Lake District Day 2: Keswick and Thirlmere

After yesterday's experience I was determined to have a slightly more relaxed and scenic ride for my second day.  The last thing I wanted to do was do some more crazy climbing.  I decided to head off to Keswick which is one of the major towns in the Lake District.

To get to Keswick I would first pass through Ambleside and then along Thirlmere, which is a large reservoir which supplies the city of Manchester with fresh water.  There happened to be a beautiful quiet winding road alongside the western edge of the reservoir...

Finally I got to Thirlmere dam at the northern end of the lake, Thirlmere supplies water to the city of Manchester.  I don't have any particular bad feelings towards Manchester so I decided to leave it alone... Then onto some rolling grassy hills with sheep...

And Castlerigg Stone circle which is one of the oldest stone circles in Europe dating back to about 3200BCE or thereabouts.  It sits on a raised plateau with a view of most of the surrounding fells, its position is supposed to be almost like a natural amphitheatre which is probably why ancient pagan Britons chose the site.

I then rolled into Keswick for some lunch and went along Derwent water which is close by for some spectacular scenery along the bank.

Then it was time to head back along the same road home again past Thirlmere.  This day wasn't quite as dramatic as yesterday's which was definitely welcome.  Thanks for reading.