JP really put the curse on the weather for us. Overnight it rained a bit and continued through the day. Most of the time the temperature hovered around 16C.

We had a good night at the Ibis hotel. The room had a module in the corner, about 2.4 metres square, which held the shower, toilet and basin. All made out of fibreglass, with a raised floor and it would be a simple installation. Some of the B&B's could use this design.

After breakfast we walked to the Railway Station and discovered that the Ibis was on the edge of the city centre. Then a couple more blocks down the road to the Information Centre. It was still raining. We stopped off at a Phone Shop to get new SIM cards and back to the car in the hotel car park.

Jim's UK number is +44-7778-637-247  Will advise Lynette's tomorrow.

We had a pile of washing and the address of the only launderette in Carlisle. We managed to find it and wandered in. Luckily there was only one other couple there and we could use two washing machines each. In talking to them, I noticed that the guy had a South African accent. They were actually from Cambridge NZ, and has escaped from SA 12 years ago. The guy is an electrician who knows Roscoe, one of the people who manages the repeater that Ian and I use on a daily basis. It's a very small world!

Once the washing was done, we went to the Tullie House museum. It's just across the road from the Carlisle castle. The museum has a number of exhibits from Hadrian's Wall, which is only 500m down the road, to Reivers through to modern day exhibits. Reivers were the vagabonds of the borders, the area between Scotland and England, who made their living by robbery and raiding. There's some good names in there. One I spotted was the Kerrs.

After a couple of hours there were headed South into the Lake District. It was a case of going around the city a bit and then hitting the motorway south. Once we turned off the motorway we were back onto a two car and tissue paper road. Most of the times cars could pass okay, but there were a few times that one had to stop in order for the other to get by.

On a clear day, it would be great. You are driving along with a lake on one side and there are hills in all directions. Of course stone walls line the roads and some energetic characters have created stone walls that go way up the hills.

We cruised into Windemere and then onto Bowness. We could not find the B&B that I had booked over the internet so I phone the owner up. I really struggled to understand him and we thought we were lost again, but when I phoned him, he said “Hang on, I'll come and get you.” We were parked next door.

The B&B is very nice and we had dinner down in Bowness.

The APRS is not reporting our position, but appears to be OK. Looking at the map, I'm beginning to wonder if it is not supported up this end of the country.

I tried to add a couple of people onto the blog list but it wouldn't let me, so in the end I took it off being a restricted access blog and have opened it to the world. Hopefully we don't get too many clowns.

The Citadel at Carlisle

Carlisle Castle in the damp

A fine English summer's day en route to Windemere

Apparently there is something to do with Beatrix Potter and Bowness