest mountain in England, rise in 
 one vast concave sweep from Wasdale Head, to the height of 3166 
 feet above the level of the sea. The summits are surrounded by 
 frightful precipices, and the highest is crowned with a conical pile 
 of stones built for the purpose of the trigonometrical survey. 
 Scawfell has two principal summits, separated from each other by 
 a deep chasm, called Mickle Door : the southern summit, which 
 is 66 feet lower than the other, is called Scawfell, and the northern 
 summit Scawfell Pikes. The latter may be most easily visited 
 from Seathwaite in Borrowdale, and the former from Wasdale or 
 Eskdale. This mountain is much more difficult of ascent than 
 Skiddaw or Helvellyn, the top being composed of great blocks 
 of stone, with scarcely a symptom of vegetation. Nevertheless, a 
 good pedestrian may accomplish it with a guide, and will be re- 
 paid by the most complete prospect to be any where had of the 
 mountains of Cumberland and Westmoreland. This is the highest 
 and central point, from which the principal valleys diverge on 
 every side. The Welsh mountains, the Isle of Man, the Scotch, 
 Northumbrian, and Yorkshire mountains are all within view. 
 
 Wast Water. After descending the steep and painful 
 track from Sty-head, and walking nearly two miles down Wasdale- 
 head and by the hamlet of that name, the traveller comes to Wast 
 Water, a lake three miles long, half a mile broad, and forty-five 
 fathoms in depth, lying along the foot of a high ridge called the 
 Screes. The scenery is grand and desolate. At the foot of the 
 lake, Wasdale-hall, Stansfeld Rawson, Esq. ; one mile below, 
 Stang Ends, late the residence of Robert Wilkinson, Esq. 
 
 Strands, a village containing two comfortable inns, a mile 
 beyond the lake. Here the mountains terminate, and the road 
 passes over a comparatively level country, open to the sea, to 
 
 Calder-bridge ; a most delightful village on the river Calder, 
 9 miles south of Whitehaven. There are two excellent inns ; and 
 
ITINERARY. 335 
 
 contiguous to the village, on the left, in a spacious park, stands Pon- 
 sonby-hall, the seat of Edward Stanley, Esq., M.P. A mile to 
 the eastward are the beautiful remains of Calder Abbey. Close 
 to its lofty and ivy-covered ruins is the residence of Thos. Irwin, 
 Esq., and though the exterior is tastefully modernized, it origin- 
 ally formed part of the ancient Abbey : internally there is suffici- 
 ent proof of this having once been the case. 
 
 On the morning of the Second Day, the tourist may cross the 
 bleak fells of Copeland Forest, with Dent on his left, to 
 
 Ennerdale bridge : descending the hill to this place, there is a 
 view of the fertile valley of Ennerdale, and of the lake stretching 
 up to the high mountains. There is a public-house here, where 
 refreshments may be obtained. 
 
 Ennerdale Water is 2£ miles in length and f of a mile 
 in breadth. It is deficient in wood, and the mountains shelve 
 rapidly to the water. Above the lake, in the lonely valley of 
 Gillerthwaite, are the high mountains of the Pillar and the Steeple : 
 from the head of the valley, a pedestrian may cross to Butter- 
 mere (over Scarf-gap) or to Wasdale-head, (over Black Sale,) 
 and there is a track from the lower part of the valley, by Floutern- 
 tarn, to Crummock Water. How-hall is advantageously situated 
 on the hill-side near the foot of the lake. 
 
 Lowes Water. 7 miles of road through an open country 
 brings the traveller from Ennerdale to Lowes Water, where he 
 re-enters the mountainous district. This lake is about a mile in 
 length, and is surrounded by noble mountains, the lower parts of 
 which are richly clothed with wood. The waters of the lake flow 
 into Crummock Water, distant two miles. The tourist may 
 proceed from Scale-hill, at the foot of that lake, up its eastern 
 side to Buttermere, and by the vale of Newlands to Keswick ; or 
 he may take the shorter route of Lorton and Whinlatter to the 
 same town. ( See p. 333. ) 
 
 Scale-hiU, before, on the 1. Godfred, Thomas Smith, Esq. ; 
 Foulsike, Josh. Skelton, Esq. ; Kirkgate, John Hudson, Esq. ; 
 the Park, Jonathan Pearson, Esq. ; three miles N. Lorton-hall, 
 Raisbeck L. Bragg, Esq. 
 
 The Borrowdale Excursion may be varied by taking in the 
 secluded and interesting valley of Watendlath, which runs 
 parallel with Borrowdale, on the east. At Rosthwaite the tra- 
 veller may ford the river, and ascend a steep winding path-way 
 for upwards of a mile, enjoying fine views of the upper end of 
 Borrowdale and the mountains beyond. Another mile brings him 
 down to the edge of the small lake or tarn of Watendlath, and the 
 lonely hamlet of that name, the houses, of which bear every 
 
336 ITINERARY. 
 
 appearance of great antiquity. Crossing the stream which supplies 
 the cataract of Lowdore, he may go down the narrow valley for 
 three miles, till he comes into the high road round Derwentwater, 
 by Ashness. Above the fall of Lowdore, the view of the lake 
 of Keswick is very fine. This excursion may be made on horse- 
 back. 
 
 A drive round Bassenthwaite Water may be made in 
 18 miles, by Castle Inn, Ouse-bridge, and Peel Wyke. At the 
 northern extremity of the lake is Armthwaite-hall, Sir Francis 
 Fletcher Vane, Bart. ; at the southern, Spring-bank, Isaac Lan- 
 caster, Esq.; at Lissick, under Skiddaw, the Rev. John Monkhouse ; 
 at Mirehouse, on the E. side of the lake, John Spedding, Esq. 
 
 Bassenthwaite Water, otherwise called Broad Water, is four 
 miles in length, and near the foot more than a mile broad. The 
 vale of Bassenthwaite is beautiful, and Skiddaw rises majestically 
 above it. The best view is from Ouse-bridge. 
 
 WHITEHAVEN to KESWICK, 27 m. 
 
 From Whitehaven. I From Whitehaven. 
 
 Miles. Miles. Miles. Miles. 
 
 2 Moresby 2 
 
 2 Distington . 4 
 
 2 Winscales 6 
 
 3 Little Clifton 9 
 
 5 Cockermouth 14 
 
 2§ Embleton 16j 
 
 Thomthwaite 23 
 
 'a 
 
 4 Keswick 27 
 
 [This route has not before been introduced into guide-books for 
 the Lakes : but, owing to the great number of travellers who now 
 visit this district by means of the steam-packets from Liverpool, 
 which land them either at Whitehaven, within 27 miles of Keswick, 
 the capital of the Lakes, or at Workington, within 21 miles of 
 that town, the route is here described. ] 
 
 WHITEHAVEN is, after Carlisle, the largest town in Cum- 
 berland, and has risen from a mere hamlet to its present rank as a 
 seaport within 190 years, chiefly owing to its valuable coal-mines. 
 It is situated on a bay, and the harbour has been greatly improved 
 by art : the town is built with uncommon regularity, the streets 
 are spacious and the houses neat. The Earl of Lonsdale, who is 
 lord of the manor and the proprietor of the coal-mines, has a 
 commodious residence here, called the Castle, where there are 
 some fine paintings. The harbour is large and convenient, and 
 sheltered with several stone piers : one of them the new west 
 pier, forms a most delightful promenade, and is as splendid a piece 
 of masonry as the country can boast of. Tfae plan was furnished 
 by Sir John Rennie, and the work constructed under his super- 
 
