This cottage is situated in one of the UK's most enviable locations, overlooking the beautiful Buttermere Valley and sleeps up to eight people. The cottage was originally built as a farm smallholding in 1787 and has been owned by the current owner's family since the 1950's.
Entry to the cottage is through a main front door from the lane into the living room, which is comfortable and spacious, with a stunning view down to the lake and seating for eight people. The wood burner is the focus of the room for those wintery nights when you need to keep warm and toasty after a bracing day on the fells. There is no TV and limited mobile signal, but there is reliable, high speed Wi-Fi and a bluetooth speaker. If you’re looking for a digital detox the owners have provided plenty of interesting books for all ages and a very well stocked cupboard of board games, playing cards and jigsaws to keep everyone occupied! Just off the living room, there's a large dining room with retro-style furniture and upholstered chairs for eight people. A wide selection of local walking books, maps and guides including all the Wainwright books are kept in the sideboard for visitors to use. There is a window seat facing the barn. Also off the living room is a small corridor leading to a spacious cloakroom/drying room, a door out onto the terrace and the downstairs double bedroom which features a huge window to enjoy the panoramic view of Buttermere, Crummock Water, High Stile and Red Pike. Grazing Herwick sheep can be seen in the fields and woodland in the foreground. The bedroom has a king-size bed, a large double wardrobe, two bedside tables and an armchair which is perfect for curling up with a good book. There is also an en-suite wet room with a WC and walk-in power shower, featuring slate floors which echo the geological surroundings of the house. The kitchen is accessed via the hallway, it has deep modern worktops, an electric oven and separate hob, microwave, fridge and dishwasher. There is a large utility room/pantry across the hall from the kitchen. The kitchen is fully equipped with cookbooks and plenty of crockery and kitchen utensils and there are plenty of cabinets there for you to store your things. The window has a lovely view of the garden and across to Rannerdale Knott. There's kids fishing nets stored in the porch off the kitchen.
Climbing the old slate steps to the first floor, you will find a single bedroom, a family bedroom containing a double and a single bed and a large double room. The single bedroom has a wonderful porthole window looking out onto the garden and a skylight to give the room a light and airy feel. There is a chest of drawers and hangers for you to hang your clothes. The family room is large with a view of the barn, hooks with hangers for you to hang your clothes and two chest of drawers. The double bedroom contains a super-king-size bed which can be set up as twin beds on request. This room has two chairs, a clothes rail, an antique chest of drawers and a large antique blanket chest. The first floor features a separate WC, a bathroom with a bath and WC, and a separate shower room. This is great for lots of people sharing! The large garden is perfect for those wishing to enjoy the fresh air with a lovely stream running through. There is a large picnic table which seats eight for outdoor dining. It is surrounded by traditional dry stone walls and Herdwick sheep are regular visitors to the garden so don't worry if you see them in there - they'll find their way out again! There are small trout in the stream and if you sit quietly for long enough outside you might be lucky enough to see the otters, or the local heron which pops by for a snack.
Just a short stroll down a bridleway and across the fields is Buttermere lake. The 4-mile circuit around the lake is a delightful child-friendly walk with at least two ice cream stops, a tunnel and two waterfalls en route; so much so that it regularly features in national newspapers' 'top ten walks in the UK'. 2 stand up paddleboards are provided for guests to use on the lake.
The mountain scenery is unrivalled with Red Pike, High Stile and Mellbreak all clearly visible from the cottage, as are the sister lakes of Crummock Water and Buttermere
Also just a few minute's walk from the cottage Is Buttermere village with two pubs, a cafe and an ice cream parlour.
The two pubs in the village; both serve good food and local ale and benefit from beer gardens with the finest outlook for miles! Beyond the village is the larger lake of Crummock Water.
For those in search of local and outdoor shops, cinema, theatre, restaurants and pubs, then the lakeland towns of Cockermouth and Keswick are a 20-minute drive away and are well worth a visit.
In the valley adventures include the Honister Slate Mine with unique mine tours and a Via Ferrata which is just a few minutes' drive up the Honister Pass, and there are mountain biking trails, a Segway tour and a ‘Go Ape’ High Wire Adventure at Whinlatter Forest Park which is 10 minutes' drive in the other direction.