I have visited the Lake District a few times over the years, however not this area and I've never stayed with Sally's Cottages before. We were staying in a barn conversion called Croft House which is in Lamplugh, West Cumbria. The large house has six bedrooms and sleeps 12 people, featuring a huge entertaining area with plenty of comfy seating and a dining table with enough room for a King's feast.
The house an upside down arrangement, which I actually found worked really well for us, and we all settled in quickly. Downstairs are four bedrooms - two doubles, one twin and one with bunk beds (which I said I would take although refused to clamber to the top bunk!). There is also a under stairs toilet and large bathroom complete with roll-top bath which some of us took advantage of. Upstairs alongside the entertaining area are two further bedrooms each with twin beds, and a kitchen area, although I do have to say for such a large house it was a bit on the smaller side, however it had a large range cooker, two fridges and plenty of crockery.
We all arrived at various times over the course of Friday evening, given we were coming from all over the UK - some having driven eight hours to get there. It was a two and a half hour drive from Manchester for me and fortunately the directions were spot on with the sat nav taking me directly outside the property. Outside there are plenty of parking spaces (we fit five cars on the driveway) and like many self catering cottages, the key was in a locked safe outside so you can let yourself in as soon as you arrive.
The property has large grounds which include quaint bridges, log piles and a peaceful stream at the bottom - perfect for lots of insta-worthy photos. We all explored that afternoon before enjoying our first evening where, after gorging on fajitas and tacos, we partook in a few drinks and games before retiring for the evening.
The next day after somewhat of a lie in we all decided to head out for a walk around Loweswater, some of us enjoyed a shorter walk whilst others challenged themselves to take in the full circumference of the lake. For me it was just lovely to breathe in the clear, fresh air of the Lakes and take in some of the awe-inspiring scenery, all the whilst enjoying laughs and the contentment of the easy-going company of fellow bloggers.
That afternoon I took a nap whilst the others relaxed and mingled in the comfort of the sitting area. For our evening meal we decided to visit local restaurant, Shills, which served us course after course of amazing tapas, accompanied by delicious cocktails. On our return to the cottage we finished off with more games and hilarity before heading to bed.
The next day most of us headed back to our homes, however a few stayed on until Monday as Sally's Cottages offer 3 night weekend breaks. I would have loved to have stayed an extra night however John was away the same weekend and so I had to get home to relieve my mum and sister of their babysitting duties!
I'd like to give a big thank you to all the ladies for giving me the opportunity to join them on this trip and for making me feel so welcome. As bloggers we work by ourselves and it can be weeks at a time before we actually see anyone work related and even then it's only for snippets of conversation. To actually spend a good amount of time together is so refreshing and Croft House worked really well to enable us to do this. A huge thank you also to Sally's Cottages for letting us use this property and explore the beautiful Lake District. A final shoutout to Mel, Donna & Sarah for letting me use some of their photos as most of mine didn't do this place justice.
For more on our stay at Croft House you can read these blogs:
*We were given this stay FOC however all opinions are my own.
