For anyone who visits the Lake District, the A591 is an unavoidable pleasure to drive.
Winding for 30 miles from Kendal to Keswick, it follows the shore of Lake Windermere for stretches and offers beautiful views at every turn.
It being the main thoroughfare means that it is a tourist trap, but the most clogged sections through Bowness-on-Windermere and Ambleside are tempered by vistas of boats, fells and mountains.
Get lucky, avoiding turfing-out time of the campsites and B&Bs, and even this varying speed limit run can be a rewarding experience.
The A591 also has a questionable claim to being the best road in Britain, following a calculation created by quantum physicist Dr Mark Hadley and Hermann Tilke of F1 circuit-design fame/notoriety.
The road came out on top in a study by hire-car company Avis, and you can say what you will about some of Tilke’s tracks but he certainly knows how to make a great driver’s circuit – if not necessarily a particularly exciting one for spectators.
When you leave Ambleside, continue heading north to where the true treats really await.
A technical, twisting route touches the banks of Grasmere and passes Helvellyn, before the trees part to reveal views that have inspired some of Britain’s greatest writers and poets.
And even, erm, Taylor Swift in much more recent times…
Wide, perfect Tarmac means progress is unimpeded and through the valleys you get to take in the rugged hillsides while still cruising along in awe.
