Staying Cool in the Lakes – tips for escaping the summer heat
When the weather gets hot and humid during the summer months (yes even up here in the Lakes) a trip to the Lake District can be a great way to escape the heat of the towns and cities.
The great thing about being in the Lake District National Park during hot weather or even a heatwave is that, unlike more urban areas, there are many natural ways to stay cool – air conditioning not required!
Head out on the Lake.
On a hot day, heading out on the water is a great way to keep cool. You don’t even need to get wet. You can hire a boat or catch a cruise – the cooling breeze you’ll experience out on the lake is an enjoyable, and beautifully scenic, way of keeping cool in the summer heat. Boats can be hired from Coniston Boating Centre on Coniston Water or from Windermere Lake Cruises in Bowness, where you can also catch a lake cruise on one of their historic steamers. Back on Coniston Water, the National Trusts’ Gondola sails during the summer months while Coniston Launch runs its lake cruises all year round.
Get some height.
Heading up into hills can be a great way of catching some cool, fresh mountain air. Up on the fell tops the temperature can be several degrees cooler than down in the valleys. The only hitch? You have to get there. Driving up a mountain pass such as Honister, Kirstone Pass or Hardknott can give you the height without the physical effort. But if you’re walking in the heat, always bring more water than you think you’ll need and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Or you could choose to actually stay in the mountains. By choosing mountain accommodation, you can enjoy refreshing mountain air on your doorstep, through your open cottage windows or within your own fellside garden. Our Mountain Cottages in Coppermines Valley are all located in a mountainous environment, whenre the air is cool and crisp year-round and where rivers, waterfalls and even old mine shafts, act as natural air conditioning.
Go for a wild swim.
One of the most effective, and most fun, ways of staying cool in a heatwave is by going for a wild swim. Cool mountain tarns or clear waterfall pools provide deliciously cold water on even the hottest of days. There are places for wild swimming throughout the Lakes; Coppermines Valley, the Duddon Valley, Beacon Tarn and Easedale Tarn are just some of our favourites. But the great thing about the Lake District is – you’re never far away from water.
Just remember to stay safe. Don’t enter a river or waterfall when it’s in spate (after heavy rain for example) and avoid cold water shock by not jumping straight into deep, cold water. Enter the water slowly to let your body adjust. If you do go into cold water shock, float on your back until your breathing returns to normal.
Our local Coppermines team are always happy to advise our guests on some great wild-swimming spots, so feel free to give us a call, drop us an email or call into to our Coniston office.
Choose a stone cottage for your Lake District stay.
Thick stone walls, often accompanied by smaller than average windows, are a feature of many traditional cottages. Stone walls absorb and store heat, keeping the interior cooler in the summer months. Due to the thermal mass of the stone, the heat generated on a hot summer’s day is stored within them then gradually released at night. Meaning the interior can feel noticeably cooler than the outside temperature and can provide a natural, welcome relief from the scorching summer sun. Examples of traditional stone cottages: include Low Bowkerstead Cottage, Bend or Bump, Bowmanstead Cottage, The Stables
Find a beer garden.
Out and about on a hot day in the Lakes? Luckily, wherever you are in the Lake District, you’re never too far from a traditional Lakeland pub with a shaded beer garden – often with an incredible view over lakes, mountains or countryside. So you can keep cool with an ice-cold beverage of your choice. There are certainly worse ways to spend an hour or two in a heatwave.