ITINERARY. 337 
 
 intendence. There are light-houses both at the extremity of the 
 old quay, near the entrance of the inner harbour, and at the ex- 
 tremity of the new west pier. The light-house on the new quay 
 is now used as a station, on which the half-tide flag, as it is termed, 
 is exhibited. This flag is hoisted every tide as soon as there is 
 sufficient water for ordinary sized vessels to enter the inner har- 
 bour, which is about half flood, and lowered again when the 
 harbour is not accessible, which is about half ebb. This harbour 
 is still being further improved : an extensive pier is at present in 
 the course of erection on the north side of the harbour, under the 
 same distinguished engineer who projected the west pier. There 
 are three churches in the town — St. Nicholas, the Holy Trinity, 
 and St. James ; a Scotch church, several dissenting meeting- 
 houses, and a handsome theatre. The coal mines are very exten- 
 sive, and some of them not less than 310 yards in depth. They 
 extend in various directions under the town and harbour, and the 
 workings from more than one of the pits extend to a distance of 
 more than a mile in a direct line under the sea. Upwards of 
 150,000 chaldrons of coals are said to be annually exported from 
 these collieries, chiefly to Ireland, exclusive of the home con- 
 sumption. There are not less than half a dozen ship building 
 yards at this place, which has long enjoyed a high character for 
 the fine model and faithful construction of the vessels built at it. 
 There are three roperies, and until of late years a considerable 
 quantity of sail-cloth was manufactured here : latterly, however, 
 the business in this particular department has very much declined. 
 There is also an extensive earthenware manufacture at White- 
 haven. Four miles south of Whitehaven is St. Bees, celebrated 
 for its ruined priory, and its grammar school, and in modern 
 times for its clerical institution, or college. There are steam 
 packets twice weekly between Liverpool and Whitehaven, which 
 leave the former place about the time of high water, and reach 
 Whitehaven the succeeding flow, not unfrequently completing the 
 voyage in from eight to ten hours. These packets are commodi- 
 ously fitted up for passengers ; and a traveller by this convey- 
 ance proceeds from Liverpool to within 27 miles of the capital of 
 the lake district — but to within half that distance of some as fine 
 lake and mountain scenery as the county can boast of — for a few 
 shillings, a distance of nearly one hundred and fifty miles by land. 
 Whitehaven sends one member to Parliament, and its present 
 representative is Matthias Attwood, Esq. Population of the town- 
 ship of Whitehaven 11,393; of Preston Quarter, which forms 
 part of the town of Whitehaven, 4,323; total 15,716 : this, too, is 
 exclusive of seamen. Market days, Tuesday, Thursday, and 
 Saturday ; inns, Black Lion, Golden Lion, and Globe. 
 
 *«* To Keswick 27 miles ; to Cockermouth 14; to Carlisle 41 ; 
 to Workington 8 miles ; to Egremont 6 miles ; to Ravenglass 16 
 miles ; to London 320 miles. 
 
338 ITINERARY. 
 
 1 m. S. Hensingham-house, Lady Senhouse; 2 m. Summer 
 Grove, Major Spedding ; 3 m. Keekle Grove, Robert Jefferson, 
 Esq. ; 3 m. Linethwaite, Major Carlisle Spedding ; Ingwell, 
 Joseph Gunson, Esq. ; 4 m. Spring Field, Captain Ponsonby, 
 R. N. ; 5 m. Gillfoot, Thomas Hartley, Esq. ; 7 m. Hail-hall, 
 John Fisher Ponsonby, Esq. ; 9 m. Ponsonby-hall, Edw. Stanley, 
 Esq., M.P. ; Calder Abbey, Thomas Irwin, Esq.; Ponsonby, 
 Sampson Senhouse, Esq. ; 13 m. Park Nook, Capt. Caldecott ; 
 14 m. Holm Rook Hall, Skeffington Lutwidge, Esq. ; 15 m. Carle- 
 ton-hall, Joseph Burrow, Esq. ; 16 m. Muncaster Castle, Lord 
 Muncaster; Irton Hall, Samuel Irton, Esq. M.P. (All these 
 places are to the south of Whitehaven, and at the distances stated. ) 
 
 Moresby, Rose Hill, Milham Hartley, Esq. ; Roseneath, Mrs. 
 Solomon ; Richmond Hill, Mrs. Wheelwright. 
 
 Distvngton, \ m. Prospect, Henry Jefferson, Esq., Esq. ; l^m. 
 Gilgarron, James Robertson Walker, Esq. 
 
 Little Clifton, 4 m. beyond, at Brigham, The Hill, John 
 Wilson, Esq. 
 
 COCKERMOUTH, a borough town situated upon the Cocker, 
 where it falls into the Derwent : the streets are spacious, and, 
 generally speaking, neatly built. On the summit of an artificial 
 mount are extensive remains of the ancient Castle, which belongs 
 to the Earl of Egremont. There are here manufactures of hats, 
 coarse woollens, coarse linens, and leather. The town sends 
 two members to Parliament, and the present Members are H. 
 A. Aglionby, Esq., of Newbiggin-hall, and F. L. B. Dykes, 
 
 Esq. of Dovenby-hall Population 4536 ; market-day, Monday ; 
 
 inns, Globe, Sun. 
 
 *** To Whitehaven 14 miles; to Workington 8 miles: to 
 Keswick 13 miles ; to Wigton 16 miles ; to Carlisle 27 miles ; to 
 London 306 miles. 
 
 Derwent-bridge end, Captain Senhouse ; at Papcastle, Major 
 Skelton, and Thos. Knight, Esq. ; at Bridekirk, H. T. Thompson, 
 Esq. ; Dovenby-hall, Fletcheville Lawson Ballantine Dykes, Esq. 
 M. P. for Cockermouth ; Tallentire-hall, William Browne, Esq. ; 
 Wood-hall, John Sanderson Fisher, Esq. ; Isel-hall, William 
 Wybergh, Esq. 
 
 Bassenthwaite Water (see p. 336. ) Keswick (see p. 329. ) 
 
 WORKINGTON to KESWICK, 21 miles. 
 
 WORKINGTON, a seaport of Cumberland, situate at the 
 mouth of the Derwent : it has a good harbour and a considerable 
 trade in coal, from the collieries belonging to Henry Curwen, 
 Esq. of Workington Hall, and several inland collieries, some of 
 them at the distance of six or seven miles, belonging to different 
 
ITINERARY. 339 
 
 gentlemen, who cart this valuable mineral to Workington for 
 exportation. The manor-house of the family of Curwen stands 
 upon a fine eminence on the banks of the Derwent. It is an ele- 
 gant quadrangular building, and is of considerable antiquity, but 
 has been modernized. A steam packet has been established at 
 this place within the last eighteen months ; it performs one voyage 
 weekly between that port and Liverpool, and one between Mary- 
 port and Liverpool. Population 6415 ; market-day, Wednesday ; 
 inns, Green Dragon, New Crown, King's Arms. 
 
 **.* To Whitehaven 8 miles ; to Cockermouth 8 ; to Keswick 
 21 ; to Carlisle 35 miles ; to London 314 miles. 
 
 2 miles E. Clifton-house, Richard Watts, Esq. ; 3 m. Clifton 
 Lodge, John Watson, Esq. 
 
 The road joins that from Whitehaven to Keswick 4 miles from 
 Workington. 
 
 KESWICK to PENRITH, 17| m. 
 
 From Keswick. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 4 Threlkeld 4 
 
 74 Penruddock 1 1 1 
 
 From Keswiek. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 3| Stainton .. 15 
 
 2i Penrith 17£ 
 
 Threlkeld, 1 m. before, on the 1. the Riddings, Josh. Crosier, 
 Esq. On the right is seen the interesting valley of St. John, at 
 the upper end of which is a huge rock, called, from its resem- 
 blance to a fortress, the Castle Rock of St. John. 
 
 Penruddock, 2 m. to the 1. is seen Greystoke-castle, Henry 
 Howard, Esq., a fine and ancient structure, standing in a spacious 
 park : near it, Greystoke-house, Rev. Henry Askew ; 1 m. be- 
 yond, on the r. Hutton John, Andrew Fleming Huddleston, Esq. ; 
 1 m. beyond, the road to Pooley-bridge turns off to the right. 
 
 Stainton, \\ m. beyond, on the r. Skirsgill-house, Hugh 
 Parkin, Esq. 
 
