When Steve and Heather Hendy decided to open a guest house in Keswick, the plan was to do 10 years and then move on.
Sixteen years later, the couple have finally found time to call it a day.
This week Steve, 62, and 60-year-old Heather bade farewell to the award-winning Pitcairn House on Blencathra Street, bringing an era to an end but opening up new challenges away from the hospitality sector.
“It’s going to be wrench, no question about it,” Steve said, “because after so many years you get to become part of the town and get to know the faces of the guests who come back over and over again.
“But at the same time Heather and I have hopefully got a few years left and we’re looking forward to enjoying some time together trying something different.”
The couple came to the hospitality trade having previously established themselves in other careers. Steve spent nearly 30 years in the RAF while Heather worked for 20 years in the NHS.
Heather said: “We’d been on holiday to the Lake District a number of times and fell in love with the scenery and the people, so we decided to try our hand at running a guest house.
“We said we’d only do it for 10 years – but suddenly you look up and discover 16 have gone by.”
Since taking over at the Pitcairn in 2007, the couple have won a reputation for maintaining the highest standards. This has resulted in four-star certificates from VisitEngland, plus a Breakfast Award in 2018, 2019 and 2020 and a Silver Award in 2019.
The eight-bedroom property had been on the market for £630,000, but has since been sold to a local buyer who plans to turn it into holiday lets.
“We were keen that somebody from the area took it on,” Steve said. “And we are sure that they will do a great job.”
The couple say they plan to spend the next few months travelling the country in their motorhome, before possibly settling in Heather’s home country of Wales.
