WANDERING through the garden of Wastwater Cottage, the only sounds I hear are birdsong, the occasional bleat from a Herdwick lamb and the brook at the end of the garden.
The 15th-century four-bedroom farmhouse is the perfect pick for an off-grid break in the British countryside.
My partner Owain and I had initially come to the Lake District with the ambitious plan of tackling some of the biggest mountains in the national park.
But upon arriving in the Cumbrian village of Boot, we were immediately sidetracked.
On our doorstep were two fantastic pubs — The Boot and Brook House — as well as a gift shop and the oldest working water mill in the UK.
Our accommodation was via Bridge End Farm Cottages, which has several luxury self-catering homes in the Eskdale Valley — one of the UK’s best Dark Sky spots.
Our cottage featured rear doors on to a garden, which meant twinkling stars could be easily admired at night.
And each morning we would tuck into breakfast croissants outside as we watched birds of prey hunting on the mountain in front of us.
Inside were stacks of boardgames, as well as Sky TV and a grand piano.
But the highlight of the property was undoubtedly its location.
From our doorstep, we could embark on dozens of walks over the Western Fells.
These include one from spectacular Wastwater lake, the deepest in England, to Stanley Ghyll waterfall — or another up England’s highest mountain, Scafell Pike.
We started our weekend by following the brook down to the River Esk, walking through luscious green forests that are home to native red squirrels.
Children will be sure to love the stepping stones across to the opposite bank.
Of a warm summer’s day, there are also dozens of natural swimming pools to cool off in after a day exploring.
If you head in the opposite direction from the cottage, you can take a footpath up to the ancient White Moss stone circle and enjoy spectacular views of Scafell Pike — without the challenging four-hour hike up to its summit.
En route, we passed hundreds of the Herdwick sheep that live on the mountains year-round.
It turns out this hardy breed was saved from decline by Peter Rabbit author Beatrix Potter, who bred her own flocks in the area.
From here we made a descent into Eskdale, which is a slightly larger village about three miles from Boot.
The village is home to a fantastic — and unexpected — Japanese garden, adorned with maple trees and exotic plants.
An ornate footbridge over a pond is the centrepiece, and despite being on the steep side, the walk around takes only 15 minutes.
With slightly sore legs, we decided to take the vintage steam train from Eskdale back to Boot and our holiday home.
The Eskdale-to-Ravenglass railway was built in 1873 to transport iron ore mined in the valley to the coastline, but nowadays the trains run daily as an attraction, with afternoon tea available to pre-book.
In a charming tradition, passengers must flag down the driver to board, which really adds to the fun.
If you do want to travel somewhere that’s not reachable on foot, car is by far the easiest method of transport. We used Turo (think Airbnb for cars) to rent a vehicle at a much lower cost than a mainstream service.
Driving around, you’ll likely see some pretty cool spots.
Our route took us via the UK’s steepest road, Hardknott Pass — and about halfway up we came across a fabulous 2nd-century Roman fort.
It was well worth getting out to explore, as its walls are the best preserved of any ancient fort in Britain — and free to admire.
For nature lovers, the wonderful Lake District Wildlife Park, just over an hour away from the cottage by car, is home to more than 100 species of birds and mammals, both native and exotic.
Grizedale Forest is definitely one for the kids, featuring a Gruffalo orienteering trail, plus a Go Ape high-ropes centre and the Grizedale Observatory.
There are also boat trips across Windermere, which run every day from Ambleside.
The latter is close to the Beatrix Potter Museum and boasts dozens of boutique shops and cafes.
One of the beauties of staying in the Eskdale Valley is you can tick off all these main attractions but still stay away from the crowds.
As one local whispered to us about the valley’s beauty and tranquillity: “Don’t tell anyone about it.”
I hope she’ll forgive me before I return.
GO: Lake District
STAYING THERE: Seven nights’ self-catering at the eight-person Wastwater Cottage is from £875.