A Perfect Trip to the Lake District

Buttermere is said to have been the location of a hidden stronghold used by Cumbrian guerillas campaigning against Norman invaders in the 11th century.

The Drunken Duck, halfway between Coniston and Ambleside, is one of the Lake District's star pubs, and dates back at least to the 18th century, although the interior has just as many contemporary touches as vintage trappings.

The Drunken Duck's menu tends towards pub favourites such as steak and kidney pudding at lunch, and sophisticated bistro food at dinner.

The Langdale Pikes stand over the Great Langale valley. Neolithic stone axes made from local rocks have been found all across the British Isles.

$Langdale has been an essential hiking destination for more than 150 years, and was a particular favourite of Alfred Wainwright \u2013 author of what is to many walkers still the definitive guide to hiking in the Lake District.$

Sheep farming has been a major industry in the Lake District since Roman times, and the region is home to many native breeds such as the Herdwick.

Wastwater, in Wasdale, is one of the wildest parts of the Lake District. Rumour has it that divers once placed a collection of garden gnomes at the bottom of this lake.

$In a fitting marriage of opposites, Wastwater, England's deepest lake, is watched over by Scafell Pike \u2013 England's tallest mountain.$

The Hole in t'Wall is the traditional place to head for a pint in Bowness, by the shores of Windermere. Parts of the building date back to 1612.

$Steamers have plied the waters of Windermere since the launch of the <i>Lady of the Lake<\/i> in 1845, and remain a favourite with visitors.$

$Tarn Hows is partly manmade \u2013 three tarns (mountain pools or lakes) near Hawkshead were joined together in the 19th century.$

Lakeland glory - Buttermere is said to have been the location of a hidden stronghold used by Cumbrian guerillas campaigning against Norman invaders in the 11th century.

It’s lunchtime at The Drunken Duck and there’s not an empty table in sight. The old beamed bar is packed with punters, pints of ale gleam on the slate-topped bar, and waiting staff bustle back and forth from the kitchen carrying plates laden with ploughman’s lunches and slabs of sticky toffee pudding. Outside, cyclists and walkers relax in the sunshine on wooden benches, nursing amber-hued pints of beer while gazing across the fields and fells surrounding them.

‘If there’s one thing I love about the Lake District, it’s the pubs,’ says Stephen Dodd, general manager of The Drunken Duck. ‘There’s such a sense of history to them and, on a day like this, I can’t think of anywhere better to be.’

Perched on a hilltop halfway between Coniston and Ambleside, The Drunken Duck is generally acknowledged as one of the Lake District’s finest pubs. The building dates back to at least the 18th century, but it’s been run since the 1970s by husband-and-wife team Paul Spencer and Steph Barton, whose passion for high-quality food and locally brewed ales has turned their pub into one of the area’s top dining destinations.

On the walls, antique hunting prints sit alongside vintage beer posters and mounted animal heads, but the stripped wooden floors, leather furniture and blackboard wine list feel more Chelsea-chic than Cumbria-cosy. Outside, a tumbledown store houses the Barngates Brewery, renowned for its range of quirkily named ales such as Mothbag, Tag Lag and Chester’s Strong & Ugly. The menu seems more suited to a big-city bistro than a rural pub, offering celeriac gratin and pigeon pithivier (a type of pie) rather than chicken pie and mash. Yet at its heart, The Drunken Duck is still very much a classic Lakeland inn.

It’s one of many local pubs that blend old traditions with new ideas. At The Brown Horse Inn, in the sleepy village of Winster, the chefs now source their produce directly from their own country estate and now offer a trio of their own microbrewed ales. Meanwhile, at the nearby Masons Arms overlooking the scenic Winster Valley, the monthly events calendar takes in everything from culinary masterclasses to country markets. The ideas may be fresh, but both pubs have retained their rustic character: flagstones on the floor, rough beams, a crackling fire in the grate and, most importantly of all, a passionately loyal local clientele.

‘Keeping our historic inns alive is really important,’ explains Stephen. ‘We need to keep innovating, but it’s vital we don’t lose our links with the past – whether that means supporting our farmers, using local craftspeople or brewing our own beers. We’re part of a community, and that’s what running a pub here should be all about.’

Further information

Where to eat

The Punch Bowl. If you can’t get a table at The Drunken Duck, its sister pub in Crosthwaite is a reliable fallback (mains from £12; the-punchbowl.co.uk).

Where to drink

Also try the Hawkshead Brewery in Stavely. You can sample the latest ales in the bar or take a tour behind the scenes (ales from £2.50; hawksheadbrewery.co.uk).

Where to stay

Yewfield stands on a private 80-acre estate just a stone’s throw from the beauty spot of Tarn Hows. Peaceful and welcoming, it’s also eco- and vegetarian-friendly. For the best views, ask for the Tower Suite (from £98; closed Dec and Jan; yewfield.co.uk).

Words: Oliver Berry

Photographs: Justin Foulkes

You can read the full feature, The Perfect Trip: The Lake District in the February issue.

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