Misty Tarn Hows
We had received a recommendation to visit Tarn Hows while we were in the area. It was roughly a twenty minute drive from Ambleside so we hopped in the car to see what all the fuss was about. From a little internet research we were expecting to see a beautiful lake.
The main thing to know before driving up to Tarn Hows is that the car parking is run by the National Trust. This means it is relatively expensive. We had to pay £4.50 for two hours parking. Luckily we had enough cash on us to cover the cost - so go prepared.
Upon arrival we had some concerns however as the mist had come in and you could barely see anything! We were not convinced that this little adventure was going to be a success. We were however not the only ones up there - so we thought we would brave it and see if venturing out may reveal some hidden gems in the mist.
I have attached our route - but please note I forgot to stop my watch so this also includes a large proportion of our car ride home! Ops! I hope that it gives some idea on what the walk entailed.
Within ten minutes we were nicely surprised and so pleased we had embraced the mist. Before taking on the circular route around Tarn How we followed a small footpath into the woods. This led us to Tom Gill Falls - the beautiful waterfall pictured above. The mist only added to the beauty of the area as it created a very spooky feel.
It took about 15 minutes to walk down to the waterfall and 15 minutes back to the main circular route. By the time we returned some of the mist had risen up from the main lake. With the weather clearing and the lake being very still the mirroring potential for photos increased. The below photo is very eerie however - I certainly wouldn't like to be out here alone!
While walking around the lake we bumped into several families. I think it is really popular as the route is very well maintained and has really good access for all. Most of the trails are wheel chair accessible.
When taking the photo above and below we had no explanation of why there were so many coins in a tree- but they were both seen on route. There were literally hundreds of coins hammered into the fallen tree! It looked remarkable, but we couldn't understand why it would have been started or what the purpose would have been.
On our return home we googled the meaning behind it - apparently it is lucky - like a wishing well - but it can also be used to remove an illness from a sick person. Legend has it that if someone then removes the coin the sickness is past onto them! I am glad we were careful to not knock any of them out! Gulp!!!!!
This was the far end of the lake - it took us around half an hour to get to this point and we had a steady pace on. Throughout the walk there were options to veer off and start additional walks, but we were wary of going too far off track as we were getting close to sunset and needed to find the car.
These two photos were really just taken for fun!
We noticed the above tree trunk had some more coins hammered in - not as many as the previous tree - but looks like a good collection would be here in the future.
The bottom photo - if you look closely it looks like someone is sitting on the stone in the distance - it is however a section of a tree! I had to do a double take as we walked past to check it wasn't real.
The final stretch of our walk took us back close to the lake. We were lucky that the mist had risen since our arrival at Tarn Hows. The mist leaving opened up some stunning views - and mirroring in the lake.
We both felt very lucky to have had such a beautiful walk here today and we are really pleased we embraced the destination despite our initial weather concerns.
