A different way

For lots of unavoidable reasons today was the last opportunity we had to return something to Keswick.
We knew the combination of covid+weather+Bank-Holiday would mean it was awful but we had no choice. So we set off early. Stupidly I half hoped I might even get to christen the paddle board, but realistically we'd at least get a Missy walk.
Niether happened.
It was simply hellish. By 9am people were double parked everywhere, most field gates we saw were blocked, double yellows ignored. I'd strongly doubt the bus could make the Keswick to Grange road, it was tough in my little van.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those anti visitor locals. This is a National Park. Somewhere for everyone to play, pause, ponder, to find their own special. But.
The park simply can't cope with this number of visitors.
We'll it can, easily, just not the way they arrive, the people are fine, the thousands of cars parked badly, parked thoughtlessly or just simply abandoned is unsustainable.
We need an authority that can look beyond the easy revenue attraction of hiking up parking prices and begin to understand that protecting the park is more important than protecting their salaries, they need to be innovators and leaders, they need to find a different way for the park to survive. Personally I prefer a Banff model. Locals and the disabled get go anywhere passes, everyone else parks at regional hubs (Kendal, Penrith, Cockermouth, Ulverston) and then travels by (free to the user - yes needs a wholly non Conservative approach) mini bus or licensed taxi. All activity providers should pay a per person fee and be required to provide transport or use the public system.

We returned our item and fled (which in itself took two hours) and then went for a wander on our local fells and saw not a soul. We did see the first of our lovely "locally common, nationally rare" wildflowers. Ice cream may also have been involved.