 PENRITH (often pronounced Peerith) is a neat and clean 
 town, not regularly built, but containing some good streets and 
 many handsome houses. It is situated in a wide and fertile 
 valley, a mile from the confluence of the Eamont and the 
 Lowther. It is a great thoroughfare, being on the road from 
 Glasgow and Carlisle to the south, and many visiters to the 
 Lakes approach them in this direction. Penrith and the neigh- 
 bourhood abound in objects of antiquarian curiosity. The 
 church was rebuilt in 1722, and connected with the ancient 
 tower. In the church-yard is a monument of great antiquity, 
 called the Giant's Grave^ or Giant's Legs, consisting of two 
 stone pillars, about 10 feet high and 13 feet apart, and four 
 large semi-circular stones, two on each side of the grave, 
 
 Q 2 
 
340 
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 imbedded in the earth. The pillars are rudely carved, and a 
 cross is said to be distinguishable on each. Tradition avers that 
 this is the tomb of Sir Ewan or Hugh Csesarius, a warrior of 
 gigantic size, who reigned in this country in the time of Ida, one 
 of the Saxon kings. At some distance is another stone pillar, six 
 feet high, which, though not apparently connected with the grave, 
 bears the name of the Giant's Thumb. The remains of the 
 Castle stand on an elevation at the west side of the town. This 
 was formerly a place of strength, was built about the reign of 
 Edward IV. and dismantled in the time of the Commonwealth. It 
 belongs, with the honour of Penrith, to the Duke of Devonshire. 
 A mile from the town, on a hill which commands a splendid 
 prospect of the vale and the Westmoreland and Cumberland 
 mountains, is the Beacon, the property of the Earl of Lons- 
 dale, a lofty stone building, erected in the times of frequent 
 hostility between England and Scotland. Brougham Castle, a 
 majestic ruin, which Camden supposes to be on the site of the 
 Roman station Brovoniacum, stands on the south of the rivers 
 Eamont and Lowther, at their confluence. This was anciently the 
 seat of the Veteriponts, and from them descended to the Cliffords 
 and Tuftons : it still belongs to the Earl of Thanet, hereditary 
 high-sheriif of Westmoreland. The traces of a Roman encamp- 
 ment are distinctly visible, and the present high road here takes 
 
 the line of the ancient Roman road Between the Eamont and 
 
 and the Lowther is a curious relic of British antiquity, called 
 Arthur's Round Table ; it is a circular grass-grown area, 29 yards 
 in diameter, surrounded by a broad ditch and an elevated mound, 
 with two approaches cut through the mound, opposite each other. 
 It is believed to have been an arena for tournaments in the days of 
 chivalry, and some antiquarians suppose it to have been originally 
 a castrensian amphitheatre of Roman construction — A few hun- 
 dred yards to the west of the Round Table, is an elevation, called 
 Mayburg, or Maybrough, on which is a circular enclosure, 100 
 yards in diameter, made by a broad ridge of pebble stones heaped 
 up to the height of 12 or 15 feet ; in the centre of the circle is a 
 massive pillar of unhewn stone, 1 1 feet high, and in one part 22 
 feet in circumference. This is believed to have been a place of 
 
 Druidical judicature A much finer relic of Druidical times is 
 
 the monument called Long Meg and her Daughters, on the sum- 
 mit of a hill near Little Salkeld, six miles north-east of Penrith, 
 which is a circle three hundred and fifty yards in circumference, 
 formed by 67 stones, many of which are 10 feet high, with one at 
 the entrance 18 feet high. There is another remarkable monu- 
 ment called Carl Lofts, at Shap, ten miles south of Penrith, near 
 the Kendal road ; for an account of which see Shap, p. 306. — 
 Two miles below Brougham Castle, on the rocky and perpendicular 
 banks of the Eamont, is a huge cave, called the Giant's Cave or Isis 
 Parlis, which tradition affirms to have been the abode of a gigan- 
 
ITINERARY. 341 
 
 tic freebooter, called Isir.-*- A mile and a half from Penrith, on the 
 Appleby road, is a pillar called the Countess's Pillar, which was 
 erected, according to the inscription, A.D. 1656, by Anne Coun- 
 tess of Pembroke, " in memorial of her last parting at that place 
 with her good and pious mother Margaret Countess Dowager of 
 Cumberland, the 2nd of April, 1616 ; in memory whereof she 
 has left an annuity of £4, to be distributed to the poor within the 
 parish of Brougham, every second day of April for ever, upon the 
 stone hereby." Five miles north of Penrith, on the left of the 
 Carlisle road, are the remains of a Roman station, supposed by 
 Camden to be Petriana, and by Horsley Bremetenracum ,• the 
 ruins are very considerable, and they go by the name of Old 
 Penrith : for an account of them see Plumpton, p. 344. The inns 
 in Penrith are excellent. Population of the parish 6059 ; market- 
 day, Tuesday ; inns, Crown Hotel, George. 
 
 *** To Carlisle 18m.; to Keswick 17| miles; to Kendal 26 
 m. ; to Appleby 12| m. ; to Pooley-bridge 5 m. ; to Patterdale 
 15 m.; to Ambleside 25 m. ; to Glasgow 114 m.; to London 
 282 1 m. 
 
 On the Kendal road, 1 m. from Penrith, on the left, Carleton- 
 hall, John Cowper, Esq. ; 1^ m., on the left, Brougham-hall, 
 Lord Brougham and Vaux ; 5 m. on the right, Lowther Castle, 
 the Earl of Lonsdale ; on the road to Ullswater, 3^ m., on the 
 right, Dalemain, Edward W. Hasell, Esq; 4 miles east, Eden- 
 hall-hall, Lady Musgrave ; 4 m., n. e. Nunwick-hall, J. Richard- 
 son, Esq. ; 5 m. on the Hesket Newmarket road, on the right, 
 Hutton-hall, Sir Fras. Fletcher Vane, Bart. ; 8 m. on the Temple 
 Sowerby road, on the right, Newbiggin-hall, Wm. Crackenthorpe, 
 Esq. ; 6 m. on the Carlisle road, on the left, Inglewood-bank, 
 Thomas M. Williamson, Esq. ; 3 m. on the r. Bowscar, Colonel 
 Youngson ; in Penrith, Bishop-yard, John De Whelpdale, Esq. ; 
 1 J m. Green Ways, James Parkin, Esq. 
 
 EXCURSIONSto ULLSWATER and HAWES WATER. 
 
 Ullswater, which is the second in size, and the first in grandeur 
 and beauty of scenery amongst the English lakes, may be ap- 
 proached by various routes from Keswick and Penrith. From 
 Keswick the nearest route is a bridle road, which leaves the Penrith 
 road a little beyond the second mile-stone, crosses the vale of 
 Wanthwaite, and passes over an exposed mountain side to Matter- 
 dale and Gowbarrow Park ; this is about 11 miles, and brings the 
 traveller to Ullswater at the distance of 4 miles from Patter- 
 dale. Carriages may proceed ten miles on the Penrith road, 
 and then in 8 m. more reach Gowbarrow Park: this makes the 
 distance to Patterdale 22 miles. Or they may go direct to Pooley- 
 bridcre at the foot of Ullswater, 18 miles from Keswick. Ad- 
 
 q 3 
 
342 ITINERARY. 
 
 proaching from Penrith, travellers may go by Eamont-bridge, 
 Yanwath, and Tirrel, and past the old tower of Yanwath-hall, in 
 five miles to Pooley-bridge ; or they may turn off the Keswick 
 road beyond the second mile-stone, and pass through the beautiful 
 grounds of Dalemain, coming to Ullswater near Pooley-bridge, 
 in 6 miles, and to Patterdale in 15 m. It is believed that the best 
 way of seeing Ullswater, approaching from Keswick, is to proceed 
 to Gowbarrow Park, and thence to go to Patterdale, and return 
 either by boat or along the shore, to Pooley-bridge ; from which 
 place a circuit may be taken by Lowther castle, or even as far as 
 Hawes Water, to Penrith. Approaching from Penrith, the route 
 may be reversed. 
 
 In proceeding from Keswick to Pooley-bridge, the traveller 
 leaves the Penrith road 12 m. from Keswick, and, 3 m. before 
 coming to Pooley-bridge, passes Dacre-castle, the remains of a 
 very ancient mansion formerly belonging to the Dacre family, and 
 now to Mr. Hasell, of Dalemain. In Dacre church-yard, are some 
 rudely-carved monuments of great antiquity. 
 
 Pooley-bridge, a village at the foot of Ullswater, where there is 
 a comfortable inn, but where post-horses are not kept. The hill 
 of Dunmallet and the river Eamont adorn this place. Boats may 
 be engaged here for going on the lake. 
 
