Our Favourite Short Walks

Image © Alexandra O’Toole

“…surely there is no other place in this whole wonderful world quite like Lakeland … no other so exquisitely lovely, no other so charming, no other than calls so insistently across a gulf of distance. All who truly love Lakeland are exiles when away from it.”

- Alfred Wainright

You’ll find some of the most beautiful walks in the world in the Lake District. Today we’re sharing three short walks we take on repeat.

GUMMERS HOW, WINDERMERE

1.5 miles
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Just a short walk from April Cottage, is Gummers How, one of the Lake District’s top ten picturesque picnic spots. The views from the top down to Windermere and across the Lake District are absolutely stunning. The walk to the precipice takes you through pretty woodland slopes and up some quite steep crags so ensure you take drinking water with you and take rests along the way when you need to. You will meet cows along the path, so keep dogs on a lead and children (not babies in prams) close. If you’ve got a romantic nature, you might like to go to Gummers How in the evening and watch the sunset. You’ll find a scattering of other people up there at that time quietly enjoying a peaceful moment in nature, making it a great walk for couples.

The walk to the top takes you through pretty woodland slopes and up some quite steep crags so ensure you take drinking water with you. You will meet cows along the path, so keep dogs on a lead. We particularly like to go in the evening and watch the sunset. Suitable for families with young children (not babies in prams). You will meet cows along the path, so keep dogs on a lead.

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HIGH DAM, FINSTHWAITE

4.5 miles
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There’s something magical about High Dam, with its pretty waterlily rimmed pools and wooded glades. We first discovered Finsthwaite a long time before we owned April Cottage when a family member gifted our daughter a tree in the ancient Great Knott Wood as a Christening present. Exploring the area we discovered the beautiful picturesque tarns of Low Dam and High Dam nearby and have revisted them many times over the years.

Start this circular walk at the pretty village of Finsthwaite, a short drive away from April Cottage. From the car park in Finsthwaite it is possible to walk up man made paths all the way to the Dam. If starting from the village itself on foot, you can walk up through beautiful country side, but look out for way finder signs as it is easy to go off piste. The walk up to the Dam takes you through stunning countryside, woodland and along the quieter southern shores of Lake Windermere.

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SWINESIDE STONE CIRCLE, BROUGHTON IN FURNESS

2 miles

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The walk to Swineside Stone Circle isn’t particularly long, but it takes you through a beautiful stretch of remote countryside and it’s a great one for small children and parents with prams and pushchairs. The walk from the nearest parking area to the circle, which is located on the eastern flank of Black Combe, takes around half an hour there and back. Park in the layby along the main road just past Craggs Hall at the end of the farm track and then walk up the lane (at a very slight incline) which is signposted Swineside Farm: Public Bridleway.

Swinside Stone Circle is one of the three most important stone circles in Cumbria, and consists of 55 stones set in a ninety foot diameter circle. Although the circle is located on private ground and can easily be viewed from a nearby public footpath, every time we have visited, there have been people sitting amongst the stones, eating picnics and watching the sheep graze. We did the same and enjoyed a peaceful lunch with amazing views across the hills towards Duddon Estuary and the Irish Sea. Just remember to take all of your litter home with you.

All images © Alexandra O’Toole and Andrew Evans.

The Prettiest Pie Dishes For Pie Season

*Features affiliate links. Image by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Baking is such a lovely thing to do on a slow paced self catering holiday in the country. Much less of a chore than cooking, and much tastier than buying in shop bought pies and treats. As pie season approaches and the lanes around April Cottage fill with wild fruit, we’ve decided to elevate our baking game with a new pie dish. We’ve put together a round up of the prettiest pie dish and bake wear finds online to inspire you to create beautiful, mouthwatering pies and crumbles at home or on your next self catering holiday.

