Keswick
A thriving market town, Keswick is the centre for the more rugged north of the Lake District set beside the evocative Derwentwater.
Stretching for some 3 miles, Derwentwater forms a tremendously atmospheric landscape, surrounded by tall woodland fells and dotted with little wooded islands which mirror the surface of the Derwent’s calm waters. Derwentwater was once described by the poet Robert Southey as ‘the most beautiful of English lakes’ and inspired one of J.M.W. Turners celebrated works. Boat trips are available, calling at the island where St Herbert lived as a hermit in the 7th Century.
The town of Keswick is compact and attractively set with sturdy grey Victorian buildings. Keswick is filled with restaurants, cafes, pubs and shops, selling outdoor equipment. The focal point of the town is the market place where markets are held each Saturday, watched over by the Clock Tower of the Moot Hall built in 1813. The town has a long history, prospering in light industries of wool and leather and from the 16th Century in graphite mining from nearby Borrowdale. Keswick claims to have the world’s first Pencil Factory, which is now a Pencil Museum paying homage to the scribe’s humble tool and proving that the British really do have museums on anything!
Keswick is a popular walking centre, brimming with backpack-clad hikers of all ages and aptitudes. The most well known walk is the easy hike to Castlerigg, a circle of 48 stones, believed to be between 3,000 and 4,000 years old, built onto a slope above the town with marvellous views of Derwentwater. Other popular walks traverse the rounded peak of Skiddaw or the gentle slopes of Cat Bells bringing you to a fabulous vista of Derwentwater at Friar’s Crag.
Keswick is central to mountain drives along the Honister Pass. Winding through the beautiful valley of Borrowdale, the road takes you past the old mines, with the Langdale Pikes looming in the background and across the river Buttermere cradled in its wild romantic valley.
