Rydal is a small village on the outskirts of Ambleside which boasts a tranquil lake with some lovely dog walks, a Cafe/Gallery and a very unique Pub. Rydal is only a 25 minute drive from Greyhound Cottage and is definitely worth a trip. Combine this with a visit to either Ambleside or Grasmere and you’re in for a day you’ll never forget.
Rydal Water
Rydal Water is one of the smallest lakes in the Lake District at just over 1KM in length. You can easily walk a full lap of the lake in an afternoon, whatever your ability. The walk can also include several stops at places like Dove Cottage and Rydal Mount – two of William Wordsworths homes. The lake is also only a few hundred metres from the Old School Tea Room.
For a pleasant days walk, park up and head out from the Ambleside car park. Head down the side of the police station and you will soon be on a small track which takes you through fields and woods to the edge of the lake. From there on, you can go around the lake or up to the tea rooms and then down a small track back to the town.
The Old School Room Tea Shop and Gallery
Originally built as a small schoolhouse room for his sons by Sir Daniel Flemming, The Old School Room Tea Shop and Gallery is a favourite with dog walkers, cyclists and hikers alike and is open every day with extended opening hours from April to October.
As well as being dog friendly, they do a great selection of teas, coffees and cakes as well as other hot and cold drinks, snacks and hot and cold food.
The tea room also doubles as an art gallery – with different local artists being selected to showcase their work on a monthly rotation. Having been to this tea room ourselves well over a dozen times, we’re always taken back by the wealth of talent there is in the local area.
Seating is regularly limited at the cafe, but we have never found ourselves having to leave because of it. When you get seated around the fire on a cold day or out in the sunshine in summer with a freshly made scone and a good old british cuppa, you’ll see why people seem to lose entire afternoons to sitting and gazing at the nearby streams, tracks, forests and mountains. There is also a trail down from the tea room back into Rydal and Ambleside which will take you past some interesting sites including wigwams that double up as art galleries, working farmers fields and an outdoor education centre.
The Badger Bar
Yes, they have Badgers! This quirky little bar has a small family of Badgers living out back and you can even see them being fed daily by the staff. That’s not something you get to experience often!
The Badger Bar is a strange little labyrinth of rooms, but does good quality food, allows dogs and is very reasonably priced for the area. They also have roaring fires in winter, supply a generous (and cheap) range of local ales and the staff are always welcoming no matter how muddy your boots are
We’ve only been there a couple of times ourselves, but we have not had a bad meal there yet and we intend to return again.
