Grasmere and Rydal Water

Weather: Bright and sunny but much colder than of late.
Start: Grasmere village NY336076
Terrain: One stretch on the road, then well established paths, just one awkward section over a rocky outcrop.
Distance: 3.5 miles
Recommended map: OS Explorer OL7, The English Lakes South-eastern area

Another classic walk in superb mountain country. Leaving the centre of Grasmere by the road to Elterwater, this first section climbs gently and curves round the western shore of the lake.

Eventually a handful of steps leads down to a path which reaches the lake shore and then continues around the lake with superb viewpoints back to Grasmere and the surrounding fells all the way along.

At the far end of the lake, the higher path away from the river leads uphill briefly, where Rydal Water comes into view.

This path gradually meanders down to the water's edge and follows the lake shore, eventually leading through trees to Rydal village and the main road. From here, the open-topped bus service regularly runs back to Grasmere, though at £2.50 it isn't cheap! An alternative option for the more energetic is to take the path up to Rydal Mount, where a bridleway leads all the way back to Grasmere via Dove Cottage, making a 7 mile round trip.

Walla Crag and Castlehead

Weather: Mainly sunny, some heavy showers around but only one caught us at the end!
Start & Finish: The Theatre By The Lake NY265229
Terrain: Good paths or stony tracks, just one grassy section
Distance: 6.7 miles
Recommended map: OS Explorer OL4, The English Lakes North-western area

Profile and map of Walla Crag walk

At the back of the car park, there's a path leading through the woods, this soon reaches a branch leading to Borrowdale Road. Directly across the road is Castlehead Wood and another path leads gently uphill through the trees. Search out the rocky outcrop off to the right of the path where the fence ends - this opens out to a majestic panorama down the full length of Derwentwater towards Borrowdale with Catbells and the mountains of Borrowdale framing the view perfectly.

Panoramic view from Castlehead

Retracing steps to the fence, the original path continues through the woods and soon reaches Springs Road. Turning right, the road soon becomes a bridleway and heads past a farm into Springs Wood. The path now climbs steadily but not uncomfortably alongside Brockle Beck. Eventually the path leads out onto open country, a wall guiding the way up what is the steepest part of the walk. Here though the views back across Keswick to Skiddaw and Bassenthwaite Lake beyond invite a number of pauses to recover.

The final half mile to the top of Walla Crag is much easier going and once on top, the reason for the effort is plain to see. The landscape spreading out below is truly magnificent. A reasonably sized cairn marks the true top, but this is set back from the rocky ledge which presents the very best views. Walla Crag is popular though, so don't expect solitude on the summit.

The best way down isn't the obvious path past Lady's Rake and down Cat Gill as it's particularly steep, although it is the quickest way back if the weather turns. Instead, a better option is to head briefly towards Bleaberry Fell, then follow the clear path over Falcon Crag which gradually descends to another iconic viewpoint at Ashness Bridge. From here there are numerous paths down to the main road, or there's the road from the bridge itself.

After a stretch of roadside walking, a small gap can be found in the wall on the left, and this leads to a tranquil bay on the edge of DerwentWater. From here there's a clear route along the lake shore passing the popular Friar's Crag back to the theatre.

Claife Heights and the Sawreys

Weather: Sunny spells and heavy showers, cool
Start & Finish: Ash Landing car park SD388954
Terrain: A variety of surfaces - partly road or stony tracks, but later woodland sections are rocky, very uneven and extremely slippery in the wet
Distance: 6.5 miles
Recommended map: OS Explorer OL7, The English Lakes South-eastern area

Ash Landing car park lies a couple of bends before the ferry landing stage on the western shore of Lake Windermere. From here there are paths running through the trees in either direction - our route climbs westwards away from the lake parallel to the road. The path follows the road, crossing it a one point and rejoins the road again close to Hawkrigg Farm, where there are views back towards Windermere.

Just past the farm, another path heads across fields towards St Peter's church at Town End. The church is in a tranquil setting and is used by villagers from both Far and Near Sawrey. From here another path leads across more fields and eventually returns to the main road close to Beatrix Potter's house, Hill Top, in Near Sawrey. This is a popular tourist attraction (£5.80 admission charge for adults, £2.90 for children at the time of writing), and operates a timed admission policy due to lack of space.

From the village centre, a bridleway heads north uphill away from the village, past a farmyard and out into more open countryside. Behind are more views of the village and a glimpse of Hill Top itself (it isn't easy to see from the main road). Further on, two small tarns are passed, Moss Eccles tarn and Wise Een tarn. Both are actually reservoirs rather than natural features, but are pretty spots nonetheless.

Eventually the path enters woodland, the views disappear and the terrain becomes much more hazardous - tree roots abound and the smoothly polished rocks stand proud of the surface which are treacherous whe wet. A fast pace isn't possible now.

Following the track to the right, signposts point the way back to the ferry, which suggests the end isn't far away, however this is misleading as this is only the halfway point. The route winds about amongst the trees and eventually reaches a viewpoint over the northern end of Windermere and Ambleside. This is the highest point of the walk, but this doesn't make the descent any easier. The path twists and turns and underfoot, conditions aren't any better.

Eventually the path reaches a broader track, but a few yars after turning right, another path signposted for the ferry heads off through the trees. This leads to further vistas, but the trees don't allow clear views across the lake. A better option would be to remain on the track, which rejoins this path about a mile further south.

Finally a junction is reached with other bridleways, and whilst the direct route back to the car park is signposted off to the left (and then soon after off to the right), the better route back is to head right and follow the bridleway back to Far Sawrey, where the road back to the car is easy to follow. Taking the signposted option involves more careful footsteps over bare rock, which eventually heads steeply downhill back to the car.

Not one of our better walks!