The Ullswater Way
The Ullswater Way is a 20 mile walking route (plus 2 loops) around the Lake District’s second largest lake. We’ve now done it all, most of it twice because of out-and-back walks, over three visits to Cumbria, two of which I have already written about. However, for my own satisfaction and to keep everything in order, I’m including those posts here along with my write up of the other stages which we have just completed.
Stage 1: Pooley Bridge to Aira Force (6.5 miles)
We walked this as two out-and-back walks in June 2025.
Stage 2: Aira Force to Glenridding (3 miles)
We walked the next three sections in September 2025. We did Stage 2, the shortest and easiest part of the walk, by driving to Aira Force and walking to Glenridding and back. Near the beginning we spotted two elements of the Ullswater Way Heritage Trail. The Dorothy Gate is inscribed with words from Dorothy Wordsworth’s journal: I never saw daffodils so beautiful. Harriet and Rob Fraser created three treefolds in 2017 to mark the UK Tree Charter, of which this is treefold:north.
The views over the lake were lovely.
And it wasn’t long before the start of Glenridding came into view. I found a handy bench, Jude, from which to peer down on it (and there will be several more benches in this post).
On arrival in Glenridding lunch called during which we bagged two Wainwrights – the only ones of the week 😉 – then we made our way down to the Ullswater Steamer Pier which we would use the next day.
After that, we turned and walked the three miles back to our car.
Stage 3: Glenridding to Howtown (6.5 miles)
We did this stage in reverse by taking the mid-morning steamer to Howtown and walking back to Glenridding. I’m glad we didn’t have to do it twice (though we have done it before, around 15 years ago) because, as the official guide to the Way says, at times the rustic lakeside path tussles with rocks and roots. It was potentially ankle breaking in other words!
However, before setting off on the main walk we went a mile in the other direction and back. This was because the next stage has alternate routes and we wanted to walk it as a circle so we thought we’d get the short connecting section out of the way in advance.
The views on that mile were the best of the day and it was my favourite (because easiest) part of the walk. By the time we got back to Howtown it was lunchtime, so we made use of the Village Tearoom before setting off again.
The first thing to catch my eye was another bench, dedicated to MB 1931-1988 – a little overgrown perhaps, but with a lovely view of the lake.
We saw fungi galore.
A robin redbreast and a red squirrel.
And a delightful family of ponies.
Lake views, of course, and at one point a waterfall (Scalehow Force).
Finally, there are two more parts of the Heritage Trail on this section. Poetry Stones are inscribed with verse by Kathleen Raine who lived in nearby Martindale in the 1940s. They are now very hard to find – and read – being well camouflaged by nature’s growth.
On the other hand, the Artists’ Seat, dedicated to JMW Turner, Ann Macbeth and John Glover, could not be missed.
I was not unhappy to finish this walk – but the next day proved to be the highlight.
Stage 4: Howtown to Pooley Bridge (5 miles upper path, 4 miles lower path)
We chose to walk this stage as a loop from Pooley Bridge, going out by the upper path via Barton Fell and returning via the lower lakeside path. The first section was on a minor road where we found the first bench of the day, inscribed to Bill White – in memory love lives forever. It’s well worn, but the views are gorgeous.
Passing through a gate we continued on a broad track. After a short climb we reached another element of the Heritage Trail, the Roman Seat where the High Street Roman road is thought to have run. We’d been here two years before when we walked the Lowther Castle Loop which touches the main route here.
Striking out across Barton Fell we soon passed the Neolithic Cockpit Stone Circle. I was, as you can see, very happy with this stage of the way.
This view across the lake is interesting to us because it shows where we stayed in June this year – the Brackenrigg Inn is the white building above the marina. Our current accommodation, Beck House Barn, is hidden in the clump of trees above it.
We had taken a picnic lunch with us which we ate perched on yet another part of the Heritage Trail, the Sitting Stone inscribed with words from Alfred Wainwright. It was not terribly comfortable, but at least you could read this one: that loveliest of lakes, Ullswater, curving gracefully into the far distance.
After lunch it didn’t take us long to reach the signpost where the upper and lower paths met and which we had already walked to the day before. At this point, we had officially completed the Ullswater Way!
