Lake District stopover suggestions en route from Sheffield to Glasgow

[Dazedandconfus]

Hello!
I need some suggestions for the Lake District please.
DH, DD (23) and I will be travelling from her uni in Sheffield, to Glasgow, via the Lake District for the few days.
I would love some Lake District suggestions please, for places with some decent hikes, pubs etc but perhaps in a good location for us to not spend ages driving to and from the
motorway.
Any suggested areas or specific places to stay would be great!
Thanks

North Lakes Hotel and Spa is a super handy hotel just off the motorway. V nice stay, food decent.

The Low Wood or The Swan on Windermere.

How high do you like to walk, and how fit are you?

You could stay in Penrith & use the X4/X5 bus to Keswick and you've got Latrigg and Skiddaw straight from town, or the whole of Borrowdale from a bus from outside Booths. Latrigg is reasonably gentle bit with good height; you need to be pretty fit for Skiddaw but the tourist track is easy - no navigating skills needed.

Low level there's the stone circle at Castlerigg and St John's in the Vale, and a lovely walk to Watendlath - a wonderful little hamlet that features in the Rogue Herries books - and is not too overrun with tourist tat.

Wet days - the X4/5 to Cockermouth and see Wordsworth's birthplace house as well quite a nice High street of independent shops, although the floods a few tears ago wiped a few of then out of business.

Bus use means you don't contribute to the parking shemozzle in the actual Lake District with all the damage that does to the landscape. The buses are easy & very convenient.

The Yan in Grasmere. Just lovely. Cartmel if you want further south.

We recently stayed in Ambleside. It was around half an hour from the motorway. Lots of hikes from Ambleside itself, plus lots more a short distance away by bus or boat. We parked the car when we got there and didn't move it until we left. We stayed in the Waterhead Inn by the lake and also ate at the Ambleside Inn in the town centre.

Oh yes, loads of easy & hard walks from Ambleside. And a quick bus trip to Grasmere for Easedale, Seat Sandal and the Fairfield round, Red Screes, all around Grizedale tarn - you can walk over to Ullswater from there - although Kirkstone Pass is, um, impassable still.

I find Ambleside a bit too crowded myself, but it would be convenient for your purposes.

Keswick is lovely and not too far from the M6 junction at Penrith. Much "nicer" than the more popular places such as Windermere and Ambleside and generally quieter too, but still easy access to various lakes, lots of walking/hiking/climbing routes, decent small shops, and some nice hotels/B&Bs etc.

I love Ambleside too. Rydal caves is lovely and a moderate trek if you’re not super athletic! You can park at the start of the walk. Otherwise you can just potter around the town. Great pie shop, lots of ice cream, nice pubs and even a little cinema if it’s raining.

Ambleside was relatively quiet earlier this month, quieter than I expected which was nice. We spent very little time in the town itself during the day though. It was nice to have a good choice of places to eat in the evenings when we got back from walking all day.

Ambleside was quieter b/c it was raining endlessly ...

Tarn Hows near Hawkshead (National Trust) is an easy, flat and scenic walk.

I also like Lyzzick Hall in Keswick. It's not cheap but practically at the foot of Skiddaw, if you fancy a more challenging climb.

Lakes are hell in summer. I’d do Northumberland .

Second Lyzzick Hall. Beautiful gardens.