Today you will arrive in Keswick. Unpack and relax as this will be your base for your trip. You will have a welcome meeting at 6pm so we recommend arriving early enough to head out and explore. Saturdays and Thursdays are market day in Keswick but our favourite thing to do is get lost in the countryside and find a quaint English pub.
Today’s ride is an excellent introduction to cycling in the Lake District. The ride is short but it’s hilly in part as you head west of Keswick to Braithwaite and up the Whinlatter Pass. It’s a short burst of a climb and once you summit, the views are amazing. From here you will ride almost entirely downhill to the Spout Force waterfall. Your return journey sees you head back up the other side of the past before downhill cycling to the northern shores of Derwentwater. You will enjoy a well-earned beer at the Keswick Brewery, an eco friendly, locally owned brewery that reinvests part of its profits back to the community.
Today is a longer and more challenging ride. You’ll set off uphill to the Neolithic Castlerigg Stone Circle. Continue uphill and you will be rewarded with spectacular views back over Derwentwater, before descending down to the shores of the lake. You will enjoy a rare flat section before the tough climb of Honister Pass, which again provides glorious views. You will then turn back east, following the undulating terrain to the western side of Derwentwater. From here you will ride to the village of Grange then back into Keswick.
Today you ride further east, again passing the eerie Castlerigg Stone Circle, before a fairly long but gradual climb. Your ride will be in the shadow of Skiddaw with the imposing Blencathra hill looming over you, before you continue through the moors. From here you will ride to Legburthwaite getting glimpses of the Thirlmere Aqueduct before riding back into Keswick where your Lake District adventure comes to an end.
The Lake District National Park is a special place. Its abundant wildlife, stunning scenery and serenity inspired poets such as William Wordsworth. Cool clear lakes stretch out at the bottom of lush green hillsides filled with daffodils.
Put simply, the lakes and tarns give the Lake District a quality found nowhere else in England.