Daily Star Sunday

LAKES SIMPLY

History and adventure make for a fab family break

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“RUN at it, jump on and you’ll glide across,” shouted our guide.

Simple enough…at least it would be if I wasn’t 30ft up in the tree canopy and “it” wasn’t an oversized skateboard resting on two thin wires.

After a deep breath I did as ordered and pulled off my best Marty McFly routine, whizzing across the abyss in a blur of flailing arms.

What a rush, and definitely one of the highlights of our visit to Treetop Trek, an aerial assault course at Brockhole National Park centre, in the heart of Swallows and Amazons country.

Adventurou­s types will love tackling the 35 obstacles, ending with a heartstopp­ing 250m zip wire. Three people can race side-by-side above the heads of visitors enjoying the grounds of this former summer house built for a Manchester silk merchant right beside Windermere.

You could put in a day at Brockhole, NIGEL ROE touring the gardens and trying out activities including canoeing and archery, but with so much to pack into our four-day break we had to move on.

Our base was a posh caravan on Haven’s bustling Lakeland Leisure Park at Flookburgh, just along the Morecambe Bay coast from the genteel resort of Grange-over-Sands.

The mobile home was a beauty, with central heating, outdoor seating and TVs in the master bedroom and lounge.

Lakeland is a busy, family-friendly site just 20 minutes from the lakes and mountains, with loads of stuff to see and do. New for 2017 is a thrilling adventure ropes attraction, plus there’s a picturesqu­e lake where you can hire rowing boats and kayaks to splash around. There are indoor and outdoor pools, a lively Mash and Barrel restaurant plus a nine-hole golf course to keep the grown-ups happy. Evening entertainm­ent is laid on throughout the holiday season, or you can just chill out on the deck of your van with a glass of something nice and watch the sun set. Just four miles up the road is the pretty village of Cartmel, the home of sticky toffee pudding, left. You can’t head home without trying the sweet, gooey dessert that was first made in the back kitchen of the village shop and now has a loyal following all around the world. There’s a real foodie feel to Cartmel these days – it’s got trendy coffee bars and shops selling artisan cheeses and beers. There’s also a world-class restaurant in l’Enclume, where Steve Coogan and Rob

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