Wander in...for Lakes perfection
GREAT BRITISH BOLT HOLES
HARE & HOUNDS INN Bowland Bridge, Cumbria
THE daffodils were out in force in the hamlet of Bowland Bridge in the Lake District National Park during my visit.
Across the road from The Hare & Hounds Inn, a bench, appropriately dedicated to a woman called Joy, looks in the direction of sumptuously green fields, dry-stone walls, contented sheep and wooded hills.
The inn, which dates from the 1600s, has recently reopened after being shut for several years.
One of its new owners, Simon Rayner-Langmead, grew up locally, and after 20 years spent working in London decided to return home when the Hare & Hounds became available. After a tasteful refurbishment, it’s very much a rural inn with rooms (just four) and gets the essentials spot-on.
When I arrived, there was a pub quiz in full swing to raise funds to install better broadband in the village. A fire was blazing in the main bar where locals drop in for a drink, although a full menu is available at lunch and dinner, either there or in the charming side rooms where prints on the wall range from hunting scenes to a Tracey
Emin. ‘We don’t want it to be Michelin-star,’ Simon tells me over a pint of Guinness. ‘You can get basic fare around here and super-duper, but I always thought the middle ground was a bit overlooked.’
Hearty, locally sourced comfort food is the order of the day.
I loved my steak and ale pie followed by sticky toffee pudding and ice cream for dinner, although the Cumberland terrine and haunch of venison looked good too. At lunch you’ll be tempted by Cumbrian dry cured ham with smoked cheddar toastie, Cumberland sausage and mash and beer-battered haddock and chips, while walkers on cooler days will appreciate the ‘Add on a mug of soup’ option.
A fried breakfast or build-yourown bap starts from 9am, but a continental selection is available earlier for any eager hikers who want to get up the fells. Upstairs, a snug with a sofa is the perfect place to curl up with a good book if the weather isn’t so kind, but this is the Lake District, so just come prepared with waterproofs.
Country comfortable sums up my room, with a plush bed and thick duvet, antique dresser and good heating.
A kettle for tea and coffee is provided, with fresh milk delivered in a flask. The en suite bathrooms come with a large shower and big claw-foot bath – ideal for a deep soak after a long day’s walk.
You’re three miles from Windermere here, and it is an easy walk there from the inn itself, but I recommend you drive about ten minutes up the road and park at Gummer’s How and then ascend on foot. You’ll go past a herd of Highland cows before amazing views open out down on to the lake below and the fells spread before you.
The Hare & Hounds feels like a great spot to escape the bedlam in the world right now and wander lonely as a cloud o’er vales and hills, then return to a pint and a well-earned dinner.
B&B from £145 per night; dogs are welcome for £10 per night (hareandhoundslakes.com).