Explore the Peaks and Pubs of the English Lake District

Home to England's highest peak and one of Europe's greatest running challenges - The Bob Graham Round (https://fatmap.com/guidebooks/7088/run-or-hike-the-iconic-bob-graham-round) - the Lake District is high on the "travel bucket list" for many mountain enthusiasts.

It's not just the mountains themselves that draw hikers and climbers to the Lake District; the area has a wonderful ambience all of its own. The lakes after which the range is named are deep, dark and dramatic, and the villages which dot the region are charming, with the ubiquitous local slate giving them a unique character. The villages are also home to some of the most quintessentially English pubs you'll find anywhere; the beer is warm and creamy, the walls and floors made of local stone, and there's invariably a fire roaring in the corner. No matter where you travel in the World, there is nothing like coming in from a day on Lake District hills, watching your beer being pulled and then drinking it in front of the fire while the windows steam up around you.

The hikes we've described in here are all wonderful mountain adventures in themselves, but the fact that they all begin and/or end at a legendary Lake District pub adds to their appeal. Whether it's the White Lion in Patterdale (the start point for the uber-classic trip over Swirral and Striding Edges on Helvellyn), the Old and New Dungeon Ghylls in Langdale, The Wainwrights' Inn in Chapel Style or one of the many lovely pubs in Ambleside, you'll never be short of somewhere to "rehydrate" after these hikes!

One of the pubs (the Wasdale Head) is SO good that we've included 2 routes from it, but when you sit right below England's highest point you deserve some special treatment!