 Ullswater is nine miles long and about a mile in its utmost 
 breadth ; its average depth is greater than any of the other lakes, 
 and the deepest part is 35 fathoms. Its form is zigzag, resembling 
 that of the letter Z. It has three small islands near the head. In 
 sailing up the first reach of the lake, from Pooley-bridge, Swarth- 
 fell is seen on the left, Hallen-fell in front, and a sloping shore, 
 adorned with several villas, on the right. The second reach lies 
 betwixt the hills of Hallen-fell, Birk-fell, and Place-fell, on the 
 left, and Gowbarrow Parks on the right, with Helvellyn rising in 
 great magnificence beyond the head. At the entrance of this reach 
 is Hallsteads, the beautiful seat of John Marshall, Esq. Gowbar- 
 row Parks are ancient deer-parks, belonging to H. Howard, Esq., 
 of Greystoke Castle, having been bequeathed to him by the Duke 
 of Norfolk. They comprise 1800 acres, and are divided into 
 three parks — Glencoin Park, Gowbarrow Park, and the Low Park ; 
 the first and last of which are farmed off. Gowbarrow Park com- 
 prises 800 acres, and feeds 400 head of deer. Lyulph's Tower is 
 a modern house, built in the castellated form, and inhabited by 
 the gamekeeper. The cascade called Airey Force, one of the 
 most beautiful amongst the Lakes, is in a glen, a quarter of a mile 
 from the Tower : the water falls a perpendicular height of 80 feet 
 through a chasm of the rocks. At the extremity of the park, and 
 branching off to the right from the head of the second reach of the 
 lake, is the valley of Glencoin, beyond which are the fine wooded 
 
ITINKRARY. 343 
 
 rocks called Stybarrow Crag. The third reach presents the 
 noblest view of mountain and valley, lake and wood, which is to 
 be seen in Cumberland or Westmoreland. It lies between Place- 
 fell on the left, and the outer ridges of Helvellyn and Fairfield on 
 the right, St. Sunday Crag being finely conspicuous. (For Hel- 
 vellyn see p. 329. ) 
 
 The valley or district of Patterdah extends from Stybarrow Crag 
 along the borders and partly round the head of the lake, from 
 which it runs up two or three miles towards Brothers-water. 
 Branching off from it, on the right, are the valleys of Glenridden 
 and Grisedale. At the head of the lake is a comfortable inn, 
 the King's Arms, Mr. Wilson's, where post horses may be had, 
 and whence a rough carriage road of ten miles conducts, by Bro- 
 thers-water and over Kirkstone-moor, to Ambleside. Above the 
 inn is an extremely fine echo : a cannon being fired, the peal is 
 returned on the ear six or seven times with great distinctness from 
 the surrounding mountains. The whole of the southern shore of 
 Ullswater, and part of the northern, are in Westmoreland; the 
 rest is in Cumberland. 
 
 Near Pooley-bridge, Eusemere-lodge, John Charles Bristow, 
 Esq. ; on the opposite side of Dunmallet, Waterfoot, Colonel 
 Salmond ; and Dacre, Wm. Evans, Esq. ; 2 m. up the lake, on 
 the r. Rampsbeck-lodge, B. E. Stagg, Esq. ; 3 m. up, on the 
 r. Watermillock, J. Fallowfield, Esq. ; a little beyond, Beau-thorn, 
 Jonathan Scott, Esq. : still further, Hallsteads, John Marshall, 
 Esq. ; near Patterdale, Glenridden, Rev. Henry Askew ; Patter- 
 dale-hall, William Marshall, Esq. ; two miles beyond, Deepdale 
 hall, Wm. Mounsey, Esq. 
 
 Lowther Castle, 4 m. from Pooley-bridge, and 5 m. from 
 Penrith, the seat of the Earl of Lonsdale, is the most magnificent 
 structure of modern date in the north of England. It stands on a 
 fine elevation, amongst noble woods, and overlooks the vale of 
 Penrith and all the surrounding mountains. The castle is quite 
 modern, having been begun in 1808, and some of the interior 
 parts are still in progress. The north front is in the style of the 
 13th or 14th century, and has towers and battlements : it is 420 
 feet in length : the south front is in the Gothic cathedral style, 
 and looks upon a sloping vista of the park, enclosed by lofty trees. 
 The interior is fitted up with splendour. The oaken wainscoting 
 corresponds with the character of the building. The staircase, 
 90 feet high, and 60 feet square, is extremely fine. 
 
 Hawes Water, about 11 m. from Pooley-bridge, and th 
 same from Penrith, is remarkable for the solemn grandeur of 
 its rock and mountain scenery. It is 3 m. long, and only half a 
 mile broad. Harter Fell, High Street, and Kidsay Pike are 
 amono- the sublime mountains which rise above the head of the 
 lake. There is a place of entertainment at Mardale Green, the 
 White Bull. Hawes Water may also be approached from Long 
 Sleddale and Troutbeck. 
 
344 ITINERARY. 
 
 Brougham Hall, near Lowther bridge, 1| m, from Penrith, 
 the seat of Lord Brougham and Vaux, the Lord High Chancellor 
 of England, is a plain, but lofty and venerable building, and, 
 from the splendid prospect obtained from the terrace, has been 
 
 called the Windsor of the North Clifton-hall, a dilapidated 
 
 manor-house, the ancient seat of the Wyberghs, is half a mile 
 distant. 
 
 PENRITH to CARLISLE, 18 m. 
 
 From Penrith. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 4§ Carlton 15£ 
 
 1 Harraby 16^ 
 
 1% Carlisle 18 
 
 From Penrith. 
 Miles. Miles. 
 
 44 Salkeld Gate 4j 
 
 5 Plumpton 5 
 
 4i High Hesket 9j 
 
 l^ Low Hesket 10J 
 
 Salkeld Gate, on the r. Salkeld-lodge, Lieutenant- Colonel 
 Lacy. 
 
 Plumpton ; on the 1. are the ruins of Old Penrith, formerly a 
 Roman station, of which the vestiges of a fort, 132 yards long 
 by 110 broad, and of considerable outbuildings, still remain. 
 The station is 200 yards from the river Peteril : the ramparts 
 are still very high, and the ditch round them almost per- 
 fect. The great Roman road, leading to the Picts' Wall, was 
 on the line of the present high road. The station is supposed 
 by Camden to have been Petriana, and by Horsley Breme- 
 tenracum. 
 
 High Hesket, 2 m. on the r. Armathwaite-castle, Rev. J. R. 
 Hunton ; 7 m. on the r. near Kirkoswald, the Nunnery, F. Y. 
 Aglionby, Esq., the walks of which are the most romantic in this 
 part of the country ; and Staffold-hall, R. Lothian Ross, Esq. : 
 beyond Hesket, on the r. Nordvue, Mrs. Dixon ; on the 1. 
 Calthwaite-hall, T. Dixon, Esq. and Peteril-green, Christopher 
 Parker, Esq. : Moorhouse-hill, Mrs. Lowden. 
 
 Low Hesket, 1 m. on the 1. Barrock lodge, William James, 
 Esq., M.P. for Carlisle. 
 
 Carlton, 1 m. before, Newbiggin-hall, H. A. Aglionby, Esq., 
 M. P. ; Woodside, Miss Losh ; Briscoe-hill, Jas. Jardine, Esq. 
 
 CARLISLE, the capital of Cumberland, is an ancient city, 
 and the see of a bishop. It stands on a gentle elevation at the con- 
 fluence of the Eden, the Caldew, and the Peteril, within eight 
 miles of the Scottish frontier, and is surrounded by a fertile and 
 open country. Carlisle was a Roman station, and is within a 
 quarter of a mile of the great Roman wall. It was anciently forti- 
 fied, and in the wars between England and Scotland was a place 
 of importance. Since the Union, it has greatly increased in trade 
 and population. The streets are clean, and some of them very 
 spacious and well-built. The castle is of unknown antiquity. 
 
ITINERARY. 345 
 
 but is said to have been built A. D. 680 : some very massive and 
 antique buttresses on the north battery are ascribed to "William 
 Rufus: it is still kept in a defensible state, having been lately 
 repaired, and has a small garrison. Mary Queen of Scots was 
 imprisoned here in 1568, and the rooms she occupied, as well as 
 her promenade, are shown. The cathedral is a venerable 
 structure, partly of Saxon and partly of Gothic architecture : 
 the east window is the largest in the kingdom : some old 
 wooden screens in the aisles contain curious and ridiculous 
 legendary paintings, representing events in the lives of St. 
 Augustin and St. Anthony. The new gaol is an extensive and 
 admirable building, situated at the southern entrance of the 
 city, immediately contiguous to the county court-houses, (built 
 in 1812) the principal features of which are two magnificent 
 circular towers, the successors of two similar towers which in 
 other days formed the defences of the " English-gate." The 
 bridge over the Eden was finished in 1817, and is a solid and 
 elegant structure, a quarter of a mile in length. A new bridge 
 has been thrown over the Peteril at the south entrance to the 
 town, and the hills on each side lowered thirty feet. Two 
 churches in the Gothic style have recently been erected, and 
 a County Infirmary has been completed at the head of English- 
 street. A News-room, Reading and Billiard Rooms, have also 
 been built, from a Gothic design by Messrs. Rickman and 
 Hutchinson, of Birmingham, which contribute much to beautify 
 the town. Carlisle has a flourishing manufacture of cottons, 
 and also manufactures of woollens, linen, leather, and other 
 articles : it is particularly celebrated for its whips and hats. Being 
 within a few miles of the Solway, and having a ship canal to 
 Bowness, its communications with Liverpool and all other parts are 
 much facilitated by the steam-packets. A railway is commenced 
 from this place to Newcastle, which may be expected still further to 
 increase the prosperity of Carlisle. The city sends two repre- 
 sentatives to Parliament, who at present, are William James, Esq. 
 of Barrock-lodge, and Philip Henry Howard, Esq. of Corby- 
 castle. The county of Cumberland returns four members ; at 
 present the Right Hon. Sir James R. G. Graham, Bart., of 
 Netherby, (lately First Lord of the Admiralty,) and Wm. Blamire, 
 Esq., of Thackwoodnock, are Members for East Cumberland ; 
 and Samuel Irton, Esq., of Irton-hall, and Edward Stanley, Esq. 
 of Ponsonby-hall, are the Members for West Cumberland. 
 Population 20,006 : market-days, Wednesday and Saturday ; 
 inns, Bush, Coffee House. 
 