1. The classic glass dish: NUTRIUPS high heat resistant glass pie dish.

2. The modern country farmhouse dish: Vicrays starry blue reactive glaze ceramic pie pan.

3. The floral dish for one: Qeeadeea chrysanthemum design small baking dish.

4. The rectangular scalloped dish: Cherry patterned stonewear rectangular dish.

5. The dish for minimalists: Cabilock ceramics baking dish.

6. The rustic french style dish: Peugeot ceramics rectangular baking dish.

7. The perfect present dish set: JETMANO bohemia set of 4 ceramic baking dishes.

8. The illustrated porcelain dish: LIPIKI pastoral style dish.

9. The round scalloped dish: KitchenCraft classic collection round ceramic pie dish.

10. The Portmierion dish: Portmeirion botanic garden oval pie dish.

Don’t forget to use a ceramic pie funnel to prevent your pastry from going soggy! We love these. Choose from a range of whimsical designs including blackbirds, cherries and apples.

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Get The Recipe:

Blackberry & Apple Crumble

Get The Look: Shop April Cottage

*This post features Amazon affiliate links. April Cottage images © Alexandra O’Toole.

When we bought April Cottage, it had been vacant for a number of years and was in a fairly poor state of repair. I can remember the day we went to look at it for the first time as if it was yesterday. We approached by car from the small windy A-road just after the turn off for Cartmel. It was a beautiful autumn day and the trees bent over the road to form a tunnel of leaves overhead. As we rounded the bend at the edge of Millerbeck we saw the wooden wayfinding sign opposite a field of sheep and as we turned into the lane that dips down towards the side of April Cottage we were already hooked.

We have spent a lot of time restoring the property since we bought it, improving and upgrading the facilities as and when we could afford to. There’s always more to do! Over the years, to our delight, many of our guests have commented how much they love the decor at April Cottage and often enquire where they can purchase some of their favourite items.

Today, I‘m sharing a few items that are similar to some of the furnishings at the cottage that you can find online.

I have a real fondness for brass and floating glass picture frames and I love to put pressed flowers and leaves inside, that I change each season. These are similar and come in a range of sizes.

Bringing the outside in is a visual thread we have woven throughout the cottage. One of the first decisions we made was to use the stunning Woods and Stars wallpaper from Cole & Son which is no longer available on their website, but can be found through other stockists. It’s not cheap, but at the time there was nothing else like it on the market and I had my heart set on it. Since then, I’ve seen a few really good similar options including this gorgeous neutral silver birch wallpaper from Errisman for a fraction of the price and if you’re a little bit apprehensive about wallpapering, how about this amazing peel and stick version from JoliHome?

You’ll find lots of potted faux plants around the cottage. I’m very fussy when it comes to faux plants. They have to look as natural as possible. Ferns are my favourite and of course, you’ll find lots of the real thing dotted along the lanes and in the woods close to the cottage. I love the look of this little potted fern sitting on a shelf. Such a simple, beautiful look.

I also have a few faux plant or flower stems into pots and vases around the cottage. My favourite is the vintage brass pot sitting on the table at the top of the stairs. If you’re looking for something similar, this one from Melody Maison will do the job nicely.

You’ll also find quite a lot of art on the walls in the cottage - most of it contemporary photography and illustration. In the living room we’ve hung two large black and white botanical prints in simple white frames, whilst in the kitchen we’ve done a gallery wall of black and white nature based images. This set of six abstract flowers would fit in well.

Lots of guests love the bronze hare sculpture in the living room. I’ve only ever seen a hare in the wild once and that was up near Bassenthwaite Lake. It was mesmerizing. This sculpture is very similar. I also think this version in silver is beautiful.

To keep things cosy and homely, we use the softest fluffy cushions like these and these neutral check linen cushions.

And of course the most important thing, the decision we spent the most time making, was the beds. The main bedroom features a large oak framed kingsize bed with drawers at the bottom. It is the most comfortable bed. We bought it from a company in Barrow, but you can find a similar one here.

The twin bedroom is a fairly narrow room so we had to search long and hard for two single beds that would work. I had always loved the mental framed beds and eventually settled on some very similar to these.

