In the summer the trails around Ambleside are flooded with tourists, a virtual no-go area on two wheels unless you’ve got the patience of a saint. In the winter, when the crowds have subsided, they’re wetter than Tiger Woods’ front lawn.

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Hardly sounds like winter nirvana, I hear you cry. Well considering its propensity for precipitation, this area of the Lakes lies on some of nature’s most waterproof terrain.

The mines to the west of Ambleside are home to green slate, the sort of the stuff you’re likely to see cladding the roof of some million pound eco pad on Grand Designs and, unsurprisingly, pretty good at shedding water.

And when the slate runs out, bedrock seems to fill the void, while the low-lying fells around Ambleside keep you safe from exposure yet offer a satisfying reminder of summer’s big mountain epics.