 *** To Penrith 18 m. ; to Wigton 11 m. ; to Bowness 13 m. ; 
 to Keswick 33 m. ; to Whitehaven 41 m. ; to Newcastle 57 m. ; 
 to Glasgow 95| m. ; to London, 305 m. 
 
 7 m. S.S.W. of the city, Rose-castle, the Bishop of Carlisle; 
 4 m. E. Warwick-hall, Mrs. Parker; 5 m. E. Corby-castle, 
 
346 
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 Henry Howard, Esq., and Philip Henry Howard, Esq., M. P.; 
 11 m. E. Naworth-castle, (built in 1330,) Earl of Carlisle, 
 and near it the interesting ruin of Lanercost Priory, (built in 
 1169;) 7 m. E. Edmond-castle, T. H. Graham, Esq., and 
 Stonehouse, Col. Sir Hew D. Ross, K.C.B. ; 3 m. N.E. Knells, 
 John Dixon, Esq.; 3m. N.E. Houghton-house, Wm. Hodgson, 
 Esq. ; Houghton-hall, Mrs. Ferguson ; 3 m. N. Harker-lodge, 
 Rd. Ferguson, Esq. : 5 m. N. E. Scaleby-castle, James 
 Fawcett, Esq. ; 5 m. N. N. W. Castletown-house, Robert Mounsey, 
 Esq. ; 11 m. N. Netherby, SirJas. R. G. Graham, Bart. M. P.; 
 10 m. N. E. Kirklinton-house, Henry Farrer, Esq. ; 3 m. S. W. 
 Dalston-hall, Wm. Sowerby, Esq. ; 1 m. N. W. Morton-house, 
 Jno. Forster, Jun. Esq. 
 
 PENRITH to KENDAL, 26 m. 
 
 Miles. 
 
 Eamont-bridge 
 
 From Penrith, 
 Miles. 
 1 
 
 From Penrith. 
 Miles. Mile?. 
 
 Demmings 16 
 
 Hawse Foot 17 
 
 Banisdale-b ridge 1 9 J 
 
 Gate Side 21 
 
 1 
 2f 
 
 H 
 if 
 si 
 
 Kendal 26 
 
 ^ Lowther-bridge 1^ 
 
 1 Clifton 2§ 
 
 2 Hackthorpe 4§ 
 
 1\ Thrimby 7 
 
 3| Shap 10| 
 
 Eamont Bridge and Lowther Bridge — Arthur's Round Table 
 (see p. 340.) Brougham-hall (see p. 344.) 
 Hackthorpe Lowther castle (see p. 343.) 
 
 Shap, a small market town, near the source of the river Low- 
 ther. A mile distant are the venerable and beautiful remains 
 of Shap Abbey. Near are many large upright stones inclosing 
 an area upwards of half a mile in length, and from 20 to 30 
 yards broad : the stones are of granite, three or four yards in 
 diameter, and ten or twelve yards distance ; and at the upper 
 end is a circle of similar stones, about 18 feet in diameter. 
 This monument is called Carl Lofts (the liftings of the husband- 
 men,) and is thought to be of Danish origin: others suppose 
 it to be a Druidical temple. The market of Shap had sunk 
 almost into disuse, but has of late years considerably revived. 
 There is a spa, 3 miles south-east of Shap, of excellent medicinal 
 properties. It is the property of the Earl of Lonsdale, who has 
 recently built an extremely handsome inn, with hot baths, and 
 every accommodation in a superior style. For the last two years 
 the Spa has been well and fashionably attended, with considerable 
 benefit to invalids, and it promises to become a highly popular 
 resort. Population 1084; market-day, Wednesday; inns, Grey- 
 hound, King's Arms, 
 
\ 
 
 INDEX 
 
 OF 
 
 
 PLACES, SEATS, AND 
 
 OBJECTS. 
 
 Abbot-hall, 54, 317 
 
 Beau-thorn, 200, 343 
 
 Bowness, (Cumberland,) 
 
 Airey-force, 205, 342 
 
 Beetham, 318 
 
 345 
 
 Aldcliffe-hall, 315 
 
 hall, 318 
 
 Bowness, (Windermere,) 
 
 Allan-bank, 328 
 
 house, 318 
 
 59, 69, 325 
 
 Allithwaite, 320 
 
 Belfield, 324 
 
 Bowscar, 341 
 
 Ambleside, 86, 227, 326 
 
 Belle-grange, 75, 326 
 
 Branstree, 282 
 
 ADgle-tarn (Bowfell) 261 
 
 Belle Isle, 62, 76, 325 
 
 Brantwood, 323 
 
 (Place-fell) 223 
 
 Belle-vue,(Ambleside,)326 
 
 Brathay the, 85, 92 
 
 Armathwaite-castle, 344 
 
 (Ulverston,) 321 
 
 hall, 327 
 
 Armbath-house, 329 
 
 Belmont, 324 
 
 Brathay-park, 84, 91 ' 
 
 Armthwaite-hall, 336 
 
 Berkshire-island, 77 
 
 Bremetenracum, 341, 344 
 
 Arnside-fells, 320 
 
 Bessy-crag, 98 
 
 Bridekirk, 338 
 
 tower, 320 
 
 Bigland-hall, 320 
 
 Bridge-field, 322 
 
 Applethwaite-common, 
 
 Birk-fell, 202, 204, 342 
 
 Briary-close, 326 
 
 274 
 
 Birklands, 317 
 
 Brigham, 338 
 
 Arthur's Round Table, 
 
 Birkrigg, 245, 322 
 
 Briscoe-hill, 344 
 
 191, 340 
 
 Birthwaite, 327 
 
 Broadlands, 326 
 
 Ash-course, 258 
 
 Bishop-yard, 341 
 
 Broad-water, (see Bassen- 
 
 Ashness, 268, 305 
 
 Black Comb, 30, 246 
 
 thwaite-water.) 
 
