Whether you turn up with muddy boots or in your Sunday best, with wet dogs or children, you will be greeted with a warm welcome at this jolly country inn between Windermere and Beatrix Potter's Hill Top home, less than a mile's walk away. It offers hearty food, real ales from local breweries, roaring fires and a relaxed atmosphere, along with smiling staff. The long bar-dining area, with central log-burner (useful for drying boots), has cheery scrubbed tables and spindle-back chairs, and there's a snug/games room in the adjoining former stables. There are plenty of pub classics on the menu, including steak and ale pie, haddock and chips and burgers, along with more unusual choices such as wild boar sausages; expect large portions. There's also a vegetarian/vegan menu. Quiet and peaceful bedrooms, in the main pub and an extension above the old stables, have a simple, unfussy style. Family rooms come with bunk beds. Spacious bathrooms, most with baths as well as showers, have power showers and deep baths. A full Cumbrian breakfast or fluffy pancakes will set you up for a day's walking.