RAMBLES AT HOME.-WINDERMERE-AMBLESIDE.

My Dear Mr. Editor,

July 17th, 1839.

I HAVE now the pleasure of addressing a few lines to you from the banks of the beautiful Lake of Windermere.

I took my departure from Kendal on the morning of the 15th. The clouds were thick, heavy, and lowering: I could not forget that it was St. Swithin's day, proverbially the most unpropitious day in the whole calendar, and particularly so, you will allow, to commence a "tour to the Lakes." Bad as my memory is, had I chanced to have forgotten St. Swithin, a very smart shower, just as I was on the point of starting, could not have failed to recall him forcibly to my mind. Having waited patiently till this passing cloud had expended its fury, and pretty well drenched the streets of Kendal, I stepped into my car, a little four-wheeled phæton, for the hire of which I paid at the rate of a shilling the mile, the usual charge in the district of the Lakes and as the different cars will always accommodate two per- . sons, and what little baggage they may have with them, the Lakes may be pleasantly visited in this manner at a trifling expense. Unfortunately I was alone, which greatly detracts from the enjoy meat of a "Ramble," besides adding very considerably to the expense. The distance to Bowness, whither I proceeded, is nine miles. This is a delightful little spot, situated upon a sloping bank, on the east side of Windermere, and commanding a beautiful view of the lake. It consists of a few houses, and two large hotels, at one of which, the "White Lion," I took up my quarters.

Being anxious to make the most of my time, and to visit Easthwaite and Coniston Waters, I immediately made arrangements for the trip, and shall therefore attempt to describe my "day's work," before I tell you anything of Windermere, the largest of the English lakes.

Greatly prefering to ride on these sort of excursions than to be stuck in a vehicle of any description, I requested to be furnished with a horse, when, to my great surprize, I was informed that there were no saddle horses let out on hire. How different at Killarney! where the difficulty is to avoid being furnished with more ponies than one wants, so eager are the good folks to persuade you to hire their steeds. The landlord however, was a civil obliging person, and though he had no regular saddle horses, was willing to do the best he could to meet my wishes. Accordingly a rough long-backed raw-boned poster was trotted out of the stables, and having first scrutinized his fore-legs, and ascertained the most important fact that he had never been down, I was soon seated in the saddle. He was exceedingly uncouth in his gait, and, when put

in motion, yawed about uncommonly, probably missing the rattling noise at his heels, and wondering, no doubt, what had become of the chaise. Arriving at the Ferry, which is nearly half a mile from the inn, in the narrowest part and about the centre of the lake, my poster was somewhat shy of the water, and had evidently never crossed it before; but a little coaxing soon persuaded him to walk into the ferry-boat. Once afloat, he was sorely puzzled to get out, and sufficiently sagacious not to make the attempt. The wind being rather high, the boat was tossed about a little, which appeared to be anything but agreeable to the quadruped. We were soon landed in safety on the opposite bankthe lake being very contracted at this spot. I now proceeded to Hawkshead, skirting along the banks of a pretty sheet of water, called Easthwaite, at the head of which the little village is situated. This little lake is about two miles in length, and half a mile in breadth, and is one of the feeders of Windermere. As there seemed to be nothing to attract attention at Hawkshead, I trotted on, and leaving Easthwaite water, and pursuing a westerly course, soon came upon Coniston water, the object of my ride. The road passes close to the very end of the lake, and is washed by its waves. It is about six miles in length, and, viewed from "Braithwaite's inn, Waterhead," is certainly a fine expanse of water discharging itself at its southern extremity in a little river called the Crake, which flows into the Leven. I now went on to the little village of Coniston, at the head of the valley, where, having obtained luncheon, curiosity led me to stroll on horseback up to the recesses of the mountains, to see if there might not be a waterfall.

Tracing the stream, I came to a small one, and higher up, to another and owing to the late heavy rains, the fall of water was here very pretty, but the channel would no doubt be dry, or nearly so, at other times. I found, at the upper fall, a copper mine, and several people employed washing the ore, &c. but it is carried elsewhere to be smelted,

I did not, upon this occasion, go into the bowels of the earth but contented myself with picking up two or three specimens of the ore, which seemed to be abundant, and of a good rich quality. On the right of the mountain stream rises Coniston Old Man, the highest point of land, at the summit of which there appeared to be a large heap of stones; and I am told they are going to increase it, and to make a place of shelter at the same time.

I regretted that I could not possibly afford time to make an ascent being particularly fond of climbing hills; and, as an additional inducement, there is a large slate quarry opened on the side of the Old Man, which I should liked to have seen.

The mountains at the head of this valley are denuded and wild in their appearance, and were sufficiently high to intercept the clouds in

their progress, which ever and anon curled over their summits, obscuring them in a mist from the view.

The other hills which surround Coniston Water, being verdant enough, formed a pleasing contrast, and the digitalis was everywhere most abundant, and in full blossom. The heaths too were numerous and very beautiful, as also the wild geranium.

Retracing my steps to Easthwaite Water, I again had to cross the Ferry at Windermere, to which my long-back raw-boned poster had now got more accustomed, and so returned to dinner, pleased with my ride though somewhat a rough one, the distance, there and back, being about twenty miles, and my steed requiring much of the persuasive and somewhat irresistible argument of the heel to move along, which added not a little to the fatigue of the rider. The weather was remarkably fine for the trip; and, notwithstanding St. Swithin, not a drop of rain fell during the day, although I am informed it seldom does any thing else but rain in these parts, the truth of which assertion seems borne out by the large wooden clogs, two inches thick in the sole, tipped at the toe and heel with iron, with which the women and children in all the towns in Lancashire, go clattering over the pavements, to the no small annoyance of strangers like myself.

