Animal magic
A new tourist attraction has opened at the Victorian estate which inspired many of Beatrix Potter’s most famous works. DIANNE BOURNE took her young son George to learn all about Peter Rabbit and Co.
IT may be 150 years since Beatrix Potter was born, but thousands of children will have opened up the author’s timeless children’s books this Christmas Day.
The tales of Peter Rabbit, Squirrel Nutkin and their jauntily dressed animal pals bring back plenty of happy memories for me too – so what a treat it was to stay at the Lingholm Estate in Keswick – the private estate that inspired Potter to write many such works on her own holidays here.
Especially as we were keen to introduce our own new addition – 15-monthold son George – to Potter’s works too.
Nestled on the shore of Derwentwater, a £1million investment this summer has seen the opening of a new café and Victorian Walled Garden at the estate complementing the superbly furnished self-catering holiday retreats within the main mansion and surrounding grounds.
The estate celebrates that Potter connection with a series of interesting fact boards around the walled garden – as well as some lovely statues of Peter Rabbit around the grounds.
It was really rather sweet to see George approach one such Peter, and give him a little kiss too!
The owners at Lingholm really have done a fabulous job in sympathetically restoring and renovating the estate, making for a wonderful holiday destination, with the different room and cottages available to accommodate from four guests up to 12.
We stayed in The Old Library in the mansion, one of the most recently renovated rooms, offering luxurious furnishings, a large living room area and stylish kitchen too.
It was particularly nice to see a full library of Potter’s works in the lounge, where we were able to attempt to enthrall George with the adventures of that naughty Squirrel Nutkin and Mrs Tiggy-Winkle.
But while we had all mod-cons at our disposal in the room, we couldn’t resist enjoying cooked breakfasts during our stay at the Lingholm Kitchen, a truly impressive restaurant and cafe overlooking the walled garden, next to the mansion house.
Using artisan locallysourced products, we had one of the best eggy breads I’ve ever tasted, as well as a mountainous full English breakfast.
The upgrades on the estate coincide with the unveiling of the first new jetty on Derwentwater for scheduled boat services in more than 50 years.
There is a new footpath down to the lakeshore, offering stunning views from the estate across to Skiddaw, one of the highest mountains in England, and we enjoyed ambling down with George to catch a boat ride over to Keswick for the day.
Sadly, George’s first boat ride was to be memorable for not entirely the reasons we’d hoped – as he screamed blue murder the whole way across! We’re assuming a career in the Navy is not in his destiny.
After an enjoyable stroll through the market town of Keswick and its array of high street shops and more boutiquey gift establishments, we took the one-mile walk back to Lingholm, for fear of further screams from George if we’d taken the boat!
My Other Half, being a keener walker than I, was inspired to continue his trek up to Catbells from Lingholm, where there is access through the estate.
He managed to scale its heights in just under two hours, and advised that though it’s a steep climb it is easily negotiable for all but the most infirm. Or lazy.
For those who really like a walk, there is also a new waymarked, 10-mile Derwentwater Walk passing through ancient woodlands alongside the lake shore, but sadly we ran out of time for that one.
Before we left, the owners very kindly let us have a peek at some of the other rooms in the mansion – including a stunning ballroom where they hold 20 weddings a year – but such is demand they’re already booked up for the next couple of years, and it’s not hard to see why with stunning views out across Derwentwater.
We also had a look in some of the renovated cottages on the estate which can cater for bigger groups, and I’m already planning to head back for an upcoming party with pals, so good was our stay here.