Grasmere and Ambleside, Cumbria

Not really a new walk today but maybe some useful bits information for anyone having a lazy day out in the Lakes with the dog.

One of the questions we had in our minds when we got our dog was would we still be able to enjoy a relatively lazy day out, with a bit of a stroll, a wander round some little shops, and a pub lunch? Evidently, the answer was yes, a demonstrated by yesterday afternoon's lazy trip out to Grasmere.

We parked in the National Park Car Park at Broadgate. This car park is adjacent to a small park beside the River Rothay, which means you can potentially let the dog off for a good run around with a ball after your trip. There are lots of benches to watch the world go by on so whilst your dog can be energetic, you don't have to!

Once the dog has run itself ragged you can stroll along the obvious riverside path through the park, on to Broadgate and towards the the village centre. No visit would be complete without a trip to Sarah Nelson's Gingerbread Shop so that was our first stop followed by coffee and Sandwiches in the garden of the Ash Cottage team rooms opposite the Red Lion Hotel. The Lamb Inn, which comes highly recommended as a dog friendly pub, was unfortunately closed for refurbishment but if open, it's worth a visit.

After a stroll round the village, and a few more shops (some, such as Cotswold, welcome well behaved dogs too) we returned to the park for another run around.

One the way home we had a quick stop off in Ambleside where the staff in SR Cunninghams Shop (the Jack Wolfskin shop) made a huge fuss of the dog and offered to come down to Preston on their days off to dogsit! He was also invited in to the Fat Face store on the market square. The Hayes Garden Centre, whilst not dog friendly inside, does have quite a nice hillside area for exercising your dog.

There are of course loads of walks in the area to choose from!

Click here for an interactive Grasmere map

We returned home with a heavily patted and tired dog. Who said dog ownership always had to be energetic?

Doggy rating 5/10