Postcard From Ullswater

My sister agreed to cat- and house-sit for me, and this meant I could get away for a last-minute break. I booked a lovely cottage in Stainton, in the Lake District, a short drive from Ullswater.

In the immediate area, I had a stately home to visit (Dalemain House), the Alpaca Centre, and also the village of Stainton itself, where I could do my grocery shopping. There was also a small part-time post office.

I had a long drive from Barnsley in South Yorkshire but had booked the cottage for ten days. The owner often gets asked for weekend-only stays so I was able to sandwich a week in between two weekends. The cottage, Robin's Nest, was cosy and just like home-from-home.

On my first full day, I did an orientation drive to get my bearings. When I reached Ullswater I was delighted and surprised to see it full to almost overflowing. I travelled at the end of July and a hosepipe ban had already been imposed in much of Cumbria. The rain dance had worked.

The road is very close to the water's edge in places. All it needed was a distraction and the car and I would be saying hello to the fishes.

I stopped to take some pictures and caught my first glance of one of the Ullswater 'steamers', then I rejoined the A592 and climbed upwards towards Windermere. From there I drove to Grasmere, where I visited Dove Cottage and the Wordsworth Museum.

I wanted to see William Wordsworth's house because it is said that he was inspired to write I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud on one of his very many visits to nearby Ullswater. For me, the two places were linked.

Dove Cottage had been the home of Wordsworth for eight years. He lived there with his sister Dorothy and their friend Mary, who would later become his wife.

After the cottage, I wandered (lonely as a cloud) around the museum and stopped at the tea room for a pot of tea and a piece of Grasmere Rush Bearing Gingerbread - or ginger cake.

Glenridding is the main town on the southern banks of Ullswater. It's a busy little place and home to the famous Ullswater Steamers. I arrived bang on noon, paid for my car parking, noticed if I saved my stub I'd get a free cup of tea at the other end, and found a dry-ish spot to sit on board 'Raven'.

When these boats were first launched, over a hundred years ago, they were indeed steamers. These days they've all been converted to diesel and the funnels that once took the steam away now carry the exhaust fumes. The boats are very old and it was a pleasure and a privilege to sail on one.

Ullswater Steamers owns five boats ranging in age from 130+ years to 40+ years. 'Western Belle' is the latest addition to the fleet, joining in 2010. This boat was in dry dock when I visited, having her livery painted, but she was ready again by the end of the season.

The boat I'd caught sight of on my orientation drive was the 'Lady Wakefield'. She joined the fleet in 2007 but was originally built in 1949. The 'Lady Dorothy' is affectionately referred to by the crew as a 'proper little workhorse'. This vessel joined the fleet in 2001 but was originally built in 1967.

The 'Lady of the Lake' was launched in 1877 and is believed to be the oldest working passenger vessel in the world. And then there was my boat, 'Raven', launched in 1889 after tour operator Thomas Cook added leisure cruises on Ullswater to his programme. 'Raven' was my skipper's personal favourite.

Chris took me under his wing and into his wheelhouse out of the rain, as I was clearly travelling alone. I think he enjoyed having someone to talk to and he kept me entertained with the history, various stories and some lovely anecdotes.

We stopped very briefly at Howtown to let walkers get off, then we had half an hour in Pooley Bridge, where I claimed that free cup of tea before heading back.

When Chris went out on his first jaunt of the day he recorded a water level of 1.1m. In June this was coming in at 0.4m. That's how much rain they'd had since the end of June. The boats are able to sail at such levels because of their shallow keels, but when it gets to around 1.4m the Lady Wakefield apparently starts to struggle.

By the end of my cruise, three hours later, the water level was at 1.4m - that's how much rain we'd had in just one day. Chris was driving the Lady Wakefield the next morning but didn't hold much hope.

Pooley Bridge is a pretty, scenic village on the northern tip of Ullswater. The first thing you see when you arrive in the village is a pay-and-display car park on the banks of the River Eamont. Drive a little further, however, and there are plenty of free car parking spaces for up to two hours.

Here was the gateway to two of my walks: Dunmallard Hill right above the village; and Hallin Fell right above the lake.

The next morning, after my cruise, I parked in Pooley Bridge next to St Paul's church and headed off on the two-mile walk up Dunmallard Hill.

I had a teeny peek of Ullswater on my way up, but there was nothing to say I'd reached the summit when I got there and any views are now hidden when the trees are in full leaf. I was proud of myself, though, as I don't 'do' hills, and I managed this one in 65 minutes.

If only I could say the same of Hallin Fell…

After a hairy drive up an alpine-like road between Howtown and Martindale, I parked at St Peter's church. Hallin Fell is best reached by steamer as the road is a dead-end after Martindale and many a motorist has found difficulty on the steep zigzags. But I'd already done the boat thing so I drove.

Hallin Fell is one of around 2,010 'marilyn's in Britain, which is a hill or a mountain over 150m. The term was allegedly coined in response to the 283 'munro's, which are summits rather than individual mountains, in Scotland over 914.4m.

Dunmallard Hill at 105m was quite the achievement for me and I had no intention of climbing Hallin Fell. I did want to 'look at' it, though, and so I did… and I decided to go up a little way to take some pictures… Over an hour later I hadn't made it to the top but there were some cracking views.

On my last full day out at Ullswater, I headed to Aira Force. There are a lot of walks from here but I just wanted to see the waterfall at the end of another steep but short walk uphill.

Along Aira Beck I saw my first ever 'money tree' and watched visitors hammer coins into the bark and make a wish.

There is so much to see and do in the English Lake District that a single visit hardly does it any justice. Each lake merits at least one holiday all to itself.

I vowed that I would be back. One day. And when I married my own Mr Wordsworth a few years later, how could I not take him there?

Photos by the author and Ian Wordsworth.

Versions of this story have appeared in Full House Magazine, and Gardening, Birding and Outdoor Adventure on Medium.