We still had to get back to Pooley Bridge though, using the lower path which was mainly through farmland. We spotted a badger weathervane at Crook-a-Dyke Cottages, another bench of sorts at Waterside House Campsite (where we grabbed a welcome coffee), not ducks in a row but gulls in a row, and the day’s final Heritage Trail find, the Clarkson Memorial. Thomas Clarkson was a leading anti-slavery campaigner who lived near here for 10 years and who founded the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade in 1787. The plaque recreates the Society’s emblem.
Dalemain and Lowther Castle Loops (5 miles and 8 miles)
Cumbria 2023: Dalemain and Lowther, two loops on the Ullswater Way
This is where it all started back in September 2023 when we picked up a copy of the Ullswater Way Guide at Dalemain. We didn’t revisit Lowther on our latest trip but we did go back to Dalemain, and took the tour of the house. No photography allowed, but I can tell you it’s a surprise. The unifying Georgian front of 1744 conceals a mish mash of rooms, some dating back to Tudor and even medieval times.
We also repeated the Dalemain Loop so I’ll finish with a gallery of some of this year’s photos (including, inevitably, some benches).
We were lucky to have such good weather to complete the Way – the rest of our week in Cumbria was not so clement, culminating in Storm Amy. More about that next time!
Linked to Jo’s Monday Walk.
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
Lovely photos Anabel. I haven’t done the full circle. It is on my wishlist.
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Every walk has its own charm, though I didn’t like the one from Howtown so much. Too rough!
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Congratulations on finishing the entire walk. I’m sure you must be very pleased. The name Ullswater sounded familiar to me, so I looked in my England post from when we were there in 1999 and I had been bowled over by the scenery. Here’s what I wrote: “We were awed by the scenery as we drove through Kirkstone Pass amidst rolling mountains, sheep pastures and stone fences, from Ambleside to Glennridding to Ullswater.” We just drove that route, but walked only one six-mile hike up Cat Bells and alongside Derwent Water. Beautiful country!
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Oh, I’m glad you’ve been there! It really is a stunning part of the country. We broke down on the Kirkstone Pass once when I was a child and my dad had to hitch a lift to the nearest place with a garage.
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I have the Ullswater Way on my Bucket List and hope to follow your example now I’ve retired. I have walked quite a it of it over the years but it would be good to do the full loop over 2 or 3 days.
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Yes, that would be perfectly doable with boats and buses if you wanted to avoid retracing your steps (though the loop from Pooley Bridge was probably my favourite bit).
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I’m a firm believer in taking a minimum of two years over these trails. Very civilised.
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Though two years for a 20 mile trail (plus loops) might be considered a tad excessive!
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No no, if anything you’ve been rushing it
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😄
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The Lake district looks just gorgeous! I’m sorry to be so late to reading this post….Things have been very hectic at home, and keeping up with my blogging isn’t going as well as it should.
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Not at all! Glad to see you any time. We all have lives and understand that blogging sometimes comes way down the priority list.
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Looks like a lovely hike. I will catch-up with your other posts over the coming days…We are back from a 5-weeks trip to South Africa and Namibia so we are busy processing our pictures and adding them to our blog. (Suzanne)
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It was lovely, thanks Suzanne. I spotted a notification so will catch up with you soon.
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well your squirrel was in much more beautiful settings that the one red one I have seen which was in a car park on the Isle of Wight!
Love how you have connected all the walks together
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I expect the squirrel was just as pretty though!
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Excellent point, it was 🐿
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It’s a photographers dream the Lake District. No other like it. Bob. BSS.
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It is! Hard to go wrong with those views.
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“Wainwright baggers” 😂
How lucky to see a red squirrel. The only time I’ve seen one outside of a feeding station is 6am on Arran when two sat in the middle of the road. I’ve spent hours staring up into trees on my hiking, without success.
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Well, they were Wainwrights! Very good ones too 😉.
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What a wonderful time you had. I love that red squirrel; such a privilege to see one.
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We had a great time and the squirrel was a bonus.
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The views, benches, and little discoveries along the way make it sound so special. Loved reading about your adventures, what a rewarding way to explore the Lake District!
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Thank you – there is an organisation called Friends of the Ullswater Way which looks after it and has created the heritage trail. It has done a brilliant job!
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Looks a really lovely walk with wonderful views.