 Ashton-hall, 24, 315 
 
 Black-law, 269 
 
 Brotherswater, 224, 225 
 
 Askham, 284 
 
 Black-sale, 166, 335 
 
 Brougham-castle, 190, 340 
 
 Aynsome, 320 
 
 Blake-fell, 171 
 
 hall, 192, 344 
 
 
 Blakerigg, 98 
 
 Broughton-grove, 320 
 
 Backbarrow, 323 
 
 Blawith-cottage, 320 
 
 hall, (Cartmel,) 320 
 
 Bardsea, 246 
 
 B lea-crag, 176 
 
 house, 320 
 
 Barf, 120 
 
 Blea-tarn, 98, 99, 327 
 
 Brovoniacum, 190, 340 
 
 Ban-ock-lodge, 344 
 
 Bolton-le-Sands, 317 
 
 Bull-crag, 329 
 
 Barrow, (Keswick,) 305 
 
 Bonning-yate, 325 
 
 Burrow, 315 
 
 (Ulverston.) 321 
 
 Borrowdale, 120, 154, 159, 
 
 hall, 315 
 
 Barrow-house, 130, 330, 
 
 267, 297, 332 
 
 Burscough-priory, 22 
 
 331 
 
 fells, 220 
 
 Burton, 319 
 
 Barrow's-green, 318 
 
 Borwick-hall, 318 
 
 house, 319 
 
 Bassenthwaite-water, 119, 
 
 Borwick-lodge, 324 
 
 Butterlip-how, 108 
 
 146, 336 
 
 Bowderdale, 165 
 
 Buttermere, 178, 333 
 
 Beacon the, 189, 340 
 
 Bowder-stone, 155, 156, 
 
 lake, 178, 333 
 
 Beaumont-castle, 317 
 
 332 
 
 moss, 179, 180 
 
 hall, 317 
 
 Bowfell, 55, 100, 254, 259 
 
 Buxton-house, 319 
 
348 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 
 Calder-abbey, 168 
 
 Clifton-house, 339 
 
 Dallam tower, 40, 318 
 
 bridge, 167, 334 
 
 Little, 338 
 
 Dalston-hall, 346 
 
 Caldew the, 144, 270, 344 
 
 lodge, 339 
 
 Dalton, 240, 322 
 
 Calgarth-park, 71, 80, 81, 
 
 Cocker the, 178, 338 
 
 hall, 319 
 
 326 
 
 Cockermouth, 338 
 
 Deepdale, 223, 224 
 
 Calthwaite-hall, 344 
 
 Cockshot-park, 128 
 
 hall, 209, 343 
 
 Cantsfield-house, 315 
 
 Cold-fell, 170 
 
 Dent-hill, 170, 335 
 
 Capon wray, 318 
 
 Colddale-fell, 226 
 
 Derwent the, 132, 160 
 
 Cark, 320 
 
 Coldrill-beck, 223 
 
 bank, 330 
 
 Carletoo-hall, (Whiteha- 
 
 Collin-field, 317 
 
 bay, 330 
 
 ven) 338 
 
 Colwith-bridge, 327 
 
 fells, 118 
 
 Carleton-hal), (Penrith,) 
 
 force, 97, 327 
 
 hill, 330 
 
 191,341 
 
 Conishead - priory, 237, 
 
 lodge, 330 
 
 Carlisle, 269, 270, 344 
 
 246, 321, 322 
 
 Derwent bridge end, 338 
 
 Carl Lofts, 341, 346 
 
 Coniston-bank, 323 
 
 Derwentwater, 119, 124, 
 
 Carlton, 344 
 
 water-head, 322 
 
 126, 296, 330 
 
 Carnforth, 318 
 
 Coniston Old Man, 55, 72, 
 
 Distington, 338 
 
 Carrs the, 107 
 
 247, 322 
 
 Dock wray, 284 
 
 Carrock-fell, 144 
 
 Coniston- water, 247, 249, 
 
 Dod-hill, 208 
 
 Cartmel, 235, 320 
 
 322 
 
 Donnerdale, 260 
 
 Cartmel-fells, 236 
 
 Copeland-forest, 169, 334 
 
 Dove-cote the, 330 
 
 Casterton-hall, 48, 316 
 
 Corby-castle, 270, 345 
 
 Dove-crag, 224 
 
 Castle-crag, (Borrowdale,) 
 
 Cottage the, 326 
 
 Dovenby-hall, 338 
 
 120, 156 
 
 Countess's Pillar, 341 
 
 Druid's-Temple, Castle- 
 
 Castle crag,(HawesWater) 
 
 Covey-cottage, 326 
 
 rigg, 185, 329 
 
 282 
 
 Crake the, 322 
 
 Duddon the, 260 
 
 Castle-head, (Derwent- 
 
 Crinkle-crags, 100 
 
 Dunald-mill-hole, 318 
 
 water,) 120, 331 
 
 Croft-lodge, 326 
 
 Dungeon-gill, 101, 327 
 
 Castle-head, (the Kent,) 
 
 Crooklands, 318 
 
 Dunmail- Raise, 110, 328 
 
 320 
 
 Cross-hill, 317 
 
 Dunmallet, 198, 342 
 
 Castle Inn, 336 
 
 Cross-fell, 147 
 
 
 Castlelaw-hill, 316 
 
 Crosthwaite-church, 330 
 
 
 Castlerigg, 118, 119, 329 
 
 Crowbarrow, 280 
 
 Eagle-crag, 157, 306 
 
 Castle-rock of St. John's, 
 
 Crow-holm, 77 
 
 Eamont the, 191, 198 
 
 186, 339 
 
 Crow-park (Derwentwater) 
 
 Easdale, 107 
 
 Castletown-house, 346 
 
 123, 331 
 
 tarn, 108 
 
 Catbells, 120, 136 
 
 Crow-trees, 315 
 
 Eaves-lodge, 318 
 
 Catchedecam, 217 
 
 Crurnmock-water, 173 
 
 Eden the, 27, 270, 344 
 
 Cat-gill, 132 
 
 174, 333 
 
 Edenhall-hall, 341 
 
 Caton, 315 
 
 Cumberland, 115 
 
 Edmond-castle, 346 
 
 Causey-pike, 120 
 
 Cumbria, 115 
 
 Ellel-hall, 315 
 
 Chapel-hill, 282 
 
 Curwen's Island (see Belle 
 
 Elleray, 72, 73, 274, 327 
 
 Chapel-island, 320 
 
 Isle.) 
 
 Elmsfield, 318 
 
 Chapel-style, 312 
 
 Curwen-woods, 319 
 
 Elterwater, 95, 327 
 
 Chesnut-hill, 330 
 
 
 hall, 324 
 
 Church-bank, 319 
 
 
 End Moor, 319 
 
 City the, 288 
 
 Dacre, 343 
 
 Ennerdale, 170, 302, 335 
 
 Clappersgate, 91 
 
 Dacre-castle, 342 
 
 Ennerdale bridge, 170, 335 
 
 Claughton, 315 
 
 Dale-end, 328 
 
 water, 170, 335 
 
 Clay-barrow, 325 
 
 Dalesmain, 198, 342 
 
 Eskdale, 258 
 
 Clifton, 346 
 
 Dalehead, (Thirlmere,) 
 
 Esthwaite-lodge, 324 
 
 Clifton hall, 344 
 
 117, 329 
 
 water, 264, 323, 324 
 

 INDEX. 
 
 349 
 
 Eusemere-lodge, 201, 343 
 
 Great End, 161, 258, 334 
 
 Hest -bank-lodge, 317 
 
 
 Gavel, 162, 179, 
 
 Heversham, 318 
 
 
 301— -304, 334 
 
 High-close, 102, 327 
 
 Fairfield, 87, 107 
 
 Great Langdale, {see 
 
 High Pike, 144 
 
 Fair-view, 321 
 
 Langdale) 
 
 crag, 178, 333 
 
 Falcon-crag 130, 296, 
 
 Green-bank, (Ambleside) 
 
 stile, 173, 333 
 
 Fell-foot, (Langdale) 98, 
 
 326 
 
 street, 279, 343 
 
 253 
 
 bank, (Cartmel) 320 
 
 Hill the, 338 
 
 Fell-foot, (Windermere) 
 
