FW10:  Low Parkamoor to Coniston

Monday 11th July 2011

It was touch and go whether we would be able to get out today.  For the past week we have had Emma and Luca at home with us but this morning was the time for their return to Munich.   We had a happy time with them and here are some reminders: 

Whilst we were sad to see them leave, from the point of view of this outing, it was fortunate that Emma had booked on the 11 a.m. flight!

I accompanied them down to Manchester airport on a very early train (gone are the days I would have driven them down- until and unless the medics sort out my episodes, I am not allowed behind the wheel), seeing them safely through the barrier and catching the next train back, ready for action on the Furness Way.

Only one car was needed for our outing today as we were planning to reach our start point by the Coniston Steam Gondola.  In order to save time in Coniston, I took the precaution of phoning the Tourist Information Centre beforehand to book our tickets for four people from Coniston to Parkamoor.  Why did I bother?

The Coniston Steam Gondola

Ian drove us to Coniston and dropped me off at the TIC office.  I picked up our tickets and we set off for the jetty.  Fortunately I opened the envelope.  Something seemed wrong. There were only two inside.  I returned to the TIC and asked about the other two tickets. The lady who had taken the booking was not there but her colleague quickly realised that not only were the tickets for the wrong number of people, they were for the wrong trip and what is more, the TIC did not offer the required option as they only dealt in round trips. She wanted to give me my credit card refund and I wanted to have my refund but the dilemma was that if I accepted her offer, it would have taken so long to process that we would have had to wait until Thursday before catching the boat as we were running out of time.  Hopefully, all will be resolved on the phone in the morning!

We advanced to the landing stage and the Gondola duly arrived on time.  It is a beautiful old boat and offers a high quality, if somewhat pricey, journey around the lake complete with intelligent commentary about the scenery and local inhabitants. 

The Coniston range from the Gondola

Same again further south

We passed someone experimenting with a less conventional way of travelling the length of the lake- a swimmer.  Not my idea of fun.

The Coniston swimmer

Sadly, our journey was marred a little by a large cloud that seemed to sit on top of us and follow us down the lake to the south end and then back up on the opposite side to where we disembarked at Parkamoor.

Swan wars

The view back north

Our walk began with the reversal of the descent in FW09, climbing up through the woods and out onto the open fellside.  On passing the Low Parkamoor farmhouse / holiday home we headed north with splendid views over the Coniston Fells.

The Coniston Fells behind Coniston Water

Then we entered the forest and for a while little could be seen other than surrounding greenery and brownery.  Our route dropped down towards Lawson Park where there was a strange swan like feature and some rather boring washing!

Further down, we found what had once been an interestingly eccentric wooden seat but now was in poor condition.  Not too poor to stop us using it for a refreshment stop and team picture location.  Sadly however, I made a processing error whilst compiling this report and lost the team photo so have had to substitue a somewhat contrived alternative!

The path continued along the top side of John Ruskin's Brantwood, dropping, with fairly open views to the west and north, down to the farms at the northwest end of the lake.  It was now a beautiful early evening and the cloud that had plagued us earlier (or protected us from sunstroke depending on your viewpoint) had vanished.  We rounded the lake on the road then, as soon as possible, cut back down to the lake side and the Water Head Pier to the car.

Afternote: Having read the report, Tony reminded me that at the turn of the last century (i.e. 1900) the Three Shires was run by his wife's family, on her mother's side.  He thinks that they took it around 1890 and their initial are engraved into the pub cornerstones.  He adds that there might be a family picture of them standing outside and that enquiries will be made.  Watch this space!

Meanwhile, more photos: From Ian (the house is Lawson Park):

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The
Furness
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