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Yes it was, I particularly liked the views from the far side of the Lake looking across to the side where we were staying.
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A good supply of benches is a valuable addition to any walk. When you have got a picturesque lake as well, you are onto a winner. Excellent picture of the squirrel. They are hard to catch unless they’re at a feeding station.
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A well placed bench is indeed a boon. I think all the other times we’ve seen red squirrels they have been at feeding stations, but this one was boldly sitting on a fence.
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There are a few round us here, but I rarely see one.
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I think this walk would be far nicer done in short stages as you have done, rather than one long slog. You had time to stop and enjoy the scenery and take beautiful photos. You did have lovely weather too and that always helps.
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Yes, a 20 mile slog would not at all suit me! It was nice to have the different stages. We had good weather for all three visits which is quite something for the Lake District! Well, on this last visit it was good until we’d completed the Way, then it deteriorated. But we knew what was coming so we planned it to make sure we got the Way done first!
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Truly marvelous scenery, Anabel. Loved all the fungi and the topiary dragon. A shame the poetry inscriptions aren’t much legible anymore. I like all the memorial benches.
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I loved the mixture of nature and heritage installations. The Friends of the Ullswater Way do a great job caring for it.
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Ageing is a bugger, isn’t it? I love to walk but it doesn’t always like me these days. Well done for your perseverance. I think I’ll just sit a spell on Bill’s bench. It’s rather lovely. Thanks for linking, Anabel xx
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You are so right! Age does not come alone. I liked Bill’s bench too, lovely inscription.
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Well, that’s quite an achievement, though it’s a shame you had to do some ‘there and backs’ to get it done. But you saw lots of memorable things on the way – my favourite being the red squirrel.
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We were lucky to see the squirrel. There were notices everywhere on the roads warning you to look out for squirrels, but I think most of them must have been on their holidays! That was our only sighting.
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You’ve seen one more than I have!
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Have seen quite a few in Scotland before but this was our first Lakes one.
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Well done for completing the Ullswater Way and taking me along too! I loved all your photos and the descriptions of benches, scenes, poetry and wild life you saw on your progress. Thank you.
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Thank you for coming along!
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Lots of benches, lots of lovely fungi and lots of beautiful lake views! More walking than I could attempt so I’m very grateful that you took us along with you via this and your other posts 🙂
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It’s a beautiful lake, we really fell in love with it. Some of the distances were probably reaching the edge of my arthritic feet’s comfort zone, but most of the walking was quite easy apart from the rocky / rooty bit round Howtown. It would also have been possible to make more use of the boats and buses to enable one-way walks if the weather hadn’t been so good.
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The Lake District is so very picturesque. I have only driven alongside Ullswater to Pooley Bridge, though we did stop and walk a short way along the lakeside. And you are as obsessed as me with the benches, though they are all very handy to have in this part of the country. So many with marvellous views. Well done on completing the walk – what’s next then? Wainwright’s Coast to Coast?
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Well, if I am obsessed with benches I know who to blame! The Ullswater Way is a tiddler compared to other “long” distance paths – I know some who could do the whole thing in a day. I recently read a book about someone doing the Coast to Coast and it sounded tough by my standards so I think I shall rest on my laurels for now.
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Who to blame? Moi? 🤭
I’m no long distance walker / hiker. I know my limits and they are very short these days especially where ups and downs are involved. A gentle stroll around a garden is about my limit. I believe the coast to coast is best done from west to east. This is the direction Alfred Wainwright designed the walk to be done. He said “you are best doing the walk with the prevailing wind at your backs”
There are B&B establishments along the route so you could do it in stages I guess.
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Most definitely you!
I know my limitations too – it’s not stamina that is the problem but arthritis in my feet which is a real nuisance. Even doing it in stages some of the coast to coast days would be very long.
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Ah, yes. Arthritis is not good.
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You’re not kidding!
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A beautiful part of the world. Very calming.
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It is, I do find water very calming.
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I’m familiar with some parts of the Ullswater area but not all of it so it’s nice to see it through your eyes. You got some lovely photos as usual my favourite is the first view above Howtown – love the squirrel and the robin too 😊
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That is a lovely view – in general the views from that side of the lake were better I thought. John spotted the squirrel but we’d have missed the robin if another couple of walkers hadn’t drawn our attention to it.
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