 bank, (Kendal) 317 
 
 Hill Bell, 51, 275, 278 
 
 323 
 
 Green Gavel, 179, 302 
 
 Hill-top, 326 
 
 Ferney-green, 324 
 
 Green-odd, 323 
 
 Hindscarth, 120 
 
 Ferry, (Windermere) 63, 
 
 Greenup, 306 
 
 Hoghton-tower, 23 
 
 324 
 
 Green-ways, 341 
 
 Holker-hall, 236, 320 
 
 Field-head, 324 
 
 Greta the, 118 
 
 Hollins-grove, 328 
 
 Fisher-crag, 329 
 
 bank, 140, 330 
 
 Hollow Oak, 323 
 
 Floating Island, 131 
 
 hall, 184, 330 
 
 Holly-hill, 326 
 
 Floutern-tarn, 335 
 
 Grey stoke castle, 187, 339 
 
 Holm-rook-hall, 338 
 
 Foulsike, 335 
 
 house, 339 
 
 Holme-park, 317 
 
 Fox-ghyll, 326 
 
 Grisedale, 215, 343 
 
 Honister-crag, 178, 266, 
 
 Fox-howe, 327 
 
 beck, 215 
 
 332 
 
 Friar-crag, 127 
 
 pike, 120 
 
 Hornby, 44, 315 
 
 Furness, 238, 320 
 
 
 castle, 44, 315 
 
 Abbey, 240 — 245, 321 
 
 Hackthorpe, 346 
 
 hall, 315 
 
 fell, 71, 76 
 
 Hail-hall, 338 
 
 Horse-head, 288, 328 
 
 Fylde, 24 
 
 Hale, 318 
 
 Houghton-hall, 346 
 
 
 Hallen-fell, 201, 342 
 
 house, 346 
 
 Gale-house, 326 
 
 Hallsteads, 202, 342 
 
 House-holm, 75, 207 
 
 Gate-crag, 155 
 
 Halton-hall, 315 
 
 How-hall, 171, 335 
 
 Gatesgarth-dale, 267, 332 
 
 park, 315 
 
 Howe the, 326 
 
 Gell's-cottage, 328 
 
 Hardknot, 72 
 
 How the, 117 
 
 Giant's Cave, 192, 340 
 
 Harker-lodge, 346 
 
 Howsley-cottage, 324 
 
 Grave, 188, 339 
 
 Harrison Stickle, 95, 100, 
 
 Hutton John, 339 
 
 Gilgarron, 338 
 
 327, 309 
 
 hall, 341 
 
 Gillerthwaite, 171,335 
 
 Harter-fell, 282, 343 
 
 moor, 187 
 
 Gill-foot, 338 
 
 Hartshope, 223 
 
 Hyning-hall, 318 
 
 Gill-head, 323 
 
 Haseness, 333 
 
 
 Gimmer-crag, 100 
 
 Hawes Water, 279, 283, 
 
 
 Glaramara, 157 
 
 343 
 
 Ingleborough, 30, 44 
 
 Glasson-dock, 27, 314 
 
 Hawkshead, 265, 323 
 
 Inglewood-bank, 341 
 
 Glencoin, 203, 206, 342 
 
 Haycock the, 165 
 
 Forest, 268 
 
 Glenridden, 207, 295 
 
 Haystacks, 304 
 
 Ings Chapel, 327 
 
 Godfred, 335 
 
 Hayswater-tarn, 223 
 
 Ingwell, 338 
 
 Gowbarrow-parks, 203, 
 
 Helme-lodge, 317 
 
 Irton-hall, 338 
 
 342 
 
 Helm-crag, 1 08, 109, 113, 
 
 Isel-hall, 338 
 
 Gowder-crag, 133, 331 
 
 285, 328 
 
 Isis Parlis, (see Giant's 
 
 Grange, 154, 332 
 
 Helvellyn, 116, 205, 213, 
 
 Cave) 
 
 fell, 155 
 
 221, 290, 329 
 
 Isle of Man, 143, 167 
 
 Grasraere, 107, 113, 328 
 
 Hen-holm, 75 
 
 Ivy-cottage, (Cartmel) 320 
 
 water, 107, 328 
 
 Hensingham-house, 338 
 
 cottage, (Rydal,) 328 
 
 Grassmoor, 120, 174, 333 
 
 Hesket High, 344 
 
 Jenkin hill, 142 
 
 Grass-yard-hall, 315 
 
 Low, 344 
 
 
 Graythwate-hall, 324 
 
 Hest-bank, 231, 319 
 K 
 
 Keekle-grove, 338 
 
350 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 
 Keer the, 232, 319 
 
 Linethwaite, 338 
 
 Melling, 315 
 
 Kendal, 45, 50, 52, 54, 
 
 Lingmell, 162, 165 
 
 hall, 315 
 
 316 
 
 Lingmire, 96 
 
 Mersey the, 21 
 
 Kent the, 50, 234, 319 
 
 Lingy-stone, 307 
 
 Mickle-door, 260, 334 
 
 Kent's bank, 235, 320 
 
 Lissick, 336 
 
 Middle fell, 165 
 
 Kentmere, 276, 278 
 
 Little Croft, 321 
 
 Mill-beck, 101, 327, 311 
 
 Keskadale, 181 
 
 Liverpool, 15, 19 
 
 Milnthorpe, 40, 318 
 
 Keswick, 119, 121, 183, 
 
 Long Meg and her Daugh- 
 
 Mint-house, 317 
 
 295, 329 
 
 ters, 192, 340 
 
 Mirehouse, 336 
 
 Kidsay Pike, 279, 343 
 
 Longridge-fells, 23 
 
 Moorhouse-hill, 344 
 
 Kirkby Lonsdale, 45, 46, 
 
 Long Sleddale, 280 
 
 Morecambe-bay, 30, 231, 
 
 47, 316 
 
 Lonscale fell, 142 
 
 319 
 
 Kirkfell, 162 
 
 Lonsdale Hundred, 41, 45 
 
 lodge, 318 
 
 Kirkgate, 335 
 
 Lonsdale North of the 
 
 Moresby, 338 
 
 Kirklinton house, 346 
 
 Sands, 41 
 
 Morton-honse, 346 
 
 Kirkoswald, 344 
 
 Lord's Island, 123, 128, 
 
 Mosedale, 164 
 
 Kirkstone-moor, 225, 226, 
 
 330 
 
 Mosedale-hall, 317 
 
 Knells, 346 
 
 Seat, 120 
 Lorton, 335 
 
 Muncaster-castle, 338 
 
 Lady-holm, 75 
 
 hall, 335 
 
 
 Lady's-rake, 128 
 
 Lowdore-fall, 132, 133, 
 
 Nab-scar, 106 
 
 Lake-bank, 324 
 
 295, 331 
 
 Naddle-fell, 118 
 
 field, 324 
 
 Lowes-water, 171, 335 
 
 Nan-bield, 279 
 
 Lamplugh-cross, 171 
 
 Low-fell, 172 
 
 Naworth-castle, 270, 346 
 
 Lancaster, 24, 26, 45, 
 
 Low Graythwaite-hall 324 
 
 Nether Wasdale, 166 
 
 231, 314 
 
 Lowiek-bridge, 322 
 
 Netherby, 346 
 
 Lancaster-Sands, 40, 231, 
 
 hall, 322 
 
 Newbiggin-hall (Penrith), 
 
 235, 319 
 
 Lowther the, 191, 197 
 
 341 
 
 Landing, 323 
 
 Castle, 194, 343 ! 
 
 (Carlisle,) 344 
 
 Lanercost Priory, 271, 
 
 Low-wood (on the Leven) 
 
 Newby-bridge, 323 
 
 346 
 
 323 
 
 Newlands, 120, 181 
 
 Langdale Great, 72, 92, 
 
 Low-wood (Windermere) 
 
 Nibthwaite, 248, 322 
 
 100, 327 
 
 84, 326 
 
 Nordvue, 344 
 
 Little, 96, 253, 327 
 
 Loughrigg fell, 84, 106 
 
 Nunnery the, 344 
 
 Langdale Pikes, 56, 72, 
 
 tarn, 94 
 
 Nunwick-hall, 341 
 
 100, 327 
 
 Lund the, 321 
 
 
 Langstreth, 306, 307 
 
 Lune the, 24, 26, 43, 314 
 
 Oak-bank, 327 
 
 Latham House, 22 
 
 Lune, Crook of 43 
 
 Oaks the, 326 
 
 Latrigg, 140 
 
 field, 316 
 
 Old-hall, 319 
 
 Lawnd the, 315 
 
 villa, 317 
 
 Old Man (see ConistonOld 
 
 Leathes-water, (see Thirl- 
 
 Lyulph's Tower, 203, 204, 
 
 Man) 
 
 mere) 
 
