Pinpoint. There is no shortage of choice when looking at swimming spots in the wild in the Lake District. Read Next Where to stay in the Lake District. Wild swimming Peak District: The 6 best spots - Red Bull Best wild swimming in Italy | Lakes and rivers to swim in - CN Traveller If you told me I was in the Lake District, Id be gobsmacked. At the 1.3km mark, youll pass over a wooden bridge and after this point there are lots of little patches of water scattered along the track. Its impressive heights reach 170 feet, with two separate falls at 20 feet and the water force puts on an amazing show after heavy rainfall, which is a regular . These are the 14 best waterfalls in the Lake District: 1: Scale Force2: Whorneyside Force3: Rydal Grot4: Sour Milk Ghyll5: Stock Ghyll Force6: Chockstone Falls7: Fisher Gill Falls8: Aira Force9: Ritsons Force10: Stanley Ghyll Waterfall11: Coniston Secret Waterfall12: Skelwith Force13: Eskdale Waterfalls14: Warnscale Beck Falls, Walk length: 4.2 miles (6.8km) returnDifficulty: Moderate. This is crucial for your own safety. 14 Incredible Lake District Waterfalls: wild swimming and hidden gems, Catarata Del Toro: difficulty, trail conditions and how to beat the crowds, Tips for experiencing the magical Golden Circle in winter, Skelwith Force: a great rainy day activity in the Lake District, Crinkle Crags & Bowfell: Two of Wainwright's favourites in one walk, Tarn Hows and Black Fell: an easy walk in the Lake District, Loughrigg Fell: the perfect walk from Ambleside, Lake District, The easiest route up England's highest mountain, Scafell Pike, Helm Crag - The perfect sunset walk in the Lake District, Warnscale Bothy: a Lake District hidden treasure, 14 incredible things to do in Coniston including secret spots, 16 amazing things to do in Grasmere including the best of its wild side, Stanley Ghyll Waterfall: one of the most atmospheric in the Lake District, The shortest route to Cathedral Cave - just a 15 minute walk, The Giggle Alley Japanese Garden: Eskdale's hidden autumn wonderland, Hodge Close Quarry: how to find the incredible hidden caverns, The quickest walk to Rydal Cave plus a hidden cave nearby, Stock Ghyll Force: Ambleside's beautiful ravine waterfall, Tongue Pot and the spectacular swimming holes beyond, The Buttermere Infinity Pool and the hidden swimming spots beyond, Ritson's Force: incredible electric blue waterholes in the Lake District, Buckstones Jump & the incredible swimming holes at Rydal Waterfalls, Scale Force: the Lake District's wild and mysterious gorge waterfall, Sour Milk Ghyll and Easedale Tarn: 2 spectacular swimming spots in Grasmere, Whorneyside Force: Langdale's secret waterfall swimming spot, Thirlmere infinity pool: how to get there and beat the crowds, The Old Man of Coniston, one of the best walks in the Lake District, Everything you need to know to hike Catbells, Lake District, Seven Easy Walks in the Lake District, England, The best Lake District walks for stunning views, Best things to do in the Lake District, England, The Kindness of Strangers: 10 travel moments that restored my faith in humanity, What it's like to give it all up to travel in your 30's. Should I swim with someone?Ideally yes where possible. The ghyll (deep ravine) upstream is dramatic and the views over the Great Moss up to the Scafell range is one of the most dramatic in the Lakes. With rivers forming picturesque canyons,delightful babbling brooks and natural lagoon plunge pools,theres a wild swim in the Lake District for all tastes. The only hard decision you will have to make, is which one to visit first! Swimmers transferring invasive, non-native weeds to some of the Lake Districts most pristine lakes is becoming a problem. Wild Swimming Italy: Discover the most beautiful rivers, lakes, waterfalls and hot springs of Italy, by Michele Tameni, is out on 12 May (Wild Things Publishing, 16.99). All the spots on this list are wild and have no safety measures in place. This is the place to go for the latest from Walk My World. Best Wild Swimming In The Lake District | Anywhere We Roam Wild Swimming Walks Lake District (Wild Things Publishing, 14.99) is available from Swim the Lakes in Ambleside and online at swimthelakes.co.uk, as well from other local stockists including . There's a 7-day free trial too, so you can access all of Great Britain anytime, anywhere. With misty lakes, meandering rivers and hidden tarns, there are hundreds of places to wild swim in the Lake District. There are always rocks to use as stepping stones and on our visit all but one was tiny and not really worth mentioning - however I know we were walking during an unusually dry spell. THE 10 BEST Lake District Waterfalls (with Photos) - Tripadvisor Wild swimming Lake District: The 8 best spots - Red Bull The Pools Swimming and Health Centre James Street, Carlisle, CA2 5AH Not one, not two, but three swimming pools are located within The Pools Swimming and Health Centre. 