After dinner I strolled up to the top of a barren rock, above the little village, from whence there is a fine view of the lake, which is almost ten miles in length, a noble sheet of water surrounded by gently sloping hills, verdant and well wooded, and studded with several pretty little islands. Like Coniston Water, Windermere, discharges itself at its southern extremity, and joins the Leven.

Curwen's Island, so named after it's proprietor, is the largest island on Windermere, and lies immediately opposite to Bowness. The others indeed, are of small extent. They all lie in a cluster in this part of the lake; and both above and below them, appears one uninterrupted sheet of water.

Having procured a boat across I walked round the island. It is said to consist of about thirty-six acres of land; and, tracing the gravel walk the distance performed may perhaps be about two miles Owing to the late heavy rains, the lake had made considerable encroachments upon the foot path, which was here and there completely under water; but a little detour through the swampy grass brought me again upon terra firma. There are some fine trees upon the island, particularly oaks and chestnuts, the latter of which were almost equal to any of those in the noble avenue of Bushy Park, one of the finest avenues in existence, and probably the most beautiful in the spring of the year, when the trees, being one mass of blossom, seem as if sprinkled with the purest snow. The house on Curwen's Island is of an octagonal

form, and has been compare 1, not inappropriately, to a beehive, to which, at a little distance, it certainly bears the resemblance.

These islands, I believe, all belong to different proprietors, and one was pointed out to me, just large enough for a small pic-nic party, and which, I learnel, was purchased for that especial purpose, for the sum of 3001.

The view of the head of the lake, in crossing the water, was very striking. It was a lovely morning, and the lights and shades upon the mountains (for so I shall call them,) were really enchanting, rot a clo id concealed their summits; they were floating far above the earth, an I just in sufficient quantity to cast every now then, the most pleasing sha lows on different parts of the heights, while the bright sun shone for h in all its splendour upon the remainder of the landscape.

It may be as well to mention here that the highest point of land in the lake district scarcely exceeds 3000 feet, which I must request my rea lers to bear in mind, as everything is by comparison; and a travel er over the Andes might consider my mountains nothing but molekills.

The little boat in which I crossed to Curwen's Island was a rowing boat there was in this, as in the other boats upon the lake, a peculiarity which I have seen no where else; the oars, instead of being worked in the common rullocks, are worked on an iron pin, which pierces them, and upon a circular piece of iron extending beyond the gunwale. This gives a good purchase, and enables one man to pull the boat with great rapidity. My boatman was one of the char fishermen, and has followed the occupation three and twenty years, "and his father and grandfather before him," as I was duly informed.

The char fishing is only carried on during the winter months, when the several landlords of the inns in the vicinity of the lakes, purchase the fish for the purpose of poting. There were, altogether, about a dozen fishermen upon Windermere, and it seemed generally to be a tolerably lucrative occupation. Upon my inquiring of the boatman how far it might answer his purpose, he replied, that during the winter, for instance, the landlord of the White Lion, to whom he supplied his fish, could not have paid him less than 601: this, with what he may pick up during the summer, by the hire of his boat, must afford him a tolerable livelihood. The greatest quantity of char he had ever taken in one day was, he told me, twenty-four dozen and a half; and fifteen dozen the most in one haul.

It has been stated in some of the Guide Books that there are no Char in Easthwaite Water, the shallowness of the lake being attributed as the cause; but my informant laughs at this, and says that they are caught in various depths, and that the assertion in the guide-book that

they are only taken in deep water, is quite nonsense. The fact of there being no Char in Easthwaite Water is undoubted, but he assigns as the far more probable reason, the great number of Pike, who have there the dominion of the waters of the lake.

Pike are also very abundant in Windermere. I was treated with some for my dinner, but it seemed to me to be a perfectly tasteless fish.

There were a few small yachts and cutters lying off Bowness, and several little pleasure boats. In some parts the lake is very shallow with rocks, sand-banks, &c., although deep enough in others. In many of the shallow parts staves have been driven in to mark them, but these marks have apparently been much neglected, and either from the rising of the lake, or settling of the staves, they appear in some parts just above water, and are really very dangerous.

My boatman told me that he and another were pulling along at a quick rate, and ran their boat upon one of them: it was through her in a moment, and they had to pull for their lives, but fortunately they were near the shore, and reached it up to the thwarts in water, one of the men having had the sagacity to place his foot over the hole, and thus to a certain extent keep out the water.

My visit to Curwen's Island was early yesterday morning (the 16th). The day being remarkably fine, I was determined to make the best of it, and to proceed to Ullswater, through the valley of Troutbeck, and thence to retrace my steps a portion of the way and return to Ambleside, at the head of Windermere, from whence this letter is addressed to you.

For this purpose I hired a gig. Shortly after leaving Bowness, at a distance of about a quarter of a mile, there is a little green hillock on the left of the road, which I ascended on foot, and from whence there is a delightful view of Windermere, and particularly of the range of hills at the head of the lake, which I had so much admired when c. cssing to Curwen's island.

I do not suppose that the lake is any where to be seen to greater advantage than from this spot; the view from which includes the whole extent of it. The first part of the road is a pleasant drive a little above the lake, and at a short distance from it. It then takes an easterly direction, leaving Windermere behind, and enters the contracted and picturesque valley of Troutbeck, I shut in on either side by lofty hills, through which it proceeds to the very head of the valley. The lower part nearest to the lake is well wooded, and verdant: and a rapid stream flows through it.

Proceeding up the valley, we passed the little village of Troutbeck, a long straggling row of houses, extending probably about a mile, and built on the brow of the hill, a little above the right bank of the stream,