LET’S GET TWIZY: AN ELECTRIFYING EXPERIENCE

So far our car free adventures in the Lake District have been just that. We have walked, biked, bussed and boated our way around to show you just how much fun you can have when you leave your car at home.

However, this month we have gone back on all that by not only using a car to explore, but really enjoying the freedom and ease it brings. But this car is no gas guzzler and it’s so quiet that if we drove up behind you, you might not even know we were there.

If you haven’t already guessed, we are of course talking about one of the Renault Twizy electric cars, which you can use to explore the Lakes. You can hire yourself a Twizy from various locations in the Lake District, but we decided to pick ours up from the Langdale Hotel, in Chapel Stile.

People sometimes have a few doubts about electric cars and whether they are really powerful enough to deal with some of the steep hills here in The Lakes. So, first up we thought we would test out the little two-seater by taking it on a spin up Wrynose Pass – a notoriously steep road that has proved a challenge for far larger and more powerful vehicles than the Twizy.

As the Twizy whirred its way quietly up the lower reaches of the pass, we were both a little apprehensive. Wrynose is a pass that is famous for burning out clutches and brakes and we didn’t really relish the idea of having to reverse back down if the Twizy couldn’t hack it. However, the Twizy not only got up the hill, but shot up it in style, with the added advantage of being small enough to easily duck into the side of the road to let other traffic past.

Even though the Twizy only has a top speed of around 40mph, the fact you are so low to the ground makes you feel like you are going much faster than that and so Sophie’s inner speed junky was satisfied as she whipped it around the hairpin bends on the hill.

One preconception people can have about electric cars is that they can’t be taken very far before they run out of power. When we picked up our Twizy, we thought a trip to the top of Wrynose from the hotel (a distance of about 12 miles) would probably be our lot.

However, the Twizy actually has a range of over 60 miles before it needs recharging and so we were able to head back down Wrynose and over into Great Langdale and then onto to lovely Britannia Inn at Elterwater. The Twizy charges using a regular plug and extension lead and so we were able to leave it recharging its batteries while we enjoyed a cuppa.

The Twizy is a really fun way to get around the Lakes and, like us, we are sure you’ll be surprised at just how far it can go and the terrain it can deal with. There is even room to pack your picnic under the seat. You can hire a Twizy for £10 an hour from Langdale Hotel and Spa, the Ambleside Salutation Hotel, Grasmere Independent Hostel and Hill of Oaks Caravan and Lodge Park. As always, for more information go to http://www.golakestravel.co.uk