Keswick to Windermere to Penrith to Carlisle - Day 23

Date: September 10th, 2009
Distance: 62 miles
Country: England
Song of the Day: Simple Life - Actionslacks

The Lakes District. Really they could call it "The Hills District". That would seem a much more appropriate name. I am sure the volume of hills far exceeds the volume of the lakes. But I guess it is better marketing. Still it wasn't too bad out to Windermere. That was south of where I wanted to end up for the day, but I really did want to tour the whole area. Or a reasonable portion thereof. The views were still spectacular. These little lakes nestled in the hills. Trees and streams.

Winderemere was another touristy town. By which I really mean expensive. At least some things. I had a good deal on a huge piece of carrot cake. Mmmmmm. But the soup and sandwich were expensive. Still, the food was nice. And I was starving. I had only eaten two crappy doughnuts for breakfast.

It was a good thing too. The path out to Penrith went to a place called "Kirkstone Pass". When planning your cycle trips, really try to avoid places with "pass" in the name. I didn't, but I never said that I was all that cleaver. Struggled up for about an hour and a half. Averaging something like 4 miles an hour. It felt good to get to the top though. Again, like with the century I did, sense of accomplishment is important.

From there it was downhill. They even had 20% grades. No wonder it was so tough getting up. I even got stuck behind a car who wouldn't go over 30. Go, go, go, man! Probably for the best, though. Some of the turns in there were pretty tight. I almost didn't make them. On a tiny road bike though you could get going 80. Still probably wouldn't be able to make the turns though...

Then it was out though Ullswater Lake. Again, another pretty lake. So great scenery to cycle by. The day was just gorgeous as well. After that it was out to Penrith. From there it was back through the countryside to Carlisle. I followed the NCN 7 cycle path out of the city. But it also started leading me to roads that had lots of hills. So I just followed the signs for Carlisle. Glad I did that. I saw the cycle marking come and go twice. Haha! My way was shorter.

Found a campsite just out of Carlisle. I even bargained the manager down a couple of quid. One little tent shouldn't be that expensive, so don't forget to haggle. Cooked dinner over the stove again. I am getting better at using it. More soup and bread. I will have to try something more exciting next time. Then a shower and off to bed.

-Dravis