C2C Day 4: Into Patterdale...

Stage 4: Grasmere to Patterdale

After some more hills, we finally caught sight of Ulswater, the lake alongside the village of Patterdale, our destination for the night.

After our hike of 7.2 miles (11.6K), we stopped at a hotel for a drink. We then walked through downtown Patterdale, which consisted of this small store... 

...and this small inn with a pub where we had dinner. 

After some yummy burgers (veggie for us girls) and onion rings, we ordered dessert. Kent and Carlin made us laugh as they shared a  British dessert uniquely called spotted dick.

Spotted this perfect reflection on the way back to our B&B after dinner.

Also spotted the path up that we’d be following the next morning.

C2C Day 4: Oh Look, Sheep...

Stage 4: Grasmere to Patterdale

Once down in the valley, we came across a lot of sheep—what a surprise. These two won the prize for the fanciest horns.

As much as Jimmy was laughing at me for taking photos of sheep, at least I wasn’t alone.

C2C Day 4: Down That Rocky Path...

Stage 4: Grasmere to Patterdale

We stopped for lunch once we arrived at Grisedale Tarn (tarn is a Northern England word for mountain lake) at 1,770 feet (540 meters).

Across the tarn we could see Dollywaggon Pike Trail up to Helvellyn, the third highest peak in England. We had originally agreed that we’d keep an open mind about taking the high road, but when the winds kicked up just as we arrived at the tarn, we figured Mother Nature was giving a gentle warning to stick with our current path.

The path down was incredibly rocky and pretty slow going...

...but also incredibly beautiful.

C2C Day 4: Another Day, Another Set of Hills...

Stage 4: Grasmere to Patterdale

We woke to another beautiful day in the Lakes District. This stage was the shortest of the entire route, but that didn’t mean it was easiest.

Much of the first section consisted of going uphill and crossing becks.

The scenery was stunning...

...and there were several waterfalls.

The closer we got to the top of the hill, the rockier it got. Luckily, we never needed to use our hands to scramble up.

C2C Day 3: Arriving in Grasmere...

 Stage 3:  Rosthwaite to Grasmere

As we neared civilization, we saw more and more adorable Herdwick sheep, which are native to the Lakes District. I love how she looks like she’s wearing a fur coat.

Here we are about to cross the main road to reach our hotel for the evening in Grasmere. As it’s the most popular village in Cumbria, it was also the most expensive; the Macdonald Swan Hotel was nice, but definitely overpriced. After dropping off our stuff, we went in search for some hiking accessories at the first outdoor store we’d encountered thus far and then relaxed over a beer. Since there was a grocery store, we had a rare opportunity to stock up on lunch supplies rather than buying a packed lunch from the hotel.

Although we’d hiked our shortest distance so far at just 7.3 miles (11.7K), it was by no means a walk in the park. And we added several miles on top of that by walking around town and then to dinner at the Lancrigg Vegetarian Brasserie, the only vegetarian restaurant we encountered during the entire trek.

Dinner was incredible! The setting was beautiful, the service was excellent and the food was delicious. We even got a surprise when we asked for assistance to book a taxi—the owner drove us in a van to our hotel at no charge.

C2C Day 3: Down, Down, Down....

Stage 3: Rosthwaite to Grasmere

My apologies, but I can’t resist posting an insane number of photos to share our journey as I can’t pick my favorites. 

Parts of the trail were very barren...

...with just a scattering of sheep here and there.

We found a great spot to stop for our snack. 

There were less waterfalls on the other side of the col, but there were still plenty of places we had to cross a beck.