The surprise of the Lake District is how quickly the surroundings can change. One moment you’re driving through a twisty-laned, whitewashed village, the next you’re gasping at the wide expanse of a mirror-calm lake. You might be panting at the top of a craggy fell in the morning and dining on Michelin-starred food come nightfall. And it packs this beautiful variety – lakes and fells, cruise rides and museums, Beatrix Potter and William Wordsworth, giftshop-packed towns and lonely farms, gastropubs and cake-filled cafes – into an astonishingly modest 30 by 40 miles.
