The view from here

January 3, 2012

The view from here

A new survey has hit our inbox, revealing the nation’s favourite winter views. As is often the case, the poll specifics are a bit random (the survey, conducted by OscarUK.co.uk, asked 461 people over the age of 50 where they would “imagine” the best view to enjoy during a wintry walk would be), but it’s always good to have a list in the first week of a new year.

And so, the top ten views (as voted for by a relatively small group of people approaching retirement who may or may not have ever been there) are:

1)      Lake Windermere, Cumbria
2)      St Ives Harbour, Cornwall
3)      Bamburgh Castle and the Northumberland coastline
4)      Malvern Hills, Worcestershire
5)      Upper Swaledale, North Yorkshire
6)      Stonehenge at sunset
7)      Glastonbury Tor
8)      The Seven Sisters Cliffs, East Sussex
9)      Loch Coruisk, Skye
10)   Hadrian’s Wall

It’s a pretty good list, although the voters’ imaginations don’t seem to stretch as far as Wales or most of Scotland or Northern Ireland for that matter. There don’t seem to be any mountain views either - perhaps once you hit 50 you want to look at hills you might still be able to conquer? Who knows.

A (very) quick poll amongst the Weekenders came up with a few alternatives: the view down onto pretty Marloes beach in Pembrokeshire, the view from Waterloo Bridge on a wintry walk around London, any of the Dartmoor Tors rising out of the mists on a foggy day, seeing the dreaming spires of Oxford appear on a walk along the upper Thames, views of the Mourne Mountains from Tyrella beach in County Down, oh, and any brightly-lit country pub where cold noses and muddy boots are welcome.



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