7 Avoid areas of blue-green algae, wading in muddy areas or swimming with an open cut. The next part of the circuit has some much boggier ground. Its really picturesque, especially if you luck out with nice conditions. At its deepest point the lakebed is over 250 feet below the surface whilst Scafell Pike, England's highest mountain, towers above Wastwater at over 3,200 feet high. The Lake District: "Wild swimming" adventures - TEAM Mermaids How to use this map / Click on the top left of the map to display the list of locations, then click on the locations to display further information. Buttermere and its surrounding area have been voted time and again as some of the most stunningly beautiful scenery in the Lake District, if not the entire UK. Wild Swimming. From fairytale falls that shoot through narrow canyons, to those with turquoise pools that wouldnt look out of place in Bali. Its a popular location with hikers heading up to the summit of Helvellyn or boat lovers cruising on the Ullswater Steamer. You can read more about the falls, as well as several other stunning waterfalls along the same track (which we havent listed in this article) here. Park at the Blea Tarn car park between Little and Great Langdale Valleys. Swimming there: At the head of a wild glen a tall, slender waterfall falls into a high basin, flows through a circular hole and drops into a plunge pool . Accessing the lower part of the falls is easy, but if you want to experience the upper falls, you need to scramble up several rocky areas, which well go into detail on below. With the largest waterfall in the Lake District, Scale Force, on one side, Rannerdale on the other and also the starting point for the River Cocker. The water is shallower than most of the other lakes on our list with crystal clear water. The weather in the Lake District can change very quickly and it is always beneficial to be aware of any upcoming storms or fluctuations. Know your own limits. 5 If you plan on swimming across deep water then do not go on your own, its safer and more fun with others. At a massive length of over 10 miles and 1 mile in width it can seem scary to the newer wild swimmers out there, but please do not be disheartened. Access into the water is easiest on the southeast side of the tarn. Read Next Conquering ridges on Blencathra. At 61m deep it is the deepest tarn in the Lakes and is as deep as most of our larger lakes; all this in a tarn barely 400m across. 3-5 business days . Being smaller in size and relatively shallow, on a lovely summers day the temperature of the water will be perfect. Dont be fooled by these initial excellent trail conditions, it deteriorates quickly! Following the Langstrath Valley in the Borrowdale area of the Lake District, Langstrath Beck curves through steep woodlands and grassy fields before forming a small dramatic gorge pool cut into a rock ledge. Youll probably be glad of trousers on this section! How Many Lake District Lakes and Mountains. 15 mins. The path around the bridge is also boggy. If you feel the current is fine stay near the bank, as the water is usually slower moving. Sign up to our mailing list to get our free mini guide! Litter tends to breed litter, so if you do spot any and are able to pick it up and dispose of it outside the park, it will go a long way to keeping the area clean. Wild Swimming in the Lake District: The Best Spots - Jennie Wanders Sign up to our mailing list to get our free mini guide! This post may contain affiliate links, meaning at no additional cost to you, that we will earn a small commission if you click through and decide to make a purchase. Whether these are sailing boats, ferries and pleasure craft, or jet skis etc, you are small and hard for them to see. Walk length: 0.7 miles (1.2km) returnDifficulty: Easy. We've rounded up the area's most beautiful villages, towns and hamlets ahead of your next northern getaway. The only difficult part of the track is negotiating the bog. Its also the warmest swimming spot Ive been to in the Lakes so far! We used to talk about travelling the world together, and in 2012 we finally made that happen. There are several small footholds, but even then, I had to take my boots off to feel comfortable going up. Buttermere is a 30 minute drive from Keswick, 30 minutes from Cockermouth and 1 hour from Ambleside. The Best Places To Stay In The Lake District in 2023 If youre planning a trip to the Lake District, here are more of our guides to help you get the best out of this stunning part of England. Its an easy track that is flat for the majority of the way. High up in the mountains, the still water perfectly reflecting the impressive Langdale Pikes is one of the best views in the Lake District. Swimming is a fantastic exercise and when you can do it out in the open with such stunning scenery, it enhances the experience immensely. You need to walk to the left of the lower falls and youll see a rocky slab. Having said that, we didnt have any boot sucking moments, it was more wet than actually muddy for the most part. The lower portion is perfect for swimming and relaxing for all the family, either in the water or around the shoreline. Several little beaches are sprinkled around the shore where you can launch for a long swim, lay in the shallows or just soak up the views from the bank. Added to that, the walk itself is very pretty, with some great fell views. Wild Swimming in the Lake District | Park Cliffe For longer swims in summer or any swims in winter wear a wetsuit and make sure you have warm clothes to change back into when you are finished. Cordee - Wild Swimming Walks Lake District 28 lake, river and waterfall But if youre ready to channel your inner Wim Hof, then you probably wont find a more dramatic swimming spot. Swimming in pairs or groups is good for morale and