Detour Pit Stop #35: Lakeland Motor Museum, Cumbria, UK
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There are many, many reasons to visit the Lake District: climbing, hiking, riding, sailing and sausages are but a few. The perilous passes and lakeside roads make Cumbria a must-have on any keen drivers’ tick list and the delightful Lakeland Motor Museum simply makes any trip to the lakes even more compelling.
The museum squeezes 140 classic cars and motorbikes into a collection that has taken over 50 years to gather. You’ll find Messerschmitt micro cars alongside the first TVR, ordinary classics like the Austin A35 and cultural icons including the DeLorean DMC12 and Jaguar XK140 and dozens of two wheelers or all ages.
For speed freaks the Campbell collection is perhaps the most fascinating, after all it was on nearby Lake Coniston that both Malcolm Campbell and his son Donald broke the water speed record. Donald tragically died trying to go faster still. The museum has full-size replicas of the 1935 Blue Bird Land Speed record car, the 1939 Blu Bird K4 boat and the 1967 Bluebird K7 hydroplane, plus Donald Campbell’s 1937 4 1/4 -litre Bentley with its Park Ward coachwork in the family’s signature blue. The exhibition is a moving tribute to the British father and son of speed.
There are more than 30,000 items on display in total, so take your time to soak it all in. It’s but quite some years since Detour last visited, but we’ll definitely be heading back.