These are just some of the furnishings and accents you’ll find at April Cottage. The truth is, furnishing and styling the cottage is an ongoing process. Rarely a month goes by that we don’t swap something out or add something extra because we want our guests to feel like it’s a home from home. I’m sure there will be more tweaks to come!

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Blackberry Season

Image © Alexandra O’Toole

Late August, the lanes around April Cottage are bursting with blackberries. We spend hours picking ‘black gold’.

The area surrounding the southern shores of Lake Windermere is a landscape I’ve come to love dearly. It’s where the expansive view of the lake and mountains beyond give way to gentle, green fields and narrow lanes flanked with trees, ferns and tooth-leafed bushes brimming with wild blackberries.

In the Spring, the quiet lanes of Staveley-in-Cartmel are flush with hawthorn blossom and petticoated with cowparsley, but as the Summer sparks and fades into late August, the hedgerows, tangled with fat, dark berries, become ripe for picking.

“Nobody in the lane, and nothing, nothing but blackberries,”

— Taken from 'Blackberrying' by Sylvia Path

Foraging for blackberries is a very British activity and has long been a favourite summer pursuit for our family. If you would like to join the hunt for ‘black gold’ this August / September, here are ten tips for picking and eating wild blackberries, safely.

1.       Before you go, make sure you bring a container or two, or three. Blackberry picking brings out competitive spirits. Avoid arguments at the outset by providing each ‘picker’ with their own tub.

2.       Avoid bushes by busy roads and any fruit that's low enough to be ‘watered’ by passing dogs.

3.       Even on quiet lanes such as those around April Cottage, avoid the berries at the bottom of the bush and aim to pick the blackberries higher up.

4.       Only pick the fully black coloured berries. Leave the red/pink berries on the bush to ripen.

5.       Don’t squeeze them too hard. If they are ripe, they will pull free from the plant with only a slight tug.

6.       Never pick wet blackberries as this will encourage them to mould. For the same reason DON'T wash the berries until you are ready to use them or freeze them.  Washing makes them more prone to spoiling.

7.       When you are ready to use them (within 24 hours), wash well with cold water and leave to soak with a little salt to kill any bugs. Make sure all the ‘pickers’, wash their hands too.

8.       Fresh blackberries will last a day or two, but blackberries ripen quickly – losing flavour and condition, so if you have a glut to use up it is worth freezing.

9.       If freezing, wash the blackberries and set aside to dry before spreading in single layers in a container and transferring to the freezer to keep for a later date. Blackberries freeze well and can be used throughout winter in crumbles and pies.  Freezing them will also help kill any bugs.

10.   Alternatively, you can stew with a little sugar and puree, again freezing the liquid in ice cube trays or bags or keeping in the fridge.

There are so many delicious things to cook and make with your blackberries. If you like to keep it simple, sprinkle a few on your morning cereal. I like to add a couple to a glass of gin and tonic. But after a big haul, I’ll make a crumble.

Image © Alexandra O’Toole

Alex’s Apple and Blackberry Crumble

Ingredients

·       50g butter

·       50g oats

·       50g plain white flour

·       50g caster sugar

·       300g cooking apples

·       200g Blackberries washed and drained

·       Cinnamon, ginger and allspice to taste

Method

·       STEP 1

Peel, core and dice the apples.

·       STEP 2

Arrange with the blackberries into the base of a medium-sized ovenproof dish. If you prefer a sweeter crumble, sprinkle the fruit with a little sugar.

·       STEP 3

In a large bowl, using your fingertips, mix the sugar, oats, flour, spices, and butter until it has the consistency of breadcrumbs. If it is too sticky, add a little more flour.

·       STEP 4

Spread the topping over the fruit evenly, making sure all the fruit is covered.

·       STEP 5

Bake at 180°C for about 45 mins, or until the topping is golden and the fruit is bubbling up. Serve with pouring cream or vanilla or clotted cream ice cream.