Slogan | Better by Goat / The Best Way To See Lakeland |
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Founded | 1972 |
Headquarters | Windermere |
Service area | Lake District |
Service type | Coach tours |
Destinations | Bowness on Windermere Coniston Grasmere Kendal Windermere |
Hubs | Windermere |
Website | Official website |
Mountain Goat [1] is a bus operator and travel company based in Windermere in the Lake District, England.
Windermere is a town and civil parish in the South Lakeland District of Cumbria, England. It has a population of 8,245 increasing to 8,359 at the 2011 Census, and lies about half a mile (1 km) away from the lake, Windermere. Although the town Windermere does not touch the lake, it has now grown together with the older lakeside town of Bowness-on-Windermere, though the two retain distinguishable town centres. Tourism is popular in the town owing to its proximity to the lake and local scenery. Boats from the piers in Bowness sail around the lake, many calling at Ambleside or at Lakeside where there is a restored railway. Windermere Hotel opened at the same time as the railway.
The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests and mountains, and its associations with William Wordsworth and other Lake Poets and also with Beatrix Potter and John Ruskin. The National Park was established in 1951 and covers an area of 2,362 square kilometres. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2017.
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to the west and Scotland to the north-northwest. The Irish Sea lies west of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south. The country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain, which lies in the North Atlantic, and includes over 100 smaller islands, such as the Isles of Scilly and the Isle of Wight.
Mountain Goat was established in 1972 operating minibus tours to the more remote parts of the Lake District. [2] In 2014, the company won a tender to develop the main tourist centre in Windermere from South Lakeland District Council, spending £150,000 on redevelopment. [3] The company supports the use of the local workforce to run the centre in order to make visitors more welcome. [4]
The company runs a service for foot passengers crossing the lake from Bowness-on-Windermere to Hill Top. [5] This is route number 525, and runs between Ferry House and Hawkshead. You can also take the 525 from Hawkshead, where it does a round loop via Wray Castle.
Bowness-on-Windermere is a town in South Lakeland, Cumbria, England. Due to its position on the banks of Windermere, the town has become a tourist honeypot. Although their mutual growth has caused them to become one large settlement, the town is distinct from the town of Windermere as the two still have distinguishable town centres. Historically part of Westmorland, in 2012, Bowness was one of the official stop off points for the Olympic torch before it made its way to the Olympic Games opening ceremony.
Hill Top is a 17th-century house in Near Sawrey near Hawkshead, in the English county of Cumbria. It is an example of Lakeland vernacular architecture with random stone walls and slate roof. The house was once the home of children's author and illustrator Beatrix Potter who left it to the National Trust. It is a Grade II* listed building. It is open to the public as a writer's house museum, shown as Beatrix Potter herself would have known it. The address is Hill Top, Near Sawrey, Hawkshead, Ambleside, LA22 0LF.
Ambleside is a town in Cumbria, in North West England. Historically in Westmorland, it is situated at the head of Windermere, England's largest natural lake. The town is within the Lake District National Park.
Furness is a peninsula and region of Cumbria in northwestern England. Together with the Cartmel Peninsula it forms North Lonsdale, historically an exclave of Lancashire.
Gummer's How is a hill in the southern part of the Lake District, on the eastern shore of Windermere, near its southern end. How, derived from the Old Norse word haugr, is a common local term for a hill or mound.
Windermere railway station is the railway station that serves Windermere in Cumbria, England. It is just south of the A591, about 25 min walk or a short bus ride from the lake. The station is located behind a branch of the Booths supermarket chain, which occupies the site of the original station building, in front of the Lakeland store. It is the terminus of the former Kendal and Windermere Railway single-track Windermere Branch Line, with a single platform serving one terminal track.
The Windermere branch line, also called the Lakes line is the railway line from Oxenholme to Kendal and Windermere in North West England.
Westmorland and Lonsdale is a constituency in the south of Cumbria, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2005 by Tim Farron, the former leader of the Liberal Democrats (2015-2017).
Hawkshead is a village and civil parish in Cumbria, England, which attracts tourists to the South Lakeland area. The parish includes the hamlets of Hawkshead Hill, 1.2 miles (1.9 km) to the north west, and Outgate, a similar distance north. Hawkshead contains one primary school but no secondary school and four public houses.
Lake Windermere is a very large widening in the Columbia River. The village of Windermere is located on the east side of the lake, and the larger town of Invermere is located on the lake's northwestern corner. The average depth of the lake is only 15 feet (4.6 m).
Near Sawrey and Far Sawrey are two neighbouring villages in the Furness area of Cumbria. Historically part of Lancashire, they are located in the Lake District between the town of Hawkshead and the lake of Windermere. The two lie on the B5285, which runs from Hawkshead to the west bank of the Windermere Ferry, a car ferry across Windermere 1 mile to the east of the villages.
Black Fell is a fell in the English Lake District. It rises to the north of Tarn Hows, between Coniston and Hawkshead.
Graythwaite Hall, near Hawkshead, Cumbria in the Lake District of England is the home of the Sandys family. The gardens within the grounds are open to the public from early April until mid August, However, the hall is closed to the public.
Claife is a civil parish in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. It is situated west of Windermere, and east of Esthwaite Water and the village of Hawkshead. In the 2001 census the parish had a population of 392, reducing to 298 at the 2011 census. Settlements in the parish include two villages, Near and Far Sawrey in the south; and the hamlets of High Wray, Low Wray, Colthouse and Loanthwaite in the north.
Hawkshead Hill is a hamlet in the South Lakeland District, in the county of Cumbria. It is in the Lake District National Park.
Hugill is a civil parish in the South Lakeland district of the English county of Cumbria. Hugill includes the village of Ings and the hamlets of Grassgarth, and Reston plus a large part of the village of Staveley and the west bank of the River Kent north of Barley Bridge. It was formerly a part of the Barony of Kendal. The parish has a population of 446, according to the 2011 Census. Approximately 60% of the population live in Staveley or the Kent valley.
Grizedale Hall was a large country house at Grizedale, Hawkshead, in the Lake District in Cumbria, England. After two earlier Grizedale Halls had preceded, it was built anew in 1905 in the style of Gothic Revival architecture. During World War II it became No 1 Prisoner-of-war camp to hold German officers and was finally pulled down in 1957.
Stagecoach bus route 555 links Lancaster in Lancashire with towns and villages in the Lake District in North West England. The route is approximately 45 miles long and takes on average 2 hours and 40 minutes to complete. It is one of the longest routes as well as one of the most scenic bus routes in England. The route is operated by Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire and was previously operated by Ribble Motor Services.
The Brockhole Lake District Visitor Centre, also known as the Brockhole National Park Visitor Centre, is a visitor centre and tourist attraction managed by the Lake District National Park Authority. It is situated on the shore of Lake Windermere, roughly equidistant between the towns of Bowness-on-Windermere and Ambleside. It includes the Brockhole house and 30 acres (12 ha) of grounds, including 10 acres (4.0 ha) of formal gardens and an adventure playground. The centre organises a number of activities, including orienteering, kayaking and open water swimming, as well as regular exhibitions.