423km (263 miles) NW of London; 84km (52 miles) S of Carlisle; 31km (19 miles) NW of Kendal

At Coniston, you can visit the village famously associated with John Ruskin. It's also a good place for hiking and rock climbing. The Coniston Old Man towers in the background at 790m (2,633 ft.), giving mountain climbers one of the finest views of the Lake District.

Just 6.5km (4 miles) east of Coniston is the village of Hawkshead, with the 15th-century grammar school where Wordsworth studied for 8 years (he carved his name on a desk that is still there). Nearby, in the vicinity of Esthwaite Water, is the 17th-century Hill Top Farm, former home of author Beatrix Potter.