EAILWAY APPROACHES. 3 



dulations that the railways penetrate ; and, at 

 the first ridge of any steepness, they must stop. 

 It is this which decides the termination of the 

 "Windermere raiboad, and which prevents the 

 lateral railways from coming nearer than the outer 

 base of the hills in any direction. When the 

 traveller on foot or horseback sees certain reaches 

 of Lake Windermere from Orrest Head, lying 

 down below him, he knows he is coming near 

 the end of the railway, which cannot yet plunge 

 and climb as our mail-roads must do, if they exist 

 here at all. As a general rule, lakes should be 

 approached from the foot, that the ridges may 

 rise, instead of sinking, before the observer's eye. 

 But, so happy is the access to Windermere from 

 the station, that it is hard to say that it could 

 have been better ; and that access is, not from the 

 south to its lower end, but from the south-east to 

 about its middle. The old coach-road over Orrest 

 Head, and the railway, meet at the new village of 

 Windermere, whence the road to Bowness descends, 

 winding for about a mile and a half, striking the 

 shore at a point rather more than half-way up the 

 lake, and commanding the group of mountains 

 that cluster about its head. 



Supposing that the traveller desires to see the 



Windermere scenery thoroughly, we shall divide 



our directions into portions ; first 



Pi^.o6ED PLAIT, e^i^iijitijjg ^hat is to be seen in the 



immediate neighbourhood of the Windermere 

 hotel, or within a moderate walk ; and then de- 

 scribing three tours, two of which may be easily 

 taken in a day each. One mountain-trip will be 

 added ; and, these being faithfully prosecuted, the 

 A 2 



