Poet’s corners: a car-free tour of inspiring Wordsworth sites - MW

William Wordsworth was born in Cumbria 250 years ago on April 7, 1770. Inspired by nature and a sense of place, he is both an environmentalist and a poet, so it is good to visit the places he organizes in an ecological way , here are the pilgrimages without a car in its troubled steps.

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Wordsworth was born in a large terracotta house on Cockermouth Main Street, which is now a National Trust museum. Wordsworth House (adults £ 8.80, children £ 4.40, families £ 22) marks the anniversary with an exhibition (from March 14) of the poet's childhood. Don't miss 195 free tea and coffee upstairs or the garden located on Derwent (Wordsworth Times Fairest of all rivers).

To get there, Stagecoach X4 and X5 buses from Penrith Station to Cockermouth take 1 hour 25 minutes; with views of the Skiddaw slopes and the Herdwick sheep fields, he had a great time (£ 11.50 exploration ticket). Direct trains run to Penrith from London, Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow. Early Learning Wordsworth teaches at Penrith, and he meets his wife, Mary Hutchinson, near the red sandstone of St Andrew, with a carpeted church yard.
In the North Lakes hotel and spa there are fires and swimming pools and a 10 minute walk from Penrith train station, for double the price from just £ 89. Cafe VeeVa! in Cockermouth, there is a big mess, melt Lakeland cheddar on ciabatta with salad (£ 4.95), and a ticket to Wordsworth House which gives you a 10% reduction.

Hawkshead and Ambledide

Hawkshead Grammar School (£ 2.50, reopens April 1) with added windows and a door clock, where Wordsworth goes eight years old. The names of Wordsworth and his classmates are still visible on the wooden table. There is an old Professor Wordsworth memorial in the solid stone church above, and on a zigzag path, around the corner from the little Beatrix Potter gallery (£ 7 / £ 3, family £ 17.50), is Ann Tyson's house, where Wordsworth is located.

To get there, Hawkshead took 20 minutes on bus 505 from Ambledide, where there was a sign for Wordsworth, the latter office on Church Street. Ambledide (15 minutes on bus 555 from Windermere station) is the venue for the new aerial festival (March 26-29), with poetry on the bus, reading on a boat and a sunrise choir at the circle of Castlerigg stones.
At the cheerful and comfortable Ambledide Inn, which reopened a few months ago after renovation, has doubled from just £ 99; £ 89.90 B&B dinner per person until March 31st.
Eating a bowl of hummus and salad costs £ 9.95 at the Poppi Red shabby near the Hawkshead bus stop.


Grasmere

The small white house Dove Cottage (£ 8.50 after the bus reduction) with its climbing rose, is a creative and crowded house since 1799, when it was still young and radical. The Wordsworth Trust, which has a huge archive of original manuscripts, will reopen the house on April 7. A multi-million pound project is underway to transform the surrounding area into a cultural center for the UNESCO-listed Ho district. Nearby museums follow later this year, with a new cafe and an observation deck on the patio. The wooded rooms at Dove Cottage, overlooking the semi-wild hill garden, have the same atmosphere as always, enhanced by a new film introduction and new sound. Guests arriving by bus - nearby stops - receive a 30% discount.

Get there in 555 hours by bus or 599 convertible from Windermere train station - both passing lakes and rivers for a distance of 13 kilometers (about 35 minutes).
Wordsworth Countryside Hotel in Grasmere, overlooking the village or falling rooms with chandeliers, gardens, hot tubs - and double from £ 123 B&B
Eat the aromatic Grasmere gingerbread, honey ($ 3.5 for six) sold at the cottage store at St Oswald's Church, at Wordsworth's burial ground and his family.


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Wander as lonely as a cloud along the coast, where Wordsworth sees his dresses by the lake dancing. The brackish water mountains around Ullswater calm down at the water's edge, and the forest near Glencoyne is always full of flowers each spring. Follow the narcissistic path of the Ullswater Way, opened in 2016, cross the fern forests to the Air Force falls and catch a steamer on the lake until Glenridding (£ 7.40). The wooden boats pass year round and can also drop you on the lake at Howton Pier. Hiking guru Alfred Wainwright called seven miles from here at Glenridding "the most beautiful and rewarding walk in Lakeland".

Getting there Bus 508 from Penrith station stops at Glencoyne and Glenridding; a £ 16 bus and boat ticket which allows unlimited day trips to the northwest and lake cruises.
Eat local pastries served with damson tomato sauce in the small Air Force café.

Stay at YHA Patterdale (private double from £ 39) in a 1970s bungalow near Glenridding with a bus stop and Red Squirquir Crossing outside.

Rydal, Cumbria

Wordsworth has spent his last four decades at Rydal Mount (£ 7.50 / £ 4, family £ 20). The house, still a family home, is full of relics, including the only known portrait of Dorothy (with a small dog), a broken sofa and a picnic box in the shape of a bucket. his own, his brother's sword and his daughter's bottle. The flank of Wordsworth's landscaping still exists in the romantic garden, with steps and winding paths between ponds, lawns, terraces, mossy summer homes and views.

