Some park ups stay with you for the right reasons. This one, just off the A6 near Kendal at roughly 54.3500, -2.7279, has stuck with me for the opposite.
On paper, it looks straightforward. You pull directly off the A6 into the layby, no tight turns, no narrow lanes, no last-minute stress. After a long day behind the wheel, that kind of simplicity feels like a relief. I arrived as dusk was settling, hoping for a quick, uncomplicated overnight stop before heading into Kendal the next morning.
That hope didn’t last.
As soon as the engine went off, the reality of the location became obvious. This is little more than a strip of tarmac bolted onto a major road, and the traffic never really eases. Cars, vans, lorries, all rolling past in a steady stream. The sound of tyres on the road was constant, and instead of fading as the evening wore on, it seemed to build. I kept expecting it to quieten later. It never did. If anything, the noise became more noticeable the later it got.
What surprised me most was how busy the layby itself became. Once darkness fully set in, it filled up with a mix of vans and worn-looking lorries. There is a kind of comfort that can come from not being completely alone when you park up for the night, but this wasn’t that. Vehicles arrived and left at all hours. Headlights swept across the windows, engines idled, doors slammed. Each time I edged toward sleep, something would pull me straight back out of it.
There was also a steady trickle of cars pulling in during the night. Some stayed only briefly before driving off again. Others sat with engines running. That constant movement gave the place a tense, unsettled feel. It never crossed into anything openly threatening, but it was uncomfortable enough that proper rest felt impossible. I lay there listening, alert, waiting for the next set of headlights to appear.
By the early hours, frustration had completely replaced tiredness. It was, without exaggeration, the worst night’s sleep I have ever had at a park up. Any rest came in short, shallow bursts, broken again and again by noise and motion. When morning finally arrived, I felt more drained than I had the night before.
There is nothing around to make up for it either. No quiet water nearby, no open views, no sense of space. Just a narrow layby beside a roaring road, with daytime traffic thundering past almost as soon as the light comes up.
To be fair, this layby does exactly what it is meant to do. It offers a legal place to pull off a main road and stop. In a genuine emergency, when there is nowhere else and you cannot keep driving, it serves that basic function. Beyond that, I would avoid it without a second thought.
Cumbria has no shortage of calm, welcoming places that remind you why vanlife can feel generous rather than exhausting. Set against those, this spot feels loud, restless, and deeply uncomfortable. I left the next morning with ringing ears, heavy eyes, and a firm promise to myself that I would only ever come back here if I had no other choice.
Address: Layby on the A6 road near Kendal, Cumbria, England
Latitude: 54.3500
Longitude: -2.7279
What3Words: ///muted.spreading.verse
Directions: From Kendal, follow the A6 northbound; the layby is directly off the main carriageway at the stated coordinates
Note: Hardstanding layby with separation from the A6; traffic noise is constant day and night