safety. The waterfall flows into a crystal clear pool and swimming here feels very special. Split Rock Falls, Elizabethtown. Best wild swimming in the Lake District to soak your limbs at the end of a day. This Summer, we swam outdoors more than we've ever done before, and it just got better, and better! Heres everything you need to know about visiting Scale Force. Wild Swimming in the Lake District | Fairy Pools & Lakes | Lifehop 10. Lake District and Cumbria - Wild Swimming At 1 mile wide and 3 miles long, you can choose how far and where to swim to. Cold Water Swimming Challenge - thereluctantexplorers.com Paperback . After a while, the bite of the initial cold dissipates and all that remains is themagic of wild swimming in the Lake District on such a beautiful morning. Chatsworth House, Bakewell, DE45 1PP. Tongue Pot - Image: Daniel Start//WildSwimming.com, The legendary Tongue Pot forms a long emerald pool beneath a roaring waterfall in a cleft of the mountain stream, just beneath a mountain packhorse bridge. Wild swimming: the UK's best outdoor swim spots - The Week UK Not suitable for jumping. After a few hundred metres, the track gets very rocky and youll basically be rock hopping for the next 250m. A wide, picturesque valley wedged between the high mountains; its remoteness adds to its rugged allure. Its gorgeous at any time of year, but if youre visiting in autumn, youll be treated to some wonderful fall colours. 17 Best Lake District Wild Swimming Spots (Only for the Brave!) (2022) Pass through it and youll see some steps down to a wooden bridge just ahead of you. 19 Stunning Lake District Waterfalls You Just Have To See Park at one of the many Glenridding car parks or beside the road. Discover the elegant splendour of Stanley Gill Force, one of Lakelands most graceful falls, once revered by Victorian traveller but now well off the beaten track. If you are planning to camp, continue on rough track for further 600m to park at Stonethwaite riverside campsite (0176 87 77234). Exposure Kamm/D-Shaped Seatpost Silicone Insert and Band for Boost R 5.00 If peace, quiet and beauty is what you are looking for then this is the place for you. However, early morning and sunset are personal favourites especially setting out from places like Ashness Jetty. Park at the car park at the top of the Foulstep Road just above Skelwith Bridge, then walk for 5 minutes down to the tarn. Tongue Pot 13. Although lakes and rivers can look calm and beautiful on the surface there can be underlying dangers. Its more like an ice bucket challenge! After leaving the lake shore, the walk begins to climb, but very gently at first. Lubny - Wikipedia Huge craggy mountains surround the water creating a dramatic atmosphere for a refreshing Lake District wild swim. The more its rained, the more impressive the waterfall will be. But its worth the trip and one of our favourite things to do in the Lake District. Around one hours walk away from Eskdale, you will find this beauty. Kailpot Crag 17. Follow the track upstream for mile. With grassy knolls and ancient rowan trees, perfect clear water and flat rocks for sunbathing, these are mountain waterfalls to surpass all others. There are no facilities at Blea Tarn, so pack your own picnic and thermos of coffee. You will still have to be aware of smaller craft like canoes and sailing boats, but your overall experience may be improved. Scale Force: the Lake District's wild and mysterious gorge waterfall There are few more picturesque spots to wild swim than Blea Tarn. Youll see another wooden bridge just ahead of you, after crossing, youll take a left. It is easy to access, with numerous parking spots along the side so you can step out of your car and into the lovely welcoming waters. For this reason, wed recommend coming early or late. A great place for new swimmers is in Waterhead at Borrans Park. Loughrigg Tarn is a reed-fringed lake set among farmland in the heart of the Lake District. The perfect place for a plunge in natures Jacuzzi. In the sunshine, it would rival the prettiest turquoise water weve seen anywhere in the world. Set among the lush green pastures of gentle rolling farmland, Loughrigg is less rugged than some of the wild swimming on our list. The Julian Alps offer top-class swimming, including the lovely (but costly) Lake Bled lido. Behind the crag are peaceful woods to enjoy and there is a small beach that runs alongside the water. The waterfall has a series of drops, each with its own unique beauty. Although no one waterfall is huge, each is utterly spectacular. 2 hours. What is wild swimming? | Advnture Kail pot and Pillar pot are 25 minutes from the car park; Tongue Pot is 20 minutes further. Cornwall. Whatever your motive, the UK has some stunning spots for wild swimming, from secluded rocky pools to unspoiled hillside lakes. This is not the only infinity pool in the Lake District, but it is one of the most beautiful. With stunning photography this book reveals the best crystal mountain lakes, secluded lake-side beaches, and turquoise pools hidden deep in waterfall- The atmosphere is other worldly. Go to Basket/Checkout | Sign In | +44 (0)1455 611185 Each of the parking locations mentioned in this article have been marked on the map, along with the best spots to jump in for a swim. As the biggest and most famous lake in the National Park and in England, it could not be left out.