 342 
 
 Orest-head, 274, 327 
 
 Leighton-hall, 318 
 
 
 Ormathwaite-hal), 330 
 
 Lemon-house, 200 
 
 
 Ormskirk, 21 
 
 Leven the, 235, 236, 320, 
 
 Mardale, 282 
 
 Otter Isle, 330 
 
 323 
 
 green, 281, 343 
 
 Ousebridge, 336 
 
 sands, 237, 320 
 
 Martindale, 201 
 
 Oxen-park, 323 
 
 Levens-bririge, 318 
 
 Matterdale, 341 
 
 
 hall, 40, 318 
 
 Mayburg, 191, 340 
 
 Papcastle, 338 
 
 park, 318 
 
 Measand, 283 
 
 Park the, 335 
 
 Lily of the Valley-holms, 
 
 Melbreak, 172, 333 
 
 Park-nook, 338 
 
 75 
 
 Mell-fell, 187 
 
 Park-side, 317 
 

 INDEX. 351 
 
 Patterdale, 207,210, 223, 
 
 Robinson, 120, 179, 181 
 
 Shap, 341, 346 
 
 343 
 
 Rose-castle, 270, 345 
 
 Shap-abbey, 346 
 
 hall, 209, 343 
 
 hill, 338 
 
 Shaw-end, 317 
 
 Pavey Ark, 95, 310 
 
 Rosen eat h, 338 
 
 Shepherd's crag, 133, 295 
 
 Peel Wyke, 336 
 
 Rossett-gill, 261 
 
 Silver-how, 107 
 
 Penny-bridge, 323 
 
 Rough-holm, 75 
 
 Sizergh, 318 
 
 * Penrith, 187, 189, 339 
 
 Rosthwaite, 157, 158, 267, 
 
 hall, 318 
 
 Old, 341, 344 
 
 334 
 
 Skelwith-bridge, 93, 327 
 
 Penruddock, 187, 339 
 
 cam, 157 
 
 Skelwith-force, 93, 327 
 
 Penwortham-hall, 22 
 
 Rothay-bank, 326 
 
 Skiddaw, 119, 136,139— 
 
 Peteril the, 344, 345 
 
 Rothay the, 85, 91 
 
 149, 331 
 
 green, 344 
 
 Rufford-hall, 22 
 
 Dod, 119 
 
 Petriana, 341, 344 
 
 Rydal-hall, 104, 105, 328 
 
 Skiddaw-lodge, 330 
 
 Pike o'Bliscoe, 256 
 
 head, 87, 328 
 
 Skirsgill-house, 339 
 
 o'Stickle, 100, 327, 
 
 mount, 104, 265, 328 
 
 Slyne, 317 
 
 308 
 
 water, 106, 266, 328 
 
 house, 317 
 
 Pile-castle, 41, 320 
 
 cottage, 323 
 
 Small Water, 279 
 
 Pillar the, 164, 171 
 
 
 Smalthwaite-bridge, 118, 
 
 Place-fell, 204, 208, 342 
 
 
 329 
 
 Plumpton, 344 
 
 Saddleback, 118, 147, 187 
 
 Solway Firth, 143 
 
 Plumtree-hall, 318 
 
 St. Bees, 337 
 
 Sour Milk Gill, 108 
 
 Pocklington's Island, (see 
 
 St. Catherine's, 326 
 
 Spring-bank, 336 
 
 Vicar's Island) 
 
 St. Herbert's-island, 130, 
 
 field (Lancaster), 315 
 
 Ponsonby, 338 
 
 330 
 
 field (Ulverston), 321 
 
 Ponsonby-hall, 168, 335, 
 
 St. John's vale, 118, 186, 
 
 Spring-field, (Whitehaven) 
 
 338 
 
 339 
 
 338 
 
 Pooley-bridge, 197, 198, 
 
 St. Sunday-crag, 208, 215, 
 
 Staffold-hall, 344 
 
 342 
 
 343 
 
 Stainton, 339 
 
 Potter-fell, 51 
 
 Salkeld Gate, 344 
 
 Stake, the, 307, 308 
 
 Poulton-hall, 315 
 
 Little, 192, 340 
 
 S tang-ends, 334 
 
 Preston, 23, 45 
 
 lodge, 344 
 
 Station (Windermere), 64, 
 
 Prospect, 338 
 
 Salset-brow, 281 
 
 324 
 
 
 Sawrey-cottage, 324 
 
 Staveley, 327 
 
 Quaker's Meeting-house, 
 
 mount, 324 
 
 Steel-fell, 109 
 
 325 
 
 house, 324 
 
 Steeple the, 335 
 
 Quernmore-park, 315 
 
 Scaleby-castle, 346 
 
 Stickle-tarn, 101, 311 
 
 
 Scale- force, 177, 333 
 
 Stockgill-force, 88, 327 
 
 Rainsbarrow, 72 
 
 hill, 175, 333, 335 
 
 Stockley bridge, 161, 305 
 
 Rampsbeck-lodge, 200, 
 
 Scandale-fell, 86, 226 • 
 
 Stodday-lodge, 315 
 
 343 
 
 Scarf-gap, 166, 335 
 
 Stonehouse, 346 
 
 Rampsholm, 128, 330 
 
 Scawfell-pikes, 162, 257, 
 
 Stonethwaite, 306 
 
 Randonknot, 174 
 
 259, 334 
 
 Storrs-hall, 63, 77, 324 
 
 Raven-crag, 117, 329 
 
 Screes the, 165, 334 
 
 Strands, 166, 334 
 
 Rayrigg hall, 71,326 
 
 Seat Sandal, 109 
 
 Stybarrow-crag, 204, 207, 
 
 Rayrigg-bank, 71 
 
 Seatallan, 165 
 
 343 
 
 Red-pike, 178, 333 
 
 Seathwaite, 159, 160, 305, 
 
 Sty-head, 161, 305, 334 
 
 Red-tarn, 216 
 
 334 
 
 tarn, 161, 305 
 
 Ribble, 22, 27 
 
 Seatoller, 159, 298, 305, 
 
 Style-end, 253, 262 
 
 Richmond-hill, 338 
 
 332 
 
 Striding-edge, 217, 218? 
 
 Riddings the, 339 
 
 Sedbergh-fells, 48 
 
 221 
 
 Riggindale, 282 
 
 Sedgwick-house, 318 
 
 Summer-grove, 338 
 
 Rigmaden-park, 316 
 
 Sergeant-crag, 307 
 
 field, 315 
 

 352 
 
 INDEX. ■ 
 
 
 
 
 Swarth-fell, 201, 342 
 
 •Underfey-park, 48, 316 
 
 West-end, 315 
 
 
 
 moor-hall, 237, 238, 
 
 Urswick, 245, 322 
 
 Westmoreland, 45 " 
 
 
 
 321 
 
 ' 
 
 Wetherlam, 55, 72, 96 
 
 
 
 Swinside, 181 
 
 Vicar's Island, 127, 330 
 
 Whelter, 282 
 
 
 
 Swirrel-edge, 217 
 
 Villa the, 326 
 
 Whinlatter, 120, 333 
 Whitehaven, 336 
 
 
 
 Tallentire-hall, 338 
 
 Wad Mines, 160, 299 
 
 Whiteless, 180 
 
 
 
 Taylor's gill, 161 
 
 Wall-end, 100, 253, 327 
 
 White-moss, 106 
 
 
 
 Tent-lodge, 249, 323 
 
 Wallow-crag (Derwent- 
 
 Whitestock-hall, 323 
 
 
 
 Thirlmere, 117,329 
 
 water, 120, 128, 285 
 
 Whitrigs, 321 
 
 
 
 fells, 288, 292 
 
 Wallow-crag (Hawes Wa- 
 
 Whittington-hall, 315 
 
 
 
 Thompson's-holm, 75 
 
 ter) 283 
 
 Wigton,345 
 
 
 
 Thrang-crag, 101 
 
 Walna-scar, 247, 322 
 
 Windermere, 57, 59, 70, 
 
 
 
 Threlkeld, 186,339 
 
 Walton-hall, 22 
 
 71, 274, 325 
 
 
 
 Thrispot, 329 
 
 Wansfell, 86, 275 
 
 Wood the, 326 
 
 
 
 Thurland-castle, 44, 315 
 
 Wanthwaite, 118 
 
 hall, 338 
 
 
 
 Thurnham-hall, 315 
 
 Warton-crag, 233, 320 
 
 house, 333 
 
 
 
 Thurston-water {see Conis- 
 
 Warwick-hall, 345 
 
 side, 344 
 
 
 
 ton-water) 
 
 Wasdale, 164, 334 
 
 Workington, 338 
 
 
 
 Thwaite-house, 323 
 
 head, 164, 334 
 
 Workington-hall, 338 
 
 
 
 Tilberthwaite, 252 
 
 hall, 334 
 
 Wray the, 326 
 
 
 
 Tirrel, 342 
 
 Wast Water, 164, 334 
 
 Wrynose, 55, 72, 98 
 
 
 
 Tolson-hall, 317 
 
 Watendlath, 267, 268, 293, 
 
 Wyerside, 315 
 
 
 
 Townhead, 323 
 
 335 
 
 Wyke the, 328 
 
 
 
 Troutbeck, 82, 275, 326 
 
 Water-foot, 343 
 
 Wythburn, 116, 288, 329 
 
 
 
 Troutbeck-bridge, 80, 326 
 
 Waterhead, (Coniston), 
 
 
 
 
 Tunstall, 315 
 
 249, 251 
 
 (Windermere), 326 
 Watermillock, 201, 343 
 
 Yanwath, 342 
 Yewbarrow, 164 
 
 
 
 Ullswater, 198,-209, 341, 
 
 Water-park, 248, 322 
 
 Yew-crag, 332 
 
 
 
 342 
 
 Water-side, 326 
 
 Yew-crag (Ullswater) 203 
 
 
 
 TJlverston, 40, 237, 247, 
 
 Watts-field, 317 
 
 Yewdale, 252 
 
 
 
 320 
 
 Wenning the, 43 
 
 Yewdale-crags, 252 
 
 
 
 Underbarrow-scar, 50 
 
 Wennington hall, 315 
 
 -" 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 THE END. 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 EDWARD BA 
 
 [NES AND SON, PRINTE 
 
 RS ? LEEDS.