Day 4 in the Lake District at Christmas
On my fourth day visiting the Lake District at Christmas, I had slightly less good weather. It was bound to happen at some point – the Lake District is known for rain all year round, so visiting in December I was definitely expecting at least one rainy day! It was a combination of rain and snow on this day, and very cold, so I kept today’s activities a bit more simple.
Grasmere village and lake
Grasmere is one of the prettiest villages in the whole Lake District. As a small village, it’s easily walkable, and you can park in the large car park just outside the village.
It’s a short, easy walk from Grasmere village to Grasmere lake. It’s definitely worth walking to the lake to see the beautiful mountain views across the water.
Keep an eye out for wildlife as well. I was lucky to see a grey wagtail on the edge of the water, and it was great to see the little bird hopping around.
Grasmere village has several tea rooms for lunch. I visited a tea room, and it was a lovely chance to warm up out of the cold weather.
As well as being a pretty village, Grasmere is famous for something else as well: Grasmere gingerbread. A small shop next to the Church, dating back to 1854, sells the traditional Sarah Nelson’s gingerbread. It’s a really small shop so there’s sometimes a queue outside, but the queue moves quickly. And it’s definitely worth the wait to get some of this delicious unique gingerbread, made nowhere else in the world like this.
Rydal Water walk
The lake next to Grasmere is called Rydal Water. It’s only a few minutes’ drive away, and another stunning place for a walk. I visited Rydal Water just as the sun was starting to dip behind the mountains, casting a beautiful light over the top of the mountains.
Rydal Water is also a great place for birdwatching as well. I was lucky to get really close to this beautiful robin, as it sat and posed for some photos.
Ambleside dinner
My last stop for the day was in Ambleside. Ambleside is one of the slightly bigger towns in the Lake District, although it’s still really small. The famous house bridge is great to see, but what I really liked about Ambleside was the pretty main street and also the range of pubs and restaurants.
My favourite pub in Ambleside was The Ambleside Inn. It was beautifully decorated for Christmas, with a warm fire as well. There was a great range of food and ales, making it the perfect stop at the end of another day exploring the Lake District in winter.