Getting there 555 or 599 bus from Windermere station. Mount Rydal is five minutes from Rydal Church (near Dora Dora Field of Wild Daffodils, planted by Wordsworth in memory of his daughter). From there, walk five kilometers to Dove Cottage along the old coffin road, a hillside path overlooking Rydal Water from the green slopes of the forest.
Stay at Stay Riverside Rydal Lodge by bus stop, for double the price from £ 76 B&B.

Tea Tea comes with Hawkshead raspberries and vanilla jam (£ 5) in the Rydal Mount tea room.

St John’s College, Cambridge

Wordsworth's first home outside the Lake District was St John Lau, Cambridge. In his autobiographical poem, Le Prélude, he remembers crossing the Cam River and sees, upon his arrival in 1787, the turrets and monuments of the long chapel on the roof of King Lat College. A signposted walking route (entry to the college at £ 10) leads through the three courses of St John Lau; Wordsworth lives in the first. In the new library, in addition to the Chapel Court, there is a small exhibition of Wordsworth (until April 24) including his breakfast mug. The ground descended the river bordering the grass, with thrust passes.

Getting there Buses 1, 3 and 7 run to the city center every few minutes from Cambridge train station. Jump outside the University of Christianity and a five-minute walk from the large medieval gate of Saint John, carved with mythical animals.
Staying at YHA Cambridge is a two minute walk from the train station and is doubly private from £ 39.

Eat one of the city's most exciting pubs and cafes on Mill Street, close to the train station and YHA.

Coleridge Cottage, Somerset

Friends of Wordsworth and co-founder of the 1798 Ballad collection, Samuel Taylor Coleridge has lived in a small 17th-century house in Nether Stowey (£ 7.40 / £ 3.70, family of £ 18.50) since 1797. William and Dorothy Wordsworth living in Alfoxton were recently rescued. , a big house of eight kilometers and discover friends with the Quantock hills and the rocky coasts. For pedestrians, now 50 miles from Coleridge Way, there is a brush sign. The Somerset Museum in Taunton borrows the Kubla Khan manuscript for an exhibition later this year.

There, the train links Taunton or Bristol to Bridgwater, from where a free minibus serves Nether Stowey on weekdays, or bus 14 to Minehead (Monday to Saturday). The free bus continues to Watchet, with the ancient statue of the port, topless and squatting under the weight of the dead gull.
Eat lunch Lunch (scone lunch, chutney and cheddar) is served by the wood stove in the cottage's tea room for £ 4.50.

At the Ancient Mariner pub, opposite the chalet, has doubled from £ 55 B&B

Tintern Abbey, Monmouthshire

This dome-less medieval church sits on the banks of the River Wye - its graceful dome is a perfect focal point among the steep river forests - one of Wordsworth's most famous destinations (£ 7, £ 30 / £ 4.40, family £ 21.20). The poem that made him famous did not really mention Tiind after the title, but explored the suggestive power, confirming the life of an isolated wilderness. Great walks start nearby: to climb the Devil Devil Pulpit view, cross the bridge (which Netflix fans of the Sex Education series will recognize as a regular place!) Near Anchor Inn.

Go by train to Chepstow from Bristol and Cardiff, then take bus 69 to Ti INTERN.
Stay Greenman is a typical Chepstow lodge with private bedrooms and a large lounge (doubling £ 65 B&B). It is a short walk from the bus and train stations and near the ancient Chepstowùi Castle.

The cozy White Monk tea room, next to the monastery, is a good place for a slice of hot chocolate cake.

Westminster Bridge, London

The British Library near Euston has a small display of free letters, books and images to celebrate the Wordsworth celebration. It includes a draft of his poem composed on Westminster Bridge. In July 1802, Wordsworth crossed the bridge on a Charing Cross coach, heading to Calais to meet her lover Annette Vallon and their daughter. The sunken ship, tower, dome, theater and temple in London prompted one of the poet's most beloved sons to begin: The history of the Earth had nothing to show fairness. more than 211 word buses near Victoria station offer a modern version of Wordsworth (now mainly dominated by the London Eye). Nearby, Westminster Abbey (£ 21 online, free for services) presents the Wordsworth memorial at Poet Corner, with marble poets made of pincers carved with ferns and daisies. and Coleridge's bust on his head.


At YHA St Pancras, there is a private double bed from £ 80, room only.

Eat Côte du Rhône (from £ 5.50, tartare from £ 8) at Wordsworth and his French lover at Chez Antionette near St James Nott Park.

Chatsworth, Derbyshire

In 1830 Wordsworth took a walking holiday in Derbyshire with Dorothy and wrote a sonnet on Chatsworth House (£ 17 without reduction on the car), contrasting the majestic prison mansion with the houses. in the pinnacle of the wild village. The poem is a bit pompous, but the big house and the gardens are worth a visit, especially in March, when the daffodils descend the steep meadows to the lake. Visitors to the car get £ 5 free for the house and garden, reopening on March 21.

To get there, a 218 bus connects Chatsworth to Sheffield Station in around 45 minutes (£ 6.50).
Stay The Devonshire Arms (doubled by just £ 117) is a Wordsworth-era inn a short walk from Chatsworth. Some rooms are located in nearby old houses, including one called Dove Cottage.

Eat Derbyshire oat cakes served with Chatsworth smoked bacon (£ 7.25) in the newly renovated farm café.

MW