- 1 night
- Wild camp in Appleby
I’d been researching local wild camping spots and found a car park in the village of Appleby-in-Westmorland which looked promising. James planned an 80k cycle route which would allow us to explore the Eden valley, and we packed up the bikes and set off. The car park was empty when we arrived, so we parked up the van and loaded up our bikes.
We quickly climbed out of the village and passed through the quiet villages of Dufton and Knock. We stopped outside a pretty church in Kirkland to sit in the shade. Our first cafe stop was The Old Village Bakery in Melmerby. Although there was lots of outdoor seating, we were keen to escape the sun and sat inside for lots of cake, coffee and juice. Fully refreshed, we continued North to Renwick, before turning South toward Penrith. There was quite a steep climb through the woods out of Langwathby, so the following descent into Penrith was a welcome reward.
We stopped at Penrith after 55km to refuel, and had a car park picnic of delights from the salad counter at the local Morrisons. The last stretch felt harder, the roads were flatter, but there was a slight headwind, and the scenery was less interesting. The village of Kings Meaburn was pretty, and we had to drop steeply (and then climb steeply!) to cross the little beck running through the valley.
When we got pack to the van we were surprised to see it was full of campervans! I’m glad we’d parked up early on. We headed into the village for some takeaway and a pint at the Crown and Cushion.
The next morning, we drove out of Appleby on to the Orton road, and stopped at a layby for breakfast with a view. Full of porridge and coffee we headed up Orton Fell and explored the Great Asby Scar National Nature Reserve. We were pleased to find an interesting monument on the top of Beacon fell, and enjoyed walking the open hills.