Our first walk of the weekend was to Aira Force, one of the most famous waterfalls in the Lake District, situated in woodland near the northern shore of Ullswater. Here Aira Beck plunges dramatically around 65 feet through an overhead bridge and over rocks:
A note on some unfamiliar terms that are used in the Cumbria region: The term "force" is used in many parts of the Lake District as a synonym for waterfall; it has its origins in the Old Norse word fors. Beck is a word for a stream and is derived from the Old Norse bekkr (stream).
After our walk we drove the short distance to Keswick and checked into a lovely B&B, Hazelwood, on the outskirts of town. Keswick is a busy touristy town on the edge of Derwent Water.
This is the View from our Window in the B&B
l-r: Ross, Maz, Erin, Rose, Sue, Brad
Maz and I with Derwent Water and Derwent Isle in Background
Derwent Isle from the Air
The following day, Marian and I walked off our full English Breakfast with a stroll to Castlerigg, reputedly one of the most beautiful stone circles in Britain. Actually we almost walked right past it, but luckily spotted a stile over a high stone wall and then hey presto, there it was in the middle of a field:
Castlerigg is thought to be one of the earliest circles in Britain, dating from around 3,000 BC. Thirty-eight stones are placed in a slightly oval shape of 30m in diameter; a further 10 small stones are arranged as a rectangular enclosure on the south-east side of the ring: this is a feature unique to Castlerigg. The largest stone is 2.5m high and weighs about 16 tons, so the effort required to build the circle was in its time equivalent to that needed to build a cathedral in the Middle Ages. There are many theories about Castlerigg's function. One is that the circle was an astronomical observatory (the tallest stone being in line with November sunrise), while another is that the circle was an emporium connected with the Neolithic stone axe industry.
View on the way back to Keswick from Castlerigg
After returning to Keswick we hopped in the car and drove to Grassmere, where we saw the grave of poet William Wordsworth and his wife, in a lovely churchyard. No daffodils to be seen though – disappointing!
We continued on to Hawkshead, a tiny village of higgledy-piggledy houses, archways, and squares beloved by William Wordsworth and Beatrix Potter. From Hawkshead we set off on foot for Tarn Hows, a pretty lake surrounded by woodland:
Tarn Hows - surrounded by non-native conifers
This is Beatrix Potter country, and there are a number of tourist attractions in the area that celebrate the life and work of the Kensington-born writer, illustrator and fungi expert. Her home in Sawrey near Hawkshead is now a museum. Interestingly, when the Tarn and its setting came up for sale in 1929, it was bought by Potter who sold the half containing Tarn Hows to the National Trust, and bequeathed the rest of the estate to the Trust in her will.
Maz showing the way home, on the old cart track from Tarn Hows to Hawkshead
Rural Post Box (note initials GR indicating the age of the postbox)
An Inquisitive Local 
Nearly there - view of Hawkshead (where our Car is parked) and Esthwaite Water
