The poet who made the lake country in Cumbria famous is William Wordsworth although the area has been host to many more poets and artists. The Shelly's spent time there, as did Coleridge, Yeats, and a host of others. Ruskin's home is on Lake Conniston, and Beatrix Potter's farm overlooks the lake also. The Forest of Grizedale hosts fields and groves of modern environmental art, and each little town in the area overflows with local watercolors (and keychains and t-shirts and tea towels). Wordsworth's houses are all open to the public. Dove Cottage, Cockermouth, and Rydal Mount are all in the area.

The train will bring you to Windermere, the doorway to Cumbria, and from there you can wend your way to Ambleside and Grasmere, the most popular bases for exploring Cumbria. Grasmere has a huge garden center, and a Wordsworth Center.

Just outside the village is the Wordsworth complex where you can have tea, buy postcards, visit the Grasmere Museum, and visit Dove Cottage, the Wordsworth residence from 1799-1808. The complex hosts exhibitions, conferences and readings. If you are a YHA member, you get a discounted admission, so show your card.

But don't stay in Grasmere or Ambleside. Get on the bus and go into the high fells. It's like nowhere else you have ever been, and the trails are very accessible. There are many lovely youth hostels and hotels in the area that let you stay at the feet of the astonishing hills. There are easy walks and strenous scrambles to meet whatever romantic notions you might entertain.

Good places to base yourself in the hill country are Conniston, Buttermere, and Cockermouth. Ordinance Survey Maps of the Lake Country are available in the RWC Library reserve collections. Cumbria is a great place for literature, walking, environmental studies, and art.

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