Families/friends can fully embrace the slower pace of life in this idyllic rural retreat on the northern edge of the Lake District. Lakes and mountains are to the south and the Solway Coast is to the north.
This lovely holiday property is located in the peaceful rural village of Bothel on the northern borders of the Lake District, accommodating up to eight guests and three dogs. It has views towards Binsey, one of the easier climbs of Wainwright's fells in the UNESCO Lake District National Park. The front and rear gardens are both large and full of intrigue, not least of which is the miniature stone circle, correctly positioned to coincide with the Summer Solstice! Free range hens belonging to the owners provide fresh eggs and frogs, hedgehogs, bats and cats are frequent visitors to the gardens. Dogs are welcome, although neither garden is fully enclosed.
Lovers of literature will feel quite at home at the property, as the owners have lovingly adorned the bedrooms with quotations from Bronte and Austen. Items of thoughtfully selected furniture add charm to this spacious accommodation, which is decorated with a variety of literary and historical framed pictures. The cottage, originally constructed in 1807, has been in the owner's family since 1892 and family portraits can be found on the walls. Park View is wheelchair friendly, with a fully accessibly king-size bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and lounges on the ground floor.
The property is the perfect launch pad for the Northern Lakes, the border city of Carlisle and the Solway Coast and its Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Bassenthwaite is 5 miles away, Keswick 12 miles, Cockermouth seven miles, the Western Lakes, Skiddaw and the Solway Coast ten miles away. The cottage is only a short walk from the local pub which serves good food. Park View is the ideal location from which a large family or group of friends can explore Cumbria.
The property is a fully accessible cottage suitable for families with children and dogs. It boasts spacious accommodation, large gardens, views of sheep grazing in pastures and close proximity to both the coastline and the Lake District National Park.
Upon arrival, you should head to the back of the house. A basket of local goodies awaits; the contents will depend on the season but expect to find fresh eggs from the hens in the garden, homegrown onions, potatoes, plums and herbs, as well as local biscuits, jam, drinks and not forgetting a little something for any four-legged friends. The gardens are shared with the friendly owners, who allow either two medium/large dogs or three small dogs to stay at the cottage.
The kitchen is large and well stocked, containing an electric oven and four-ring ceramic hob, undercounter fridge, dishwasher, microwave and washing machine. There is a chest freezer and a tumbler dryer in the utility room as well as a second undercounter fridge, just a few metres from the kitchen. In the kitchen is a dining table that seats eight guests and a breakfast bar with four stools.
There are two lounges in the cottage. One is to the front of the house and features two deep four-seater sofas, a Smart TV (don't forget to bring your Netflix/Prime login), a selection of books and DVDs and an open coal fire. Plenty of coal and kindling is supplied but guests are kindly requested to clean and re-lay the fire for the next guests. A smaller lounge looks though a large window onto the array of bird feeders in the back garden and has a small Smart TV and DVD player.
One of the many wonderful things about Park View is that the ground floor is fully wheelchair accessible (depending on wheelchair width), as it had previously been occupied by a wheelchair user. A ramp provides access to the king-size bedroom on the ground floor and a portable ramp can be placed for access to the front lounge. Please check the maximum width of wheelchair with the owners, as areas may be slightly too narrow for wider wheelchairs. The ground floor bathroom contains a walk-in shower, WC, wash basin and access to the back garden.
The remaining three bedrooms and bathroom can be found on the first floor. Full of character, there are two double bedrooms and a twin bedroom. Each bedroom has plenty of storage and a wash basin. The double bedroom to the rear of the house has a large window from which to take in the peaceful pastoral view. The bathroom on the first floor has a shower over the claw foot bath, a WC and wash basin.
The shared gardens to front and rear are both lawned and neither is fully enclosed, so children and pets should not be left to roam alone. There is a busy road beyond the bottom of the garden which guests will not generally notice, but do bear this in mind if you have a dog that is an expert escapist. These are wonderful gardens to explore and the back garden offers not only a miniature stone circle (the owners constructed this with 16th-century stones from a previous dwelling on the same site) but also a herb garden, vegetable patch, hens and a stream (or a beck in local dialect) which runs from the well in the village down to the mill pond, through the middle of the garden. There is bike storage, ample parking and the cottage can be accessed from both the main A595 road and the from the quiet village streets of Bothel.